While we won't know definitely until we seed each day, my estimates for a meet of 2000 swimmers are as follows:
Thursday, May 15th - 8:00 am - 8:00 pm
Friday, May 16th - 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Saturday, May 17th - 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Sunday, May 18th - 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Again, these are just estimates. Until we print the heat sheet each day, we won't have an official timeline.
Mark Gill
Meet Director
markgill@usms.org
On a similar note....
I have never been to a national meet, but I am considering attending LC Nationals. I've been wondering:
How do people spend their 8 to 12 hour day at the swim meet? Do you bring food? Do you leave and come back? Do you stay wet and chlorinated all day? How much warm up do you do? I guess you might warm up say 1500 - 2000 yards during the 7:00am warm up but what about for your event that starts at 5:00pm? (I'm weary just thinking about it!)
I would be very interested to hear from people on how you spend your time during a long day at a meet. (bring a good book?)
Going to the vendors village is always fun - there are sometimes some real bargains to be had there. In Cleveland I got last year's model of a knee-length suit for only $25.
I also enjoy talking with other competitors in my age group. I am in one of the older age groups, and it is nice to converse with others like me. At home most of the people my age are in water aerobics (the watery gossip session variety).
Then there is always warm-ups and cool-downs and checking results.
How to spend your day at nationals?
Try going to the vendor village. Every National Championship will have one set up. In Tempe, it will be located 100 feet from the pool inside the National Guard Armory. In there will be swim shops selling suits by the Victor, Speedo, Arena, TYR, Adolph Kiefer, and Nike. In addition, there will be food vendors located there as well.
As for warm-up, you may choose to come in the morning and swim in the competition pool or you can come later in the day and swim in the additional warm-up pools. In Tempe, there will be two 25 yard 8 lane warm-up pools available throughout the entire meet. These are located adjacent to the competition pool. For a photo of the aquatic complex, go to www.sundevilmasters.org and look under facilities.
Mark Gill
Meet Director
markgill@usms.org
When you are swimming 2-3 events per day, plus relays, the time at nationals goes by amazingly fast. Warm up, then shower, put on race suit, watch teammates swim and then your event is up! Re-warm up, swim, swim down, and the cycle repeats. Its not "what time is it?" but " what event are they on?" Before you know it, the meet is over for the day.
Yes, bring some food, such as power bars (or whatever type you prefer). Instant oatmeal is great for a quick in-hotel breakfast if you are not an early riser.
It is good to do some "meet warm ups" in practice to get a feel for how much you need. Every one is different, but, physiologically, the muscles need to get warm, which takes a minimum of 10 minutes--most folks go longer. Hope this helps!
Thanks for your responses.
I have a handful of local invitational meets and a couple of zones under my belt at this point, but those are over by 2:00pm latest. The prospect of a much longer day seems a bit daunting. My plans to attend the Rutgers meet are falling into place, so I guess I will learn from the best teacher of all -- experience! Thanks again! Kim
