Michigan Masters 2011 State Short Course Yards Championship

HOST ORGANIZATIONS:

The East Kentwood High School Swim Teams and the Kentwood Aquatics Club will be the Host Organizations for the 2011 Michigan Masters State Championships. We are looking forward to an exciting weekend and a well organized event for participants and spectators alike. This will be the first State Championship Masters Swim Meet held at the Kentwood Community Pool. Find photos of the fantastic facility at East Kentwood on Facebook (look for Kentwood Community Pool and click “like”!!).

FACILITIES:

The Kentwood Community Pool is a 25-yard, 8 lane competition pool, featuring a bulkhead at the turning end. There will be an additional 2 lanes that will only be used for the distance events in the diving well, both of which will feature lane lines and starting blocks (hand timers will be used for only these two lanes for distance events). During the course of the remainder of the meet, there will be 5 warm-up and cool-down lanes in the diving well, along with a 4 lane x 25 yard “instructional pool”, making 9 available lanes for warm-up and cool-down during the meet. Depth at the start is 7 feet and 9 feet at the turn. Permanent starting blocks and non-turbulent lane markers will be used. Swimmers must enter the water feet first in a cautious manner during all warm-ups/cool downs. Diving is permitted only in the designated sprint lanes. There are two separate locker rooms for both men and women. All locker rooms feature plenty of space and showers, but only one locker room per gender will feature lockers that are available for use (you must bring your own lock). There is ample balcony seating for swimmers and spectators. Find photos of the pool at “Kentwood Community Pool” on Facebook and click the “like” button. To do a google map or a mapquest for the school location, use this address:

6230 Kalamazoo Ave, Kentwood, MI 49508

RULES - ELIGIBILITY:

USMS rules apply and will be observed. All swimmers will be required to enclose a photo copy of their 2011 USMS card with the entry form (sent in entries). Any swimmer who is not USMS registered for 2011 by the State Meet entry deadline will NOT BE ALLOWED TO SWIM IN THE MEET.

A swimmer not registered with Michigan LMSC cannot establish a Michigan State Record. Any swimmer registered in the meet CAN set a MEET championship record.

TIMING:

The Colorado System Six timing system will be used with Colorado 81” Aquagrip touch pads, along with electronic and manual back-up with an 8-lane display scoreboard with start and recall. All events (except some heats of the distance events) will be timed using this system. Manual back-up timers will be provided at each lane. Swimmers are encouraged to hit the pad firmly and, when swimming in relays, to remain clear of the finish area until the event is completed by all swimmers. Any swimmer or relay attempting a NATIONAL RECORD should alert the Starter and make sure there are the required three manual timers as backup. Swimmers are required to supply their own lap counting personnel in distance events.

AGE GROUPS:

Age on April 17 (last day of the meet) determines his/her age for the entire meet. Individual Events: 18-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, etc. through 100+. Relay Events: 18+, 25+, 35+, 45+, 55+, 65+, 75+, and 85+

ENTRY DEADLINE:

Online entry is preferred. Online entry deadline is Midnight Eastern Time, Sunday, April 10, 2011. Swimmers (Individual and Relays) using paper entries must have their entries postmarked by April 6, 2011. All paper entries postmarked after April 6, 2011 will not be accepted and will be returned to sender. Per the suggestion of Michigan Masters, there will be an additional $10 fee for paper entries. 

SEEDING:

Seeding will be slow to fast for all events except the 1650. Men and Women will be seeded separately into heats according to seed times, with the exception of the 1650. No time entries will be in the slowest heats. Consult the heat sheets that you will receive at the meet check-in for your heat and lane assignments. It is the swimmers responsibility to report to the proper heat and lane. Failure to appear will be considered a scratch and you will not be allowed to swim in another heat of the same event. The Meet Director reserves the right to RESEED the distance events if there are a significant number of scratches after check-in to eliminate the use of empty lanes during the swimming of the event.

ENTRY FEES:

Individual:

Online Entry Fee is $50 flat fee and includes a Michigan Masters State Championship Commemorative Pint Glass.

Relays Fees: $12 per relay on, or prior to, April 6, 2011, $16 per relay after April 6, 2011.

Deck Entries will be taken from 4:45 -5:30 P.M. on Friday and 7:45 -8:30 A.M. on Saturday and Sunday for Relays only that were not pre-entered by April 6, 2011.

ENTRY LIMITS: (excluding relays)

7 events maximum for the entire meet:

2 events maximum for Friday, April 15, 2011

4 events maximum for Saturday, April 16, 2011

4 events maximum for Sunday, April 17, 2011

* An individual may compete on only one relay team per relay event for a total of 4.

* If more than 7 events are listed on the entry form, only the first seven will be entered.

* Please enclose a photo copy of your 2011 USMS registration card with your entry form. 

* You must fill in and sign the Athlete’s Release to validate your entry form.

ENTRY PROCEDURE - INDIVIDUAL EVENTS:

To enter individual events, swimmers should select their events (maximum seven), and enter seed times (IN SHORT COURSE YARDS) on the line “entry seed time” on the entry form. Swimmers entering with no seed time will swim in the slowest heats.

ENTRY PROCEDURE - DISTANCE EVENTS:

The 400 IM, will be offered two separate times during the course of the meet. You may swim this event ONCE during the course of the three day meet. The 1650 Free will is offered ONCE on Friday, April 15th. There will be two “mini sessions” on Friday. The first session will be the first 30 entries that indicate that they desire to swim in the early session of the 1650. This session will have a mandatory check in between 2:45-3:00 p.m. Warm up will begin promptly at 3:00, with the first heat swimming at 3:15 p.m. There will be two additional lanes used during this time. They will swim in the two lanes designated as stop watch only lanes. Due to timing limitations, it is understood and expected that some seeded swimmers or swimmers that enter with “no time” may be asked to swim in one of these two lanes. All entries for the 1650 will be seeded fast to slow, and will also be mixed gender (this is only for the 1650…all other events will be seeded slow to fast, and gender specific). It is anticipated that the first 30 entries in the 1650 will be done before 5:00 p.m., and that the second session warm up period will begin at the same time. The 400 IM will then begin at 6:00 p.m., and will be followed by the remainder of the 1650 entrants. Be sure to check-in before you warm-up for Friday’s distance events for your correct heat and lane assignments which will be posted after the check-in time period ends in the pool area. You also need to check in for the 500 Free on Saturday and the 1000 Free on Sunday.

ENTRY PROCEDURE - RELAYS:

To enter relays, team representatives should enter the number of relays and the fees associated for all 4 relay events. It is requested that only one relay form be submitted for each team. The event, age brackets, gender, and seed times will not be needed until the relay check-in on the day of the relay. All relays are deck entered. Official relay cards are picked up from the Clerk of the Course by the coach or team representative when announced at the meet. Each card shall include: swimmers' names as they appear on their USMS cards, in order of relay swim; first name, last name, age, gender, and proper age group. Cards shall be returned to Clerk of the Course by the deadline announced at the meet. Once the cards are turned in and entered for heat sheets; the age group, gender of the relay, and seed time cannot be changed. At check-in, team representatives with relays will receive a packet and relay cards with the instructions to supply the data mentioned above. The age group of the relay is determined by the youngest swimmer on the relay.

GENERAL CHECK-IN, WARM-UP AND COMPETITION TIMES:

Session #1 – Friday Night, April 15 - Check-in and Warm-up – 2:45 P.M. to 3:15 P.M.

Session #1 - Friday Night, April 15 - Competition begins – 3:15 P.M.

Session #2 – Friday Night, April 15 – Check-in and Warm-up – 4:30 P.M. to 6:00 P.M.

Session #2 – Friday Night, April 15 – Competition begins – 6:00 P.M.

Session #3 - Saturday Morning, April 16 - Check-in and Warm-up - 7:45 A.M. to 8:45 A.M.

Session #3 - Saturday Morning, April 16 - Competition begins - 9: 00 A.M.

ANNUAL MEETING MICHIGAN LMSC LMSC MEETING TO START 20 MINUTES AFTER EVENT #12 200 FREE RELAY

Session #4 - Saturday Afternoon, April 16 - Check-in and Warm-up - 1:00 P.M. to 1:45 P.M.

Session #4 - Saturday Afternoon, April 16 - Competition begins - 2:00 P.M.

Session #5 - Sunday Morning, April 17 - Check-in and Warm-up - 7:45 A.M. to 8:45 A.M.

Session #5 - Sunday Morning, April 17 - Competition begins - 9:00 A.M.

Session #6 - Sunday Afternoon, April 17 - Check-in and Warm-up - ONE HOUR AFTER EVENT #32 200 MEDLEY RELAY - EXPECTED TIME 12:00 P.M. TO 1:00 P.M.

Session #6 - Sunday Afternoon, April 17 - COMPETITION BEGINS ONE HOUR AFTER CHECK-IN AND WARM-UP - EXPECTED TIME 1:00 P.M. TO 2:00 P.M.

DISTANCE EVENTS CHECK-IN FRIDAY NIGHT APRIL 16:

400 IM - BY 5:30 P.M. AND NO LATER.

1650 FREE - BY 3:00 P.M. (early session) and BY 5:30 P.M (evening session) AND NO LATER.

SCORING:

Place / Individual Event / Relays

1 / 9 / 18

2 / 7 / 14

3 / 6 / 12

4 / 5 / 10

5 / 4 / 8

6 / 3 / 6

7 / 2 / 4

8 / 1 / 2

ANNUAL MEETING:

All swimmers are encouraged to attend the annual membership meeting held (in a large conference room to be announced at the meet) during the lunch break on Saturday. This is the time to vote on issues affecting the USMS National Organization, the Michigan LMSC, your local team, and yourself. The meeting will get started 20 Minutes after the morning session (Session # 2). An agenda of the meeting will be available at check-in on Friday, April 15.

AWARDS:

1st, 2nd, 3rd Place (individual events) — Michigan Masters State Championship Medals

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th Place (indiv. events) — Michigan Masters State Championship Ribbons 

1st - 8th Place (Relays) — Michigan Masters State Championship Ribbons

High Point Award Age Group — Michigan Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Large Team — Michigan Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Small Team — Michigan Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Large Team Women — Mich. Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Small Team Women — Mich. Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Large Team Men — Mich. Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

High Point Team - Small Team Men — Mich. Masters State Championship Trophy Plaque

Two divisions will be recognized for purposes of team scoring based upon the number of swimmers entered in the meet from each team. The number of swimmers for teams in each division will be determined by the Meet Director after the entry deadline.

PROTESTS:

Any protest concerning seeding, awards, final results, eligibility, scoring, or entries shall be addressed to the meet director or referee (USMS Rule 102.16). The protest shall be made by the team representative in writing and the Championship Committee shall hear all protests except for "wet" rules (Section 3 of Michigan Masters Policies and Procedures).

EVENT RESULTS AND COMPLETE STATE MEET RESULTS:

Event results will be posted in two clearly marked places announced at the meet. Also the awards table will have the event results after they are posted so you can pick up your awards. Meet results (events, ages, names - individual and relay, times, individual high point winners and team scores) will be published on the website (www.michiganmasters.com). Complete meet results (including splits for all events) can be purchased for $10.00 at the check-in table for those who use the on-line entry system or they can be ordered on the Entry Form for those who use the paper entry (mail in) form. Results will be mailed.

FACILITY RULES AND MICHIGAN MASTERS STATE MEET GUIDELINES:
THESE ARE STRICTLY ENFORCED

A. Smoking is not allowed in any of the buildings.

B. Food/beverages are not allowed in the pool area, in adjacent locker rooms or spectator areas.

C. Lockers are available but swimmers should bring their own locks. Neither East Kentwood High School nor Michigan Masters will assume responsibility for lost or stolen articles.

D. BODY OILS AND OTHER RUB-DOWN SUBSTANCES THAT MAY CONTAMINATE THE POOL WATER ARE BANNED. SWIMMERS WHO USE THESE SUBSTANCES WILL BE HELD RESPONSIBLE AND BE DISQUALIFIED.

E. Diving off any of the boards or towers is strictly forbidden.

F. Swimmers in the concession area must wear shirts, shorts, and some type of foot covering.

CONCESSIONS AND PARKING:

Concessions will be available at the Natatorium. There are nearby restaurants so plan your meals and snacks accordingly. There is ample free parking at the Kentwood Community Pool. Please see the map for all parking areas. There are some “Senior Only” parking spaces available nearest the pool entrance.

MEET DIRECTOR:

Jonathan “Jock” Ambrose

6230 Kalamazoo Avenue, SE Kentwood, MI 49508

E-mail:  jockambrose@yahoo.com

MEET T-SHIRTS AND OTHER MEET MEMORABILIA:

Each swimmer who enters 4 or more individual events will receive a free pint glass with the meet logo imprinted on it. There will be a limited supply of the pint glasses available for sale during the meet for $4. Meet T-shirts with the meet logo will also be available during the meet.

AWARDS CEREMONIES:

Presentations of the individual high point award and overall team high point awards in all categories will begin 30 minutes after the completion of the last event which is the 1000 Free (event # 43 and #44). We ask all swimmers and teams to be prompt. It is the swimmers and team responsibility to pick up any awards. There will be no mailing of awards.

* NO ONE-DAY EVENT REGISTRATION - (USMS RULE 201.1.3) this championship is not considered a single event but a 2.5 day multi-event championship. Swimmers must be fully registered with USMS for 2011 by the entry deadline to participate in this sanctioned competition.

MICHIGAN MASTERS 2011 STATE CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Additional Michigan Masters State Championship Commemorative Pint Glass are available for $4.00 each.

Final Results - (All scores both individual and team and splits for all events) are available for $10.00 and all results will be mailed.

DIRECT QUESTIONS TO:

Mark Spore

261 131st Ave

Wayland, MI 49348

Email preferred: mspore@yahoo.com

Cell Phone (616) 291-6496

HOTELS:

The following hotels have blocks of rooms reserved for April 15th and 16th under the group name, Michigan Masters. The rooms will be held until the cut off date listed and then will be released and go back to the standard rate. The rate listed is a special group rate for the weekend. All of the hotels are convenient to interstate 96 or 131 and are roughly no more than 10-15 minutes from the pool. If you’d like one of these rooms at the special group rate, just call and reserve in your own name by the cut off date. You may still reserve after the cut off date if the rooms are available, the group rate would no longer apply.

Hilton Grand Rapids Airport

4747 28th St SE, Grand Rapids, MI

616-957-0100

30 rooms with two beds available

Cut off date is April 1st.

$89 per night

With full breakfast buffet

Crowne Plaza Grand Rapids Airport

5700 28th St SE. Grand Rapids, MI

616-957-1770

25 rooms with two beds available

Cut off date is March 25th

$89 per night

With full breakfast for up to 4 people

Holiday Inn Express

6569 Clay Av. SW Grand Rapids, MI

616-871-0060

25 rooms with two beds available

Cut off date is March 25th.

$103.15 Friday night and $111.76 Saturday night

Includes breakfast

Baymont Inn

2873 Kraft Grand Rapids, MI

616-956-3300

24 rooms with two beds available

Cut off date is March 25th

$85 per night

Includes breakfast

Clarion Inn and Suites

4981 28th St SE Grand Rapids, MI

616-956-9304

40 rooms with two beds available

Cut off date is April 1st

$74 per night

With full hot breakfast

Courtyard by Marriott

4741 28th St SE Grand Rapids, MI

616-954-0500

20 rooms with king and pull out available

Cut off date is April 1st

$89 per night

Full hot breakfast buffet

* There are other lodging options in the area. The above are suggestions at which we were able to secure rooms and discounts.

EATING CHOICES NEAR THE POOL AT EAST KENTWOOD HIGH SCHOOL

There are numerous dining choices within ½ mile of the East Kentwood Campus. As you exit the campus from the West onto Kalamazoo Avenue (see map), your choices include the following (these are choices in the immediate area only….The Grand Rapids area is loaded with other dining options):

To the South on Kalamazoo Ave (left at the light leaving campus):

• Wendys

• Logans Road House (Steak House)

• Bob Evans

• Applebees

• Big Apple Bagel

• Qdoba

• Taco Bell

• Jets Pizza

• Meijers Grocery (Starbucks coffee inside)

To the West (straight through the light, into the area of strip malls):

• Steak and Shake

• Kava House (coffee shop)

• Bella Mia’s Pizza

• Subway (North off of main drive, past the grocery store)

• Family Fare Grocery

• Peppinos

• Warren Nutrition (Great place for last minute energy bars/powders/drinks)

• Celebration Cinema Movie Theater

To the North on Kalamazoo Ave (right at the light leaving campus):

• Jimmy Johns Sub Shop

• Bigby Coffee Shop

• Chinese Buffet

• Walgreens and Rite Aid

• McDonalds

** NOTE ON T-SHIRTS: There will be T-shirts available during the meet, starting on Saturday. The anticipated price is $10-14. There will be a number of colors to choose from, as the vendor will be on site to print them in the color that each person wishes.

FIND US ON FACEBOOK (Kentwood Community Pool) FOR A LOOK AT THE FANTASTIC FACILITY AT EAST KENTWOOD

Friday, April 15, 2011 - Session 1 - (Fri Early)

Saturday, April 16, 2011 - Session 3 - (Sat Morning)

Saturday, April 16, 2011 - Session 4 - (Sat Afternoon)

Sunday, April 17, 2011 - Session 5 - (Sun Morning)

Sunday, April 17, 2011 - Session 6 - (Sun Afternoon)