Hello!

Here is the schedule for the remainder of our season:

• Wednesday, February 12th - Denison entries due by the end of the day!

• Thursday, February 13th - Final practice for all non-state swimmers

• Saturday, February 15th - Denison Meet

• Practice Schedule for February 18 - March 6 for all swimmers - 4:15 to 5:30 PM Tuesdays and Thursdays

• Saturday, March 8th - GISL State Meet at Wellmark YMCA in Des Moines.

• Sunday, March 9th - Team Potluck and awards

State Swimmers

The GISL State Meet on March 8th is for swimmers who qualify OR swimmers can be asked to be a part of a relay team. Relays spots will be given to individual qualifiers first and then to the next closest times after that, if a competitive relay can be formed. 

Denison Entries

Denison entries are due by the end of the day on Wednesday, February 12th. This is the last meet to earn a state qualifying time.

Hello!

We had a great meet at Carroll on Saturday! It was crowded, but we had some good events and even got results quicker than it takes to get an order from Amazon!

We had a few new state qualifiers Saturday, which is great! Remember that you must swim in a minimum of 3 meets during the season and have a qualifying time to be eligible for the state meet at the Wellmark YMCA in Des Moines on March 8th. Please ask the coaches if you have any questions. We would love to see all swimmers that qualify for the state meet attend!

There were items left in camp from the Carroll meet. Let us know if they belong to you!

Team Pictures

We will be having team pictures on Thursday, January 16th. Mike Wohlhutter will be taking our photos. We would love to have everyone there for photos and want everyone to be in the team picture for sure.

This schedule will be as follows:

• Approximately 3:45 PM - We will begin individual photos at the Wellness Center. 

• 4:00 PM or after individual pictures are done - 1st Session Group Photo - 1st session kids will begin practice as soon as their photo is taken!

• 4:10-5 PM - Individual pictures for 2nd session swimmers

• 5 PM - 2nd Session Group Picture - 2nd practice starts!

Picture forms will be available at practice this week. I am including a picture of the form below so you know what to order on Thursday if an order form doesn't make it home!

Atlantic Meet 1/25

Entries for Atlantic on Saturday, 1/25 are due no later than 7 PM on Tuesday the 21st! We have to send them in by the end of the day Tuesday, so mark your entries by Tuesday at 7 on the 21st!

We have never been to Atlantic before, but they have a nice YMCA facility and have two experienced coaches. I feel that this should be a well run meet

1. From the harlanswim.com website, click the link for the Swim Portal

2. With the same login you used to sign up for the season, sign into the Swim Portal

3. Once signed in, click the menu option to VIEW MEETS

4. You will see Upcoming Meets and will see Atlantic Meet 1-25-25. Under that meet, you will see the swimmers tied to your account. 

5. Click the button for Attending or Not attending for your swimmer. Clicking the + button near your swimmer will allow you to select the events your swimmer will be swimming. Select the events for your swimmer if you wish. If you are unsure what events they will swim, then just mark Attending and we will take care of the rest.

6. Click SAVE when finished.

7. For this meet, swimmers may swim up to 5 individual events. 

If you have questions on what events, you can ask coaches or simply mark as Attending and we will enter your swimmers in the events we think best suit them at this early point in the season. If you have problems or questions, email harlanswimclub@gmail.com. If you do not sign up, we will assume you are NOT attending the meet.

Thanks,

Harlan Swim Club

Hello!

We hope everyone had a great Christmas and wish you a Happy New Year!

Meet Results

While it is out of our control, we want to apologize for the delayed results for the first few meet this year. As a team, we are not able to host our own meets at the Petersen Family Wellness Center, so we try to be understanding of the teams that host us and their timeframe to get meet results back to the teams. However, it is unacceptable for meet results to take multiple days or nearly a week. Our hope is that we have better experiences the rest of the season.

With that being said, the Carroll meet on January 11th would be a great one to attend! Carroll is typically very organized in their meet operation, issues ribbons for participants, and makes the meet experience enjoyable for all swimmers. 

Carroll Meet 1/11

Entries are now being accepted for the Carroll meet on January 11th. Entries are due by 7 PM on Tuesday, January 7th!

1. From the harlanswim.com website, click the link for the Swim Portal

2. With the same login you used to sign up for the season, sign into the Swim Portal

3. Once signed in, click the menu option to VIEW MEETS

4. You will see Upcoming Meets and will see CAST NEW YEARS SPLASH BASH. Under that meet, you will see the swimmers tied to your account. 

5. Click the button for Attending or Not attending for your swimmer. Clicking the + button near your swimmer will allow you to select the events your swimmer will be swimming. Select the events for your swimmer if you wish. If you are unsure what events they will swim, then just mark Attending and we will take care of the rest.

6. Click SAVE when finished.

7. For this meet, swimmers may swim up to 5 individual events. 

If you have questions on what events, you can ask coaches or simply mark as Attending and we will enter your swimmers in the events we think best suit them at this early point in the season. If you have problems or questions, email harlanswimclub@gmail.com. If you do not sign up, we will assume you are NOT attending the meet.

Practice Reminders

• Practice this week will be Monday from 4-5:15 for all ages and Thursday at regular times. We will return to our regular practice schedule next week. 

• We have a team supply of goggles for swimmers that forget theirs, but that supply is getting lower due to swimmers not returning them after practice. Please remind your swimmer to have their own suit, goggles, a towel, and a swim cap/hair tie (for those with longer hair) at each practice to make it more productive for everyone. Coaches do not have time to readjust goggles constantly and keep the other swimmers on track to complete practice.

Thanks,

Harlan Swim Club

We are just over one week until we start our 2024-25 season! My hope is to provide a weekly update to everyone, typically on Sundays throughout the season. 

Rookie Night

Do you have a young swimmer and are you unsure if they are ready for swim team? Do you know someone who might be interested, but isn't sure?

We will have Rookie Night next Sunday, November 10th from 5-6 at the Petersen Family Wellness Center. Come meet the coaches, do a swim test, and ask questions about the upcoming season.

Practice Starts November 12th

We start our practice schedule on Tuesday, November 12th. Swimmers 10 and Under will practice from 4-5. The 11 and Up age groups will practice from 5-6. Swimmers should have the following for a productive practice: 

• Swimsuit

  • Boys - Jammer style or competition suit is recommended.  Here is a link to some options.  Baggy or super loose fitting suits will be difficult for kids to practice and compete in and are not recommended.

  • Girls - One Piece competition style swimwear is recommended.  Here are some ideas.  

  • For the best life and usefulness of your suit, rinse them out after swimming to remove the chlorine and hang to dry.  

  • Swimmers can wear any style of suit they feel comfortable swimming in, but we do recommend the styles above for your swimmer to have the best experience possible.  We do not mandate swimmers wear a certain color of suit!

• Goggles

  • Goggles are a necessity in the water.  They help swimmers know where they are in the pool and keep chlorine and water treatment chemicals out of their eyes.  Please help your swimmer to develop good habits of keeping their goggles on and adjusting the fit to be snug on their head while swimming.

  • Having an additional pair of goggles is useful for instances when a strap breaks or you misplace them.  Sporti makes some decent sub $10 goggles that would be good options for a backup pair.

  • Prescription goggles are available for swimmers that need glasses outside of the pool and may help with their vision while swimming.  In general, the cost is the same or a few dollars more.  Just make sure you know your swimmer's prescription.

• Swim Cap

  • Swim Caps are recommended, but not required.  However, we especially recommend them for girls or boys with longer hair.

  • At a bare minimum, longer hair should be put into a tight braid or ponytail prior to competition.

• Towel

  • Should be brought to each practice and meet.  It is sometimes useful to have 2 towels at meets.

• Additional clothing

  • Sweatshirts, pants, jackets are all useful at meets to wear in between events.  Team camp areas are sometimes in cool gyms at meet sites and swimmers need to stay warm and dry in between events.

• Optional items

  • Depending on your swimmer's needs, you may need to purchase and bring things to practices or meets especially suited to their needs (ear plugs, nose plugs, inhalers, etc.).  Coaches need to be informed of swimmers needing these items and swimmers should be helped by parents in the use and install of these items prior to the season.  Coaches are responsible for a large number of swimmers and are not able to always help with maintaining these items.  Swimmers should know use these items on their own!

• Swim Bag

  • Having a small swim bag is helpful in keeping your towel, goggles, and other items in one place.

• What brands are best?  Where do I get this stuff?

  • We recommend the following brands when purchasing swimwear and goggles:

    • Speedo

    • Sporti

    • TYR

  • Obviously, there are more brands that you can choose from, but we've had the best experience with the ones listed above.

  • We don't expect swimmers to be equipped in gear that costs hundreds of dollars, but please don't buy toy goggles from the dollar store thinking that will provide the protection and usefulness your swimmer needs. Typically, you can find a good quality suit for $15-$40 and a good pair of goggles for $10-$30 in the brands mentioned above.

  • We typically purchase items from Swimoutlet.com and Amazon.com.  Our practice facility, the Petersen Family Wellness Center in Harlan, also has some goggles and swim accessories available for purchase.

  • The team typically has team apparel orders (shirts, towels, pants, etc.) available at the beginning of each season. More information will be shared soon.

First meet is November 23rd at Boone

We will go to Boone for our first meet of the season on November 23rd. More details will be made available soon.

We hope everyone has been able to stay safe and warm after this blizzard! We are looking forward to a great week of practice, pictures on Thursday, and our meet on Saturday in Manning!

Pictures

We will be having team pictures on Thursday, January 18th. Mike Wohlhutter will be taking our photos.

This schedule will be as follows:

• Approximately 3:45 PM - We will begin individual photos at the Wellness Center. 

• 4:00 PM or after individual pictures are done - 1st Session Group Photo - 1st session kids will begin practice as soon as their photo is taken!

• 4:10-5 PM - Individual pictures for 2nd session swimmers

• 5 PM - 2nd Session Group Picture - 2nd practice starts!

If you would like to purchase photos, please see the order form below. We will have them at practice on Tuesday this week. Regardless, we would love to have everyone there for the team photo!
Picture Form

Meet 1/20

We are hosting the meet in Manning on 1/20. We would love to have as many swimmers from our team as possible there! Entries are now being accepted and due by the end of the day on WEDNESDAY.

Here's how you sign up for meets:

1. From the harlanswim.com website, click the link for the Swim Portal

2. With the same login you used to sign up for the season, sign into the Swim Portal

3. Once signed in, click the menu option to VIEW MEETS

4. You will see Upcoming Meets and will see Harlan Meet at Manning 1-20-24. Under that meet, you will see the swimmers tied to your account. 

5. Click the button for Attending or Not Attending for your swimmer. Clicking the + button near your swimmer will allow you to select the events your swimmer will be swimming. 

6. In addition, to marking your attendance, you can select the events your swimmer wants to swim.

7. Click SAVE when finished.

VOLUNTEERS!

We really need help with running the meet on 1/20. Here are the jobs available:

Timer - The Manning pool has 6 lanes which means that we need 12 timers, two in each lane. This job is not too difficult, but it is important! Each timer has a stopwatch and one holds the clipboard and records the time.

Other jobs include starter, computer operator, and DQ judge. Coaches and some members of our summer swim board will likely fill these jobs, but if you want to help, sign up!

Please sign up if you can help out!

Hello!

We appreciate the turnout for practice tonight. We know it is a busy time of year and we had about 25-30 at practice to work on getting better tonight! Please come Thursday night if you are able. 

December 28th Guest Coach: Reilly McMurphy

One of our former swimmers, Reilly McMurphy, will be at practice this Thursday, December 28th. Reilly is a freshman at Drake University, was an extremely successful swimmer in high school for Lewis Central, a great GISL swimmer, and one of the coaches of the Harlan Summer Swim Team this past summer. 

Reilly is a great all-around swimmer, especially backstroke and freestyle. We plan to have swimmers rotate through lanes and have 15-20 minutes to work with him, especially on backstroke details and quality starts.

Carroll Meet 1/6/24

Our next meet is on January 6th in Carroll. Carroll is one of the favorite places to swim for many of our swimmers. Entries for 1/6 at Carroll are due by 6:30 PM next TUESDAY! We need to review and send them to Carroll by their requested deadline of 9 PM that night.

Here's how you sign up for meets:

1. From the harlanswim.com website, click the link for the Swim Portal

2. With the same login you used to sign up for the season, sign into the Swim Portal

3. Once signed in, click the menu option to VIEW MEETS

4. You will see Upcoming Meets and will see GISL January Frost 1/6/24. Under that meet, you will see the swimmers tied to your account. 

5. Click the button for Attending or Not Attending for your swimmer. Clicking the + button near your swimmer will allow you to select the events your swimmer will be swimming. 

6. In addition, to marking your attendance, you can select the events your swimmer wants to swim.

7. Click SAVE when finished.

Upcoming Practices

We will continue our normal practice schedule for the rest of this week and the last week of 2023. We are lucky to continue our normal practice schedule with the days holidays fall this year but we do understand it might not work with everyone's schedules. We do strongly encourage making every practice, if possible!

"HOME" Meet in Manning 1/20/24

We are excited to host our first FIRST-EVER meet in Manning on January 20th! Since we cannot host meets in Harlan, we are excited that Manning has graciously allowed us to use their pool. To run a meet, it takes a large number of volunteers and we will need the help of our whole team. Watch for details to come on this meet soon!