The Rockville Rays, a summer competitive swimming program offered by the City of Rockville Department of Recreation and Parks, is celebrating its 27th season in the Montgomery County Swim League (MCSL).  Division A champions since 2005, we look forward to continuing our long tradition of excellence and teamwork. Steven Mercer will be heading up our coaching staff this year.  Cara Chuang, a 2008 Olympic Trials qualifier, will serve as our assistant coach.  Matt Truong and George Karayianis will be serving as our team representatives.  Jim Treichel and Deepthi Fernando will serve as our A-team representatives while Tapas Saha and Diana Wobus will serve as our B-team representatives.

Our program consists of a series of dual meets divided into two levels of competition. The advanced ‘A’ meets are limited in the number of competitors per team, while the ‘B’ meets are open to any swimmer not competing in the ‘A’ meets.  We have a full season of Saturday ‘A’ meets and Wednesday night ‘B’ meets, so all of our swimmers will have an opportunity to compete in at least one meet each week.  In addition, swimmers or relay teams with qualifying times/placements may be invited to swim in special meets such as the Coaches Invitational Long Course Meet, or the MCSL All-Star Relays and Individual All-Stars Meets. The 2010 calendar will be posted on our website http://rockvillerays.us when it is available. Don’t forget to look up the dates of Time Trials, A & B meets, the A & B relay carnivals, and the A Divisional Championship.

Starting on Tuesday after Memorial Day, swim practices will take place every Monday to Friday from 4:00 – 5:30 pm.  Beginning on the first day of summer vacation for Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), practice times will change to 5:00 – 7:00 pm every weekday except Wednesday.  All swimmers must use the outdoor entrance and outdoor shower facilities.

Every family on the team is a voting member of the Rockville Rays Parents Association that exists solely to support the swim program.  The success of the summer swim program is dependent upon having many active volunteers. We NEED parents to officiate meets, but certification is required.  Training dates are listed on the Montgomery County Swim League (MCSL) website http://mcsl.org.  We need also parents to assist in social events, newsletters, bulletin boards, etc…. 

The Parents Association also staffs a snack bar during several big swim meets this summer.  The revenue generated from these activities keeps our registration fees significantly low compared to other pools.  Those funds will subsidize other team activities during the season.

Team suits are available from Aardvark Swim and Sport in Rockville (301-309-3660). 

Click here to complete the Team Membership Form.  All Rays members need to be on the Team membership roster.  Even if people already registered at the swim center, you still need to fill out this online form so that the Team has your family on record with the Team management.  Particularly, the coach will need your family phone number and email address to call or confirm if your swimmer will swim in A Meet.  If you have not registered at the swim center, it's recommended that you first fill out this form, print it out, and bring it to the swim center to register and pay the fees. Two fees are required to complete your registration, 1) The registration fee is $35.00 per family.  This fee covers the MCSL team dues, team newsletter, coaches’ gifts, and other incidentals.  This fee is payable by check only to “ROCKVILLE RAYS PARENTS ASSOCIATION”. For the swimmers registered before May 15, you’ll get a FREE Rays swimming cap; 2) The program fees may be paid by cash, check (payable to City of Rockville) or credit card at the Swim Center Front Desk.  Fees are $165 for Swim Center members, $220 for non-members. 

VERY IMPORTANT DATE!!  Our Time Trials is on Saturday, June 12. To make the event stress-free for children and parents, it is highly recommended that parents attend a parent’s orientation meeting at 7pm on Friday June 11th.  The Rays party will start at 6:00 p.m.  Participation by all families is needed to help run Time Trials.  This meet determines our swimmers’ initial ranking on the team. Please note that only those swimmers that participate in Time Trials can qualify to swim in the first dual A meet.

If you have questions, please check out our bulletin board at the pool, go to Ray’s website or ask your team reps. From the Rays’ website, one can subscribe to the Rays Googlegroup to obtain newsflashes and reminders or to exchange ideas about the team. 

Once again: Welcome to Rockville Rays! We look forward to another amazing year!