Unofficial Rules for Being a Swim Parent
Unofficial Rules for Being a Swim Parent
Being a swim parent can be more arduous than being a swimmer. Ten hours a day of waiting, biting fingernails, patiently scouring heat sheets, squinting onto the pool deck for any trace of your young swimmer, endless chatter about the novel you’re reading or that show on Netflix so-and-so “just loved and you have to watch,” aching backs, hot, humid pool decks, squished and cramped seating for hours on-end, all for sixty seconds of splashing, dashing, and racing.
When you are trapped with other Swim Parents inside a humid, concrete natatorium for an entire weekend, there becomes an unspoken etiquette to being a Swim Parent: Rules that are followed, though not explicitly talked about. New Swim Parents gradually hone in on this so-called etiquette, though it can be easily picked-up within a few hours of an all-weekend swim meet marathon.
Here are some unofficial rules I’ve collected and observed throughout the years. They are not the official rules, but they can provide guidance and assistance to any Swim Parent, veteran or newbie, who is navigating this sport.
