Meet Information

Dates

Competition: Friday, August 10 - Monday, August 13 2007.
Pool available for warm-ups Thursday, August 9 from 12 - 8 p.m.

.Location

The Woodlands Athletic Club
11111 Winterberry Place
The Woodlands, TX 77380
281-863-1500

Facilities

The Woodlands Athletic Club (WAC) is home to The Woodlands Masters Swim Team (WMST), the Woodlands Swim Team (TWST), and The Woodlands Diving Team. The facility has an outdoor 50-meter championship pool with nine eight-foot-wide lanes and a water depth that varies from four to seven-and-a-half feet. The WAC also has a 25-yard indoor pool with six lanes, and an outdoor diving well with lanes -- both of which will be available throughout the meet for warm-up and warm-down.

The Championships are open to any registered Masters swimmer who is at least 18 years of age as of August 9, 2007. Eighteen-year-olds must enter the meet by the entry deadline and only 18-year-olds may register with USMS on August 9 at the venue. If a swimmer wishes to affiliate with a Masters club, the club and swimmer must both be registered with the same Local Masters Swim Committee (LMSC). If there are questions about affiliation, the swimmer shall be entered as "unattached". Please clear up affiliation questions early by contacting the meet director, Tom Boak. International entries must include a copy of the swimmer's Masters swimming registration card and fees in US dollars.

Age Groups
Age for the meet is determined as of December 31, 2007, except 18-year-olds, who must be 18 by August 9, 2007.
Age groups for Individual events: 18-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39 ... (five year increments as high as necessary). 
Relay events: 72-99, 100-119, 120-159, 160-199, ... (40-year increments as high as is necessary).

Registration
Prior to warm-ups or competition, all participants must register at the meet by signing an emergency card, safety information statement and liability release. Registration will be held at the WAC on Thursday, August 9, 2007 from noon to 8 p.m. and on Friday, August 10 through Monday, August 13 from 6:30 a.m. until the end of each day's competition.

Seeding
All events 200 meters or less will be pre-seeded. Otherwise, they will be deck-seeded by gender, time and age group. Men's heats will precede women's heats for each event except for the 400, 800 and 1500 Free. Men and women will be seeded together for the 800 Free and 1500 Free and will be seeded slowest to fastest by entry time regardless of age or gender. The 400 IM will be seeded slowest to fastest by entry time for each sex, regardless of age. All other events will be seeded by age group with the oldest age groups first, and slowest to fastest within each age group. All events start from the deep end of the pool (7.5 feet).

Check-in for Events 400 Meters and Longer
Positive check-in is required separately for all individual events 400 meters and longer, which may be done in person, in the registration area, or via Internet at www.usms.org.

Check-in Deadlines
For each of the following events, online check-in (at the USMS website) opens Wednesday, August 8 at noon CDT and closes at the same time as the on-site deadlines. On-site check-in for all events will open Thursday, August 9 at noon CDT and will close according to the following deadlines:

Date	Event	In Person/Online Check-in Deadlines*
Fri, August 10	400 Free (men)	7 a.m. for all listed events
Sat, August 11	400 Free (women	7 a.m. for all listed events
Sun, August 12	400 IM	7 a.m. for all listed events
Mon, August 13	800 Free 1500 Free	7 a.m. 9:30 a.m.

* All times are Central Daylight Time (CDT)

Heat and Psych Sheets
Psych sheets for all individual events will be available at www.usms.org on or about July 26, 2007. Heat sheets for pre-seeded events will be available online around August 2, 2007. Heat sheets for deck-seeded events will be available at the pool deck and at the four main hotels each morning for the day's events.

Warm-up Times
Designated lanes in the competition pool will be open for warm-up on Thursday, August 9 from noon to 8 p.m. The competition pool will be open for warm-ups from 6:30 a.m. to 7:50 a.m. on competition days. Warm-up pools -- the indoor pool and the diving tanks -- will be available each day from 7:50 a.m. until conclusion of the last event of the day. On Friday through Sunday, the competition pool will be open for warm-ups for 30 minutes after the last heat of the first event, the 400 Free and 400 IM. The competition pool will be open for warm-ups for 30 minutes after the last event of each day.

Warm-up Procedures
Swimmers must enter the pool feet first in a cautious and controlled manner. No diving or backstroke starts will be allowed except in designated sprint lanes. No diving or backstroke starts will be allowed into warm-up pool. One or two lanes shall be designated as one-way sprint lanes during the pre-meet warm-up sessions in the competition pool only. No sprint lanes will be designated in the warm-up pool. Any swimmer who acts in an unsportsmanlike or unsafe manner within the swimming venue may be considered for appropriate action or penalty by the referee. (Rule 102.15.3). Pull-buoys, kick boards, fins, and hand paddles are not allowed in the competition pool or warm-up pool.

Scratches
Any swimmer failing to report to the proper lane in the correct heat of their event shall be scratched from that event and shall not be permitted to swim that event at another time.

General Meeting
All swimmers, coaches and officials should be represented at the General Meeting at the WAC on Thursda, August 9 at 7 p.m. to discuss matters pertinent to the operation and conduct of the meet.

Time Verification (formerly OVCs)
Swimmers needing verification of time(s) or wish their times to be entered into the USA Swimming SWIMS Database (for entry into USA-S national meets) should complete a form at the meet and prior to the swim. Contact the Administrative Referee at the meet.

Gold Medal Sponsorship
Gold Medal Sponsors will be recognized in the official program as supporters of Masters swimming. Gold Medal Sponsors will receive a commemorative gift and be entitled to V.I.P. hospitality, which will include breakfast, lunch, snacks and drinks. The cost of a Gold Medal Sponsorship is $65. Order sponsorships on the meet entry form.

Entry Procedures
To enter any event, use the official entry form or a photocopy of the entire form. Read all instructions and fill out the form completely. Incomplete forms or forms with "pending" in place of a USMS registration number will be rejected (except 18 year olds who plan to enter the meet by the meet entry deadline, but who will register with USMS at the venue on August 9). A legible photocopy of the swimmer's Masters registration card must accompany the entry form for international entrants. Participants who fail to include a Masters registration card may be charged an additional fee before being allowed to compete. A USMS swimmer whose club affiliation differs from what is listed on his/her USMS registration card must send either a new USMS registration card or letter from the local registrar with the new club affiliation and effective date.

National Qualifying Times/Number of Events/Sixth Event
Competitors may enter up to three events without meeting the national qualifying time (NQT), or a maximum of six events if you meet the NQTs (i.e. have swum a time equal to or better than the NQTs in the past two years). The NQTs for all events are listed here (PDF version). All swimmers are limited to three events per day. All events must include an entry time. If the meet is deemed too large, an athlete's sixth event will be dropped. On the entry form, indicate this event with a "6" in the designated column. If no indication is given, the last event entered on the entry form will be dropped. No changes of the designated sixth event will be allowed after July 13, 2007. No refunds will be given for the dropped event. Distance Events: Swimmers may enter both the 800 Free and the 1500 Free provided they meet the NQT in both of these events.

Fees
Fees are $4 per individual event plus a variable surcharge per swimmer. The surcharge varies according to date of entry. (See surcharge amounts below.) The fee and surcharge must accompany the entry form and must be paid in U.S dollars by check or money order. Do not send cash. The entry form is not complete until payment has cleared the bank. If there are questions about an entrant's check, full cash payment in U.S. dollars will be required before the entrant is allowed to swim. Refund requests must be received in writing by July 13, 2007. No refunds will be given for events not swum. The surcharge also applies to relay swimmers not entered in an individual event. Relay-only swimmers must submit an entry form and pay the fee and surcharge by the entry deadline. All checks for fees and surcharges should be payable to "United States Masters Swimming."

Entry Deadline / Surcharges
$40 if postmarked by June 22 or entered online by June 29. $45 if postmarked by June 29 or entered online by July 6. $80 if postmarked by July 6 or entered online by July 13.

Online entries are encouraged, and will be accepted until midnight Central Daylight Time (CDT) on each of the above dates. Entries received after July 13, 2007 will be returned to sender. No telephone or e-mail entries will be accepted. All mailed U.S. entries must be postmarked with an official U.S. postmark (no business meters) by the dates specified. Swimmers are encouraged to mail entries early. For proof of receipt, please include a self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE). Do not send entries certified mail or overnight mail requiring a signature. Photocopy completed entry forms and personal checks for your records and verification.

Mail Entry to: 
Long Course Nationals, USMS National Office
8 Rockwood Lane
Londonderry, NH 03053

Relay Information
Swimmers may enter relays until 4 p.m. on the day before the relay is scheduled. The entry fee for each relay is $12. Relay entries may be submitted at the relay desk in the registration area. Each of the four members of any relay team must be registered with the same Masters club. The relay entry fee is in addition to the fee for individual events. Relay entry forms are available for download here.

Scoring
Individual Events: 11-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. Relays: 22-18-16-14-12-10-8-6-4-2.

Team Scoring
Team scoring will be tabulated in three categories: Men, Women, and Combined. Mixed relays score points only in the Combined category.

Awards
Medals will be awarded for first through 10th places in each age group. A USMS Championship Patch will be given to each individual and relay team member for the first event won. Swimmers winning more than one event may purchase additional patches. Unclaimed awards will not be mailed unless arrangements are made at the meet. There will be a charge for mailing awards. Awards will be presented to the top ten teams in each category (Men, Women, and Combined).

Final Results
Complete final results may be ordered in advance or at the Awards Table during the meet. Cost will be $15.00 per copy. The USMS website will post results.

Questions?
Contact Tom Boak at 281-363-0672 or via email to tomboak -AT- houston -DOT- rr -DOT- com.

Travel Information