Mock Meet - All You Need To Know
Why a mock meet?
Each year, we add new families to our team, and the board spends a lot of time preaching about the values of volunteering. However, we also send out a lot of information about the team in a short amount of time, which can be overwhelming for those who haven't done this before. To help families understand everything, we schedule a mock meet during the first two weeks of practice (when practices are in the evenings) so families can see what a real meet looks like, ask questions, and learn how to perform some of the volunteer roles.
Okay, so what is it?
A mock meet is set up in many ways the same way that a real meet is: we open up signups so swimmers can RSVP, and we run a number of events that the swimmers will be entered into. All events will be timed, though we don't record scores as that would affect our season.
We usually start the meet by assigning willing parents to the different volunteer spots on the pool deck, then announcing instructions for everyone so we can prepare for the first event. Swimmers will line up in the bullpen area, and we will show everyone how to prepare for the start of an event, including explaining all the different whistles and instructions from the coaches and meet officials.
The first event will probably take the longest. Timers will need to adapt to starting a stopwatch in sync with the starter, and let's face it--we probably won't all get it right the first try! But that's okay, this is just a learning event.
Also taking place during all of this is the certification for new officials! Each year, we recruit as many people as we can to become officials, because more so than even all of the other volunteer roles, we cannot run a meet without certified officials. It's not hard to get certified, but part of it is judging actual in-the-pool events to verify that you are ready. The best way for us to do this is with a mock meet.
How many events will my child swim?
The goal of a mock meet is to introduce everyone to how a meet works. Our goal isn't to have each swimmer attempt every possible event they could enter--in fact, we're not going to run a complete swim meet schedule at all. Our plan is for each swimmer to participate in 1 event--enough for them to understand how we announce each event, how to report to Clerk of Course, how to line up for their turn on the starting blocks, and how the actual events work from start to finish.
What happens if the Mock Meet gets rained out?
Weather during the month of May in Ohio is notoriously unpredictable--we know this. In 2025, our first season attempting an actual mock meet, our attempts to get it on the calendar and have it happen were an utter disaster, complicated by terrible weather, our collective inexperience with setting up a Mock Meet, and the confusion brought on by a huge influx in new families combined with ongoing questions about volunteer requirements from that increase in size.
Starting in 2026, we are putting two dates on the calendar for the mock meet, a Primary date, and a Backup date. Rather than trying to handle weather complications on the fly, families may now simply RSVP to whichever--or both--of those two dates they can attend. Then, if the Primary date gets rained out, we aren't scrambling trying to get the date changed, heat sheets updated, new volunteers lined up, etc.--we will simply use the RSVPs for the Backup date. No muss, no fuss!
Beyond that, there will be NO further attempts to reschedule the mock meet.
What do I need to do?
All we need from our families are two things:
1. Sign your swimmers up for the meet, if you can attend, under our Signup Calendar, remembering to RSVP for both the Primary and Backup dates, and:
2. Show up ready to learn and lend a hand.
The board and coaches will be on-hand to help everybody learn how to perform each volunteer role, answer questions, and help the kids get comfortable with how a meet runs. We may not get through all of the events on the heat sheet for that night, and we may skip some to help ensure our new officials can see and judge the things they need to see and judge, but as long as everyone comes in with a can-do attitude, we'll all have a great time!
What if I have questions afterward?
We always love answering questions! Please ask any coach or board member at any practice, or use the Contact Us form to reach out.
