August-October 1984 9 Building a Team Swimmers from Such a Community) Unless They Are Supported Tive

From the Ground Up

By DON GAMBRIL and ALFRED BAY

Don Gambril has had success with a number of teams, from the Phillips 66 Club in Long Beach to the New England BarraCudas to his current residence at the University of Alabama. But it was not an easy process. Specific planning and organization are indispensable items when building a swim club.

With the right facilities in the right location, with the sup- cinnati "Pepsi" Marlins, Jonty Skinner who coached the San port of parents and community, and with lots of hard work, a Jose Aquatics team to the Jr. Olympic Championship in his good coach should be able to build a regionally or even na- second year with them; Dennis Pursely who led his team to tionally competitive swim team from scratch in two or three three AAU titles; Ron Ballatore, Skip Kenney, and others. years. I have done it several times and have seen my assistant Feasibility and Incorporation coaches do it after leaving me: Jay Fitzgerald with the Cin- The first problem to he resolved before a new swim club can be started or an old one expanded is whether the local Don Gambril is the head coach of the United States Olympic team community can support the club. Swimming is a very expen- and the University of Alabama swimming team. Alfred Bay is a free- sive sport. It is the cold truth that a team can survive only in lance writer. an affluent or reasonably affluent community (or by drawing Swimming Technique~August-October 1984 9 Building a team swimmers from such a community) unless they are supported tive. by an outside sponsor (such as the YMCA/YWCA) or by a Toward the same end of establishing a trustworthy reputa- business concern. Even with a sponsor, the survival of the tion, as well as for the more obvious reason of financial team is much more probable if its membership is potentially security, buy insurance coverage. The club should carry indi- self-supporting. vidual accident insurance that covers each swimmer at meets, The second major consideration is the availability of ade- workouts, and during travel to and from meets and workouts. quate facilities. First, there must be a pool that is sanitary (This coverage is now automatically provided by United and, preferably, complete with changing spaces and lockable States Swimming upon registration with them.) It is also wise to carry a corporate liability policy of at least $200,000. This coverage is not expensive and is an invaluable aid in obtaining the use of facilities, since it affords the owners of the pool "Many successful clubs train only in financial protection. 25-yard pools. The ideal ?facility, of Governance and Organization Once incorporated, the club should establish a well- course, has a 25-yard by 50-meter defined governance structure: a board of trustees, a presi- pool, which is available year-round. " dent, and a vice-president. A good secretary-treasurer is invaluable. The position could be filled by anyone with book- keeping skills, free time, and an interest in the club. The work is usually more than is fair to ask of a volunteer, so I recom- storage for team equipment. Second, the team must have mend paying the secretary-treasurer a small salary. Procure a enough time in which they have exclusive use of the pool. A small office where the club can keep records, hold board senior team needs at least 26 hours of pool time a week; a full meetings, organize mailings, and where the president and age-group program needs much more than that. Assurance of secretary-treasurer can work. This might be an old store- ample access to one pool year-round will make the programs front, a room in a school or church, or even a den in infinitely easier to conduct, more successful, and more someone's house or garage. rewarding. The limit of success of any endeavor is the quality of its When I was with the Phillips 66 Club in Long Beach organization. If the club and team are poorly organized, they (California), we didn't have this access, and it became a tre- will be doomed to failure, or at least to mediocrity. It is in mendous problem for us. We had to alternate between three everyone's interest that the club governance be efficient and and four different pools from day to day, and these pools that the program run smoothly, but in practice it is the coach were all public. Any team could come work right on top of who ultimately must see to it. Running a successful swim pro- us, and they didl Usually right before a meet. It was a form gram requires more than just conducting workouts and of harassment. Conversely, Mark Schubert, with a secure meets; there are also many support services that must be priority use of home facilities, and financial and community developed and maintained. The only way for a coach to do support, has been able to use his considerable coaching this is to delegate responsibility. Young coaches all too often abilities to their best advantage to create an aquatic dynasty try to carry too much of the load themselves. They feel they with his Mission Viejo team. must prove themselves and, as a result, stumble along unwill- If possible, the club should have use of a 25-yard pool during, or afraid, to delegate duty. But if they don't learn how to ing the indoor season, and a 50-meter pool during the out- do this, they soon burn out. door season, but this is not essential; many successful clubs Team Support train only in 25-yard pools. The ideal facility, of course, has a A booster club will prove very helpful in the success of a 25-yard by 50-meter pool, which is available year-round. new swim program. The coach should not have to run around A third essential consideration in forming a team is com- at a meet and make sure it runs smoothly; he or she should be munity support: Does the community want a club and team? devoting that time and attention to the swimmers. Thus, Is it generally interested in and supportive of sports and parents of the swimmers, friends of the club, or any interested recreational programs? Are enough kids available? members of the community should be schooled in how a meet Once interest and viability have been established and a is set up and run. They are the ones who shall make sure that core club formed, the team organizers should begin the pro- the lane lines are right and tight, that the blocks are out, and cess of incorporating as a nonprofit organization. This isn't that the lap counter is in place. They will see to it that the always easy; it may take several months, but it's worth the public address system is working, that the flags are up, that trouble. Start early. Start immediatelyl Incorporation will the starting gun has sufficient charges, and that there are make the group eligible for tax exemptions and deductions enough stop watches. Furthermore, the boosters club should that will help lower the cost of running a club, and it will supply trained timers for every lane and people to record make obtaining and retaining facilities much easier. School times. They should judge finishes and figure the running boards and city recreational departments (your most prob- scores. Ideally, these people should be identified at the meets able landlords) are usually reticent about dealing with loose by a distinctive cap, badge, or tee-shirt, and should be amalgamations of people calling themselves a club and are honored by a list of their names in the meet program. Even reluctant (if not forbidden by law) to make public facilities more important, at the end of the year the team's gratitude to available to private and/or profit-making organizations. If the boosters club should be shown by some sort of function (a you can demonstrate that your organization is responsible- a banquet, perhaps) held in their honor. legally incorporated, non-profit organization that provides a I would like to add here that sharply run meets are crucial service to the community- they will be much more coopera- in the attraction and retaining of talent for the program, as 10 Swimming Technique/August-October 1984 well as in the attraction of top competition for the team. available under these conditions, I must emphasize that it is a Both, of course, are absolutely necessary for the eventual much better policy for basic costs to be covered by training growth of the program and continued success of the team. fees. This way, if the outside financing is withdrawn- and I Proceeds derived from meets also provide revenue. have seen it happen many times- the club's existence will not People are also needed to design and produce the meet pro- be threatened. Sponsorship money can be used for other grams, to sell ads, and to do all the paperwork connected things, such as uniforms and equipment. with a meet: sending out invitations, filling out entry blanks, Early in the club's existence, a ways and means committee keeping statistics. A committee, or an individual, should be should be established and should start generating a savings put in charge of organizing transportation to away-meets and finding accommodations for the team. For big meets, hotel reservations should be made well in advance. At the Univer- sity of Alabama, for example, we make reservations for the "'Costs essential to running the team a year ahead of time, so we can be sure to get the choice club should be covered by training spots with regard to cost, proximity to the pool, and availability of good food. We arrange our transportation for fees . . . not by donations the entire season when the swimming year begins, in or scholarships. "" September, so that we can save money by taking advantage of special rates and don't have to worry about forgetting such details in the last-minute rush. Also when your club hosts a meet, someone in the club should be responsible for finding account. This money can be used, when needed, for scholar- accommodations for the visiting team and suggesting places ships, uniforms, publicity, and emergencies. From the start, to eat. This is a good opportunity to direct business to firms a portion of the money should be diverted into an equipment that advertise in your programs or that sponsor your team. and travel fun~t. The equipment fund will be used to replace Publicity worn-out or brokela equipment or to upgrade stock. The Publicity is a boon to a new club since it both attracts new travel fund can be used to pay for trdnsportation to away- members and stimulates community interest. And because meets. the swimmers always enjoy seeing their names in the paper, it I think it is important that the club select a few really big is also an excellent way to reward and/or motivate them. So meets every year and agree to pay the fees, transportation, organize a publicity committee. Put someone who likes to write or who has contact with the local newspapers in charge. Most local papers will be eager to print meet results • , . . . and to run an occasional feature article on the team, if the team does the leg work and supplies the copy. Also, it never hurts to take the local sportswriter out to dinner. Be sure to invite them to all your meets and awards banquet, and don't forget to advertise your meets and fund-raisers in the local media: the newspaper's events calendar, radio spots, posters in merchants' windows. A word of caution: Publicity can be a ticklish area, a cause for intrateam strife. Some parents get extremely upset when someone else's kid gets a mention in the paper and theirs does not. Care must be taken to give credit where due and to in- elude in each article the names of as many different swimmers as possible. Don't just name the stars and winners, but also be sure to comment on personal bests, improved times and progress reports. Cover all age divisions, not just the top division, and even write a special feature on your swimmers with the best gradesl There is no better motivation for the young swimmer who works hard but never wins than a men-' tion in the local paper of his or her dedication. News coverage can do much for a team's morale; bad coverage can ruin it. • Chromed, mirror-like fini,~h outside. Above all, be fair and don't play favorites. Finance All costs essential to the running of the club-insurance, league dues and fees, pool and office rental, the secretary- treasurer's stipend, and the coach's salary- should be covered by training fees charged to each swimmer, not by donations, outside financing, or sponsorships which can be withdrawn. ; or write to: If a sponsorship/s accepted and the sponsor's money is used to cover some, or all, of the basic club costs, the club directorate must assure that this money will be available, year-in and year-out, by legal contract. Still, even if sponsorship money is Swimming Technique~August-October 1984 11 Building a team and housing costs of any of its swimmers who qualify for Still, it is always important to support the people you ap- them. This is an important part of an incentive program. By point. When errors are made, don't overreact; you must work paying for these meets the club will take pressure off the with your volunteers, not against them. swimmers who are good enough to attend these meets but And remember, a club ultimately survives only through the cannot afford to do so. good-will of the parents. Periodic parent meetings and a team Above, I said that a travel fund should be cultivated from newsletter are excellent avenues of communication. They the very start. I would like to stress this. At Rosemead, my provide a forum for the club offices to report on fiscal matters first club, we didn't start such a fund. We gave no thought to and to discuss plans for the club, and for the coach to report it; we didn't dream that our swimmers would be ranked na- on the team's progress, to present the parents with the season's tionally by the end of the year. But that year-our very firstl- we ended up with eight or nine swimmers who had qualified for the Nationals but couldn't afford to attend them. And unfortunately for them, and for the club itself, we "Once hired, the coach must be had no extra money with which to send them. There are many ways for a team to raise money: by hold- free to run the team to conduct ing rummage sales, or by selling food concessions, tee-shirts, training sessions and competition books, and posters at the poolside during meets or public as he or she sees fit. " swim time. The team could also sell advertisement space in the meet program or attain sponsorships. Another popular fund-raiser is the Swim-a-thon, having earned $20,000 to $30,000 for some teams. Information on conducting Swim-a- schedule, to share plans and aspirations he or she might have thons is available from United States Swimming. for the team, and to field questions. Good communication be- Master Swimmers tween the coach and the parents is crucial to the club's suc- As more and more adults discover (or rediscover) the cess. Of course, clear communication between the coach and pleasure of swimming and begin to experience the benefits of the club directorate is very important as well. conditioning resulting from a serious swimming program, The Coach they often become interested in joining a competitive pro- There exists a wide range of age-group programs, each gram designed for them. Across the United States, masters (perhaps) with a slightly different set of goals and purposes, swimming programs (for persons age 25 and over) are gaining each (certainly) operating under different conditions. Though in popularity. A masters program can be an asset to any age there may be individual dissensions, the group of parents group program. Your club, once established, should seriously whose subscription makes a particular club should collectively consider sponsoring one. have an idea of how they want the team to be conducted and A masters team can be a good source of revenue. The train- of what goals they hold for the program. It is the responsibility ing fees--which can be substantially higher than those of the club directorate to discern just what these are and to charged the age-group swimmers-will help immensely in find and hire a coach with compatible methods and aspira- financing the rest of the program. Master swimmers are often tions. enthusiastic fund-raisers and are usually more than willing to At the outset, the coach should explain his or her personal help out around the pool with the younger swimmers: timing philosophy of coaching to the board. This philosophy should laps, setting up meets, etc. Most of them, in fact, are proud to be wholly acceptable to the board, or they should not hire be affiliated with the club and are proud to wear its colors. that particular coach, no matter how prestigious he or she is. A masters team also benefits the community. It provides an Many coaches have quit in frustration and anger, or have often much-needed recreational opportunity for the older been fired, because of conceptual misunderstandings and members of the community. It is a chance for them to pro- conflict between them and the board, or because of hostile in- mote their health and general well-being and, at the same dividuals on the board. Once hired, the coach must be free to time, to be part of a fun group, to travel, to see old friends run the team, to conduct training sessions and competition, as and make new ones, and to keep in touch with the sport. It is be or she sees fit. also an excellent ground of contact between the young and Working conditions and remuneration should be agreed the older. upon and clearly stated in writing. The coach should be paid a yearly or monthly salary. (To ensure financial security the I have outlined above some of the structural components coach should make sure this salary comes out of the afore- necessary to the success of an age-group swimming program. mentioned training fees.) Stay clear of hourly wages; an Again, I would like to stress that the more volunteers the club hourly wage will often lead the coach into a conflict of in- employs- and employs efficiently- the greater the club's suc- terest between time spent and money earned. The coach must cess will be. But be sure to match the job with the volunteers be at liberty to put in as many or as few hours as he or she carefully; match interest with task. Someone who likes to talk feels is best for the team, without having to worry about the on the phone might be ideal as the kingpin (or queenpin) of affect on income. A directorate, nervous with this loose ac- the club phone tree; the same person might be a disaster as counting, must remember that many of the hours a coach treasurer. spends on the team's behalf are not readily calculable-such However, it must be remembered that although it is the as the time he or she spends scouting, recruiting, planning the club directorate's responsibility to set up committees and find next day's workout, or reading to keep professionally informed. volunteers for them, it is ultimately the coach's responsibility As a minimum, the coach should receive insurance coverage to get things done; he or she must double-check on the others. on the job (better, is full health-care coverage) and paid vaca- 12 Swimming Technique/August-October 1984 tion leave (two weeks) between the last meet o£ the summer suggestion we changed it to New England Barracudas in season and the start of training in the fall. Further, it is im- order to better capitalize on general area recognition and to portant to the professional growth of the coach (and therefore pave the way for gaining use of facilities outside of Bedford. to the improvement o£ the club) that he or she attend at least A club could also assume the name of an industrial sponsor, one swim clinic per year. In fact, if the club is interested in as the Pepsi Marlins do in Cincinnati. If sponsorship is ac- developing a superior coach, they should send him or her to cepted and reflected in the name, a multi-year contract more guaranteeing the sponsorship should be made, if possible, so The annual American Swimming Coaches Association the team doesn't have to change names every few years. clinic is probably the best; however, there are many good A good relationship with a sponsor is invaluable. Support regional clinics available. Most of these advertise in "Swim- their products. Keep them interested in the team. Keep a ming World" magazine. Other options, especially for inex- scrapbook of the media coverage your team has received and perienced coaches, include the so-called coaches' colleges, present it to your sponsor at the end of every season. Let them which are actually mini-courses or symposiums. The best of know what you are doing for them. these, sponsored by U.S. Swimming, is held in Colorado Phillips Petroleum, which sponsored Phillips 66 Club in Springs. We also hold one at the University o£ Alabama every Long Beach through three consecutive national titles summer. Whichever clinics the club chooses, the coach's ex- (1969-1971) went on to become the national sponsor for penses for travel and accommodations should be provided senior swimming. In fact, they have just signed a contract for, just as they are for away-meet trips. that promises a contribution o£ a million dollars to the sport Choosing a Name every four years. The contract, extended through 1988, will This decision is more important than one might think. The bring them to their 16th year o£ national sponsorship. Their name you choose should serve the interests o£ the club. For in- money has kept many teams from going under and has helped stance, it could be used either to identify the team with a the sport to organize on a national level. community or place (in order to generate local support and At any rate, after a name has been chosen, find an artist identification) or to gain the use o£ a facility. Examples of who will design a catchy logo and emblem and have a silk- such names include: the Santa Clara Swim Club, Mission screen made up that can be used to print your own T-shirts. Viejo, Rosemead, and the New England Barricuda Club, Initially these can serve as uniforms. Later, as the club which was my first club outside of California. When I came, becomes more financially stable, warm-ups, badges and the club was known as the Bedford Barracudas, but at my emblems using the same motif can be introduced. The silk-

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t Swimming Technique/August-October 1984 13 well as in the attraction of top competition for the team. available under these conditions, I must emphasize that it is a Both, of course, are absolutely necessary for the eventual much better policy for basic costs to be covered by training growth of the program and continued success of the team. fees. This way, if the outside financing is withdrawn- and I Proceeds derived from meets also provide revenue. have seen it happen many times- the club's existence will not People are also needed to design and produce the meet pro- be threatened. Sponsorship money can be used for other grams, to sell ads, and to do all the paperwork connected things, such as uniforms and equipment. with a meet: sending out invitations, filling out entry blanks, Early in the club's existence, a ways and means committee keeping statistics. A committee, or an individual, should be should be established and should start generating a savings put in charge of organizing transportation to away-meets and finding accommodations for the team. For big meets, hotel reservations should be made well in advance. At the Univer- sity of Alabama, for example, we make reservations for the "'Costs essential to running the team a year ahead of time, so we can be sure to get the choice club should be covered by training spots with regard to cost, proximity to the pool, and availability of good food. We arrange our transportation for fees . . . not by donations the entire season when the swimming year begins, in or scholarships. "" September, so that we can save money by taking advantage of special rates and don't have to worry about forgetting such details in the last-minute rush. Also when your club hosts a meet, someone in the club should be responsible for finding account. This money can be used, when needed, for scholar- accommodations for the visiting team and suggesting places ships, uniforms, publicity, and emergencies. From the start, to eat. This is a good opportunity to direct business to firms a portion of the money should be diverted into an equipment that advertise in your programs or that sponsor your team. and travel fun~t. The equipment fund will be used to replace Publicity worn-out or brokela equipment or to upgrade stock. The Publicity is a boon to a new club since it both attracts new travel fund can be used to pay for trdnsportation to away- members and stimulates community interest. And because meets. the swimmers always enjoy seeing their names in the paper, it I think it is important that the club select a few really big is also an excellent way to reward and/or motivate them. So meets every year and agree to pay the fees, transportation, organize a publicity committee. Put someone who likes to write or who has contact with the local newspapers in charge. Most local papers will be eager to print meet results • , . . . and to run an occasional feature article on the team, if the team does the leg work and supplies the copy. Also, it never hurts to take the local sportswriter out to dinner. Be sure to invite them to all your meets and awards banquet, and don't forget to advertise your meets and fund-raisers in the local media: the newspaper's events calendar, radio spots, posters in merchants' windows. A word of caution: Publicity can be a ticklish area, a cause for intrateam strife. Some parents get extremely upset when someone else's kid gets a mention in the paper and theirs does not. Care must be taken to give credit where due and to in- elude in each article the names of as many different swimmers as possible. Don't just name the stars and winners, but also be sure to comment on personal bests, improved times and progress reports. Cover all age divisions, not just the top division, and even write a special feature on your swimmers with the best gradesl There is no better motivation for the young swimmer who works hard but never wins than a men-' tion in the local paper of his or her dedication. News coverage can do much for a team's morale; bad coverage can ruin it. • Chromed, mirror-like fini,~h outside. Above all, be fair and don't play favorites. Finance All costs essential to the running of the club-insurance, league dues and fees, pool and office rental, the secretary- treasurer's stipend, and the coach's salary- should be covered by training fees charged to each swimmer, not by donations, outside financing, or sponsorships which can be withdrawn. ; or write to: If a sponsorship/s accepted and the sponsor's money is used to cover some, or all, of the basic club costs, the club directorate must assure that this money will be available, year-in and year-out, by legal contract. Still, even if sponsorship money is Swimming Technique~August-October 1984 11 Building a team and housing costs of any of its swimmers who qualify for Still, it is always important to support the people you ap- them. This is an important part of an incentive program. By point. When errors are made, don't overreact; you must work paying for these meets the club will take pressure off the with your volunteers, not against them. swimmers who are good enough to attend these meets but And remember, a club ultimately survives only through the cannot afford to do so. good-will of the parents. Periodic parent meetings and a team Above, I said that a travel fund should be cultivated from newsletter are excellent avenues of communication. They the very start. I would like to stress this. At Rosemead, my provide a forum for the club offices to report on fiscal matters first club, we didn't start such a fund. We gave no thought to and to discuss plans for the club, and for the coach to report it; we didn't dream that our swimmers would be ranked na- on the team's progress, to present the parents with the season's tionally by the end of the year. But that year-our very firstl- we ended up with eight or nine swimmers who had qualified for the Nationals but couldn't afford to attend them. And unfortunately for them, and for the club itself, we "Once hired, the coach must be had no extra money with which to send them. There are many ways for a team to raise money: by hold- free to run the team to conduct ing rummage sales, or by selling food concessions, tee-shirts, training sessions and competition books, and posters at the poolside during meets or public as he or she sees fit. " swim time. The team could also sell advertisement space in the meet program or attain sponsorships. Another popular fund-raiser is the Swim-a-thon, having earned $20,000 to $30,000 for some teams. Information on conducting Swim-a- schedule, to share plans and aspirations he or she might have thons is available from United States Swimming. for the team, and to field questions. Good communication be- Master Swimmers tween the coach and the parents is crucial to the club's suc- As more and more adults discover (or rediscover) the cess. Of course, clear communication between the coach and pleasure of swimming and begin to experience the benefits of the club directorate is very important as well. conditioning resulting from a serious swimming program, The Coach they often become interested in joining a competitive pro- There exists a wide range of age-group programs, each gram designed for them. Across the United States, masters (perhaps) with a slightly different set of goals and purposes, swimming programs (for persons age 25 and over) are gaining each (certainly) operating under different conditions. Though in popularity. A masters program can be an asset to any age there may be individual dissensions, the group of parents group program. Your club, once established, should seriously whose subscription makes a particular club should collectively consider sponsoring one. have an idea of how they want the team to be conducted and A masters team can be a good source of revenue. The train- of what goals they hold for the program. It is the responsibility ing fees--which can be substantially higher than those of the club directorate to discern just what these are and to charged the age-group swimmers-will help immensely in find and hire a coach with compatible methods and aspira- financing the rest of the program. Master swimmers are often tions. enthusiastic fund-raisers and are usually more than willing to At the outset, the coach should explain his or her personal help out around the pool with the younger swimmers: timing philosophy of coaching to the board. This philosophy should laps, setting up meets, etc. Most of them, in fact, are proud to be wholly acceptable to the board, or they should not hire be affiliated with the club and are proud to wear its colors. that particular coach, no matter how prestigious he or she is. A masters team also benefits the community. It provides an Many coaches have quit in frustration and anger, or have often much-needed recreational opportunity for the older been fired, because of conceptual misunderstandings and members of the community. It is a chance for them to pro- conflict between them and the board, or because of hostile in- mote their health and general well-being and, at the same dividuals on the board. Once hired, the coach must be free to time, to be part of a fun group, to travel, to see old friends run the team, to conduct training sessions and competition, as and make new ones, and to keep in touch with the sport. It is be or she sees fit. also an excellent ground of contact between the young and Working conditions and remuneration should be agreed the older. upon and clearly stated in writing. The coach should be paid a yearly or monthly salary. (To ensure financial security the I have outlined above some of the structural components coach should make sure this salary comes out of the afore- necessary to the success of an age-group swimming program. mentioned training fees.) Stay clear of hourly wages; an Again, I would like to stress that the more volunteers the club hourly wage will often lead the coach into a conflict of in- employs- and employs efficiently- the greater the club's suc- terest between time spent and money earned. The coach must cess will be. But be sure to match the job with the volunteers be at liberty to put in as many or as few hours as he or she carefully; match interest with task. Someone who likes to talk feels is best for the team, without having to worry about the on the phone might be ideal as the kingpin (or queenpin) of affect on income. A directorate, nervous with this loose ac- the club phone tree; the same person might be a disaster as counting, must remember that many of the hours a coach treasurer. spends on the team's behalf are not readily calculable-such However, it must be remembered that although it is the as the time he or she spends scouting, recruiting, planning the club directorate's responsibility to set up committees and find next day's workout, or reading to keep professionally informed. volunteers for them, it is ultimately the coach's responsibility As a minimum, the coach should receive insurance coverage to get things done; he or she must double-check on the others. on the job (better, is full health-care coverage) and paid vaca- 12 Swimming Technique/August-October 1984 tion leave (two weeks) between the last meet o£ the summer suggestion we changed it to New England Barracudas in season and the start of training in the fall. Further, it is im- order to better capitalize on general area recognition and to portant to the professional growth of the coach (and therefore pave the way for gaining use of facilities outside of Bedford. to the improvement o£ the club) that he or she attend at least A club could also assume the name of an industrial sponsor, one swim clinic per year. In fact, if the club is interested in as the Pepsi Marlins do in Cincinnati. If sponsorship is ac- developing a superior coach, they should send him or her to cepted and reflected in the name, a multi-year contract more guaranteeing the sponsorship should be made, if possible, so The annual American Swimming Coaches Association the team doesn't have to change names every few years. clinic is probably the best; however, there are many good A good relationship with a sponsor is invaluable. Support regional clinics available. Most of these advertise in "Swim- their products. Keep them interested in the team. Keep a ming World" magazine. Other options, especially for inex- scrapbook of the media coverage your team has received and perienced coaches, include the so-called coaches' colleges, present it to your sponsor at the end of every season. Let them which are actually mini-courses or symposiums. The best of know what you are doing for them. these, sponsored by U.S. Swimming, is held in Colorado Phillips Petroleum, which sponsored Phillips 66 Club in Springs. We also hold one at the University o£ Alabama every Long Beach through three consecutive national titles summer. Whichever clinics the club chooses, the coach's ex- (1969-1971) went on to become the national sponsor for penses for travel and accommodations should be provided senior swimming. In fact, they have just signed a contract for, just as they are for away-meet trips. that promises a contribution o£ a million dollars to the sport Choosing a Name every four years. The contract, extended through 1988, will This decision is more important than one might think. The bring them to their 16th year o£ national sponsorship. Their name you choose should serve the interests o£ the club. For in- money has kept many teams from going under and has helped stance, it could be used either to identify the team with a the sport to organize on a national level. community or place (in order to generate local support and At any rate, after a name has been chosen, find an artist identification) or to gain the use o£ a facility. Examples of who will design a catchy logo and emblem and have a silk- such names include: the Santa Clara Swim Club, Mission screen made up that can be used to print your own T-shirts. Viejo, Rosemead, and the New England Barricuda Club, Initially these can serve as uniforms. Later, as the club which was my first club outside of California. When I came, becomes more financially stable, warm-ups, badges and the club was known as the Bedford Barracudas, but at my emblems using the same motif can be introduced. The silk-

R V NC * SWiMRODUCTS Of% COACH SCOPE (a periscope type subsurface viewing system that easily mounts on the deck of any pool)

t Swimming Technique/August-October 1984 13