July 15, 2003

UCSB SWIMMING PARENTS NEWSLETTER 6-25-03

Hi Folks,

This letter is intended to be a welcome for the parents of our new Gauchos and information for all of our parents. I want to welcome you to our UCSB Gaucho swimming family. I hope that your interest and involvement will be fun and rewarding. I like to try and keep all of the friends and family of Gaucho swimming as informed as possible about our program and the many activities we have scheduled. This year's incoming class of freshmen and transfers will have a big impact on our program and we are very excited to have them. They represent a great deal of potential and it will be our job to prepare them to meet the challenges of collegiate academics and athletics.

At this time I hope that you are planning to attend one of UCSB's summer orientation sessions with your son/daughter. I realize there is often anxiety when getting classes and preparing to leave home. We will try to make the transition as easy as possible, and the returning swimmers will be very helpful and accommodating with our new athletes. Here is some important information and dates to remember:

---Physicals for the entire team will begin Monday Sept 8th at the Student Health Center. All incoming men and women should meet at the Student Health Center on campus at 8:30am. Everyone is welcome to stay in Santa Barbara with the upperclassmen beginning Sunday the 7th. If you need a place to stay on Sunday, please meet at the swim office between noon and 3pm on Sept 7th. Medical forms will be sent to all of our swimmers this summer. They need to be completed and returned before physicals on Sept 7th. Please make a copy of all the forms you fill out for your records and keep them safe.

---Move-in to Tropicana Gardens for all students will be Sunday, September 14th at 9am. There is an option of moving in on August 31st for a fee of $350, including meals. I suggest that our freshmen athletes move in with the upperclassmen for a week and then move into Trop with everyone else on the 14th. Your sons/daughters will have to bring some money for food, but each year we do the same thing and all the swimmers cook and eat with each other. This will save some money and it is a very good time for the teams to get to know each other.

---Our Intra-Squad Meet/Parent's Weekend is Saturday Oct. 4th. The meet is scheduled to start at 10am, but I'm sure your kids would like to see you Friday night (so you can take them out to dinner). There will be a lunch after the meet for all the families and friends who are there ($10 per person). It will be a good chance to meet our coaching staff and we usually have a faculty member and some alumni on hand to meet you. You will also have the opportunity to purchase Gaucho Swimming equipment.

---If and when you visit UCSB for the Intra-Squad/Parent's Weekend or any other time, and you need a place to stay, I strongly recommend the Best Western South Coast Inn. They are extremely supportive of our program; they're located close to campus; they are reasonable and they have a good reputation. For the parent's weekend we do have some rooms blocked off. You need to tell them it's for the UCSB Swim Parents Weekend. The phone number is 800-350-3614 and ask for Sheila, she's a great friend of our program.

---I hope you will join our Splash Club, the booster organization for the swim teams at UCSB. Each year we have a great response from our parents and together with our alumni and other friends, we have been successful in supporting our program with some "extra" things that have really helped. More information will be given out by mail and at the Parent's Weekend.

---I have also enclosed an information letter that I sent to your son/daughter. You many want to look it over and discuss some of the highlights in their letter and this one to be more prepared for orientation and the start of our season.

The coaching staff will be in and out during the summer, but if you can, please let us know when you will be at UCSB for orientation. The schedule for orientation usually allows for some free time to explore the campus, so come by and see us at the swim trailer. If ever you have questions or concerns about your son/daughter or about our program, please contact me at the swim office: 805-893-2989. You are always welcome to come to our practices and we hope to see you at as many meets as possible. Thanks for trusting us with your son/daughter. We plan on having a great year!

I'll keep in touch, Gregg