Initial Skills Requirement

We expect our swimmers to be able to swim a length of the pool, even if occasionally grabbing the lane line or side, without someone having to jump in to rescue them. Swimmers should be able to make 25 yards around 1min 30sec. You don't have to do it the first day, but we do expect you to be at that point in time for the first meet after the first week or so of practice. If a swimmer can't do that, then there's simply too much risk from a safety perspective as we aren't staffed for that level of attention.

Swimmers are not expected to be aware of any particular strokes, and if a 5 year-old wants to doggie-paddle across at first, that's fine, as long as they'll let us teach them in the coming weeks.

The policy applies to all ages - a new 12-year old doesn't have to know backstroke or have a killer butterfly any more than a 5-year-old. Most years, we have a very small number of 5-year-old little siblings, and then a pretty good number of 6-year-olds.

We do not have a heated pool and will offer tryouts April 15th. If you are unsure your child will make the team, please register and select "pay by check." 

Swimmer Expectations

5 Steps to Becoming a Successful Water Buffalo

1. Be Responsible

• Arrive on time for practices, meet warm-ups, and all designated team functions
• Compete in all assigned events to the best of your ability
• Give maximum effort at practice
• Follow all rules, regulations, and procedures set by coaches and team representatives

2. Be Safe

• Listen and respond to all coaching instructions
• Remain with the team for the entire meet
• Do not bring friends, relatives, or guests into the team area
• Avoid any conduct that could cause harm to yourself or others

3. Be a Positive Teammate

• Encourage teammates and congratulate opponents, win or lose
• Promote strong team spirit and unity
• Practice and model good sportsmanship
• Set a positive example for fellow swimmers

4. Be Respectful

• Conduct yourself in an exemplary manner at all times
• Treat coaches, teammates, opponents, and officials with dignity
• Respect all property and facilities
• Wear your team uniform during competition

5. Have Fun and Enjoy Improving Your Swimming Abilities

Disciplinary Policy

The Water Buffalo swim team is intended to be a fun and safe space for all swimmers. A swimmer who chooses not to be safe or respectful can expect the following actions to be taken by their coach or a member of the Water Buffalo Board:

1st Offense:

Coach will tell the swimmer why he/she is talking to them and give them a warning to make a better choice.

2nd Offense:

Coach will ask the swimmer to go and tell a parent what he/she has done and for the parent to speak to the coach after practice. The Coach may ask the swimmer to sit out from practice for a set period of time, up to the remainder of practice, at the coaches’ discretion. If a parent is not present at the practice, the Coach or a member of the Water Buffalo Board will contact a parent after practice.

Excessive or Severe Offenses:

If a swimmer has been asked to sit out of practice two or more times, on the third or following offense, the Coach or a member of the Board may take any of the following actions, depending on the nature of the offense and the swimmer’s response: (a) restrict the swimmer from practice for the remainder of the week, including any events, Swim Meets or other activities that week; (b) restrict the swimmer from participating in relay events or other team events; (c) remove the swimmer from the swim team and/or restrict the swimmer from participating on the team in the following season; in each case in the sole discretion of the Coach and Water Buffalo Board. The Coach and/or Water Buffalo Board may also request a discussion with the swimmer and/or parents to discuss the offenses, disciplinary action, and, if applicable, a plan to improve the behavior.

Discipline Discussions:

For the safety and wellbeing of the entire swim team, any disciplinary actions will only be discussed after practice or by appointment with the Coach and/or Water Buffalo Board. Coaches WILL NOT discuss individual disciplinary issues with parents during practice, they will be focused on the swimmers in the water.

Practice & Meet Expectations

We expect all swimmers to follow the expectations above and make practi safe place to improve swimming skills and have fun with their friends.

How many practices should I attend? Many kids attend nearly all of the practices, some are only able to make it 2-3 days a week. We do ask that everyone tries to make at least 1 practice a week.

About those swim meets? This is a fun, friendly community activity and are a big part of the fun swim team experience. We do expect kids to go in with the expectation of swimming at meets.

We also have the volunteer expectation. Most of the shifts are at meets.  

Volunteer Policy

The CC Water Buffaloes are a member of the Maverick Summer Swim League, which is a parent-run and supported league. It takes many, many volunteers to run a home meet, and to do so successfully, participation is required from ALL swim families! In addition to the registration fee, your family is *required* to work TWO (2) meets. This number may change depending on final number of families registering. Registration requires you to select the two meets and the job you would like to work at the meet.

Every attempt will be made to assign you according to your choices, but the Board reserves the right to make final decisions. We have a small number of non-meet jobs available for special circumstances, please contact [email protected] if interested.

If you are unable to work your assigned position at a meet, it is your responsibility to find a replacement for that position and notify the Board Member in charge as soon as possible. Please be aware that your child can be pulled from participating in a swim meet and the remaining season if you do not work your job requirement. You will not be allowed to return to the team the following year if you do not meet the volunteer commitment.

Weather Policy

The safety of our swimmers and families is the top priority. We may hold practices and meets in the rain, but we will cancel practice for risk of lightning. Watch the home page for any weather related cancelations.

If the weather looks bad, please stay around or make arrangements to pickup your child if we have to cancel. There is no lightning safe area on the pool deck, please plan on retreating to the safety of your car.

If you don't feel like it is safe, you may pickup your child at anytime (or skip the practice).

We will use the WeatherBug lightning tracker to determine lightning. Lightning within 6 miles in the last 30 minutes will be cause to cancel or delay activities at the pool

In the event a meet is cancelled due to weather, it may be rescheduled if time is available. 

Can I Sign Up?

First-time prospective Water Buffaloes often have a bunch of questions about signing up, including whether or not their little Water Buffalo is ready for swim team. There's really two main things we look for to determine if someone can join our fantastically fun swim team:

1) Are you part of the Cibolo Canyons community?

If you're a returning Water Buffalo or a CC resident, the answer is really simple. We exist primarily for the residents of Cibolo Canyons which we extend to all the kids our residents see at school. We do accept others, but must maintain priority for our local folks. See the registration page for details. 

2) Can you swim well enough not to be a major safety concern?

In the past, we've typically expected our swimmers to be able to swim a length of the pool, even if occasionally grabbing the lane line or side, without someone having to jump in to rescue them. You don't have to do it the first day, but we do expect you to be at that point in time for the mock meet after the first two weeks of practice. If a swimmer can't do that, then there's simply too much risk from a safety perspective as we aren't staffed for that level of attention. Swimmers are not expected to be aware of any particular strokes, and if a 5 year-old wants to doggie-paddle across at first, that's fine, as long as they'll let us teach them in the coming weeks. The policy applies to all ages - a new 12-year old doesn't have to know backstroke or have a killer butterfly any more than a 5-year-old. Most years, we have a very small number of 5-year-old little siblings, and then a pretty good number of 6-year-olds.

If you can answer yes to those two questions, then you're free to sign up and give it a shot. We want all the kids to have a good, positive, fun experience and to be as inclusive as possible.