What are Time Trials? Time Trials is a "scrimmage" swim meet (against ourselves) that allows kids to get their first official time of the new summer season in each event that they want to swim.

What is the purpose of Time Trials?

1. It allows the coaches to determine the first Saturday "A" meet lineup. Lots of things change over the summer (e.g., kids grow, start (or stop) winter swimming, age up into longer events, etc.), so last year's times don't always tell you how fast a kid will be this year. And, of course, if a child is new to swim team or is swimming a 50 instead of a 25, you don't have times for him or her at all.

2. It gives the swimmer a starting time that s/he can work to improve over the season.

3. It gives kids who are new to swimming (and those who may have forgotten over the winter) the experience of swimming in a meet. New swimmers learn how to report to the Clerk of Course, how to line up for their events, what a starting machine sounds like, and what it's like to race.

Time Trials also are great for parents, giving them a chance to learn (or remember) what they need to do at meets. It lets them brush off their rusty timing skills or figure out where the team's coffee pot went over the winter. New meet managers and team reps get a practice run, hopefully making the first dual meet go more smoothly. Also, Time Trials lets you see all your summer friends again and catch up on what they and their families have been up to since last summer.