Greetings Pool Shark families,

Welcome to our 2026 Pool Shark season! Listed below is important information and updates for you to know going into our first few weeks of practices.

• Website - Please use our website as a reference for any questions you may have throughout the season. It includes our calendar for all practices/meets and events, various information about meets, pool locations, volunteer requirements, contact information, and much more. It is your ¨go-to¨ for all things Pool Sharks! https://poolsharks.swimtopia.com/ You may also want to download the Swimtopia App. It is free, and an easy way to help get your swimmer(s) signed up for meets (if they choose to compete) and sign up for volunteer shifts.
• Practice schedule the first 2 weeks - Our practice schedule is a little different than our "normal" summer schedule while our kids are still in school. You will have 2 practice options per day at the indoor pool to choose from. Our first practice option time is from 3:45-4:45pm, and the 2nd time is from 5-6pm. These will be our practice options from Tuesday May 26th-Tuesday June 9th. There will be no practice on Friday, May 29th due to graduation. On Friday, June 5th our practice times will be 6-7pm and 7-8pm due to a scheduling conflict at the pool that day. Starting June 10th, we will transition to our regular summer practice schedule, with practices at the indoor pool at 6:45-7:45am, High Performance at the indoor pool from 8-10am, and 5:30-6:30pm at the outdoor pool. Baby Sharks will start their practices on June 10th at the 5:30pm practice at the outdoor pool. 
• We do not take attendance at practices. You can come to any practice that works for you and your family. We encourage swimmers to come to 2-3 practices per week, but if that's not possible, we completely understand. Do the best to come to what you can. Only swimmers registered for High Performance can attend those practices, and once we transition to our summer schedule, our Baby Sharks practices will begin at the 5:30pm practice at the outdoor pool only.
• Expectations before and after practice - Most of our swim coaches, and pool staff do not get out of school until 3:25 everyday. Therefore the pool will not be open until 3:30 for the 3:45pm session. If you or your swimmers arrive before 3:45, they will have to wait outside of the pool doors until staff arrive to open the facility. Swimmers are expected to be out of the pool and changing areas 15 minutes after practice.
• Please send your swimmer to practice with GOGGLES! Goggles help swimmers keep their head in the water and maintain proper body alignment and positioning. We do not have goggles to lend out. If you do not have goggles, I would recommend going to Simply Swimming in Middleton. They will help find goggles that fit your swimmer properly. 
• In an effort to cut down on foot traffic on the pool deck, we are asking swimmers and families to enter and exit the locker rooms using the high school hallway instead of the main pool entrance doors. They will utilize the competition locker rooms (coaches and pool staff will help direct swimmers as they enter) while parents or siblings will make their way to the mezzanine to observe. Parents are allowed in the locker room to help assist their swimmer if needed, but will then be expected to observe practice from the mezzanine. If you are a parent who needs to assist a swimmer of the opposite sex, and would like to access the family change area, you will need to ask a coach or lifeguard to let you on deck to gain access to this area. Swimmers will be expected to exit the pool area and locker rooms within 15 minutes following camp as there are other groups using the pool after us. Parents or siblings will wait outside the pool for swimmers. SWIMMERS and COACHES only on deck please. Pool staff will try to help remind swimmers and parents of this as you arrive.
• Please talk to your swimmer about changing quickly, and appropriate behavior in the locker rooms. In the past, we had issues with swimmers leaving messes, destroying property, and messing around in the showers/locker room area. If this becomes an issue, we will not be allowed to use the locker rooms.
• Once your swimmer is changed, have them report to the bench area on deck and sit quietly until the coaches come out for attendance. There is no running on deck or horseplay allowed on deck. No one is allowed to enter the pool without permission from a coach. Coaches will direct your swimmer where to go.
• Practice evaluations week 1 (May 26th-28th) - We will be evaluating our new and youngest swimmers. If you are a new swimmer parent of a 10 and under or younger, PLEASE STAY AT PRACTICE! The requirement for our Baby Shark program is to swim 1/2 length of the pool UNASSISTED AND comfortably put their head and face under the water. The requirement to be a Rec swimmer/Pool Shark is to swim at least 1 length of the pool UNASSISTED with head/face in the water. (Please see attached flow chart for Baby Sharks)If your child cannot complete the requirements of a Baby Shark or, they are not ready for Pool Sharks this season. They will be sent to the locker room to change. You will be notified and will need to send an email to Julie Goodman ([email protected]) to be refunded. If your child falls into the Baby Shark category, but is not strong enough to be a Pool Shark, they will also be sent to the locker room after their evaluation. They will be listed as a Baby Shark in our system. Their practices will start June 10th at the outdoor pool at the 5:30pm practice. We cannot accommodate our Baby Shark program at the indoor pool for safety reasons. All Baby Shark parents will receive an email at the end of the first week with more information about our Baby Shark program.
• Practice evaluations week 2 (June 1st-5th) - This week our coaches will be evaluating our Pool Shark swimmers and placing them in practice groups by ability. These groups are fluid, and will be re-evaluated throughout the summer. I have attached the groups and their descriptions below for your reference. Please see our Head Coach Riley Talmage with any questions.
• Our coaches are all experienced swimmers. Some of them are experienced coaches from last season and some of them are coaching for the first time. We expect our swimmers to behave and be respectful to all coaches and lifeguards on deck at all times. If there are behavior issues, your swimmer will be spoken to by a coach, and could possibly be asked to sit out if the behavior continues. If the behavior cannot be resolved between the coach and the swimmer, a parent will be notified and asked to stay for practices until the behavior can be resolved.
• Parents are not allowed on deck during practice. (Your swimmers usually listen better when you are not on deck, and can give their coaches their undivided attention) You are welcome to observe practice from the main pool entrance, and can meet your swimmers there after practice is finished. There are unisex locker areas if you have a young swimmer of the opposite gender that needs help getting dressed before/after practice. Please ask our pool staff for access to these locker areas.
• Lastly, our high school is hosting the WIAA Regional track meet tomorrow, Tuesday, May 26th. 8 teams will be attending the meet. The meet begins at 4pm. Parking in the pool/stadium parking lot will be almost impossible. There will also be the Mary Ballweg 5th grade track meet at the stadium on Wednesday, May 27th from 3:30-5:30pm. Parking will also be limited, especially in the pool/stadium parking lot for this event. 
• If you have older swimmers, please communicate with your swimmer(s) on a drop off/pick up plan for these 2 days. You will be allowed to park temporarily at the curb outside of the pool for drop off and pick up. If you have younger children and need to come in, plan to give yourself some extra time to find parking. You may need to park on the street or in the main or side parking lot of the high school. 

Thanks for making it to the end of a long email. We hope you are able to enjoy the holiday weekend, and we are looking forward to seeing you at the pool this season!

The Sauk Prairie Pool Sharks Board