I have a 12-year-old son who is in his third year of competitive swimming (He's been in swimming lessons since he was 6 months old but never swam competitively until he was 10). No one in my family as ever been a competitive swimmer so I am still learning all the nuances of the swim world, even after three years into it.
Given that, I am trying to educate myself on what is the typical amount of "coaching" a swimmer gets at this age (or any age really)? What I mean is, I know by this age they pretty much have their strokes down but I'm thinking there are still things that need to be fine tuned. So how often does a coach or assistant coach say, "Your arms are crossing over during your free, trying doing this to lessen that." or "Your arms need to shoot out right away during your *** so you glide more."? Is it typical to have swimmers at this age just swim laps with no input from the coaches other than what to do next?
Any insight is helpful. I still feel like a fish out of water at times.
Seems to me that what the kid/swimmer wants ought to be the primary concern. Sure, the parents are paying for the kid to be part of the team/club. The parent and child should determine what they want from the team. If the kid isn't so concerned about getting faster, but just wants to join...and if the particular club/team/coach is primarily concerned with winning...then maybe the parents/kid should find another team/club. When my daughter swam in h.s. she didn't really care about becoming a faster swimmer. (She didn't swim on teams as a youth.) In h.s. she just wanted to swim and be with friends. She, like lots of other kids on the team, did it only for the social aspect...to be part of a group, to make and be with friends. That's sort of why they don't have 'tryouts' and don't cut kids from the h.s. team. (That's how it is in my area. Maybe in other areas school swim teams do have tryouts/cuts.) Other than the cost of a swimsuit, goggles, and cap...there's no charge to be on the h.s. team. Club teams might be different.
In regard to participation where kids (via their parents) pay be on the team...
When my kids were young, there were a few times I coached their youth sports teams. Not swimming, but baseball, basketball, soccer, etc. Me coaching was usually a result of not enough people stepping up to coach (people who know the particular sport much better than I)...which would result in fewer teams, with more kids per team, and thereby less playing time per kid. I was somewhat of an anomaly among the youth league coaches, with a different participation philosophy. Since the parents were paying for their kid to be on the team, I tried to ensure that every kid on my team had equal amount of minutes in games. Winning wasn't primary. Having fun was. Only if the games were close at the end...then I might put the better players in for extra minutes.
So, I say that because I feel that if the swim team in question requires payment to participate...then all swimmers/parents should get equal time from the coach.
Dan
Seems to me that what the kid/swimmer wants ought to be the primary concern. Sure, the parents are paying for the kid to be part of the team/club. The parent and child should determine what they want from the team. If the kid isn't so concerned about getting faster, but just wants to join...and if the particular club/team/coach is primarily concerned with winning...then maybe the parents/kid should find another team/club. When my daughter swam in h.s. she didn't really care about becoming a faster swimmer. (She didn't swim on teams as a youth.) In h.s. she just wanted to swim and be with friends. She, like lots of other kids on the team, did it only for the social aspect...to be part of a group, to make and be with friends. That's sort of why they don't have 'tryouts' and don't cut kids from the h.s. team. (That's how it is in my area. Maybe in other areas school swim teams do have tryouts/cuts.) Other than the cost of a swimsuit, goggles, and cap...there's no charge to be on the h.s. team. Club teams might be different.
In regard to participation where kids (via their parents) pay be on the team...
When my kids were young, there were a few times I coached their youth sports teams. Not swimming, but baseball, basketball, soccer, etc. Me coaching was usually a result of not enough people stepping up to coach (people who know the particular sport much better than I)...which would result in fewer teams, with more kids per team, and thereby less playing time per kid. I was somewhat of an anomaly among the youth league coaches, with a different participation philosophy. Since the parents were paying for their kid to be on the team, I tried to ensure that every kid on my team had equal amount of minutes in games. Winning wasn't primary. Having fun was. Only if the games were close at the end...then I might put the better players in for extra minutes.
So, I say that because I feel that if the swim team in question requires payment to participate...then all swimmers/parents should get equal time from the coach.
Dan
