Wakefield Chapel Wahoos

Practices will be held Monday through Friday beginning the day after Memorial Day.  While FCPS is still in session, practices will be in the afternoons - note the adjustment of the times of these practices.  Morning Practices will begin on Thursday, June 18; morning practice times will not change from recent years'.

• No parents are allowed on deck during practice.  The coaches need to focus on our swimmers.  You may direct all questions to the Team Reps who are present during practices.
• All swimmers must attend their assigned age group practice.  Limited exceptions will be made during the afternoon practice schedule to accommodate school schedules.  All exceptions must be approved by the Team Reps prior to your child attending an alternate practice session.
• The WCRA Unaccompanied Swimmer policy states that only swimmers age 10 and older may be at the pool without a parent or guardian (if they have a signed permission form).  
• For swim team practice ONLY, 9 year olds attending the 9-12 year old practice may be unaccompanied during their practice time.  They MAY NOT remain at the pool unaccompanied before or after the 9-12 practice.
• All swimmers age 8 and younger MUST have a parent or guardian (age 14 or older) remain on pool grounds AT ALL TIMES during 6-8 and Minnows practices. NO EXCEPTIONS! If there is another adult present who is responsible for your child, please make sure that we have contact information for that person. Parents must provide accurate contact information in their registration / team web account, in case of emergency.
• Swimmers that qualify for Divisional Relays, All-Star Relays, Individual Divisionals, or Individual All-Stars may have separate, additional practices before the meet. Swimmers participating in these meets will be notified of these special practices.
• Swimmers must come prepared with swimsuit, goggles, and water bottle to every practice.
• ONLY the snack bar Pavilion and the Hill area are available for parents who stay at WCRA during practice. The entire baby pool area is CLOSED during all team practices - children may not be in the water and caregivers may not sit inside the fenced in baby pool area. This is required per WCRA rules and NVSL insurance safety regulations.
• Parents may not talk with coaches or swimmers during practice. Coaches need to give their full attention to conducting a safe and productive practice.
• No child who is not a member of the swim team can be left at the pool during the hours of team practice without a parent present, per WCRA rules and NVSL insurance safety regulations.
• During team activities, all WCRA pool age and code of conduct policies apply. Parents are expected to read and understand these policies. The documents are available on the WCRA website in the Member Dashboard, under Member Documents.
• The WCRA lifeguards open the pool after 11am for general membership swimming. Any child not registered on the swim team is not covered by the WCRA insurance until the lifeguards open the pool for regular operating hours at/after 11am.
• It is important that swimmers listen to the coaches and are not disruptive to the other swimmers. During practice, any disruptive swimmer will receive two warnings to correct inappropriate behavior before being sent to the deck for a short break. If there is still a discipline problem, the parent will be notified by the Team Rep.
• A swimmer who sustains any kind of injury should immediately notify the Head Coach.
• Cold or inclement weather may shorten practices, so please make plans for your children for those occasions. Please pick your children up on time.

Afternoon Practices from May 26-June 17
Ages 13 to 18: 4:00 - 4:45 pm
Ages 9 to 12: 4:45 - 5:30 pm
Ages 6 to 8: 5:30 - 6:15 pm
Ages 4-5 (+ 6yo Minnows): 6:00 - 6:45 pm

Morning Practices from June 18-July 24
Ages 13 to 18: 7:00 - 8:15 am
Ages 9 to 12: 8:15 - 9:15 am
Ages 6 to 8: 9:15 - 10:15 am
Ages 4-5 (+ 6yo Minnows): 10:15 - 11:00 am

Swimming lanes work best when swimmers in a lane are performing at a similar level. Swimmers are assigned a lane based upon their swimming ability. Each lane is assigned coaches that work with the swimmers in that lane. Coaches may adjust swimmer lane assignments depending on ability. Please direct all questions to the Team Reps.