Great Falls Swim and Tennis Rapids

Outside of our coaches, the Rapids swim team is volunteer run. The 11 meets and ~12 social activities are led by volunteers and require over 1,000 hours of their time!!

This season, we are asking each family to volunteer for a minimum of two 1.5 hr volunteer shifts throughout the season. We usually have 80-90 families on the Rapids; with your help, we can spread the volunteer workload!!

Examples and explanations of volunteer opportunities are below. We worked hard to make it easy for everyone to find a way to help out!

- Time Trials (6/13 - our first meet!): Requires ~60 volunteers (~120 hours of volunteer time) and has 78 "shifts" because we're not splitting the jobs with another team. At this meet, we are letting our swimmers practice in a meet setting and get their first "official" time of the season.

- Home "A" meets - Require 34 volunteers (~85 hours of volunteer time) and has 56 "shifts" 

• Timers - Timers determine each swimmer's official time for each race. Everybody loves timers. They're not responsible for enforcing rules.  Timers start their watches on the strobe light from the Colorado timing system and stop their watches when the swimmer touches the wall. There are three timers per lane, a recorder, a person who puts the time up on the timing board, and a person to check the swimmer in the lane is the same person as the swimmer on the time card.  All three timers start and stop their watches.  The middle time is the official time.
  ** This is probably the best job for new families and for parents just looking for an easy way to volunteer. If you can start and stop a stopwatch, you can be a timer. We'll even provide the stopwatch & a brief training before each meet. You're right at the edge of the pool, have a great view of the meet.
  ** If you have a younger child who is only swimming Free Style and Back Stroke at a "B" meet, signing up for Shift 1 of a B meet timer is absolutely ideal.  You can be close to your child, finished when they are done (for the most part) and leave after Backstroke!  Win-Win!

• Marshals - Marshals are responsible for maintaining safe and appropriate conduct by swimmers and spectators throughout the meet. The marshal ensures that warmups are conducted safely and that order is maintained during the warmups. Marshals help keep order on the pool deck during meets by limiting access to the pool deck to appropriate swimmers, coaches and volunteers. Marshals also raise a “Quiet” sign during race starts to keep spectator noise to a minimum so that swimmers can hear the start and are less likely to false start.
  ** This is another great job for New Families-especially ones with younger children who may not be swimming in an A meet yet.  

• Concessions - This volunteer supports our Concessions which is largely managed through the snack bar staff but the swim team volunteer supports with ordering and arranging delivery / pickup of hot food (Chick-fil-a sandwiches, Anita's breakfast burritos, Deli Italiano Pizza) to be sold by the snack bar staff. As a reminder, A meets are Saturday mornings, and B Meets are Monday nights, so food menus will correspond to the time of day.

• Table Workers - Make order out of chaos, work at the table!  The Time Cards and Disqualification Slips (DQ Slips) are sent to "the table" after every event.  The table workers sort them, decipher them, determine who won each race (officially), and work with the Data Coordinators to get the data entered into the system.  There are volunteers from both teams working at the table.  Jobs include:
  • Timer Recorder: Time Recorder puts the swimmers' times in order of fastest to slowest and also marks DQ's with the DQ slips after each event. There should be one time recorder per team.
  • Scorer: Scorers allot points to the teams based on swimmers placement in the events. Note, a home meet requires 2 scorers and an away meet requires one scorer from Langley Club.
  • Computer input: Consists of a Reader (person to read race times) and a Data Entry person who inputs race times into the computer.
  • Awards Clerk (Ribbons): Computerized data get put onto ribbons. Then ribbons are put in alphabetical order in the appropriate age group category. Completed ribbons are given to the coaches.

The below jobs require some level of experience or training/certification.  However, "experience" does not mean your child has to have swum for the Rapids for 8 years! Recommended experience or mandatory certification is listed below

• Announcer - also known as "The Voice (of voices) of the Rapids."  The Announcer has the important responsibility of keeping all parents, officials, coaches and swimmers informed and on schedule throughout the meet via the Public Address System. This is a great job for somebody who is organized, is a good communicator, likes to talk, likes to stand in the shade and get a great view of the meet.
  
  We recommend volunteers have worked at least one season of meets and know how a meet runs before being an announcer.  No formal certificate is needed.  

• Head Timer - At home meets, the Head Timer collects the time cards from the timers, reviews them for accuracy and completeness, and forwards them on to the table workers or runner. The Head Timer also conducts a pre-meet briefing for all timers to review the rules and procedures for timers and hand out stopwatches. At away meets, the Head Timer assists the opposing team’s Head Timer in these same functions. This job might have the best view of the entire meet.
  
  We recommend being a timer for at least 2 meets before signing up for the Head Timer.  

• Clerk of Course -  The Clerk of the Course is the "gatekeeper" for all swimmers in our meets. The people who perform this function get the swimmers to the right lanes for the correct race. You can't have a race without swimmers, and the clerk of the course makes sure the right swimmer gets to the right place at the right time. If you like to wrangle kids and get them lined up in an orderly way, this is the job for you! 
  
  We recommend if you're new to Clerk of Course, you have worked as a Marshall or Timer a few times, and have attended enough meets to understand how they function.  

• Data Coordinator - This is one of the most important volunteer positions on the team, as the Data Coordinator is responsible for entering all of the meet results into the official time-keeping systems, tracking best-times and team records.  
  
  There is an official Data Coordinator training from NVSL which is required.  Additionally, it is recommended the Data Coordinator has spent at least a season working at "the table" in other capacities. 

All Officials require a certification from NVSL EXCEPT Relay Takeoff Judges. If you're interested in being an official, please contact Shaq Dastur.  

• Relay Takeoff Judges - This is a great entry into the world of officiating for those who are interested.  Their job is to insure that each swimmer touches the wall prior to the next swimmer in the relay leaving the deck. The Relay Takeoff Judges only work the Relay component of the A meets.
  
  This is a GREAT job for parents who have strong swimmers who swim in the relay section of A meets.  You are probably going to be there anyway, we need 4 per A meet.  It's a quick job, easy, and you are in the middle of the action. 
• Stroke and Turn - Stroke and Turn judges are responsible for spotting violations during the race.  There are specific rules per stroke, and swimmers must follow the rules, or else they will be disqualified. This is to ensure all swimmers are playing by the same rules.  While everybody loves timers, the relationship with Stroke and Turn officials is more complicated.  And you haven't lived until you've DQed your own child..
  
  NVLS official training and certification is required.  It is also recommended you have been "on deck" in some capacity, either timer, head timer or relay takeoff judge.  
• Starter - The starter is responsible for making sure all swimmers are given the opportunity to have a fair and equitable start. It might seem like it's an easy job, just saying which race and pushing a button which makes a loud noise, but there is a lot which goes into it. The starter has control of the race from the the Referee signals the start of a race until the swimmers are off the wall.
  
  NVSL official training and certification is required. Additionally, having experience as Stroke And Turn is also required. 
• Referee - The Referee runs the meet.  They are the final authority when it comes to rules interpretations and rule infractions.  They blow a whistle a lot, and act as a "conductor" for the meet, making sure the starter, timers and stroke and turn judges are all set for each race. 
  
  NVSL official training and certification is required.  Additionally, having experience as a Head Timer, Stroke and Turn, and Starter is also required.