To become an athlete member of Pacific Swimming and USA Swimming, you need to complete a registration form and submit it to the address on the form. If you are joining a Pacific Swimming member club, they should have the form and will help you complete the process, or they may submit your registration electronically. If you are not affiliated with a Pacific member club, you can join USA Swimming and Pacific Swimming by submitting the registration form yourself, and swim unattached.

Pacific offers both year-round and seasonal athlete memberships. You can register as a 2013 year-round member and your registration will be valid through December 31, 2013. Follow this link to obtain the 2013 year-round athlete registration application and this link to obtain the 2013 summer season athlete registration application. Summer season registration for 2013 is valid from April 6 through Sept. 2, 2013.

The forms may be downloaded and copied, but please trim the page as requested before submitting it. Athletes must renew their registration each year.

If you have questions about athlete registration, contact Judy Siegrist, 1034 Woodstock Court, Walnut Creek CA 94598, phone (925) 933-0395 (between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., please).

To become a non-athlete member of Pacific Swimming, send a completed copy of the 2013 Pacific Swimming/USA Swimming non-athlete membership application form to Laurie Benton, 1374 Lupine Court, Concord CA 94521 . Any questions, call (925) 822-7913. You complete this single application form to join both USA Swimming and Pacific Swimming. Your membership must be renewed each calendar year.

All Pacific/USA Swimming non-athlete members must complete a USA Swimming background check in order to join or to continue as non-athlete members of Pacific/USA Swimming. The following link will take you to a page on the USA Swimming website with details about the background check requirements and a link to initiate the background check process. In addition, all non-athlete members, including officials, will be required to complete an online athlete protection training course. The course is available through the USA Swimming website at this link.

To become a coach member of USA Swimming and Pacific Swimming, or to renew your coach membership, you must also provide proof that you have completed CPR, first aid, and safety training classes. Follow this link for a list of courses which satisfy these requirements, and this link for a list of Safety Training for Coaches providers serving Pacific Swimming. In addition, all coaches of USA Swimming clubs, including seasonal clubs, who are registering for the first time as coach members will need to complete USA Swimming coach education requirements prior to receiving their coach membership for the second year.

In addition to becoming non-athlete members of USA Swimming and Pacific Swimming, individuals interested in becoming deck officials should contact their zone officials chairman for more information on training programs. Copies of the non-athlete membership application form are also available from zone officials chairmen.

Please note that if you are starting a new club, there are a number of other forms you need to complete and a number of other issues you need to consider. You can find links to these forms and more information about the requirements for starting a club on the Starting a New Club page on the USA Swimming web site.

In addition to competing a club membership application, you will need a coach who is a member of USA Swimming and holds valid CPR, first aid, and safety training certifications, and you will need registered swimmers. Every coach (paid or volunteer) who is on the deck at a club workout or coaching at a meet must be a current coach member of USA Swimming. Your club must renew its membership each calendar year, and as part of this renewal process, your coaches must submit proof of current CPR, first aid, and safety training certifications. Clubs may join as year-round or seasonal; see the club membership application form (linked to above) for detail on the date periods for which seasonal membership is available.

Pacific Masters Swimming, the Masters swimming organization active in Pacific Swimming's territory, is a separate organization from Pacific Swimming. If you're interested in Masters swimming, you can follow this link for membership information for Pacific Masters Swimming or this link to the Pacific Masters Swimming web site for more general information about Masters swimming programs in Northern California.

If you are over 18 years old and primarily interested in swimming for fitness as opposed to competition, or if you're interested in competing against people your own age, Masters swimming is for you. USA Swimming/Pacific Swimming has no upper age limit on membership, but swimmers in their 20s and older who are not competing at a relatively high level and who are not interested in competing against younger swimmers usually find their home in Masters swimming.