NORTHWEST AQUATIC LEAGUE
History of the Northwest Aquatic League
In 1970, Shell Oil transferred many families from California to the
Houston area. These families settled in the northwest part of Houston and
wanted to continue the swimming experiences they had begun in California.
So five fathers, employees of Shell Oil, got together and established the
NORTHWEST AQUATIC LEAGUE. The first five teams in the league that year were
Enchanted Oaks, River Plantation, Northampton, Ponderosa Forest, and Westador. These teams are still active in the league today. Governing
rules were based on those that had been used in Menlo, California.
Since that time,
NWAL has grown to 99 teams with approximately 15,000
swimmers from ages 4 through 18. The teams, which are located as far west
as Brenham and Bryan-College Station, east as Newport, south as Bear Creek,
and north as Huntsville and Livingston, are divided into sixteen divisions.
Some teams have as many as 350 swimmers while others only have 45 to 50
swimmers. In the early days, the division line-ups were determined by a
committee of five who would place teams according what that committee
believed to be the size and strength of each team. In 1985, Pete Junkins
developed what is now called the ‘power-rating’ formula. Team size, meet
scores and season record were taken into account mathematically. NWAL
became computerized! That system is still used. Also computerized is the
management of the teams and the meets.
Parent volunteers have been and continue to be the key to the success of
NWAL over the past 30 years. In most cases, the coaches are paid but there
are cases in which the coaches are also volunteers. Each division elects a
representative who sits on the Board of Directors. The Executive Board
consists of a President, Vice-president of Training & Certification,
Vice-president of Software, Secretary and a Treasurer. The Board meets four
times a year to set the guidelines for the season. These meetings are open
to any interested party, although, only the division reps and executive
board members can vote. Each team is then represented at the annual meeting
held in January. The major purpose of this meeting is to disseminate all of
the information for the coming season.
The Northwest Aquatic League season begins in late May and continues for
six weeks. Each team in the division competes in a dual meet with every
other team in the division. The season concludes with a divisional meet at
which all six teams compete. During the season and following divisionals,
several invitational meets are scheduled. Invitationals and concession
stands are the most common means of fund raising for the teams besides
registrations fees.
2009 NWAL Rulebook
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