There is no other sport like it. Not even close.

Most American, age-group, club-level, swim teams practice year-round. But wait, what's an age-group, club-level swim team? Age-group teams are for children age 6-18. Club teams are affiliated with USA Swimming and/or the YMCA, or AAU. Ugh, it's already complicated. Yup. This is not a drop-your-kid-off-at-the-soccer-field kind of sport. You will be involved. You will do a lot of driving. Mistakes will be made. There will be tears. This sport becomes a big part of your child's life and your family's life. If you're not "into it" your child's experience will be negatively affected. They will not practice well. They will compete poorly. Your lack of dedication will become their struggle.

Participating in a second sport during the swim season is strongly discouraged for children 13 & over. It's simply too much. If you plan to have your child take after-school Chinese, violin lessons, taekwondo and then participate in student council, this is probably not the sport for your family. Competitive swimming is a family sport. Why has it evolved to this level and become one of America's greatest and most competitive sports? This would make a great book which we're not going to ask you to read right now.

There are 12,000 age-group swimmers registered with USA Swimming in New England. This region is administered by an LSC(Local Swim Committee) governed by USA Swimming. USA Swimming is the organization responsible for getting American swimmers to the Olympic Games. The Keene Dolphins are a USA Swimming swim team, however, we've been a YMCA swim team for more than 60 years and have been competing with other YMCAs in the New England region in YMCA-adminstered competitions. There are dual meets, tri-meets, district championships and, the pinnacle, New England Championships at the end of March. These 12,000 swimmers practice for 6-7 months from September to the end of March. It's a long haul. After a month-long break, more than half of the team will train in the spring and then slide into a competitive summer program, usually ending in August.

This is a competitive swim team. Children are taught the fundamentals of athleticism, sportsmanship, nutrition, sports psychology, and being a good human. The Dolphins train 5 days/week at the 13 & Up level. Some of the 10 & Unders swim 3 days/week. Granted, some swim 2 days/week, however, the mission of the Dolphins program is founded on competition. The Keene YMCA is a beautiful facility. The Aquatics Center in particular is a gift to the city of Keene. However, its swimming pool has only six lanes. This is the standard size for a competitive, 25-yard swimming pool and dictates the number of programs and, more specficially, the size of its swim team. Thus, the mission of the swim team must be focused and is less comprehensive than a program which operates in a facility with 8, 10 or 20 lanes. Competition is the essence of competitive swimming. Thus, all members of the Keene YMCA Dolphins compete in swim meets. There are no exceptions. The Keene YMCA does not have the resources(space and time) to accommodate a non-competitive swim club. As the team grows, a population limit will force us to move to a model involving team tryouts, and the team is growing. This year 55 swimmers will be scheduled to practice during the 2.5 hours per day and 5 days per week alotted to the swim team. Older swimmers will perform additional dryland training before practice.