Garden Hills Cool Sharks

Sign up HERE for an evaluation timeslot. Do not sign up until after you have registered for the team or the waitlist.

All new swimmers ages 10 and under (including those on the wait list) are required to pass an evaluation in order to participate on our team. New swimmer evaluations will be March 31st - April 2nd 4:30-6:00pm at Garden Hills Pool. You need only come to one of these dates. We will have a signup genius for days and time slots. If you are unable to come at these times, please email [email protected]. And yes - the pool will be heated!

• NEW THIS YEAR: All swimmers must be able to swim 25 yards of freestyle in under 60 seconds, without stopping or assistance. They need to be comfortable putting their face in the water and breathing while swimming. We may allow 6&under swimmers who are close to this standard to join the team (at coach discretion), but for 7&over this is now a strict requirement.
• Older swimmers (age 11+) should have a basic knowledge of all four strokes (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly) and be able to swim at least three of the four strokes legally in competition (newer swimmers may need private lessons to catch up).

For the evaluation, swimmers should swim as fast as they can and not stop to hold onto the wall or the lane ropes - we need to see them make it all the way across without assistance. We are not evaluating technique as much as endurance and confidence for the safety of the swimmer in a large group practice environment.

Final discretion for placement on the team rests with the coaches. 

Do not wait until after the evaluation to register your child for the team! If you wait, registration will be full.

Swimmers who do not pass the evaluation by the last evaluation date (4/2) will have their registration automatically cancelled and will receive a full refund (unless other arrangements for evaluation have been made). Waitlisted swimmers will be removed from the waitlist. Please make every effort to attend one of the scheduled evaluation dates! If you are unable to attend one of these sessions, please contact us at [email protected] before 4/2 to arrange an earlier date/time to have your child evaluated.

Due to high demand for our younger age groups, and the need to keep our crowded practices safe, we are strict about our evaluations. Swimmers who don't quite have the confidence or skill to participate on our summer team are highly encouraged to try our Shark Pups junior swim team - please see the "Shark Pups" tab (under "Other Programs") for more details. We also offer Private Lessons taught by our Cool Sharks coaches (see the "Lessons" tab). And our Fall Team can be an easier introduction to team swimming. Practices are smaller, the pool and air are nice and warm in August, and your child will likely have more confidence after playing in the pool all summer (especially if you build skills during those months by signing up for Shark Pups or private lessons).