Welcome to Highlands Swim!
For all information relating to Highlands Swim Team OR Highlands Swim School and to register for the 2025 summer season (starting soon), please visit our team site
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to be part of our swimming Family!
Swim Team Programs
Each season the Highlands Whomping Turtles look to continue our turtle traditions, and make new memories for all of our wonderful families, from the newest team members to the most seasoned NVSL veterans. We encourage all Highlands members to participate in Swim Team activities regardless of level of experience. Improve stroke technique, develop racing skills, have a blast with all the team swimmers at Monday night “B meets,” and get crazy to support the “A Meet” competitors at NVSL meets on Saturday mornings. And don’t forget the weekly Pancake Breakfasts after morning practices on Fridays, Bagel Mondays, after-practice Art & Crafts, Friday night pep rallies for the entire family, and all of our other social events for the team!
The Highlands Swim Program is open to swimmers of various skill levels, ages 5-18 who are members of Highlands Swim and Tennis Club. Depending on their swim skill level, swimmers will either join the general swim team or swim team’s WHOMPERS Group, which is the club’s developmental swim team group. Criteria for each swim team group are listed below.
General Swim Team
- Minimum of 5 years old
- Able to swim unassisted a recognizable 50 freestyle (face in the water, breathing side to side, arms exiting the water)
- Able to swim unassisted a recognizable backstroke one 25-meter length of the pool without flipping on to their stomach
- Comfortable in the water, separate easily from their parents and able to handle a 60 minute practice
Swim Team – WHOMPERS Group
The WHOMPERS Group is the developmental group within Swim Team. The WHOMPERS Group practices in our lower pool (which is shallower) and has coaching staff in the water to help our youngest swim team members.
- Minimum of 5 years old
- Able to swim unassisted 25-meter freestyle (face in, breathing however they need to, but able to put their face back in the water; arms must exit the water as the face is in the water)
- Able to comfortably float on their back unassisted for 10 seconds
- Able to separate from their parent easily and handle being in the water for a 60 minute practice
WHOMPERS may advance to the general swim team group when they are able to meet the General Swim Team eligibility requirements as outline above and at the discretion of our coaching staff.
Highlands Swim School
For families looking for a learn-to-swim program or a pre-team program, the Highlands Swim School is a great option. Led by the club’s Developmental Swim Director, Kelli Morris Larkin, and coached by our own Highlands swim team coaches, this program meets Monday – Thursday for 30-minutes for 4 or 5 weeks (depending on swimmer’s age). Swimmers will work with the same 1-2 coaches each day. Consistency is the best way to make real progress with swim skills.
- Ages: 3 – 10 years
- Swim Level: Any swim level (including beginner swimmers)
Descriptions of swim school groups, dates, and times can be found here
Private Swim Lessons
If Swim School is not a good fit for your family, you may consider private swim lessons. For those doing Swim Team or Swim School in July, private swim lessons are also a great option for kids to maintain and further their skills during the month of August. Private Swim Lessons are given by Highlands Swim Coaches. Lessons are scheduled directly with the coach and are 30 minutes in duration. Price per lesson will depend on the level of coach. If your swimmer is interested in Private Swim Lessons (both Swim Team and non-Swim Team lessons), please send an email to privatelessons@whompingturtles.org. Include your swimmer’s age, gender, a brief description of this/her swimming level, general or specific skill(s) swimmer would like to focus on during the lesson, a general day/time availability, and the parent’s name and contact information.
Swim Team Volunteering and Questions
Swim Team Volunteering
Swim team is an opportunity for complete family involvement. Encouraging our swimmers is great fun, but we expect every family to volunteer in some capacity! It takes at least 40 parents on deck for each meet to run smoothly. There are dozens of volunteer hours involved with data entry, scoring meets, timing, officiating, weekly pancake breakfasts, turtle merchandise, amazing photographs, swim team socials and more. During the swim team registration process, please also sign up to volunteer to help the Whomping Turtles have a great season!
Get Ready to WHOMP!!!
If you have any questions regarding the registration process for swim team, please contact Anne Walther at annewalther@whompingturtles.org. If you have any questions regarding the registration for swim school, please contact Gillian Russell at gillianr@whompingturtles.org. Once online registration is completed, the Whomping Turtle Team Administrator will manually approve your registration. Please allow up to 72 hours for registration approval. We look forward to having you join the Highlands Swim Team or the Highlands Swim School and are excited for our 2024 season to begin!