GGGOOOOO, TEAM!
Girls swim teams and boys swim teams are generally separate teams in high school, yet the same teams for USS swim teams and recreation swim teams. Boys and girls, men and women on co-ed teams practice together and swim the same workouts. The lanes are broken down by ability level, not gender.
Young girls are more coordinated than boys, and are often faster until age eleven or twelve. Swimming together allows both boys and girls to learn from one another and encourage each other to improve. It is fun for the girls and boys to have one another cheering for each other during the meets.
The benefit to having separate teams at the high school level, allows for the most competitive atmosphere at meets and championships, having strictly heats of girls swimming, the focus on each and every race, or vice versa for boys. All races in the pool go toward one team score, and thus raises the intensity level in the pool area.
The Competitive Spirit
Watch and learn. Go to a high school swim meet or college swim meet to see what conditioned and seasoned swimmers look like and to see the times they are posting.
Take your kids who want to be swimmers to these meets so they can get an idea of what they will be able to do if they desire. Swim meets are exciting and motivational.
Team up With the Best
Find the swim team for you. Are you young, old, like to swim fast, or swim long? Do you want the challenge of learning the butterfly and the excitement of slicing through the water with a perfect dive? If you¡¯re a beginner and under eighteen, join your local recreation team ¨C they have the best staff and offer the best competition around.
If you¡¯re competitive and enjoy hard swim workouts, join a local USS team or Masters team if you are over eighteen. YMCAs also have teams for all ability levels, but may be higher priced and not as comprehensively staffed as recreation teams.
*Best advice ¨C talk to the high school swimmers from the high school in your area and ask them where they learned to swim, what teams they joined, and what they thought.