Lake Park Piranhas

The coaches set the practice schedule for each age group. Practice schedules are communicated at the beginning of the season. We understand that summer vacation can be a conflict with practice schedules and meets. Please come as much as you can.

Lake Park Piranhas is organized to give each swimmer the needed tools and resources to be successful.

Age Group Levels:

Each swimmer is placed into their respective group based on age as of May 31 of the current swim season year:

8 and Under,    9 – 10 years,    11- 12 years,    13 – 14 years,    15 – 18 years

Swimmers will compete against their own age bracket.  To see the skills associated with each age bracket, click Age Group Skills.

What should I bring to practice?

1. Wear an appropriate swim suit.
2. Goggles
3. Swim Cap
4. Water Bottle (This is incredibly important as the swimmers will dehydrate quickly.)
5. Towel(s)

What else should I know about practice?

1. Arrive at least 5 minutes early.
2. Listen to your coaches.
3. Try your hardest. Do your best!
4. Ask for help when you need it.
5. Click Swimmer Commitment.

We encourage our parents to watch practice. Your swimmer (especially younger ones) often enjoy knowing that you are there. As well as making you aware of what a typical practice may look like, we’ve outlined some guidelines to watching practice so that we reduce distraction and that every swimmer continues to maximize his/her potential each and every practice.

1. Swimmer Communication - Young swimmers want their parents’ approval more than anything. To reduce distraction and maximize every learning opportunity we need the swimmer’s undivided attention. We ask that you do not communicate with your swimmer during practice and do not compete with the coach for the swimmers attention.
2. Coach Communication - Our coaches are professionals and they have a limited amount of time with the swimmers. We insist that parents not interrupt the coaches at anytime during practice. If you need to communicate with a coach, please do so before or after practice (if they are not coaching another group). Please utilize the communication avenues outlined to schedule a meeting with your swimmer’s coach.  For instance, a board member may be a great option for communication during practice time. Board members should be able to answer most questions about the team or can discuss questions or concerns with a coach at times they are available outside practice schedules and get answers back to you without distracting coaches from their coaching duties.
3. Trust - As we stated earlier, our coaches are great!  At times, you may not fully understand the purpose of a particular activity or drill that is being worked on during practice. Our coaches have dedicated themselves to training and building successful swimmers. Many of their practices and instruction are designed to build on one another. It is imperative that you, as a parent, trust our coaches and their skills.  Remember our goal, as coaches and parents are the same thing; to give your swimmer the best opportunity to succeed and have fun.
4. Parent Coaching - DO NOT COACH YOUR SWIMMER during practice.  We cannot emphasize this enough. Our coaches have been trained and taught how to maximize every swimmers’ potential. Often a coach will ask a swimmer to do a drill that looks unorthodox to the naked eye; however, we can assure you that everything we do both on and off the pool deck has a purpose. Please allow our coaches to do their job. If you have a question, comment or concern, please contact any of the Lake Park Swim Team Booster Club board members. 
5. Parent Encouragement - We do understand that as a parent, you want to "whoop it up" for your swimmer. We highly encourage you to do that during a swim meet.  During practice, not so much. If a swimmer looks your way during practice, an encouraging golf clap, or a thumbs up works great. We don't want you to ignore them, but we don't want you to be a distraction either. Thank you for understanding.