Hello Rockshire Sharks!

We have made it! This weekend the pool OPENS:) And we have our events starting!

1. Meet the Coaches this Sunday, May 28 at 5:30pm
2. Coaching updates
3. We still need volunteers and Officials!
4. Meet schedule below on website!
5. Registration IS OPEN! Preteam on Waitlist. See below for details
6. Team practice schedule
7. Shark Gear links
8. MCSL adult swim league: more details!
9. Detailed instructions for how to register

1.   Meet the coaches this Sunday, May 28 starting at 5:30pm at the pool. Come and meet our coaches for swim team this year! Coaches will be present, A reps will be present, board members will be present, and you can get any questions about the season answered! You can also pick up your team t-shirts and get dinner; burgers, hot dogs, and chips and concessions will be for sale!

2.   Coaching updates: Due to a time conflict with her club team, coach Gabi will not be able to work with our swimmers this season. We wish her best of luck with her coaching and hope she can stop by some meets this summer as well! Thus, we have made some coaching staff changes. Coach Maddy and Coach Sasha will now serve as co-head coaches with the swim team. Coach Elisabeth Charles (who coached as an assistant last summer!) will be an assistant coach and be head of the preteam. Coach Sarah will be an assistant coach and assist with preteam to support coach Elisabeth. We are grateful for all of their flexibility and enthusiasm in working with the team this year!

3.   Volunteering and Officials Clinics: How can you meet your volunteer requirement? Some have asked about this and in addition to slots available, we are still in need of the following:

     1) a volunteer coordinator: Responsible for (1) filling all volunteer positions prior to each meet / event and (2) monitoring compliance with the Rockshire Sharks volunteer requirements policy (i.e., 18 hours / family). **The role is often performed in close consultation with the A-Rep / B-Rep. (If necessary, this role can be bi-furcated into an “A-Meet” Family and “B-Meet” Family.)

      2) banquet coordinator- Responsible for planning and executing the annual, end-of-season banquet. This includes ordering all trophies / awards to be handed out at the annual, end of the season banquet.

     3) Minimeet coordinator: responsible for coordinating and planning minimeet along with the preteam coach.

     4) officials!!!: If you are thinking about getting certified as Stroke and Turn, Referee, Starter, or Automation, please find registration information HERE. ***We really need these volunteers to run meets. Please consider completing a clinic to help with volunteering this summer:)***

4.    The events schedule is on the website but here is the schedule of events in addition to practice for this year. PLEASE RSVP to sign up for meets and for events on the WEBSITE.:

May 28th-5:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Meet the coaches! @At the pool

June 8th- 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM

PreTeam and Team Pictures@Rockshire Pool

June 10th- 7:00 AM –10:30 AM *

Rockshire Time Trials @Rockshire Pool

June 14th-5:30 PM – 9:30 PM *

Away B meet @ Inverness

June 16th-6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Friday Fun night: Pasta Party@Pool house

June 17th- 7:00 AM –10:30 AM

Home A meet vs Inverness @Rockshire pool

June 21st- 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM *

Away B Meet @ Montgomery Square

June 23rd- 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Friday Fun night: Grill out!@Pool house and TIE DYE

June 24th- 7:00 AM –10:30 AM

Away A meet @ Kenmont

June 28th- 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM *

Home B meet vs Eldwick @Rockshire pool

June 30th-6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Friday night fun night: potluck! @Pool house

July 1st-7:00 AM –10:30 AM

Home A meet vs Little Falls @Rockshire pool

July 4th-8:00 AM – 9:30 AM

July 4 Firecracker relays!@Rockshire Pool

July 4th-12:00 PM – 4:00 PM

July 4th concessions team fundraiser!@Rockshire Pool

July 5th- 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM *

Home B Meet vs Old Farm @Rockshire pool

July 7th- 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Friday Fun night: Pasta Party@Pool house

July 8th-7:00 AM –10:30 AM

Away A meet @ Regency Estates

July 9th-7:00 AM –11:00 AM

Relay Carnival A meet @Inverness

July 12th-5:30 PM – 9:30 PM

Home B Meet vs Tally Ho @Rockshire pool

July 14th- 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Friday Fun night: Grill out!@Pool house

July 15th-7:00 AM –10:30 AM

Home A meet vs Daleview **Senior Meet** @Rockshire pool

July 16th- 7:00am-10:00 am

PIRC relays @Tally Ho

July 21st- 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Pizza Party sendoff to Divisionals! @Pool house

July 22nd- 6:30 AM –10:00 AM

Divisionals @ Regency Estates

July 23rd-8:30 AM – 9:30 AM

Minimeet @Rockshire Pool

July 23rd 10am-12pm

Rockshier Swimathon @Rockshire Pool

July 23rd-4:30 PM – 6:00 PM

Swim team banquet@Thomas Farm Community Center

5.    Registration IS OPEN on the NEW team website! Please see detailed info below on how to register this year. Please remember that in order to participate in the swim team, your family needs to be a registered member of the pool. All Rockshire members who pay HOA dues can register for free, as it is included with the HOA fees, and outside memberships this year will be posted on the Rockshire HOA website HERE.

***NEW this year: You will be required to fill out your volunteer hours prior to completing registration. All swim team member families are required to volunteer for at least 18 hours. For preteam families, volunteering is optional (but highly encouraged for our fun Friday night events!)***

As a reminder: You may register for the regular team if your child is able to swim unassisted the length of the pool in one stroke.

The preteam will only have two sessions in the evening from 5:30-6pm and 6-6:30pm. ****Registration for preteam is now by waitlist. Please email [email protected] to have your name added to the waitlist for preteam.

Preteam coach applications have been received and you will receive a notification shortly about preteam happenings this year

6.  Team practice schedule:

Swim Team practice will switch to its summer schedule on Monday June 19 2023. Preteam begins Monday, June 19, 2023.

Shark team practice Schedule

May 30-June 16:

11 & Up: 4:15 - 5:00PM

9-10: 5:00 - 5:45PM

8 & Under: 5:45 - 6:30

Shark team practice Schedule June 19-July 21:

Mornings:

11 & Up: 8:45-10:00AM

10 & Under: 10:00 - 10:50AM

Afternoons:

11 & Up: 4:15 - 5:15 PM

9-10: 5:15 - 6:00 PM

8 & Under: 6:00 -6:45 PM

Pre-team practices will begin on Monday June 19 , 2023.

7.    Shark Gear! Don’t delay! In preparation for summer, we will have the same suits as last year. You can buy them HERE. we also have shark gear available via squadlocker here

8.     MCSL Adult swim league: The MCSL is organizing an adult swim league this summer after the 18U league is over. Details will be released as they are available, and minimal volunteering will be necessary. The league will be organized through the DMV chapter of Grown up swimming. Please see their website for details: grownupswimming.com

9.     Detailed Registration instructions:

To register, please visit: https://rockshiresharks.swimtopia.com/

Please read through the step-by-step instructions below, as they contain important information / updates about registration for 2023 (key points are in bold and underlined).

Fees for 2023 are as follows:

$220 per swimmer on the regular team or preteam

$210 for each additional sibling on regular team or preteam

**Fees are non-refundable**

In order to participate on the swim team:

Each family must have a current, paid membership to the Rockshire Pool. Attached is the PDF to the application for non-HOA members. Note that the swim team does not manage memberships to the pool itself. If you have any questions about pool membership, please contact Amber Brown at IKO Community Management ([email protected] or (301) 924-4050).

Each swimmer on the regular team must be able to swim one (1) length of the pool, legally and unassisted, in 1 of the 4 swim strokes (i.e., Freestyle, Back, Breast or Butterfly). If you are uncertain about this requirement, please contact the A-Reps at [email protected] prior to registering.

Each swimmer on the pre-team must be at least four (4) years of age but not older than eight (8) years of age by June 1.

If you know of a new family that is interested in joining the team, please give them our email address so that we can walk them through the registration process ([email protected]).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Sessions of Pre-Team fill up very quickly. Also as it relates to Pre-Team, we cannot accommodate requests to switch your child between sessions. The one you sign up for is the one your child must attend.

Step by step instructions:

1 – Access the Rockshire Sharks website (here’s the link.)

2 – Click on “Registration” underneath the “Home” tab, or on the homepage. PLEASE MAKE SURE TO CLICK THE CORRECT LINK- preteam has its own registration form this year!

3 – Read the welcome message and note the participation requirements (also listed above). You will need to enter in your email, create a password, and enter in all athlete information. On the first page, scroll all the way down to read all of the release forms and check all of the boxes. This will include: Medical Release & Liability Waiver, Membership & Ability, Swimmer Responsibility Agreement, and the Parent Responsibility Agreement.

At the very bottom, Click “Next step”. If you do not get brought to the next page, check the above for any errors you may have made in entering your information.

4 – You will be brought to the athlete groups page. Verify the information that you see is correct for your swimmers you are signing up, and click “next step”.

5 – Volunteer hours! You must sign up for a minimum of 18 volunteer hours before going to the next step. For more information on volunteer roles, please go to the website under the “meets and events” tab, there is a subsection labeled “volunteer roles”. Please make sure to RECORD all of the roles you have volunteered for throughout the summer. You will be held accountable for all of your signups. When you fulfill the requirement, scroll to the bottom and click “Next step”.

6 – If you are registering more than one swimmer, make sure to enter the promotional code “SIBLING” for each additional swimmer to receive the $10/swimmer discount. Click on “Checkout.” Payment may be made via Venmo @Rockshire-Sharks. You may also send a check. Checks should be sent via US Mail to Elena Belyaev at the following address:

2305 Sherbrooke Way

Rockville, MD 20850

If you wish to drop off your check at Elena’s house instead, please DO NOT place the checks in the mailbox. Use the cooler by the front door. Registration is not complete until Elena receives your check. It usually takes a few days for Elena to activate your account once payment is received.

Registration is not verified until your payment has been received.

Any questions? Please contact us at [email protected].

Go Sharks!

Your A-Reps,

Kat and Patrick Hussmann