Hey Stingrays! 

Here is the email with your arrival times, logistics, what to bring, etc for the County Meet. All this info is very important, so please mark this in your inbox for easy reference.  

COUNTY MEET LOGISTICS

VENUE: Georgia Tech Campus Recreation Center (McAuley Aquatic Center)
ADDRESS: 750 Ferst Dr, Atlanta, GA 30318
PARKING: You can either pay cash at the gate ($15, I think, bring $20 just to be safe!) for the parking deck or get your pass for $12 online beforehand here: https://gatech.clickandpark.com/events. 
I strongly recommend buying your parking pass ASAP for the day you are attending because parking downtown can be a pain. I also encourage carpooling where you can.

IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS:
Please call/text us if anything comes up day-of!
Coach Danielle - (678) 983-0623
Coach Thomas - (770) 845-7845

TICKETS, APPAREL, & CAPS

TICKETS - I will be giving each family their tickets at the county celebration on Friday. If you will not be in attendance, please let me know and I will make other arrangements. So that you can plan, here is how many tickets each family is allotted per session: 

Session 1 (9/10) - 3 tickets
Session 2 (13/14 & 15-18) - 2 tickets
Session 3 (8 & under + 6 & under) - 3 tickets
Session 4 (11/12) - 3 tickets

I do have some extras, so let me know if you need them and I'll let you know if I have any left. That said, if you have extra tickets, please give them to me or to someone else you know who might be able to use them! 

APPAREL - I will also be giving out already-ordered apparel Wednesday - Friday of this week at practice/the celebration. Again, if for whatever reason you won't be at practice, let me know and we can make other arrangements. 

CAPS - Our county caps are neon ORANGE this year! Parents, you will be able to spot your child from anywhere! I am going to give these out AT THE MEET on Saturday and Sunday. I don't want anyone losing theirs before the meet. 


COUNTY MEET WARM-UP TIMES AND ARRIVAL TIMES

Session 1 // AM Saturday July 8 // 9 & 10's 
Arrive @ 7:40 AM
Warm-ups @ 8:00 AM (Lane 3, Main Pool)
Meet Start @ 9:20 AM
Est End Time: 1:00 PM

Session 2 // PM Saturday July 8 // 13/14 & 15-18
Arrive @ 1:10 PM
Warm-ups @ 1:30 PM (Lane 10, Scoreboard Pool)
Meet Start @ 3:15 PM
Est End Time: 7:30 PM

Session 3 // AM Sunday July 9 // 8 & unders + 6 & unders
Arrive @ 7:40 AM
Warm-ups @ 8:00 AM (Lane 3, Main Pool)
Meet Start @ 9:15 AM
Est End Time: 1:00 PM

Session 4 // PM Sunday July 9 // 11 & 12's 
Arrive @ 1:55 PM
Warm-ups @ 2:15 PM (Lanes 5 & 6, Scoreboard Pool)
Meet Start @ 3:00 PM
Est End Time: 6:30 PM

WHAT TO BRING TO COUNTY
1. SUIT // a tighter one versus a loose one, loose suits create more drag)
2. CAP & GOGGLES // we will have caps for your swimmer, but an extra of each of these can't hurt!
3. TOWELS // Yes, multiple. Your swimmer will want one for after warmups and another for after they race so that it's not sopping wet and cold. They may also want one to sit on, as they will be sitting on the floor.
4. SNACKS // Healthy snacks like fruit or protein bars are always good for refueling the body between events. We will have goody bags for them, but these sweet snacks are better served for after they swim. (: 
5. DRINKS // It is SO important that they have water and/or gatorade to stay hydrated. We will have some in the goody bags as well, but it never hurts to have more than what you need! 
6. WARM, DRY CLOTHES // The pool is very cold, which is optimal for racing. Your swimmer will be cold after they swim and sit on the deck. Make sure they pack something like a sweatshirt and sweatpants or even just a tshirt and pajama pants to keep warm between events! 
7. YOUR TICKETS // Please don't forget to bring your tickets to County! 
8. A CAMERA // Take lots of pictures. This is a very fun event and such an honor for your swimmer! Everyone involved should be proud, and this is an event to remember. But please remember, NO flash photography at the start of a race. 


WHAT TO EXPECT AT COUNTY

1. HOW TO GET TO THE POOL
Once you've parked, you'll see a steady flow of people going into the front of the Campus Recreation Center. Follow them into the buliding. You'll enter into a long hallway and can enter into any of the doors on the right. Once you enter, that is the spectator seating. 

2. THERE ARE 3 POOLS?!
Once you are facing the pools, you will notice there are 3. One is to the far left by the big scoreboard on the wall (the "scoreboard pool"). That pool will serve as a warm-up/warm-down pool only. The middle pool is the "main pool", where all the competition will be taking place. The darker pool to the far right is the diving well. For reference. 

3. HOW IN THE WORLD DO I GET ON DECK?
To get down to the pool deck, you have to walk all the way down to the far left by the big scoreboard on the wall to get to the stairs that lead down on deck. This is the only way to get on deck unless you are an official. (Sigh...Georgia Tech engineering...Go Dawgs). 

4. PARENTS ON DECK
PARENTS ARE ONLY ALLOWED ON DECK FOR CHILD DROPOFF/PICKUP. After that, parents must return to their seats and are not allowed on deck unless given a bullpen job by the coaches. Feel free to text us if you need to get your child's attention for whatever reason. 

5. HOW TO FIND THE STINGRAYS
Once on deck to drop off your swimmer, you'll see pieces of paper taped to the walls all around the natatorium. These will be in alphabetical order, either by name or abbreviation. So either look for "Steeple Station" or "RAYS". Once you find us, you can take your pictures and we'll head to warm-up and send you back upstairs. 

6. ORDER OF EVENTS
We will warm-up at our assigned time in our assigned lane and then wait for the meet to start. RELAYS COME FIRST AT COUNTY. After that, there will be a small break to clear out all the kids just doing relays and then the individual competition will start shortly after in normal order.  

As always, this is a very exciting time and things are very different at the county meet than they are in our home pool, so please do not hesitate to ask any questions at all! 

Coach Danielle