year round swim teams - Raleigh (Cary, Franklin: how much, versus, moving to)

[gh27613]

Hi - I'm hoping someone out there has some scoop on the reputations of the various year-round swim teams in the area. I know there are a couple mainly centered in Cary @ TAC, but I'm primarily interested in Finley YOTA and Marlins. Does anyone have experience with either and know if they have different approaches, reputations, size, etc?

Thanks very much!

[WakeResident]

I know people who swim with YOTA and really like it. They always seem to have a lot of fun at meets as well. Marlins is good, but big, so your kids may get "lost in the crowd" unless they are elite swimmers. TAC is the same way - they are looking to become a very large club, which meansthat kids end up being cattle. They are more concerned with having a large number of swimmers (to pay for their large facility) versus providing quality coaching to ALL those swimmers. Check out the coach-to-swimmer ratio for any team - that may give you a good indication as to how much actual instruction/coaching your kids will get. Also, RSA and WAVE are moving to other facilities away from TAC (RSA is renovating a pool off Jones Franklin Rd. just inside the beltline; WAVE is moving to Cary Swim Club).

[rt_terp]

I've been looking into the Marlins for fall/winter swimming. They offer both a year-round team, and also a 11-week league. My family has not tried year-round swimming yet, but our neighbor was with the Marlins last year and really liked it.