Monday, May 13, 2019

Swim Smooth KIDS & JUNIORS coming to Claremont Pool this June!

Dear Swimmers

I have some GREAT news for you all, and something that's been a LOOOOOONNNNGGGGG time coming!

Swim Smooth KIDS & JUNIORS!


5 years in the making...the Swim Smooth KIDS & JUNIORS teaching and coaching curriculum is coming to Claremont Pool every Saturday morning from June 15th onwards for kids aged between 7 and 14*!


Winning doesn't necessarily mean finishing first!

*subject to swimming ability (see below) we may consider kids and juniors slightly below / above this age range by +/- 1-2 years.

The premise of the program (at least initially) is to run a concurrent, fun training session for both adults and their kids utilising water space in the 50m pool (adults) and 25m pool (kids) between 0530 and 0700 every Saturday morning, culminating with an optional buffet-style family breakfast at Fred’s cafeteria.

"Five thirty...on a Saturday!" I hear you saying, and, "starting in the winter months?!" - we've never been ones for following "rules" and believe that the combination of the goal of getting you swimming "with" your kids followed by a family social breakfast all well before any other Saturday activities start, will become a staple in the western suburb's weekend routine. At the very least, we're willing and committed to giving this great initiative a bit of a crack and a fair go, as we really believe in the value that this experience will bring to many families.

We’ve been running the adult program since April 2018 on a Saturday morning and it's firmly established itself as the most fun session of the week and the best way to start your weekend off on the right track! This will still continue in the same capacity, even if you don't have kids of course! However, if you do have kids, we want to bring this same experience to your children and at the same time help solve the issue that many young families have of “who’s looking after the kids whilst I go and swim?” which is especially problematic on a Saturday morning when there’s often a tug of war of who can swim - often resulting in stalemate with neither attending!!

Head Coach, Paul Newsome, has been voluntarily coaching the Mount Claremont Primary School swim team for the last three years and will be bringing the fun flair that this program has garnered a reputation for to the Saturday morning session - see more here:


Watch our 3 minute intro on the program to see how you / your family might be able to take part in this great initiative! Watch the video at https://vimeo.com/334819327


We are really hoping to create a very special family affair on a Saturday morning to complement what has been a very successful program down at the Claremont Pool since 2008.

In a nutshell, the kids program will be very different - and designed to complement rather than compete against - the other successful and commendable kids programs at the pool due to it a) being run in conjunction with an adult session, b) most of those adults being parents to the kids in the pool, c) the early start on a Saturday morning to really boost health and the start to a fun family weekend!

Register you interest here:


Please register your kid's interest for joining the program here:


We'd appreciate if you could fill out the form above for any / all of your kids between the ages of 7 and 14 (by all means for anything below / above this age range, please complete and we'll consider +/- 1-2 years as the program develops).

Places can now be booked within the main Swim Smooth Perth Squad app, but we'll also need fuller details from the form above too - thanks!

We will be hiring the whole 25m pool every Saturday morning, but even then, places will be limited and those registering first will have the first option of reserving "Permanent OPT OUT" places just like in the main adult squad.

Looking for some volunteers - can you help?


We aim to have 1-2 coaches on pool deck running the adult component (still created by Paul) and 1-2 coaches taking the kids and juniors. Head Coach, Paul, will be overseeing both programs each week. We are seeking additional volunteers to assist in the smooth delivery of the program each week. If you're keen to receive some free training and to lend your hand to the next generation of Swim Smooth Perth participants, please register your interest here:


How is Swim Smooth different to the other kids programs out there... 


...save for the bizarre fact that you're starting at 0530 every Saturday and during winter ("it'll never work!" they say!)?

You can learn more about the Swim Smooth KIDS & JUNIORS curriculum and philosophy which we've been secretly developing in deepest, darkest Prague in the Czech Republic with our brilliant certified coach Gabriela Minarikova over the last 5 years in this 7 minute video clip:


Watch the video about the genesis of our kids program here: https://vimeo.com/335844160


What's the cost? How does payment work?


We are going to keep the exact same payment system you're all used to using, using the same platform / app but all at a concessionary rate! Yay to that!

If your kids are swimming "solo" (i.e. and you're not attending the Saturday session), the fee will be $120 for 10 sessions, or a very good value $12 per session* for 1.5hrs including 30 minutes of dryland warm-up exercises and fun games.

If you're bringing your kids along to swim "with" you (our ultimate aim), they'll score an extra 2 sessions for free, so you get 12 sessions for $120 or just $10 per session*.

*these are introductory rates for the program, if we re-assess, it'll always be in favour of extra discount for you swimming with your child. We hope that helps!

The SQUAD for kids who don't do SQUAD!


This isn't strictly true (squad kids can also apply!), but if your kids have some passion and enthusiasm for swimming and can complete 50m of freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke with some fluency and can just about manage a 25m lap of butterfly (give or take), we are happy for them to apply for the squad!

We will be grading the lanes by ability as opposed to age, and will create a fun program that your kids want to be part of, even if the idea of a "proper" swim squad maybe doesn't appeal to them!

We aim to create a lifelong love of swimming and will do this through our entirely unique approach of recognising that: a) your stroke doesn't necessarily have to look textbook perfect for you to be effective (see www.swimtypes.com); and that b) swimming for swimming's enjoyment sake, is just as commendable as aiming for the Olympic Games!

If we do happen to produce some future champions though, then that's OK too of course, but we'll have hopefully done it in a lifelong, sustainable way.

So many kids find swimming in squads ultimately dull and boring, so we want to change that. More than anything though, we want your children to have the opportunity to attend swim practice with you, at the same facility, completing a similar type of enjoyable session, and perhaps even having an occasional KIDS vs ADULTS race, so that you can both enjoy the experience, look forward to going for a swim, and then be able to engage and chat over a yummy breakfast about the highs and lows of the session!

We believe that this new Saturday morning set-up is a world first and we would love for you and your family to be part of it!

Please register your kid's interest for joining the program here:


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