Burnsville HS Swimming - Team Policies

WELCOME TO BHS BOYS SWIM/DIVE

Head coach: Ben Mauser (he/him), (612) 280-6581, [email protected]

Assistant coach: Crix Schonewill (they/them), (952) 737-7943, [email protected]

Diving coach: Eric Tester (he/him), (612) 210-0248, [email protected]

1. Communication: There are several ways that information is distributed to BHS swim/dive athletes and families.

BHS swim/dive website (BlazeSwim.com) – this is the best place to find general information about all team activities, including competitions, volunteer opportunities, and social events. You will also find useful swim and dive team information such as: the swim and dive practice and meet calendar, contact information for coaches and the Booster Club volunteers, and useful information about high school swimming and diving. The website is also where you will go to sign up for volunteering opportunities and to bring food to potlucks and other social events.
BHS swim/dive email through Team Unify (must register on BlazeSwim.com) – used by Coaches and the Booster Club to distribute timely information pertinent to the boys’ team, along with reminder emails that will be sent from here for volunteer job/food assignments.
Facebook account – Burnsville High School Swimming and Diving
GroupMe app – The captains add their teammates to the app. This is the primary form of communication for those on the team.

2. Expenses: Despite the fact that there is a substantial athletic fee for participating in BHS swim/dive (and any high school sport) there will be other expenses. Below is a list of other expenses you can expect in the swim season. For families in need, such as those who qualify for free and reduced-price lunch, a request for financial help from the Booster Club can be made by talking with Coach Mauser or the Booster Club Treasurer.

Each family is asked to pay a Booster Registration of $180. This is required for all. This Booster Registration covers the cost of individual items for athletes, such as a swim bag and team towel for rookie athletes, competition suit, fan shirt, team bonding activity fee, laminated panoramic poster, senior night meal for senior athletes, end of season shirt, and athlete’s banquet meal. The Booster Registration also covers many other team expenses including administrative expenses, coaching needs, seasonal expenses, and pool equipment not covered by the school, as well as many other expenses (see annual handout about Booster Registration for additional information).

Team Apparel: Practice swimsuit ($30-46.75, required), additional fan shirts ($20), optional team apparel (costs vary). All costs are subject to change. Team parkas are distributed during the season and must be returned (washed) at the end of the season. Those that are not returned at the end of the season or are damaged will incur a $125 fine to replace the parka.
Team swim bags are purchased by the booster club and given to each new team member. These bags are for the boys to keep forever and use throughout their swim career at BHS.
Fan T-shirts: Fan t-shirts are offered each year, designed by that year’s captains, for $20-25, often with the option to have a personalized message on the back for an additional $5.
Meet Admission: It costs $6-8 to attend the swim/dive meets, both home and away. On deck volunteers and captains’ parents do not need to pay the admission fee at home meets.
Travel Trip: The team typically takes an overnight trip to an invitational meet outside of the metro area. The trip includes an activity (e.g. a ropes course), meals, and a hotel stay. The cost of this is generally around $100.
Senior Night: The meal for Senior Night is determined by the juniors and junior’s parents. Sometimes it is a potluck and sometimes it is catered, with all or a portion of the meal donated by the restaurant selected. When catered, each family contributes about $10/person.
Banquet: The end of the season banquet is generally about $25/person. The athlete's cost is paid for through the booster club fee paid at the beginning of the season. The end of season banquet is typically held in early to late Spring.
Photos: Individual and team photos may be purchased if desired. Each athlete receives one laminated panoramic poster. We need parents to take pictures and share them on the google photo page.

3. Team Bonding: The boys’ swim/dive season begins in late November. Captains Practice takes place the week before the season officially starts and involves "getting to know each other" type activities. A variety of other activities are planned throughout the season and may include a team activity early in the season (i.e. escape room, cooking class, bowling, etc.), team sleepovers, volunteering at fundraising events, gift exchange, bonfires, poster-making, dinners out as a team, pancake breakfast, pasta parties, after JV Champs activity, and after Sections party. These are meant to be a fun way to bond and promote team spirit.

Attending team bonding events is encouraged but not required.
Most of these events will be pre-planned but some of them will come up spontaneously. Swimmers and divers should watch the GroupMe app for announcements.

4. Practice: The practice schedule is posted on the BHS swim/dive website in the calendar. Practices are generally 2-2.5 hours including dryland. Practice is held daily Monday through Saturday. Weight room Monday, Thursday, and Saturday at 7:00am and is a required part of practice (all days for high school, Saturdays for middle school).

The boys have dryland as part of their practice time.
Changes to the posted schedule are communicated through the boys’ team GroupMe app and sent via text or email from Coach Mauser.
Practice over Winter Break is required.

5. Attendance Policy: Swimmers and Divers are required to be at practice every day.

If, for some reason, they cannot be at practice, they must notify a coach at least 24 hours prior to the start of practice in order to be excused. Day-of notifications will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
If an athlete is unexcused from practice, he will not be eligible to participate in the next meet, no exceptions.
If an athlete is home sick from school, he is not expected to be at practice. Please inform a coach via email/text/call. If an athlete does attend school, he is expected to be at practice.
If an athlete is out sick the day before a meet, he will not participate in the meet but is still expected to attend if able to support the team. This should not be looked upon as punishment; rather, we feel that if an athlete is sick the day before a meet, he will not be back 100% for the meet.
Any plans for travel or family vacations should be shared with the coaching staff with as much notice as possible. This is increasingly important as the season progresses into championship meets.

We expect each athlete to make the team a high priority and expect a great amount of dedication and commitment to continue the tradition of Burnsville High School Boys’ Swimming and Diving that has been established over the last three decades.

6. Swim/dive meets, general information: Plan on one swim meet per week during the regular season. Weekend invites are possible. Check the swim/dive website calendar and list of events for scheduling.

Conference dual meets are held during the week, usually on a Tuesday or Friday evening. Invitational meets are held on Saturdays. Championship meets are held at the end of the season (JV Champs-Saturday afternoon and Swimming Sections-Wednesday/ Friday evening, Diving Sections – Thursday evening). Swimmers and divers qualify for the state meet at the Sections meet.
The swim/dive schedule can be found on the BHS swim/dive website under the “Events” and “Group Calendar” tabs.
JV and Varsity meets take place together. For each event, the first heat is JV and the second heat is Varsity. Occasionally there are also exhibition heats prior to the JV heat. JV and Varsity are scored separately.
If you are new to high school swimming, the diving portion of the meet takes place midway through the meet when they are held at the same location. If diving is held at a different location, it takes place before the swim meet. It is very important to remain quiet during diving.
Pasta dinners are hosted by a swimmer’s family for the entire team after practice the evening prior to the end of season meets: JV Champs and Sections.
Parents are encouraged to wear their team apparel to all meets showing their Blaze Pride!

7. Home Meets: Home swim meets last 1.5-2 hours, diving lasts 0.5-1 hour. Diving is held at Eagle Ridge Middle School at 5pm and swimming starts at 6pm at Burnsville High School.

Home meets are run completely by the parents, so there are many opportunities to volunteer.
Swimmers are required to show up to the high school before 4:45 for warm-ups.
Volunteer opportunities: Descriptions and sign-ups can be found on the BHS swim/dive website on the home page or under the “Events” tab. Volunteering to be a timer is a fun place to get involved and see all the action, and you get free entry into the meet!
Spirit dressing: athletes are expected to dress their best during the school day to show support for the team on home meet days.
Potlucks: Following each home meet, the entire team, their families, and coaches gather in the BHS cafeteria for an optional potluck dinner. Each family signs up on the website to bring food or beverages, which are dropped off prior to the meet in the cafeteria (several parents sign up to set up the potluck at each meet). Potlucks are a fun way to get to know one another outside of the pool and also a place where information is communicated from the coaches and Booster Club.
Senior night: The senior class is honored after the last home meet of the season. There is a short presentation of each senior with his parents. Following dinner, each senior is honored with a gift and a short speech from an underclassman. This night can get long, but when it’s your son’s senior night you will completely enjoy it!

8. Away Meets: Away meets generally start at 6pm, and last 2-2.5 hours when diving is held at the same location.

Directions to all schools and pools (typically at middle schools) are available on the website.
The athletes take a bus to and from all away meets. If they don’t stay at the high school after school, they need to be at the high school for the bus before 4pm, unless they are told to come at another time.
At some of the away dual meets, divers compete at 5pm at a different location. Divers need to arrange their own transportation to and, sometimes from, these away meets.
Spirit dressing: Athletes are expected to wear Blaze apparel during the school day to show support for the team on away meet days.

9. End of the Season Meets: Each athlete is expected to, and will, compete in an end of the season meet in order to complete the season. The majority of the team will participate in the Junior Varsity Championship Meet. A smaller number of athletes will participate in the Section Meet with even a smaller number qualifying for the State Meet.

In order to participate in the Section Meet, an athlete must be in the top four on the team in that event, and must have displayed excellent dedication, commitment, and attitude throughout the season. We are allowed to enter four individuals and one relay per event; therefore, we are limited in the number of people who can participate at the Section Championships. There have been occasions where we do not necessarily enter four individuals per event since we want the individuals to be competitive at their respective championship meet. Occasionally, a swimmer may swim at both the JV Championship Meet and the Section Meet but will never swim the same event at both meets.

10. Lettering Policy: There are three ways an athlete can possibly letter; however, by accomplishing one of these three methods in no way guarantees the athlete will letter.

Participate in either the championship or consolation heat at the Section Final meet in an individual event (or swim a time that would place in the championship or consolation heat of Section Finals);
Finish with a minimum of 36 varsity letter points in conference dual meets (average 4 points per meet);
Coaches’ discretion – a combination of years of service, year in school, attendance, improvement, attitude, and ability are all taken into account.

11. Booster Club: The BHS girls and boys swim/dive teams have a combined Booster Club that supports, encourages, and advances the athletic program and related activities of the Burnsville High School Swim and Dive teams; financially supports the teams by providing supplemental funding for coaches, funding for team activities, equipment purchases and subsidies for eligible swim and dive families to offset the cost of participation; and develops leadership and organizational skills among swimmers and divers.

Booster Club meetings are held at BHS(or virtually) throughout the school year. Meeting dates can be found on the BHS swim/dive website.
Please attend the meetings. Your contribution to the BHS swim/dive program is valued!
Officers’ contact information can be found on the BHS swim/dive website.
WE NEED PARENT VOLUNTEERS FOR BOYS OFFICER ROLES WITHIN THE BOOSTER CLUB BOARD.

12. Fundraising expectations: The reality of today is that high school teams must provide funds to cover costs. BHS girls and boys swim/dive teams fundraise together through the joint Booster Club. The girls and boys share many of the same costs, such as a third coach’s stipend, upkeep of equipment (e.g. starting blocks, maintaining record board, etc.), Booster Club expenses (P.O. Box, Team Unify) and funding/reimbursement for various team activities (e.g. pasta dinners, locker room decorations, end of season t-shirts, senior night expenses, end of season banquet expenses, and much more).

The Booster Club must fundraise a minimum of $9,000 per year to cover expenses for both teams. It is the Booster Club’s belief that ALL swimmers/divers benefit from the fundraisers; therefore, ALL swimmers/divers and their parents must participate and contribute! The goal of our group is to maximize participation in these events and we will do our best to conduct a majority of fundraising activities during the girls’ and boys’ seasons, while limiting the number of fundraisers during the off-season/summer.

There are several fundraisers annually, and each and every athlete and family are expected to participate!

Frequent fundraisers include:

Homecoming football game ticket sales
Sale of fan shirts
Restaurant nights (Culver’s, Freddy’s, Davanni’s)
Bagging groceries at Cub Foods
Droolin’ Moose Chocolate Sales
Gertens
Honeybaked Ham giftcards

BHS Athletics also pays us $200/meet to provide volunteer timers.

FAMILY CHECKLIST

Complete BHS Athletics registration process to include current physical and $215 athletic fee. https://isd191-ar.rschooltoday.com/
Register at the team website and check out the calendar, news, jobs, etc. This is how the team will receive most communications throughout the season. Pay booster registration cost of $175 plus $5 processing fee. www.blazeswim.com
The parent information meeting will be held after practice one day the first week, exact day TBD. This normally takes place at Davanni’s pizza and the booster club arranges a fundraiser that night so that everybody’s dinner can help support the team.
Recommended gear for the season: 2 competitive suits, one for practices and one for competitions(swimmers can use brief or jammer style, divers will use brief style); 2 pairs of goggles for swimmers; swim cap for practice(one will be provided for competitions); water bottle; lock for locker; towel(one provided by booster club in rookie year, name embroidery is extra $). Additional towels available at the team meeting. Competition suit provided.
A backpack will be provided for rookie season after the booster contribution is paid. A team suit is provided for competitions, please email coach Mauser your size and if you want briefs or jammers. If you need help figuring out what size your athlete needs, please visit Elsmore swim shop and they can help you find the correct size as well as point you in the right direction regarding goggles for competitive swimming. The store is located: 5885 149th St W # 103, Apple Valley, MN 55124
No one wants to see any athlete restricted due to financial constraints. If you need help paying for anything, please let Coach Mauser know and he can help connect you with someone who can provide assistance if needed. The first step is completing the application for educational benefits which all families are encouraged to apply for. That application can be found here: https://www.isd191.org/enroll/application-for-educational-benefits
Athletes report to the BHS pool at 3pm (activity bus may be later and that is ok) on Wednesday December 7th for team pictures before practice. Please be prepared to get into the water that day regardless of your choice to swim or dive.
Athletes must be registered to participate in practices.
Bussing from the middle schools to the high school is available.
Get your team towel embroidered for $5. Or buy an extra team towel (optional). Cost is $15, or $20 with an embroidered name.
Apparel store will open tomorrow and link provided at www.blazeswim.com

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