The State of Master Swimming.

1. Does an LMSC still really need to pay hundreds/thousands of dollars each year for a printed newsletter? That's up to the individual LMSC. I can only answer for Virginia. Communications -- both top-down and bottom-up and specialized forms (eg among coaches, or within a team) -- is critical in my opinion. You want the word to get out about events, you want feedback from members, you want to get the members more engaged, etc etc. In Virginia we offer both electronic and paper newsletters. I was worried about going electronic-only because I heard concern from a number of sources (officers in other LMSCs and from our own members) that a sizeable fraction of people will not read an electronic-only newsletter, and that the membership will become less engaged. So we have a monthly email plus a monthly newsletter, and the email includes a link to an electronic version of the printed newsletter. Members have the ability to "opt out" of receiving the paper newsletter if they wish to keep LMSC fees low and be green. Some statistics: 30-35% of LMSC members who receive the email actually open it. And just under 11% of our membership have chosen to "opt out" of the paper newsletter at this time. So yes, in Virginia we think it is worth it. It may be different in other LMSCs, of course. 2. Does USA Triathlon pay registrars in regions all around the USA when they do all registration on-line? I don't know what USAT does and don't much care, either. Though their annual fee is comparable to USMS's, if I recall correctly. Do you really want to ape the USAT model, charging hundreds of dollars for the opportunity to compete? For a long time in our LMSC, the Registrar was an unpaid position. It is a lot of work, though, and our last Registrar up and quit one January. As you might imagine, that's not an ideal time. Much chaos and bedlam ensued, including many swimmers who wanted to swim in a meet but couldn't get registered. As Top Ten recorder, I also need to work with the Registrar and really appreciate timely responses to inquiries. I didn't always get that with the other (unpaid) Registrar. So we now pay our Registrar and she does a fantastic job. I guess online registration may make her job a little easier, but I think about one-third of our membership chooses to register by mail. We also offer a reduced fee for swimmers in the 18-24 age group and there is no way to implement this online at present. Plus there are one-event registrations, which must be done by mail. So yes, it is worth it to us. Other LMSCs may have a different answer. 3. What did the LMSC gain by funding each of the individual LMSC delegates to convention? Or is convention a bit of an incentive award for a year of volunteer work offered to the LMSC? No, it isn't a perk. For me, at least, it is quite a hassle to take time off from work and family to go to Convention. (Of course at this point I'm going on USMS' tab as a committee chair.) Many of our LMSC officers are active at the national level, and they bring their knowledge and expertise to our LMSC. Lots of ideas are also gained by talking to delegates from other LMSCs, as well as the various workshops. If we didn't think it was worth it -- in addition to representing the interests of the LMSC in voting matters -- then we wouldn't fund them. And if the individuals didn't think they gained something from it, they wouldn't go.

1. Does an LMSC still really need to pay hundreds/thousands of dollars each year for a printed newsletter? That's up to the individual LMSC. I can only answer for Virginia. Communications -- both top-down and bottom-up and specialized forms (eg among coaches, or within a team) -- is critical in my opinion. You want the word to get out about events, you want feedback from members, you want to get the members more engaged, etc etc. In Virginia we offer both electronic and paper newsletters. I was worried about going electronic-only because I heard concern from a number of sources (officers in other LMSCs and from our own members) that a sizeable fraction of people will not read an electronic-only newsletter, and that the membership will become less engaged. So we have a monthly email plus a monthly newsletter, and the email includes a link to an electronic version of the printed newsletter. Members have the ability to "opt out" of receiving the paper newsletter if they wish to keep LMSC fees low and be green. Some statistics: 30-35% of LMSC members who receive the email actually open it. And just under 11% of our membership have chosen to "opt out" of the paper newsletter at this time. So yes, in Virginia we think it is worth it. It may be different in other LMSCs, of course. 2. Does USA Triathlon pay registrars in regions all around the USA when they do all registration on-line? I don't know what USAT does and don't much care, either. Though their annual fee is comparable to USMS's, if I recall correctly. Do you really want to ape the USAT model, charging hundreds of dollars for the opportunity to compete? For a long time in our LMSC, the Registrar was an unpaid position. It is a lot of work, though, and our last Registrar up and quit one January. As you might imagine, that's not an ideal time. Much chaos and bedlam ensued, including many swimmers who wanted to swim in a meet but couldn't get registered. As Top Ten recorder, I also need to work with the Registrar and really appreciate timely responses to inquiries. I didn't always get that with the other (unpaid) Registrar. So we now pay our Registrar and she does a fantastic job. I guess online registration may make her job a little easier, but I think about one-third of our membership chooses to register by mail. We also offer a reduced fee for swimmers in the 18-24 age group and there is no way to implement this online at present. Plus there are one-event registrations, which must be done by mail. So yes, it is worth it to us. Other LMSCs may have a different answer. 3. What did the LMSC gain by funding each of the individual LMSC delegates to convention? Or is convention a bit of an incentive award for a year of volunteer work offered to the LMSC? No, it isn't a perk. For me, at least, it is quite a hassle to take time off from work and family to go to Convention. (Of course at this point I'm going on USMS' tab as a committee chair.) Many of our LMSC officers are active at the national level, and they bring their knowledge and expertise to our LMSC. Lots of ideas are also gained by talking to delegates from other LMSCs, as well as the various workshops. If we didn't think it was worth it -- in addition to representing the interests of the LMSC in voting matters -- then we wouldn't fund them. And if the individuals didn't think they gained something from it, they wouldn't go.