Meet Schedule and Information

Alto Swimmers and Families,

I am reaching out with information and a detailed overview of Alto meet registration and attendance for families. Please review carefully. Even if this is not your first year competing with the team I would like all parents and swimmers to review the reminders below.

Meet Schedule / Updates - Please carefully review the updated calendar and meet schedule for your swimmer’s group: Alto Schedule. Regular meet attendance is very important for skill development and families should make every effort to attend 100% of the meets on the group schedule.

Swimmer / Family Communication - In the following I have outlined more background information about the communication you can expect for every meet that Alto attends. Parents please read through this carefully, but even more importantly please assist your swimmer in accessing this information! At every age, the Alto Coaches expect that swimmers will read team communication and be responsible for knowing the information outlined. Our Coaches will communicate the entry, venue details, arrival time, etc through email. They will also review meet information with the swimmers in person at practice.

Meet Schedule –

1) Attending meets on a regular schedule is an important component to skill development and skill assessment. Swimmers at Alto attend every meet scheduled for their practice group. Please review your swimmer's group meet schedule online and ensure that your swimmer can attend all of the meets listed on the calendar – Alto Schedule.

2) The Alto Coaches complete and submit all Alto team meet entries. Each swimmer's individual event lineup is decided by their coach.

3) If a swimmer cannot attend a meet or a meet session, please communicate a minimum of 60 days in advance by sending an email to your swimmer's lead coach. Unless the coach receives an email in advance communicating a conflict, your swimmer will be entered and billed for the meet.

Swimmer Event Entry –

Meets usually begin accepting entries 4-6 weeks in advance, but this varies for every meet. As soon as a meet opens and begins accepting entries, the Alto Coaches enter our team right away. Meets close when they reach capacity (sometimes in less than 12 hours). For this reason, you need to email in advance if you cannot attend. When a meet opens, we will not send a reminder (the coaches will enter right away and email the entry once submitted).

Once the entry is completed, the Alto Coaches will send a copy of the entry out to the team. Please always read that email carefully to ensure the following –

1) Your swimmer is included

2) Your swimmer is entered in the correct number of events (usually either 3 or 4 per day for regular season meets)

3) Your swimmer is entered in the correct events (for example, let your coach know if you see that all of their peers are entered in one set of events and your swimmer is entered in something different – this may be intentional but it’s best to clarify)

If there are any issues, communicate with your coach right away so that they can correct errors. Occasionally, there are mistakes – these can be fixed when they are pointed out in a timely manner. Once a swimmer’s entry is submitted to the host team, it cannot be canceled or refunded. However, a missing swimmer can likely be added or incorrect events can likely be fixed.

Arrival Time –

The age / gender breakdown (by session) will always be listed in the “Meet Sheet,” which is an info sheet that the host team provides. When we send out the entry, please check the meet sheet to see if your swimmer's age group is competing in the morning or afternoon. The exact Alto team check in time will be sent out to families after the host team collects all entries and tells us how long each session of the meet is estimated to last.

Generally, most regular season (non-championship) meets that Alto attends follow the same breakdown for AM / PM sessions. There are some exceptions to this. The breakdown is often as follows. When there is a different age distribution we will let families know as soon as we are aware of a change –

Morning session, approx. 7 AM check in – 11 & overs
Afternoon session, approx. 12 PM check in – 10 & unders

What Your Swimmer Needs to Know –

Please show your swimmer their coach's emails on a regular basis. Swimmers should review all of the team and meet information that is sent out. If your swimmer has their own email account, please respond to this email and send over their email address so that the swimmer can be added to their group's email list.

Please reach out via email if you have any questions.

Go Alto!
Coach Richie