WCST Summer Swim Team 2025
Walnut Country Swim Team is a summer recreation league swim team in the Walnut Country neighborhood (a.k.a., The Crossings) in Concord, CA. Our programs are open to youth swimmers aged 3-18. We have no tryouts, no residency requirements, and no pool club memberships (or pool-use fees), but WCST swimmers must meet minimum swim proficiency requirements to safely participate.
Our focus is on helping youth swimmers improve their skills in a fun and enriching setting. We have challenging practices and friendly competition at meets, and we have plenty of social events, age-group activities, and opportunities to celebrate the swimmers' effort and achievement. Our goal is for swimmers to improve their swimming, and have a great time while they’re at it.
Summer rec. swim is a terrific complement to other activities (e.g., soccer, dance, clubs, etc.) and an enriching activity in its own right. The season is full of implicit learning opportunities in friendship, teamwork, leadership, and community.
Summer 2025 At-A-Glance: Stingrays (Team) and Little Rays (Pre-Team)
DATES:
Our summer season runs from early-April through the end of July, with an Awards Night on The Greenbelt in mid-August. The first day of team practice is Monday, April 7th (we’re starting practice during MDUSD Spring Break). The first day of Little Rays (pre-team for early swimmers) is Monday, May 12th.
PRACTICE:
We have practice five days a week during the summer season. For the portion of the season during the school year, we practice in the afternoons. For the portion of the summer season that happens over the school summer break, we practice in the morning. See the 2025 Practice Schedule for details.
SCHEDULE OF MEETS AND TEAM EVENTS:
Browse the combined calendar of meets and team events. Don't forget to subscribe to the calendar to keep up on the latest.
FEES:
Operations fee: $75 per family (non-refundable)
plus
Swimmer registration fees:
For swimmers aged 3-14 year old
1st swimmer - $395
2nd swimmer - $375
3rd swimmer (and each additional 3-14 year old swimmer) - $325 per swimmer
For swimmers aged 15-18 years old - $200 per swimmer
VOLUNTEER JOBS REQUIREMENT:
Summer rec. swim is full of meets, team spirit activities, and social events, and it’s only possible with the time and talent of family volunteers. It takes about 50 volunteer jobs shifts to host a dual meet, and many more to stage our large invitational and the activities that make the summer season so much fun. So in addition to paying fees, each family commits to completing their volunteer jobs requirement for the season. For more detail, see the Summer Volunteer Jobs Commitment section of the Fees and Commitments page. Each family submits a jobs deposit during registration against successful completion of the volunteer jobs requirement.
FUNDRAISING COMMITMENT
Each family commits to raising a minimum of $100 per swimmer in donations or sponsorships for the team, and submits a deposit in the amount of $100 per swimmer at registration. The deposit is held against successful completion of the fundraising commitment. For more detail, see the Summer Fundraising Commitment section of the Fees and Commitments page.
Summer FAQs
Q1: Do I need to reside in the Walnut Country neighborhood (aka, The Crossings) or be a member of their homeowners association (Cowell HOA) for my swimmers to be eligible for Walnut Country Swim Team?
A1: Nope! WCST programs are open to youth swimmers aged 3-18, regardless of where they live or whether their families are Cowell HOA members.
WCST is a great way to meet other families in The Crossings and surrounding neighborhoods, and many WCST families live in The Crossings, but there’s no residency requirement or Cowell HOA membership requirement to enroll in WCST programs (summer swim team or the swim clinics in the fall and spring). We all pay the same fees and we all have to meet our volunteer jobs and fundraising commitments regardless of where we live. We have swimmers joining us from other neighborhoods in Concord, Walnut Creek, Clayton, Pittsburg and other cities.
Q2: How well do my kids need to swim to participate (team or pre-team)?
A2: See the minimum swim proficiency requirements. They’re different for Stingrays (team) and Little Rays (pre-team), and we have them to ensure that swimmers can safely participate. Our goal is to help swimmers improve and have fun doing it.
Q3: What if I register my swimmer, they show up for practice, and it turns out that they do not meet the minimum swim requirements?
A3: In the event that your swimmer does not meet the minimum swim proficiency requirement, we will cancel your swimmer’s registration and refund per swimmer registration fees. However, the $75 per family operational fee is non-refundable. Please consider the minimum swim proficiency requirements carefully before registering.
Q4: Are there other fees or commitments on top of registration fees associated with summer swim team that I should consider (e.g., pool-use fee, or pool membership, jobs requirement, or fundraising commitment)?
A4: There are no pool-use fees of any kind, and Cowell HOA (who rents us scheduled use of their pool and facilities for our practices and events) does not offer pool memberships. Swimmers enrolled in WCST programs have access to the pool for practice and WCST events during their program. At all other times, they must be guests of Cowell HOA members.
Our summer swim team program does have a volunteer jobs requirement and a fundraising commitment. See above or browse the Summer Fees and Commitments info.
Q5: My swimmer doesn’t want to do swim meets. Do you have a registration option with lower fees or that excludes the jobs or fundraising requirements?
A5: No. The summer swim team program takes our whole community of swim families to pull off. We think it’s a pretty compelling program, but depending on what they want out of swim team, our program may not make sense for all families. Swim-focused summer camps or swim classes may be a better option.
Q6: Is there an expectation that my swimmer will swim every day of summer practice or participate in every meet?
A6: Nope! There are no minimum attendance requirements. Many of our swimmers are juggling multiple activities and do not attend every practice or meet. More time in the pool almost always translates into more progression, so we encourage swimmers to attend practice as consistently as practical, but our feeling is that missing a little practice is a good thing if it helps make space to explore a variety of interests or provides a mental and physical break from swim that helps preserve their enjoyment of the sport over the long term.
Q7: My swimmer would like to participate in the summer swim team, but will only be able to participate for part of the program (due to scheduling conflicts with other activities, or travel, etc.). Do you offer prorated fees and commitments?
A7: Regrettably, no. We're a parent volunteer-led nonprofit, and we're not set up to support that kind of pricing / commitment flexibility for our programs. We work very hard to stage a compelling program at a reasonable cost to families, but it may not work for everyone.
