Rutherford Water Rats

Welcome to the Rutherford Water Rats and Little Rats Swim Team! We hope you find this handbook a great reference of questions and answers for both new families and seasoned families alike.

Water Rat -- /ˈwôdər rat,ˈwädər rat/  n  1. kids who love summer swimming & diving; 2. kids who take their time getting out of the pool during break time; 3. kids who avoid lifeguard "benching" at all costs; 4. role models for younger Water Rats; 5. mascot of RFD swim & dive club; 6. adult form of definitions 1 thru 4; 7. supporter of RFD. 

Who are we: "Because we are more fun." We are the Rutherford Water Rats, often shortened to RFD. The history of the Water Rat name is found on this page--read on to find out! The team participates in a series of swim meets during the summer, primarily in June and July. The goal of the team is to provide every member a chance to participate in competitive swimming, to develop his or her skills, and to HAVE FUN! The team welcomes all swimmers and divers 18 years of age and under.

Mission: To inspire and develop the next generation, one Water Rat at a time.

Vision: Create lifelong friends and fond memories by cultivating a supportive Rutherford Area community, through our swim and dive teams, that encourages learning, growth, and giving back.

Values: 

• Fun
• Unity
• Integrity
• Respect
• Passion
• Hard Work
• Excellence
• Altrusim

Goals: 

1. Have fun. 
2. Retain current athletes; inspire new swimmers & divers to join.
3. Teach proper swimming & diving techniques to reduce disqualifications.
4. Teach stroke & dive mechanics to continually improve. 
5. Maintain environment where older athletes desire to help younger athletes.
6. Maintain environment where younger athletes desire to coach when they are older.

Celebrating wins, big and small:

Summer swim is a fun sport that provides endless opportunities for swimmers to grow while increasing their confidence in a supportive environment. We celebrate wins every day. Every swimmer has their own goals and milestones they achieve in their journey. Some milestones that we celebrate are:

• New Little Rat swimmers joining the team
• Little Rat swimmers that graduate to Water Rats
• Water Rats that are both Swimmers and Divers!
• All swimmers, Little Rats and Water Rats, that learn a new skill
• Learning a new swim stroke
• Swimming a first legal race (no DQ)
• Improving the next week from a DQ to a legal race
• Swimming faster and dropping time in a race
• Swimming a personal best time in a race
• "Swimming up" in an older age group, e.g., an 8&U swimming in 9-10
• 1st time swimming 50m Butterfly, whether @11 y/o (or "swimming up")
• Older swimmers mentoring younger swimmers
• Younger swimmers showing Little Rats skills and mentoring
• Swimmers maturing and gaining confidence (across all ages)
• Swimmers that come back to RFD to lifeguard or coach, or both!

Where does RFD Summer Swim fit in?

RFD teaches the fundamentals of swimming and diving, teamwork, and leadership that swimmers and divers can take with them for the rest of their life. NVSL summer league can be the start of a lifetime love of aquatics. Many RFD alumni go on to compete in higher levels of competition within swim and dive. Swim and Dive also serves as a gateway to other sports and activities that require confidence in the water such as water polo, surfing, synchronized swimming, Scuba diving, skin diving, or spearfishing. Also, many of our RFD current swimmers and alumni use their aquatics skills to become lifeguards or coaches at Rutherford.

Our swim and dive teams are developmental teams to teach a love for the sport, aquatic skills, leadership, and positive citizenship. Should our swimmers and divers continue on, they will take what they learned from RFD to their next level. Regardless, we hope that all Water Rats will cherish their time with RFD.

Water Rats: Water Rats are children 18 years of age and under. Although swimming abilities may vary among water rats, the major qualification is that a swimmer eight years or younger be able to swim 25 meters (1 pool length) and a swimmer nine years or older be able to swim 50 meters (2 pool lengths) without touching the bottom or holding on to the wall and ropes.

Little Rats: Little Rats are the youngest beginning swimmers. This developmental program is supported by coaches who work with Little Rats to build confidence in the water  and the foundations of swimming across the shallow end of the pool. Little Rats can progress in their skill development to swimming in deeper water ( dive well ) and advancing to a full pool length (25m) with or without a kickboard.   Little Rats are invited to compete in B-meets and celebrate their progress and through out the season at our "Lollipop Meet". 

What is NVSL: NVSL is short for the Northern Virginia Swimming League https://mynvsl.com/. NVSL was founded in 1956. As one of the nation’s largest swim leagues, there are over 17,000 swimmers on 102 teams in the NVSL. Skill levels vary from five year old beginners to Olympic qualifiers. NVSL is made up of 17 divisions, each with six swim teams. The fastest teams are in the lower numbered divisions. Swim teams are placed in divisions to have well matched swim meets. Between seasons, swim teams can move up or down in divisions based on meet results.

Communication: Swim team reps and coaches will send out emails at least weekly with updates. FOR INCLEMENT WEATHER AND SCHEDULE CHANGES, we HIGHLY recommend families sign up for REMIND text alerts. The REMIND app lets you know as soon as possible if practice or an evening meet has been cancelled due to weather.

Swim Practices:

Active and engaged participation in practice is expected of all swimmers.  Excessive absences and/or lack of participation in practice will be taken in to consideration when choosing swimmers for meets.  Please see the Team Rep or Coaches with questions.

Water Rats and Little Rats afternoon practices begin the day after Memorial Day, and move to the morning schedule the day after the FCPS school year ends. 

Parents are welcome to attend practices, but we ask that you remain off the deck near the pool during practice. Most parents enjoy the shade and conversation in the pavilion. If there’s a concern you would like to discuss with the coaches, please schedule an appointment with them via email or wait until practice is finished.

During morning practices (when the pool is not yet open), keep in mind that the coaches are busy coaching and are not responsible for unattended children. Please be prompt in picking your younger children up from practice.

Adults of Little Rat swimmers may not leave the pool during practice.

Adults of Water Rat swimmers need to follow the pool’s rules of unattended children: Children must be at least 10 years old and pass the swim test.

Swim Meets:

There are:

• 5 Saturday morning A Meets,
• 3 evening B meets,
• 1 Relay Carnival,
• 1 Individual Medley (IM) Carnival, and
• 1 Divisional Championship Meet.

All swimmers are encouraged to participate in the B meets and IM Carnival. The A Meets, Relay Carnival, and Divisionals (Finals) are based on swimmers’ times. For the A Meets, the Head Coach will post the Meet Sheet with the names of the swimmers by Friday morning. Team Reps will also email all parents a copy of the meet sheet.

What happens during a swim meet?

The meet consists of 40 individual events and 12 relay events. Swimmers compete in the four individual strokes within each age group (8 and unders, 9-10s, 11-12s, 13-14s, and 15-18s). The relay events are also separated by age groups with 4 swimmers in each event. Boys and girls compete separately.

Each competing team has three swim lanes per stroke and will enter swimmers in each individual event (Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke, and Butterfly). Swimmers may swim no more than two individual events in addition to two relay events.

The point schedule for the individual events are: 1st place earns 5 points, 2nd place earns 3 points, and 3rd place earns 1 point. Relays are scored by means of 5 points for 1st place and 0 points for 2nd place. The team with the most accumulated points at the end of the meet is determined to be the winning team.

How Should I Behave at Meets?

Demonstrating good sportsmanship and cheering for all swimmers is expected. Adults are also expected to demonstrate good sportsmanship. Rude and obnoxious behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

All swimmers, family members and guests are expected to abide by the pool rules at all times during meets and practices. Visiting teams are our guests and we want them to feel welcome.

Swimmers are strongly encouraged – and expected – to cheer for their teammates.

During meets, our team will be assigned to a specific team area where swimmers must stay unless they are reporting to the Clerk of Course. After they swim each event, swimmers should report back immediately to the team area and speak to their coaches. Please tell your children to remain in the team area at all times! The coaches will need to locate them quickly AND they should participate in cheering their teammates on from the team area. After every meet, home OR away, swimmers are expected to clean up their team area before leaving the pool.

Most of all, ask another adult or the team rep if you have any questions. We’ve all been there at our first meet wondering what is going on.

What is an “A meet” or NVSL Sanctioned Meet?

“A meets” are sanctioned, competitive meets. Scores are kept and reported to the league. The six teams in our Division swim against each other on five consecutive Saturday mornings in a series called Dual Meets.

Each competing team has three swim lanes per stroke and will enter swimmers in each individual event (Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke, and Butterfly) Swimmers may swim no more than two relay events in addition to two individual events. Based on the outcome of these five Dual Meets, a Division champion will be named

NVSL Saturday meets begin at 9am. Swimmers are required to report earlier for warm-ups.

The coaches choose swimmers for each meet and determine which events they will swim so as to score the most points for the team. A day or two before each NVSL Saturday meet, the coaches will inform the team of who is swimming and their assigned events via email. They will also prepare and post a meet sheet, that indicates who is swimming in which event(s). Swimmers are selected based on skill level, attendance at meets and practices, performance, as well as best times in meets and time trials.  The NVSL has strict rules and timelines regarding meet sheet preparation and sharing, so we ask for your patience each week.

There is a LOT of strategy that goes into creating a meet sheet. Swimmers may be asked to swim events that are not their fastest or favorite stroke for the good of the team. The coaches have the big picture in mind and will put swimmers in positions to best help the TEAM.

What is a “B meet” or Developmental Meet?

“B meets” are for developmental purposes and are more relaxed than Saturday meets. All swimmers of all abilities and ages are encouraged to swim in the developmental meets. Team scores are not kept at Monday meets, however all swimmers’ times are considered official times for personal bests and other records.

B meets include the same four individual strokes and age groupings as A meets. Relay events are replaced by Individual Medley (IM) in which the swimmer swims one length of each stroke (100 meters/4 lengths).

Swimmers may swim up to two events. Swimmers may not swim in events where they placed in first, second or third in the previous A meet.

Developmental meet eligibility is at the discretion of the coaches.

What are the other meets?

Divisional Relay Carnival

All six teams in the division converge on the host pool for a meet of only relay races. This is the most fast-paced and exciting meet of the season. Boys and girls compete separately in 22 events (medley relays, freestyle relays, and mixed age relays). The team with the most points is awarded the Division Relay Championship trophy. The 18 fastest relay teams in each event from the seventeen divisional relay carnivals held that night are invited to compete the following week at the All Star Relay meet.

Individual Divisional Championship

Commonly known as “Divisionals,” the Individual Divisional Championship meet is held the Saturday following the last dual meet. Each age group competes in Free, Back, Breast, and Fly (No relays). Swimmers age 9 and above also compete in 100 Individual Medley (IM). Swimmers may only compete in 2 events and each team is allowed two swimmers in each event. Each team chooses their two swimmers with the fastest times, per event, to compete in Divisionals. If either swimmer with the best time chooses to not swim in a given event, the swimmer with the next best time is then given the opportunity and so on. Seed times are based on Saturday meet results. The fastest 18 swimmers in each event from all the divisional meets around the league are invited to compete the following week at “All Stars.”

Seed Times: The fastest official time for a swimmer is their seed time. This time is used for placement in meets. A time trial meet is held at the start of the season to establish a new seed time for each swimmer as they often break their prior year’s seed time. Each time a swimmer beats their seed time in a meet, that new lower time becomes their seed time.

PARENT VOLUNTEER PARTICIPATION IS REQUIRED: Both the NVSL and the Water Rats Team depend on the PARENTS to operate this amazing swimming experience for our children. All the officials are volunteers!  If your child is swimming in a meet, please make sure to have one parent available to volunteer as needed to run the meet.  At home meets, we need 24 RFD volunteers to run the meet. At away meets, we need approximately 22 RFD volunteers. Sign up links are located right here on the SwimTopia site!

Pep Rallies:

Rutherford Water Rats has a tradition of having a Pep Rally the night before the A meets. The pep rally has a different theme each week. They are announced in the weekly notices sent via email and the coaches will remind swimmers at practices. The pep rallies are too much fun to miss! It is the one weekly event that brings cohesiveness to the team. Swimmers should arrive around 6:00 pm, and are expected to have eaten – unless there is a special theme/planned event. While the swimmers are with the coaches, parents are encouraged to meet in the Pavilion for the Friday Wind Downs. 

Please note: Swimmers who are competing the next day are expected to leave the pool by 8pm in order to get a good night’s sleep. Please see schedule and periodic emails for specific details on each pep rally.

Who Should I Talk To With Concerns of Questions?

If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with our team reps first. Please do not approach the coaches during meets or practices. They are busy coaching your children. If you need to schedule an appointment with the coaches, please of through the team rep.

Special Events (TBD for the 2026 season):

KINGS DOMINION:  NVSL has special rates for the season. Each Year, the Water Rats choose a day to caravan down together to the Park. All Children require parent and/or guardian supervision. 

TEAM PANCAKE BREAKFAST and PICTURE DAY: Swimmers should wear their team suits for the picture. Information about this will be provided through communications. 

SENIOR SEND-OFF:  At the last home meet, we will honor our graduating seniors.

PROGRESSIVE DINNER:  All 13 and up (Rising 8th graders) are invited to a formal dinner with appetizers, dinner, & dessert at 3 different locations and ending with a swim at the pool.

END OF THE YEAR BANQUET & SLIDE SHOW:  We will gather as a team to celebrate the end of the season. Coaches present awards and a slide show highlighting pictures and video of the season.

Origin of Water Rats mascot name & cartoon rat: Stefan Nickodem was an NVSL RFD swimmer and coach, who renamed the swim team in 1977. The purpose was to rebrand the team to make it more exciting, unique, and fun. RFD's mascot was the Stingrays; RFD Stingrays doesn't have the same ring to it! Team members at the time were ready for a change, and Stefan hired Mark Lewis from Fairfax pool as head coach, who brought an upbeat and quirky "Texas style," which quickly electrified the team.  As part of the revitalization of the team, Stefan and Mark suggested the Water Rat mascot that Fairfax pool rejected previously. The RFD teams overwhelmingly approved of and implemented the Water Rats mascot in 1977. The mascot change and team revitilization led to a 5-0 undefeated season the following year, division and relay carnival champions the next three out of four years, AND the first time RFD was in Division 1! Stefan and Mark discovered the cartoon rat that adorns our t-shirts, caps, and team swag in Fair City Mall. The original rat was an iron-on emblem at a local store. Stefan made two prototype shirts (shown below), and the rest is history.