After Trying Meet Maestro the Krakens are Never Going Back
Courtesy SwimTopia
It was shortly after the summer season had wrapped, and the relief in Randy Katz’ voice was palpable. Randy, Board Member and League Rep for the Cross Creek Krakens, had just completed his team’s first season using Meet Maestro, and he couldn’t have been happier—he loved Meet Maestro. “Our whole league has used SwimTopia for 6 seasons, but in 2019 we used the combined SwimTopia team management and Meet Maestro meet management systems. The near-seamless integration of the two software packages saved our team a massive amount of time, and saved us the headaches we previously had in switching between other packages,” said Randy.
Having previously worked as a meet operator for his team, Randy knows first-hand what it takes to pull off the behind-the-scenes work of running a swim meet. Randy summed up the SwimTopia/Meet Maestro difference in a single word: “integration.”
How SwimTopia’s Integrated Systems Helped the Krakens
Courtesy SwimTopia
In the past, pulling off a great swim meet took multiple software platforms. The team previously used SwimTopia for the pre-meet functions of finalizing entries, then used Hy-Tek* Meet Manager for most of the meet management functions. Results were loaded back into SwimTopia to update swimmer times, reports, and records after the meet. But the team also used Meet Mobile for live results; plus Meet Bop, an app that allowed a volunteer to manually update the event and heat being swum so parents could see what event was current; as well as Remind to notify parents of schedule delays or cancelations via text.
In the summer of 2019, the Krakens used SwimTopia’s integrated platforms to handle all their meet needs, replacing the above software products and apps. SwimTopia’s meet management platform, Meet Maestro, offers a direct interface to SwimTopia—reducing the need for importing files before and after meets. SwimTopia’s mobile app—which includes live results, live event/heat updates, and push notification alerts—does the work of Meet Mobile, Meet Bop, and Remind. Randy noted, “the way our Dolphin timing system integrated with Meet Maestro to update the event and heat being swum on the SwimTopia mobile app even eliminated one of our volunteer positions!”
Randy summarized the benefits of SwimTopia’s integrated system:
“In the past, we were sometimes emailing entry files back and forth at 3am. It was hard to keep track of which file was the most recent, there were so many changes. Now, with SwimTopia’s one-click merge of entry files, what used to take hours has been reduced to minutes. And our accuracy has improved, too.”
Randy was particularly happy with the speed and simplicity of results-sharing after the meet as well. Again, with one click, both teams’ results are uploaded to their respective SwimTopia websites. “After 6 hours sitting in the heat of a swim meet, the computer operator used to have to go home, finalize results, and share the file with the other team. To click one button and have everything load into SwimTopia, while you’re still on deck at the end of the meet, is a game-changer,” said Randy, who found his team was also happier to be able to see results online and in the app so quickly.
Another big benefit for the Krakens was that Maestro was an online solution, meaning meet management duties could be handled on multiple computers, whereas the previous Hy-Tek software required software downloads to a one-and-only meet computer. While there were originally some nerves about Meet Maestro being an online solution, the benefits outweighed any drawbacks. Randy’s league, the West Houston Aquatic League, provided every team with a hotspot to ensure constant connectivity. “Because Meet Maestro saves your data if you temporarily lose your internet connection, it wasn’t really going to be a big deal if the WiFi dropped out occasionally.
But our team parents have an expectation that they’ll see results in real time, so the hotspot helped keep everyone happy,” said Randy.
courtesy SwimTopia
Overall, it was a great season for the Krakens. Not only did they simplify their meet management with SwimTopia and Meet Maestro, but they were undefeated, and Division Champions as well! Randy is happy to recommend Meet Maestro to other swim teams: “although your team and league will do some unique things, the support staff is always a phone call or email away with a suggestion on how to accomplish needed tasks. The SwimTopia staff just ‘gets’ swim team administration.”
All SwimTopia customers have full access to Meet Maestro, as it is included in the price of SwimTopia. To learn more about how to use Meet Maestro for your team see a demo.
Courtesy of SwimTopia, a SwimSwam partner.
About SwimTopia: Launched in 2011 with a focus on ease-of-use and exceptional support, SwimTopia helps summer and high school swim teams save time and increase fundraising with a modern, cloud-based software platform providing web content management, electronic commerce, online registration, volunteer coordination, team communications, online swim meet entries, meet management, and more. SwimTopia is the flagship product of Austin-based Team Topia Inc.
Courtesy SwimTopia, a SwimSwam partner.
*Active Network, LLC owns a U.S. trademark registration for HY-TEK Sports Software and has trademark rights in HY-TEK for use with swim team management software. Team Topia, Inc. is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Active Network, LLC and/or its affiliates and/or licensors. Any references to the HY-TEK software are for comparative advertising and compatibility purposes only.