We're looking forward to getting into meet mode tonight. There are lots of notes for today and I promise they're all important. So, here we go… 

• Show-up time is 4:30 and warm-ups will start at 4:40. The meet will start at 5:30. We expect to be done somewhere in the 8:30-9 range. We have a lot of swimmers and it's the first meet of the year, so we thank everyone in advance for your patience and flexibility. 
• Thanks to all our meet volunteers! It's not hyperbole to say that we couldn't do this without you. If you have signed up for a job today, you will get an email shortly with relevant details for your job, who to meet where, etc. 
• Be sure you've installed SwimTopia and are set up to receive notifications.
• Andy will be in the kiddie pool area at 4:30 for few minutes of new-parent Q&A. If you want to know how to put a cap on your swimmer, mark arms/legs with event info, or whatever other meet day questions you have, just bring them and we'll help you get started. 
• Parents of 10 & under swimmers: it is your responsibility to help your child get to the purple tent / staging area by the kiddie pool in time for their events. We will have deck parents lining them up and keeping the groups together once they're there, but we need your help with getting them there in time. Event calls will be made by our outstanding meet announcer and SwimTopia Pro will deliver helpful reminders, so thanks for listening up for those and having your swimmer in the right place at the right time. 
• Since this is the first time this year we'll have the whole group together at the pool (and it's a really big group), please take a minute to visit the website and familiarize yourself with the parking options around the pool: https://www.tidalwavesswim.com/meetparking. The major difference between today's Fun Meet and dual meets is that today we should park in the big parking lot on the south side of the pool. In the future, this will be our primary visiting team parking area. Please follow the excellent and appreciated directions of the parking crew so we can fit everyone in in an orderly manner. 
• Heat sheets will come out via email later today -- probably by early afternoon. New parents: you will want to print a copy of the heat sheet document to have with you tonight so you can keep up with what's happening (also available in condensed form in the SwimTopia app if you have a Pro subscription, but paper never has trouble with connectivity, etc.) If you're not familiar with how to mark your swimmer for a meet, get out your heat sheet and Sharpie and follow the info here: How to Mark Your Swimmer for a Meet. There will also be lots of examples walking around on the pool deck.
• For 10 & under swimmers, we also ask that you write their name and age on the back of their right shoulder to help the coaches and deck parents get & keep them organized for their events.  
• Finally, Coach Todd shared that a number of swimmers have mentioned experiencing ear pain. He suggests using a product like Swim-EAR after practices and meets -- especially when swimming in different pools regularly like we do during dual meet season. Hope this helps! 

That's it for now. If you have any questions while we're at the pool, just find any board member (Andy, Mechele, Lisa, Rebecca, or David) or another parent who looks like they know what they're doing and we're all happy to help!

As always, please reach out with questions via email at [email protected]. See you tonight!