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St. Albans Sharks Fall & Winter Swim Team!
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After consultation with families and coaches, we've made adjustments to our Fall/Winter STA Sharks program.  Instead of 2 sessions, there will be one session running from mid October through early 2026. This will better prepare swimmers for qualifying meets in January & February. The season will end after those swimmers qualifying for championships have competed in their meet.  Bronze -January 17-19th, Silver -January 31- February 2, and Age Group Championships - Age 10 and under February 14-16th, Age 11-14 February 20-23rd, Age 15-18 February 27-March 2nd.    

Our Mission:
The mission of the St. Albans Sharks Swim Team is to foster an environment conducive to developing balanced IM swimmers, with an emphasis on individual improvement through both hard work and team work. 

Head Coach:  Jess Driver
Jess is thrilled to be entering her fourth season as the head coach of the St. Albans Sharks Swim Team. She began swimming competitively in Massachusetts at the age of 8 and continued through college. With a career spanning a highly recognized New England club team and the University of Vermont's women’s team, she gained valuable experience and insights into the sport. Jess is committed to fostering a positive and supportive environment where swimmers can develop skills and build confidence. Her goal is to help them achieve their goals while having a great time.
When not coaching, Jess works as a full time nurse at Georgia Elementary and Middle School.  She also enjoys reading, exercising, being outside and spending time with family and friends.
Jess is a proud parent of three Sharks Swim Team members.

Assistant Coach: Melanie Dattilio
Coach Mel has been with the Sharks program for six years: first as a parent of a Shark swimmer and more recently as a coach. She grew up just outside of Boston and swam competitively for 14 years. She competed in USA Swimming, YMCA, high school, and both short and long course summer league programs, as well as some club swimming in college. Melanie was primarily a freestyle swimmer and competed in both sprint and distance events. In addition to swim team, she taught Red Cross swimming lessons for over 20 years. She loves to pass her understanding and love of competitive swimming on to a new generation of younger swimmers.
Melanie is a first grade teacher at Georgia Elementary School. When she is not working with young children, she is usually at a baseball game watching her older son compete or just relaxing with a good book. 
She is a proud parent of one Sharks Swim Team member.


Swimmer Categories and Requirements:

Great White Sharks:  (Ages 11 to 18 years)  The focus of this group is on building endurance, power, and speed through technique refinement, IM swimming, and training tailored to sprint or distance events. Both dry land training & in water sessions are incorporated. 

Swimmers must be able to legally perform all 4 competitive strokes and swim a minimum of 2000 yards per practice. Dedication and focus are also required, and a competitive drive and spirit is expected.

Reef Sharks:  (Ages 10 and under) The focus of this group is on building endurance and improving technique in order to develop balanced IM swimmers.

Swimmers must have a basic knowledge of all 4 competitive strokes and swim a minimum of 1000 yards per practice. Dedication and focus are also required, and a competitive drive and spirit is a plus!.

Cat Sharks:  (Ages 4+) The focus of this group is on building endurance and stroke development in a fun and inviting atmosphere. 

Our Cat Sharks developmental program is for swimmers ages 4+ who can successfully complete 25 continuous yards swimming freestyle and 25 continuous yards swimming backstroke. This program serves as an introduction to swim team for young swimmers who are interested in swimming competitively. Swimmers will work to improve their freestyle and backstroke as well as develop their technique in breaststroke and butterfly. Competitive racing starts and turns will also be introduced in this program. Cat Sharks are expected to remain focused and attentive during the entirety of their practice. This program is NOT meant to be a replacement for swim lessons. A readiness assessment will be conducted by a coach for all swimmers interested in this program. 

New this year - Members of the Great Whites are eligible for Strength Training on Mondays & Wednesdays from 5:00-5:45pm with Tom Koldys of Beyond the Wall.  Strength training will consist of a variety of dryland and water-based exercises designed to supplement in-water stroke training.  Emphasis will be on strengthening existing muscle tissues that both directly and indirectly contribute to enhancing speed, endurance, and recovery.  Examples of training exercises include, but are not limited to, resistance bands, free weights, vasa trainers, in-water stationary bikes, body weight (calisthenic, plyometric, and isometric), and kettlebells.  Swimmers should be prepared to work on deck, preferably barefoot, as well as in the water during this time.  Swimmers should also bring sneakers (+ socks) and water bottle.

Age Guidelines:
Age guidelines are in place to safely divide swimmers, and to set them up for success. The age restrictions are simply a guideline and are not written in stone. It is the coaches discretion to decide if a swimmer shall be moved to a different group. Swimmer performance, endurance, and attitude are all taken into account to decide where they will do best!

Excellence in the pool takes commitment and dedication. Swimmers are strongly encouraged to attend as many practices and meets as possible. We offer 4 practice sessions per week, along with multiple USA Swimming sanctioned swim meets in VT and New England. We will also be holding 3 unofficial home time trials. This year, our season will begin in mid-October and run through the championship season in January or early February. The monthly practice schedule and meet schedule are linked below:

Practice Schedule:
Great Whites ...........5:45pm - 7:15pm (Monday, Wednesday,Thursday)
  5:00pm-5:45pm Drylands with BEYOND THE WALL 
  (Mondays and Wednesdays)
Reef Sharks ………..5:00pm - 6:00pm (Monday,Wednesday,Thursday)
Both Great Whites & Reef Sharks ………..8:30am-10:00am (Saturday) 

Meet Schedule:
11/7-11/9 UVAC Specialty Meet w/ Distance @ Upper Valley Aquatic Center 

12/5-12/7 UVAC Specialty Meet w/ Distance @ Upper Valley Aquatic Center

12/11-12/14   TBD - Most likely MIT in Boston

1/4 UVAC Specialty Meet w/ Distance @ Upper Valley Aquatic Center

1/11 CVSC Pentathlon @ Norwich University, Goodyear Pool

1/16-1/18 UVAC Bronze Championship @ Upper Valley Aquatic Center - MUST QUALIFY 

1/30-2/1 UVAC Silver Championship @ Upper Valley Aquatic Center - MUST QUALIFY

2/13-2/15 SAC 10 & Under Championship @ URI - MUST QUALIFY


2/19-2/22 CRA 11-14 AG Championship @ Boston Sports Institute - MUST QUALIFY


***Meet and event fees are not included in the swim team fee and will be billed separately.

***Unofficial home meet schedule: TBD

Equipment  Needed:

All swimmers are expected to attend practice in a competition style swimsuit. Swim goggles (not masks) and bathing caps are also recommended. In addition, swimmers may want to bring sneakers, a yoga mat, and stretch bands for dryland workouts.

ALL SWIMMERS & PARENTS MUST BE REGISTERED IN SWIMTOPIA:
SWIMTOPIA REGISTRATION

TRAVEL SWIMMERS & PARENTS MUST BE REGISTERED WITH USA SWIMMING:
USA SWIMMING REGISTRATION

Questions?

k.viens@stalbansvt.com

Warner Home Endowment Scholarship & Financial info
  • Need help with funds? Apply for scholarships using the links and forms below.
  • We can also help with automatic payment plans. Just give the office a call 802-524-1971. You decide what your payment amount is and how often you'd like it deducted. Just has to be paid by the start of the season.

Schedule
There will not be regular practices during Thanksgiving vacation (11/24-11/25) and Christmas vacation (12/23-1/1/26) There will be optional swim times with workouts listed on the white board and supervised by staff for swimmers who want to continue swimming over break.

Additional Forms and Files: Links:
Register Activity Ages Grades Days Date/Time Fees
 
   Log In
Great Whites 11+ (Registration includes Dry Land Training on Mon & Wed from 5pm-5:45 
11y - 18y N/A MWThSa  10/13/2025 - 02/12/2026
View Times
Hard'ack - Hard'ack Pool 		$800.00 R, $1,000.00 NR
 
   Log In
Reef Sharks - 10 & under 
6y - 10y N/A MWThSa  10/13/2025 - 02/12/2026
View Times
Hard'ack - Hard'ack Pool 		$650.00 R, $850.00 NR
 
   Log In
Cat Sharks 
4y and up N/A TuTh  01/06/2026 - 02/19/2026
05:00 PM - 05:30 PM
Hard'ack - Hard'ack Pool 		$150.00 R, $250.00 NR
Families must schedule a swim test before registering. Check in with Kelly at k.viens@stalbansvt.com to schedule
* Adjustments and discounts will be applied during checkout if applicable. *

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