Newbie here and I do not have anyone to chat with to get help. I have recently registered with NC Masters and thus the US Masters. Do you then sign up separately for USA Swimming? Do masters sign up for this? I have two boys who swim who are USA Swimming registered and its great for tracking times etc. Any help much appreciated. I love to swim and have done so for years and I am starting a local "unofficial" masters swimming group at my local Y. I say "unofficial" because while I know the technique of swimming I am not familiar with the whole administrative aspect of it like the Masters and USA swim, getting certified and through and then whether it be just Maser or also USA Swimming as well. Any help is greatly appreciated! Great to be her.
My 2 cents ...
First, congratulations on living in North Carolina! North Carolina is a wonderful state for masters swimming, and has quite a number of excellent, well-run meets every year. Keep an eye on the Dixie Zone website for up-to-date information on USMS meets and open water events in North Carolina and around the southeast.
Second, don't worry about signing up for USAS. Only the best-of-the-best in masters swimming can keep up with the hotdog kids in USAS. There are a few masters who can do it, but they are rare.
Welcome to the party! :welcome:
I suggest you reach out to Bill Brenner, U.S. Masters Swimming, Club and Coach Services Director. www.usms.org/.../natoffice.php
Bill can help you with the administrative aspects of a Masters club, as well as a plethora of other services available through USMS.
Thanks everyone for the help. Bill has contacted me and will see where things go from there. I guess I wanted to make sure that I could swim and not have to be USA-S member. My sons can swim in some meets and if they are not USA-S then they can not swim in others and thus we sign them up for USA-S. Didn't know if it was like this with the Masters or not. Luckily living close to Charlotte NC there are meets in my area. Hopefully I get to see some of you one day. I am going to aim for the Masters meet in August of 2014 in College Park MD., that is I have to learn more about it first.
Second, don't worry about signing up for USAS. Only the best-of-the-best in masters swimming can keep up with the hotdog kids in USAS. There are a few masters who can do it, but they are rare.
I disagree. You don't need to be super fast to swim USAS. I think it's a great option to give competition alternatives in areas that don't have lots of masters meets. If you're not opposed to swimming against kids and feeling completely out of place on deck, USA Swimming is a great option. USA Swimming being great for "tracking times" isn't a good reason to join, though. USMS is just as good if not better in this regard.
you don't need to join USA swimming separately. Masters swimming tracks times the same way as USA swimming does. BTW There is a great Masters meet in Charlotte in January every year.
