Welcome back to the best time of the year - summer swim team season! Returning head coach Conor Mulligan and the assistant coaches are excited to lead us through a great season.  Don't forget to stop by the clubhouse tomorrow evening, Friday 4/24 6-8pm to meet and greet with coaches and coordinators.  Feel free to come with questions or for assistance with registration. Swimsuits will be available for trying on.

Registration is NOW available for this season in the Wood Valley membership portal. You must have renewed your Wood Valley club membership to sign up for swim team. Please follow the instructions attached to register and review details of the practice schedule, meet schedule, volunteering requirements, coaches and swimsuit information on the Wood Valley site and our Wood Valley Otters Swimtopia site. Swimtopia registration will be released at a later date. First regular practice is Monday 5/19.

NEW for 2026: Junior Otters/Swim Team Prep

Over the last several years the number of younger swimmers has grown considerably. We are introducing the Junior Otter program to help many of our younger swimmers integrate onto the team in a helpful way. The majority of kids that start in this program will likely move up to the competitive team by the end of the season.• Jr Otters have separate practices with a smaller coach:swimmer ratio• Jr Otters may participate in one dedicated intrasquad meet

How does it work?

ALL 4-6 year old swimmers, and any NEW 7-8 year old swimmers will complete a swim assessment the first week* of practice to determine if Junior Otters/Prep or full swim team membership is the right fit. For full swim team participation, needed skills include swimming 15 yards (6 and under) or 25 yards (7-8) completely independently with their face in the water, floating on their back, ability to get in/out of the pool independently and listening to the coaches. This group will have an opportunity to practice the first week before needing to complete the 'test' at the end of the week. We know if swimmers have not been in the water all winter that they may be a little rusty or nervous to swim, so we want to give ample time for them to warm up. We will then “test” at the end of the week and let parents know which group is the best fit for your swimmer. Please remember that they can retest throughout the season and move up when they are ready.

Parents should register all swimmers for swim team on the Wood Valley Member Portal. There is not a separate registration for Junior Otters.

*We are currently planning to hold practices for 6 and under and new 7-8 swimmers the week of May 11 in order to conduct assessments but we are still finalizing coach availability. Stay tuned for updates.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions. Go Otters!

Kristin Lundeen

WV Swim Team Coordinator

[email protected]

704-807-7962