2023 VC Swim
Frequently Asked Questions & General Information
Q: Do I need to be a member of the Victoria Club to participate on the swim team?
A: Yes, the Victoria Club is a private golf club. Participation on the swim team is limited to member’s children and grandchildren of Regular members. Social Member’s grandchildren and "Preview" members are not eligible. Please contact Victoria Club’s Membership Director at 951-633-5323 for membership inquiry. The membership application takes approximately 6-8 weeks. Prospective members to the Club are encouraged to submit their application by March 1, 2023 to be eligible for the 2023 swim season. Swim Team registration closes May 5, 2023 for the 2023 swim season, unfortuanly no execptions will be made after May 5, 2023. Please note that a current member who leaves (freeze or resign membership) the Club between swim seasons and then wants to rejoin will not be able to participate in the 2023 swim progam.
Q: My swimmer is not a great swimmer, but s/he can swim, can s/he still be on the team?
A: Yes, swimmers age 5-18 must be able to swim the length of the pool (25 yards) unassisted to participate on the team. Swim coaches will evaluate new swimmers prior to participating in practices. One-piece swimsuits, swim caps, and goggles are highly recommended during practice. New swimmer evaluations will take place on Monday, May 22, 2023 at 5pm.
Q: Do I need to attend all practice sessions?
A: No, new swimmer evaluations will take place Monday, May 22, 2023 at 5pm. Swim practice begins Wednesday, May 24, 2023. Practices are scheduled Monday through Friday afternoons until Thursday, June 8, 2023. Beginning Friday, June 9, 2023 practices will be offered Monday - Friday mornings. Check the calendar tab for times and details.
Practice Times & Supervision:
Please swim and dive during your assigned practice times. We have 30 families with more than one child on the team so we will not be making any exceptions to swimmers swimming outside of their assigned times. On that note, Victoria Club rules state that children under 14 may not be left unattended at the pool. Children must be with a parent or a responsible adult (outside of their assigned practice time). Though our coaches and lifeguards are responsible adults, our priority is to water safety during practice. We are coaching and watching the pool during practices. If you have more than one swimmer, in more than one practice time, you need to stay with the child not participating in practice or buddy up with another parent on deck to ensure their safety and follow our pool rules. The Victoria Club swim team is a family sport and we realize for those 40 families that may equate to some long practices but with some creative parenting we can ensure a safe and fun environment for all without jeopardizing the coaches and lifeguards employment.
Q: When is registration?
A: Registration online at www.victoriaclubvikings.com usually opens the first weekend in April. Swim Team registration closes May 5, 2023 for the 2023 swim season, unfortuanly no execptions will be made after May 5, 2023.
Q: How much does it cost?
A: $240 per Regular member’s child or grandchild
$385 per social member’s child (Social Member’s grandchildren and "Preview" members are not eligible)
Swim Meets and Tent City:
When hosting a home swim meet at the Victoria Club, our goal is to be gracious hosts and offer our opponents the green shaded awning (west) side of the pool. VC’s team area is on the clubhouse (east) side of the pool deck and the raised snack bar patio right behind it. We need to keep clear at least 4 feet along the pool for the referee and "foot" traffic. If you own a larger easy up, please set up on the snack bar level to maximize space on the deck. No one should set up on the overlook in the "tiki bar" area. The buffet food service will be there. We have over 60 families on our team so please “buddy” up with another family per EZ up. We set up our “Tent City” at 11am, the day before a home swim meet. We realize some of you work but hope one person in your "tent" party can make it. We will have plenty of extra hands to help carry and open EZ ups. You are more than welcome to add onto our tent city anytime after 11am or on the day of the meet. 11am is right between the practices. Please do not set up before 11am. We will need to assemble the EZ ups and then drop them down to their lowest height so the wind will not pick them up. Feel free to leave your folding chairs under your tent but we would not recommend laying out blankets or towels due to the wind and water. We hope if on meet day you see a VC family looking for shade you offer them to join you. We have many new families. We appreciate everyone taking pride in our Club and our beautiful facility.
Away Meets: Bring EZ ups & folding chairs. You can use your VC member number to charge food and drinks at away meets.
Q: How do I sign up for a swim meet?
A:
MEET SIGN-UP:
First, we need to know who is going to attend the meet. To keep track of this, we need each of you to sign up using our website www.victoriaclubvikings.com. Directions on how to declare attendance at a swim meet is on the website. Obviously, emergencies can come up, but it is very important that you let us know if your swimmer is, or is not, going to be there. We need a response from every swimmer. We close the meet sign up a week before a meet so the coaches will have time to enter the swimmers into their events.
MEET ENTRIES:
Now that we know who is attending the meet, we have to make a meet line-up sheet for each age group.
The coaches need to fill in the events with the following guidelines: Each swimmer is limited to a maximum of 4 individual events in dual meets (maximum 3 individual events in Championship Finals). Diving counts as one event. Some swimmers will be placed in 4 individual events and one relay.
Victoria Club Viking coaches enter every swimmer in the butterfly, backstroke, freestyle and breaststroke. Every swimmer age 7 and older needs to swim the 100 IM (Individual Medley – butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke & freestyle) at least once for a time. Coaches will not enter swimmers in both the IM and butterfly in the same swim meet unless requested.
Swim meets are complicated, but with the help of volunteers, they run efficiently. Thank you in advance for your help with setting up, preparing time cards, recording dive scores, inputting swim times into the computer, running cards, timing and breaking down the deck after a meet.
Private Swim Lessons:
All of our assistant coaches are for hire at the rate of $20 a half hour for private and/or group swim/dive lessons. Lessons are available outside of swim practice times. Private dive lessons, during open swim hours, must allow club members participating in free swim to use the diving boards. In other words, private dive lessons must work in and around free swim participants. Coaches are allowed to close the diving boards, for only team divers, during dive practice times. To clarify, as per our Club Board, and due to liability, ONLY members' children and grandchildren may take lessons in the Victoria Club pool. The Victoria Club is a private, member owned club, not a public pool. If you refer one of our coaches to friends who are not members, the lessons may not take place at the Club, but perhaps in the clients’ home pool. Feel free to direct any prospective members to the main office for an application packet.
Thank you for protecting and respecting the rules and regulations of our Club.
Coaching for the Victoria Club swim team is a distinct privilege for a select number of our 16-18 year-old swimmers. Six - eight assistant positions are needed each summer. In some years, unfortunately, there are more swimmers than coaching positions available. All applicants will be vetted and may be interviewed by a panel, which includes the Club’s Human Resources director. The following general criteria will be considered in evaluating an applicant:
Must be lifeguard certified
Membership class of parent
Consecutive years on team
Availability and commitment to the entire season (with minimal interruptions)
Mature, responsible, hard-working, and respectful
Letter of recommendation from a current high school teacher