Subscriptions are set yearly at the Annual General Meeting held in November and are payable the last two Mondays in January or the first Monday in February.  All members will be given a membership card showing the current year and their Club number.  Parents may become non-swimming members of the club for a small fee.  Any swimmer failing to renew their membership by 9.00 p.m. on first Monday in February will be deemed to have resigned.

Training fees are paid by standing order monthly.  The fees are decided by the WASC Committee annually.  It is the responsibility of the swimmer to ensure that their club number is recorded for the attendance register, either in the foyer or on the poolside. 

Any family who finds themselves in financial difficulties should speak to the Secretary or Treasurer.  WASC cannot guarantee to assist but a sub-committee or judiciary panel will consider any application on its merits.

PERSONAL BELONGINGS

Please do not bring valuable items to training or galas. Items can go missing from the Changing Rooms. Please ensure that you -
1. Provide a bag large enough to contain everything.
2. Take your bag, closed, onto the poolside.
3. Do not leave your clothes unattended at any time.

The Club cannot be responsible for your belongings. The Committee will call the Police if anyone is caught taking property that does not belong to them.

PROBLEMS

Please call in to the Clubroom or speak to the Coach if any problem arises. The door is always open.

NEWSLETTER

The Club aim to produce a newsletter each month to keep everyone informed. The newsletter is normally issued at the beginning of the month.  A copy is posted on our notice board in the foyer of the pool and is also available on our web site at www.wasc.info/   To receive your copy by e-mail, send an e-mail with the heading “newsletter” to wascswimming@hotmail.com.  If you need a hard copy, please contact our Secretary.

If you have any item or any of your own comments you would like included in the newsletter, please put it in writing and hand to the Club Secretary or send by e-mail to wascswimming@hotmail.com

GOGGLE SHOP

The Goggle Shop has been going for over twenty years.  You can purchase all your swimming equipment from the "shop" situated in the Club Room, off the foyer, most Monday nights.  Whatever you need, ask here first.  All profits from the shop go to help support swimming at WASC.



DASH
 

"Dash" provides swimmers in the Training, Junior, Competitive, County, Performance and Midland Squads with a friendly competition and the chance to improve their personal best time.  The results are displayed on the notice board. The Team Manager uses these times when selecting a team to swim in a gala.  They are also used by the coach to help assess progress.

GALA CLOTHING

It is essential that swimmers keep warm on the poolside between events at galas. Being warm can help prevent injuries to muscles.

Minimum requirements for EVERY gala / internal swim night are:

1. Wellingborough BLUE POLO SHIRT.
2. Track suit TROUSERS or shorts.
3. SOCKS and clean SHOES - old trainers or flip flops.
4. Swimming COSTUME / TRUNKS plus spare costume / trunks.
5. GOGGLES plus a spare pair.
6. HAT plus spare hat. *
7. 2 or 3 TOWELS or swimmers' leather and towels.
8. Diluted squash DRINK in a large PLASTIC BOTTLE.


* Swimmers who wear a hat must wear a Club hat when representing the Club.

SWIMMING COMPETITIONS

Each year a fixture list is produced by Wellingborough Amateur Swimming Club and a copy is given to each member. The fixture list gives the date and name of each competition the club intend to take part in. It also gives the ages of the swimmers required for each competition. Please ensure that you keep your copy to hand. It is important that every member is aware of the opportunities for competition.

The Club aim to make good competition available to all swimmers. The Club will endeavour to give as many swimmers as possible, over the age of 9, the opportunity to experience competition against other clubs both in relays and, when age and ability permit, in individual events as part of a team.

Swimmers are expected to remain on the poolside with the team at galas and are not permitted to sit with parents in the spectator area. When the Club arrange a coach for transport to a gala, all swimmers should travel on the coach with the team. Parents are welcome to accompany the swimmers on the coach for a small charge.

INTERNAL SPRINT NIGHTS

These galas are on the fixture list and are especially important to the younger swimmer and those not often picked to swim for the Club.  These galas provide an opportunity to swim events in all four strokes at different distances and give everyone the opportunity to try for a P.B., a Squad time, or to prove they deserve a place on the Club team.  Just turn up on the night and swim.

Members of the Training, Junior, Competitive and County Squads should attend ALL Internal Galas available to them.  The Squad Coach should be informed if swimmers are not able to attend. 

ASA LAW FOR RACING BY CHILDREN

The ASA law concerning the age at which swimmers may compete means that some young swimmers will not be able to swim for the Club or, if chosen to swim, will only be permitted to swim in relay events.  From 1^st September 2007:

For each category the age specified shall be the age of the swimmer at midnight on the day of the event or the final day of a series of events forming part of one competition whichever is later.

No minimum age -                  Events restricted to members of one club.

8 years -                                  Inter-club events limited to not more than eight clubs
which do not form part of a series of events as in a league.

9 years  -         Open events, other than in Regional and National Competitions. Relay events in Regional Competitions.

10 years  -       Individual events in Regional Competitions.

                        Relay events in National Competitions.

11 years  -       Individual events in National Competitions.

The age of a swimmer at midnight on 31^st December in the year of competition is no longer used in the determination of a swimmers age with reference to the minimum ages of competition for any swimming competition.

“A series of events forming part of one competition” does not allow competitions to be linked.

The two, three or four rounds of a team competition are minimum ages as per the date of the last round. 

However if the results lead onto another competition, then this is NOT part of one competition and the minimum date of the second competition cannot be used for the first competition.

TEAM SELECTION

The Team Managers select the team approximately two weeks before a gala. Team selection is made according to the strength of the other teams taking part and the need of each Wellingborough swimmer to gain experience. This will mean that some swimmers will attend competitions for relay events only. It takes some three hours to choose the swimmers based on their latest available times.

Tickets are produced and distributed to swimmers on the Monday evening before the gala or the previous Monday if possible. Swimmers should remember that some of the selected swimmers may be unable to swim and the Team Manager will have to contact a replacement swimmer at short notice. For this reason it is important that if a swimmer who has been chosen cannot attend a gala they contact the Team Manager IMMEDIATELY so that the replacement can be given as much notice as possible.

It is expected that every swimmer selected to swim for the Club will give priority to the Club over "social" events.

Most galas restrict the number of individual events any one swimmer can swim. Since it would be unfair to take an extra swimmer in each age group "just in case", every swimmer picked is essential to the team.

At some galas, if a swimmer is missing, the team are able to put a younger swimmer in to an older age group - this is known as "swimming up". This practice is avoided as much as possible because it puts a lot of pressure on the younger swimmer. However, in an emergency it can be done so that we do not have an event where our team is without a swimmer.

A team can never swim an older swimmer into a younger age group. So, an "over aged" swimmer cannot gain any points in a gala. The only reason for allowing an "over-aged" swimmer to swim is to allow that person the chance of gaining a time for a specific event or to make up the number so that the rest of the age group can take part in relay events. So, if you are in the youngest age group for a gala it is very important that you attend; no one can take your place and we will lose points for the individual races and the relays in your age group if you let us down.

At most galas the team is awarded 6 points for first place, 5 for second, etc. to 1 for last. In the case of an eight lane pool, the first will gain 8 points, 7 for second, etc. The team with the most points at the end is the winner of the gala.

Please remember

IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO SWIM

CONTACT THE TEAM MANAGER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.


NORTHAMPTONSHIRE COUNTY RECORDS

The County Records are in two sections, Junior and Open. Junior Records may be claimed by swimmers under 16 years of age on the day of the event.

County Records can be claimed for long course events, that is, events swum in 50 metre pools and for short course events, swum in 25 metre pools.

 

The latest County Records are available on the County web site:  www.northants-asa.org

Swimmers under 9 years of age, who are unable to reach the ASA qualifying times above can gain an acknowledgement of their achievements through WASC's own award scheme.