FAST Recent News 2007-2008

• The Psych Sheet for the 14U Short Course State meet has been posted.

• Board Minutes from the December meeting have been posted.

• Meet Entries Due Wednesday for the North Jeffco Long Course Invite, Saturday May 17-and Sunday May 18. This meet will fill instantly. Note the days you plan to swim on the entry form, and the coaches will enter you. VERY IMPORTANT if we want to get into this meet! Note: Meet Information details will be posted as soon as they are available.

• Meet Support information has been updated for the 14U Short Course State meet. FAST is hosting this meet at EPIC on February 29-Mar 2.
  Meet support volunteers are still needed for:
  FRI AM: Hospitality; SAT AM: Timing Console; FRI & SUN AM Announcing positions
  If you are interested in any of these positions, please contact Karen Markel at meet-support@fortcollinsareaswimteam.org

• Parents are not allowed on deck during practice. FAST parents are welcome to watch practice from the EPIC lobby or balcony. According to USA Swimming insurance policies - parents are not to be on deck. Parents watching from deck can also be distracting to the swimmers. The exception is if parents pay at the front desk in order to swim themselves.

• See the Board Meeting Highlights for important information!

• A Tentative Meet Schedule for March - July 2008 has been posted

Week of February 17, 2008

• Warm-up Times and Parking Permit for Silver/Senior State.  Warm-up Assignments are posted for Silver State. Also, you must print and use the Parking Permit for Silver/Senior State. Parking information and instructions are included with the permit.

• Timers for Silver/Senior State. FAST must provide one timer (lane 5) for all sessions of Silver State. Timer meeting is at 7:50 each morning. We must provide one timer for Sat. (lane 6) session of the Senior State meet. Timer meeting is at 3:40 p.m.

• Practice Change: No practice for Senior group on Friday. Instead, seniors can go to their high school workout or Presenior practice at 6:00 p.m. All other practices are at usual time.

• Psych sheets are available for Silver State and Senior State meets.

• Meet Support information has been updated for the 14U Short Course State meet. FAST is hosting this meet at EPIC on February 29-Mar 2.
  Meet support volunteers are still needed for:
  FRI AM: Hospitality; SAT AM: Timing Console; FRI & SUN AM Announcing positions
  If you are interested in any of these positions, please contact Karen Markel at meet-support@fortcollinsareaswimteam.org

• Parents are not allowed on deck during practice. FAST parents are welcome to watch practice from the EPIC lobby or balcony. According to USA Swimming insurance policies - parents are not to be on deck. Parents watching from deck can also be distracting to the swimmers. The exception is if parents pay at the front desk in order to swim themselves.

• Equipment can no longer be stored at EPIC. After giving swimmers a month to keep equipment bags off of the floor in the storage area, EPIC staff is now requiring all swimmers' bags to be removed. Swimmers have until the 14th of February to retrieve their bags. After that, they can be found in the guard room for pick up. EPIC staff realizes this will be a hardship for some, but it is necessary for the safety of personnel who use the storage area.

• See the Board Meeting Highlights for important information!

• A Tentative Meet Schedule for March - July 2008 has been posted

Week of January 28, 2008

• Meet Support information has been posted for the 14U Short Course State meet. FAST is hosting this meet at EPIC on February 29-Mar 2. Please contact Karen Markel at meet-support@fortcollinsareaswimteam.org to sign up, earn your meet support credits, and help us host a great meet!

• Those families not going to Winter Districts Friday night may enjoy watching Fossil Ridge High School vs. Estes Park at EPIC at 4 p.m. or CSU vs. UNLV at Moby 3:30 p.m.

• Meet Entry forms (PDF, XLS) have been posted for Silver State/Senior State.

• The Entry List, Psych Sheet, Warm-up Assignments, and Lane Timer Assignments have been posted for the Winter District Meet.

• Results for the Loveland Heart of Winter Meet have been posted.

• An updated Best Times report has been posted.

• All new swimmers to FAST must be at least six years old and have passed Level V Red Cross Swimming Lessons or the equivalent including:

1. 50 yards of continuous Freestyle with side breathing.
2. 50 yards of continuous Backstroke.
3. 25 yards of basic Breaststroke
4. 25 yards of basic Butterfly
5. basic shallow dive
6. basic freestyle flip turn or forward summersault

Board Meeting Highlights

• The summer travel meet is scheduled for June 5th – 8th in Albuquerque, New Mexico. An effort was made to secure the dates earlier than in the past in hopes that more families will be able to attend. Please take a look at the details of this trip on the website. The travel meet is always fun for the kids and it helps generate camaraderie.
• Do you have a question you would like to have answered by the coaches or the FAST board? Chances are someone else has the same question. Please submit your questions to Lance Holter (via email to lholter @ frii.com). He will get the answer to your question and post it in a team email or on the FAST website.
• SWIMMING 101 for Parents - Have you ever wondered what it feels like to dive off the blocks, execute a flip turn, or swim the IM? If so, you're the perfect candidate for a class FAST would like to offer to parents of swimmers this spring. If there is enough interest, the FAST coaches will offer three, one-hour IN WATER swimming classes. The classes are not swimming lessons. The classes are not training sessions. The classes are an opportunity for parents to get in the water and experience the training and racing techniques taught to their swimmers. The classes are an opportunity to meet other FAST parents in a fun social setting. The classes are intended to educate parents on swimming in the same manner their swimmers are being educated. The hope is to offer one class the end of March, another in April, and a final one in May. The cost for the class is simply the entry fee into the Epic pool. If you have any interest in participating in the swim classes, please contact Lance Holter at lholter @ frii.com (or call 229-9339). At least 25 parents are needed to make the classes worth the effort to run.

• The Loveland Meet Entry list has been posted.

• Entry Forms for the Northern Colorado Swimming Winter Districts Meet in Estes Park have been posted. Please turn entries in by Tuesday, January 15.

• Updated records have been posted.

• Read the Thank You Letter from the organization that received the FAST Holiday Donations! Thanks to all who participated!

• Meet Results for the FAST Winter Open have been posted.

• A new Best Times report has been posted.

Week of December 31, 2007

• Warm-up Lane Assignments for the FAST Winter Open have been posted.
  FAST SWIMMERS: Please be on deck and ready 15 minutes prior to the warm-up time.

• Meet information for Winter Districts has been posted.

• Winter District Hotel: FAST has reserved a block of rooms at the Holiday Inn in Estes Park Feb. 1 and 2 (phone: 970-586-2332 after January 7). The cost is $99.00 per night, which includes a hot breakfast starting at 6:30 am both days. Rooms are saved until Jan. 18. Lets have a big turn out for this meet!

• NO PRACTICE: Friday, January 4th and Monday January 7th

• Psych Sheets for the FAST Winter Open have been posted.

• The FAST Winter Open Meet Entry list has been posted. Note it does not include Wintersquad times.

• Unofficial results for the FAST Wintersquad and FAST Time Trials have been posted.

• The Loveland Meet Entry list has been posted.

• The Meet Support Schedule has been posted for the FAST Winter Open. Please contact Whitney at FASTmeetSupport@aol.com to sign-up!

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FAST Holiday Project

Dear FAST families. As we enter deep into the holidays we have decided to take on a project to give back to our community this season and we are hoping that you will join us.

What?

This Christmas season, FAST will be sponsoring 6 families for the holidays. What this means is that 6 families in dire need will be receiving Christmas gifts donated by our FAST families. The families are all registered with a local program to place families with a holiday sponsor. In talking with the social workers, the families we are sponsoring are often not having their most basic needs met. Some face eviction, others live without phone, most have not received a Christmas present in quite a while. Each individual is asked for a "need" item and a "want" item. One of the families is simply asking for support so the mom can see an Orthopedist. We have been told that this particular family is in a extreme situation that cannot move forward without medical care.

How?

The item lists will be posted inside the new cabinets in EPIC (If you have not seen the cabinets they are the new home to the family folders). If you are interested in participating please sign your name next to one of the marked items. Because we have many-fold more families than items on our list, we are adding gift card options to the list. We ask that all items are new items and that you do not bring food items (program policy) but food gift cards are absolutely welcome. Anyone wanting to donate money to the family needing medical care may donate with cash or check.

When?

We are hoping to wrap all the presents at the "Wintersquad" meet in December. However, if you purchase items and are anxious to deliver them you may bring them to coach Tasha anytime before then.

Please know that it is a completely voluntary project and you have no obligation as a FAST member to participate. We do however, appreciate any support you are willing to give.

Now let's give these Ft. Collins families an INCREDIBLE holiday!!

Thank you and have a GREAT day!

Coaches Bill, Tasha, Glee, Katie, Denise, and Chris

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Week of December 3, 2007

• Practice Changes:
  Fri Dec 7: Senior practice 5:15 a.m. (pre-seniors are welcome). No p.m. senior practice; pre-seniors do have p.m. practice.

  Sat Dec 8: No practice

  Mon Dec 10: No practice for senior, pre-senior, or blue groups

   

• The Meet Support schedule for the Wintersquad Meet has been posted.

• FAST is taking Sweat Suit Orders for the holidays. Turn your order in by December 12 to ensure delivery before Christmas. Place the form and payment in the Order Folder, which is with the coaches' folders in the family files.

• FAST Board Meeting Highlights have been posted.

• See North Jeffco Meet Updates below if you are attending the North Jeffco Meet. This includes the warm-up schedule (please be ready 15 minutes prior) for Sat/Sun morning prelims.

• Entry forms, Meet Information, and the event template for the FAST Winter Open have been posted.

North Jeffco Meet Updates

• Warm-ups for the 2007 Colorado Pineapple Open Timed final sessions on Sat/Sun have been changed to 1 p.m.-1:45 p.m. due to the large number of participants in the prelim final session.
• Prelim/Final warm-ups will be split into 2x35 minute sessions in the morning, with a 10 minute open session for starts at the end of warm-ups. All other warm-ups will be open.
• FAST hotel rooms at the are still available, if you would like to stay overnight. Call 303-262-5077 to make arrangements at the Doubletree Denver North, 8773 Yates Drive, Westminster, CO 80031 (www.denvernorth.doubletree.com).

Friday, Dec 7

Afternoon Session:

General warm-ups: 12:00-12:40 p.m./12:45 p.m. start

 

Evening Session:

General warm-ups: 4:00-4:50 p.m./5:00 p.m. start

 

Saturday and Sunday, Dec 8 & 9

Prelims:

Saturday FAST warm-ups: Lanes 13/14 from 7:05 to 7:40 a.m.; 8 a.m. start.

Sunday FAST warm-ups: Lanes 13/14 from 6:30 a.m. to 7:05 a.m.; 8 a.m. start.

Timers: FAST must provide 1 timer in Lane 10 for Sat/Sun prelim sessions.

 

Timed Finals:

General warm-ups: 1:00-1:45 p.m. /1:50 p.m. start.

Timers: FAST must provide 1 timer in Lane 7 for Sat/Sun sessions

 

Finals:

General warm-ups: 4:30-5:20 p.m./5:30 p.m. start

 

FAST 11/27/07 Board Meeting Highlights

1. The board is investigating the possibility of allowing FAST dues payments to be made electronically.

2. The cabinet installation is nearly complete. The countertop should be installed in the next day or so. The board is investigating the possibility of hanging a white board with a calendar of events above the new cabinets.

3. Two hospitality co-coordinators have been identified. Lisa Adams and Mary Doyle are taking on the role.

4. The board is continuing to outline additional team duties that will be awarded meet support credit.

 

 

Week of November 25, 2007

• FAST is taking Sweat Suit Orders for the holidays. Turn your order in by December 12 to ensure delivery before Christmas. Place the form and payment in the Order Folder, which is with the coaches' folders in the family files.

• FAST Board Meeting Highlights have been posted.

• See Holiday Meet Updates if you are attending the Holiday Meet. This includes the warm-up schedule (please be ready 15 minutes prior).

• See North Jeffco Meet Updates below if you are attending the North Jeffco Meet. This includes the warm-up schedule (please be ready 15 minutes prior) for Sat/Sun morning prelims.

• Entry forms, Meet Information, and the event template for the FAST Winter Open have been posted.

• Practice Changes: Seniors only, Thurs Nov 29. practices will be 5:15 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Friday Nov 30 practice will be at 5:15 a.m. only due to girl's high school meets.

• Meet Information and Entry Forms have been posted for the Wintersquad Meet.

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Holiday Open Meet Updates

December 1-2, Mulberry Pool

• The start of the meet on Saturday and Sunday Morning has been pushed later due to the time line. Warm-ups on Saturday and Sunday Morning start at 8:00 a.m. and the meet start is 9:00 a.m. This should have the meet ending around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday and 11:15 a.m. on Sunday.
• The afternoon session's warm-up will start at noon and the meet starts at 1:00 p.m. as scheduled.
• You can find the psych sheet at the following link:
  http://www.redtails.org/index.php/holiday-meet-psych-sheet

Warm-up Schedule

Saturday and Sunday Morning
"A" Warm-up (8:00 - 8:25 AM)
FAST (Lanes 1-5)
Brighton (Lane 6)
Eaton (Lane 6)

"B" Warm-up (8:25 - 8:50 AM)
Vortex (Lanes 1-2)
Longmont (Lanes 3-4)
Estes Park (Lanes 5-6)

Saturday and Sunday Afternoon
"A" Warm-up (12:00 - 12:25 PM)
Longmont (Lanes 1-3)
FAST (Lanes 4-6)

"B" Warm-up (12:25- 12:50 PM)
Vortex (Lanes 1-3)
Eaton (Lanes 4-5)
Brighton (Lane 6)
Estes Park (Lane 6)

Swim-A-Grams

The host team is providing Swim-A-Grams for families to show support for their swimmers. A Swim-A-Gram will appear in the program below an event. Please see the provided link for a better description. They are open to any family member or team mate who wishes purchase a Swim-A-Gram; however, only one per event. The link will show you which events have already been taken. The cost is $5, please see the following link for more details:
http://www.redtails.org/index.php/swim-a-gram-sign-up?order_by=EventNum&order_type=DESC

Team Photo Information

Thursday, November 15

• Swimmers need to be at EPIC at 4:00 to get their team shirt and get lined up for photos.
• Photo order forms will be in the family folders by Wednesday. 
• Please bring them back with payment on Thursday – there will only be a small amount of extra forms available.
• Team photos are at 4:30 on Thursday. 

FAST Fall Splash Intrasquad Meet

Moby Pool on the CSU Campus

Saturday, November 10 (warm-ups at 9:00 a.m., events start at 10:00 a.m.)

• There is no cost for this meet! 
• The meet is in a "pentathlon" format. Al swimmers in each age group will swim the same 5 events. See the Meet Information for more details.
• Sign up no later than Tuesday, November 6. To sign up, simply use the sign-up sheet posted by the family folders at EPIC.
• Intrasquad meets are for FAST swimmers only, and they are designed for swimmers and families to gain experience swimming and working a meet in a slower paced environment.
• The meet support sign-up sheet is full. Thanks everyone for volunteering!

October Board Meeting Highlights

Meets – The remainder of the 2007 swim schedule has been posted on the website. Bill is working to finalize the January, February, and March meet schedule. The Holiday Open at Mulberry Pool on December 1st and 2nd is the recommended meet for swimmers in Silver, Gold, and White. The North Jeffco meet on December 7th – 9th is the recommended meet for swimmers in White, Blue, Pre-Senior, and Senior. Please note: The North Jeffco meet is a prelim/finals format for all swimmers 11 years and older. The sign-ups for the North Jeffco meet will appear shortly. They need to be turned in early because the meet fills up quickly.

Swimathon – The Swimathon is Saturday morning November 3rd at Moby Pool. Over 500 donation letters were mailed as part of the swim-a-thon breakfast on October 13th. All swimmers planning to participate in the swim-a-thon should notify Randy Pritchard (r4pritchard@earthlink.net), so an accurate count of participants can be determined. Please let Randy know if you will be swimming Saturday morning or if you will need to participate in a make-up swim. Make-up swims will be performed the week of November 5th through 9th. Tentative arrangements are in place for a special swim-a-thon make-up session to be held on Tuesday November 13th for the swimmers in Glee’s groups. Bill is trying to work out the lane arrangements for this swim with the EPIC staff.

October 31st – Understanding that many of the swimmers will be out trick-or-treating on Halloween, the coaches are hosting an “all-groups” practice from 4:30pm until 5:30pm on Wednesday October 31st. NOTE: The senior group practice will begin at the normal time and end when the “all groups” practice ends.

Record Board – Look for the new record boards to be hung on the Epic walls late this week or early next week.

Hospitality Coordinator – The team is looking for a Hospitality Coordinator (or Co-Coordinators). This position fulfills all meet support duties for the year for up to two people. FAST is recognized state wide as providing the nicest food spread and snacks for the coaches and officials who attend our meets. We hope the new Hospitality Coordinator will continue that tradition. The Hospitality Coordinator(s) is responsible for meet menus, soliciting donated/discounted food from vendors, making sure the food is in place during the various meet sessions, and a variety of other tasks. Please consider joining forces with a friend and volunteering for this important task. To volunteer or receive additional information, please contact Lisa Hill (lizamhill@hotmail.com).

Meet Support – It was decided that the Communications Coordinator and Webmaster volunteer positions will be granted full meet support credit. The following positions are being more clearly defined: Social Director, Publicity Coordinator, and Raffle Director. After the positions are defined, it is likely that the volunteers filling those positions will receive full meet support credit.

State Meets – FAST is hosting the 2008 and 2009 Colorado Short Course State meets. FAST is also hosting the 2009 Long Course State meet. In the event that Air Force is unable to host the 2008 Long Course State meet, FAST will accept the option to host the meet.

October 15, 2008

• The meet information for the Loveland Fall Harvest meet, November 16-18, has been posted. Entry forms will be posted when they become available.
• The new 2008 CSI Silver State, Age-Group State, and Western Zone qualifying times have been posted.

Highlights from the 09/25/2007 FAST Board Meeting

• The coaches are doing another round of practice group realignments in an effort to increase the head count in the Senior Group and reduce head count in the Silver and Gold Groups. An attempt is being made to balance the groups to keep the number of swimmers per lane to a minimum.
• The Swim-A-Thon date is November 3rd. The board is hoping the great raffle prizes being offered to those who participate will push participation to 75%. The Swim-A-Thon will be resuming its traditional place on the fall calendar in hopes of attracting many of the senior swimmers who are busy with high school swimming later in the year. The swimmers participating in the Northern Colorado All-Star camp will be allowed to do their Swim-A-Thon laps prior to camp.
• The date of the first intrasquad meet has changed from November 3rd to November 10th. The CSI officials use the intrasquad meet as an opportunity to train new officials, and they wanted the date moved to get greater participation in the training session.
• Research is being done on the cost of obtaining portable blocks for the Silver and Gold Groups to utilize in the diving well so it is safer for the younger swimmers learning starts.
• At the end of the hiking season, Blue Group swimmers will have Saturday morning practice sessions available to them. Thanks Tasha.
• 2007/2008 Officers: President: Randy Pritchard; Vice President: Lisa Hill; Treasurer: Todd Campbell; Secretary: Jim Malone

Hike Coyote Ridge with FAST!

Saturday, September 29.  All swimmers and parents welcome!

• Meet at Coyote Ridge parking lot: Take Overland Trail, parking lot is on the right, south of Trilby.
• Parking is free
• We will leave promptly at 8am (we will meet at 7:50am).
• Hike is for all swimmers (swimmers under the age of 12 should have parental supervision)
  All parents welcome!
• Bring water bottle, dress appropriately
• In the event of bad weather, a team email will be sent out at 6:30am with updated instructions.

Practice Changes for Silver and Gold Groups

Due to very positive attendance in the Silver and Gold groups, the coaching staff has added practice times for both groups on Monday-Thursday. To accommodate the additional practice, the previous practice times will start and finish 15 minutes later. In addition, Silver Group members may now attend practice any day of the week (2-3 practices are recommended).

For the new schedule, see the Practice Schedule.

FAST ANNUAL FALL FAMILY (the whole family!!) POTLUCK PICNIC

FORT COLLINS MUSEUM

200 Mathews Street (next to the main library)

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2007 5:00 p.m.

FAST will provide hamburgers, hot dogs, buns, condiments, plates/utensils/napkins and drinks.  Please bring (by last name):

A-G: Salad
H-P: Dessert
O-Z: Side dish or two bags of chips
 

Please come out to help us celebrate a great 2007 Long Course season, welcome new FAST families, kick off the upcoming Short Course season and vote in three new Board members!!

RSVP by Thursday, September 20 to renee.haynes @ comcast.net

Hike Horsetooth Falls with FAST!

Saturday, September 22.  All swimmers and parents welcome!

• Meet at Horsetooth Mountain parking lot: Take Harmony until it turns into 38e, take a left at the reservoir, follow to south end of reservoir to parking lot.
• Parking is $6.00
• We will leave promptly at 8am (we will meet at 7:50am), and we will be gone 11/2 hrs.
• We will take the Horsetooth Falls trail and take some pics, then backtrack to the Spring Creek trail to the Soderberg trail and loop back to the parking lot.
• Hike is for all swimmers (swimmers under the age of 12 should have parental supervision)
  All parents welcome!
• This hike will last 1 1/2 hrs (about 40min out, 40min back)
• Bring water bottle, dress appropriately
• In the event of bad weather, a team email will be sent out at 6:30am with updated instructions.

Hike Arthur's Rock with FAST!

Saturday, September 15.  All swimmers and parents welcome!

• At 7:50 a.m., we will meet at the last parking lot after going through the Lory State Park visitor center entrance
• We will leave for the hike at 8 a.m.
• If you plan to stay, parking is $5 per car. If you plan to drop your swimmer off (if they are 12 or older), you should be able to drive beyond the visitors center to the last lot and drop them off. Plan to pick them up in the same area at approximately 10:00 a.m.
• Hike is for all swimmers (Swimmers younger than the age of 12 are welcome to come with parental supervision)
• All parents welcome!
• Bring water bottle, and dress appropriately for the weather

FAST Parent /Coach Meetings

Meet in the EPIC classroom to meet your swimmer's coach, learn about goals for the season, and more!

Tuesday, Sept. 11

Silver and Gold 4:45-5:15
Pre Senior and Senior 5:45-6:15
White 6:45-7:15
Starting at 4:00 p.m., MI Sports will be at the Tuesday Parent Night for your shopping needs!

 

Wednesday, Sept. 12

Silver and Gold 5:45-6:15
Blue 7-7:30