Weekly News - November 1, 2021

Amy Parratto

Weekly News – November 1, 2021 

Latest Information

  • Halloween Invite – Congratulations to all of our swimmers who competed this past Saturday. There were MANY time drops – great job!!!! Thank you to all of our amazing volunteers for making the meet run so smoothly. This is the first meet we have run with visiting teams since before Covid invaded out lives. We were also thrilled to finally have a ton of relays!!! Let’s all stay safe and healthy so that we can continue the positive trend. The meet results have been loaded into Team Unify.
  • Safe Sport Training – In order to renew our club’s Safe Sport status, we must have all Riptide families to go to our Safe Sport Team Policy Event on our team website - https://www.teamunify.com/team/mnwss/page/calendar#/team-events/upcoming/1307166. All families are required to accept the policies in order for Riptide to achieve 2022 Safe Sport status. As of today, we only have 55 families who have viewed and accepted the policies. Please take a few minutes to complete this task so that Riptide can retain Safe Sport Club status. If you have any questions, please contact Anne Knapp – [email protected].
  • Safe Sport Training for Parents – This week, Anne is offering training for three of our practice groups. On Thursday (11/4), Gold parents will meet in the upstairs classroom from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. and then get to watch practice from the mezzanine. That same night, Silver parents will have their meeting from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. followed by an opportunity to watch practice. On Friday (11/5), 9&U parents will be meet upstairs from 6:15 to 6:45 p.m. and then get to watch practice from the mezzanine.
  • Upcoming Meet Deadlines – Riptide Jingle Bell Invite – deadline is November 1. Riptide Holiday Invite – deadline is November 2. If you have questions regarding meets, contact your swimmer’s lead coach.
  • Upcoming Clinic Deadlines – I Believe I Can Fly – November 13.
  • No Practice on Saturday (11/6) – There is no practice this Saturday for Senior Elite due to our Senior Distance Invite.
  • Practice Changes on Saturday (11/6) – Junior Select will practice 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. There will be a combined practice for Senior and Senior Prep from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. in the 7 lane pool. All practice calendars have been adjusted to reflect this change.
  • Saturday’s Senior Distance Invite – The meet program and timeline will be posted on our meet page by this Thursday. Check our meet page for more details!
  • Looking Ahead to Next Week – All practices on Wednesday, November 10 and Friday, November 12 will be held at area middle school pools. High School Girls’ 3AA Sections is being held at the Bluewater Aquatic Center on those nights. Our practice calendars have been updated, but we will have a separate email sent to all families with the schedule and location of those practices.

Regular Reminders

  • Questions – If you have a question regarding your swimmer, meets, clinics, practices etc. please contact your swimmer’s lead coach in order to get the quickest and most accurate response (see the list below). If you have a billing question, contact Cara Pavek - [email protected].
  • Riptide Lost & Found – If your child is missing any clothing, shoes, water bottles, masks, goggles or equipment, please stop in quickly to check the lost and found table in the lobby. Items will be donated or thrown away at the end of the month.
  • Important News for Our Riptide Boys Heading to High School Swimming - All Boy's High School swimmers will be charged for the full month on November 1.  You MUST email [email protected] prior to October 29th to confirm your actual departure date from Riptide if it is not the end of November so that Cara can calculate your proration credits.  If you email after Friday, October 29th you will be charged the full monthly dues on Nov 1 and will receive a credit on your account for prorated dues.  NO REFUNDS WILL BE GIVEN. Once you confirm your departure date, your account WILL NOT be charged again until your swimmer returns.  You must contact [email protected] to activate your account prior to your swimmer returning to practice after the High School season is done.
  • Clinic Registration Reminder – Clinic registration can only be done through our website. Do not register for clinics using the TU App.
  • Bronze, Silver, Gold, Senior Prep and Senior Groups – Our lead coaches want to remind you that all swimmers must bring their tennis shoes Monday through Thursday for the dryland exercise portion of practice. Thank you!
  • Remember that we do have a parking lot routine that everyone must follow. Here is the link to see the details - https://www.teamunify.com/mnwss/UserFiles/File/BuildingMap-traffic%20flow.pdf
  • New Team Suit – Please be aware that ALL swimmers are required to purchase the new team suit if they are competing in swim meets. Here is the link to our Elsmore team apparel page - https://elsmoreswim.com/teams/minnesota/clubs/riptide.html.
  • Officiating – If you have any interest in becoming an official, please contact Coach Amy Parratto – [email protected]. 

Safety Protocols

  • We still require masks while at BWAC. Fully vaccinated coaches may now remove masks while swimmers are in the water but will wear them during any interactions with the swimmers before or after practices. Thank you for your continued attention to these procedures.
  • Locker rooms are only available for swimmers to use the bathrooms. Exceptions have been made for selected groups and practices.
  • Swimmers should continue to arrive and leave practice in their swim suit.
  • Vaccinated swimmers are required to follow any CDC guidelines regarding quarantine and exposures. They do not have to follow the 10 day unvaccinated quarantine procedures. More information will be provided in the days to come.
  • Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES should swimmers exhibiting symptoms associated with Covid-19 and/or with a fever of 100.4 or higher attend practices. Please work together to reduce the risk of infection. If your swimmer has had close contact with a confirmed Covid-19 case, you must keep them away from the pool for 10 days. You may not test out of this quarantine. Please review the Standard Operating Procedures.
    • Stay home if you are not feeling well. Please err on the side of caution as one bad decision can impact numerous other swimmers and families.
    • Remember that family members sharing the same household are considered “close contact” when it comes to Covid exposure. Therefore, if a member of your family tests positive for Covid, you must quarantine from practice for 10 days. You may not “test out of quarantine”. In the event you must miss practice due to Covid exposure, please notify [email protected] and a credit will be arranged.
    • Please remind your swimmers to always wear masks at BWAC while not swimming. Send your swimmer with a small plastic baggie in which they may place their mask at the end of their lane. The mask may be taken off just prior to entering the water and must then be placed back on immediately after exiting the water.

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