How CGBD Unified Registrations, Comms & Travel

A Legacy of Swimming in Virginia

For over six decades, Coast Guard Blue Dolphin Swimming has been a pillar of the Hampton Roads, Virginia community. Covering a massive territory from Williamsburg and York County to Newport News, they are more than just a swim team.

"We have been around for 61 years. We cover a pretty wide range in this area and our families drive to all of those pools, so we love them for that."

— Jihann Minson

Managing a historic organization that runs everything from master's programs, competitive swim team to lessons for six-month-olds across five different pools is no small feat. It requires logistics, coordination, and a lot of communication.

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The Challenge: Simplifying Complexity

With such a diverse group of participants—ranging from "60, 70-year-old master swimmers... all the way down to our 6-month-old babies"—Jihann knew they needed a change. The old way of doing things often meant disjointed systems and confused parents.

"I chose to look for a new platform because we wanted to make registration easy for all of our families. We also do quite a few clinics and community-type events, and we needed one registration platform to work for everybody."

— Jihann Minson

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The Solution: Everything in One Place

The search for the right solution wasn't taken lightly. After meeting the Captyn team at an ASCA conference, the Coast Guard Blue Dolphin team spent a year evaluating their options. They needed something robust enough for their staff, which spans from fresh college graduates to retired military personnel, yet simple enough for every parent to navigate.

The deciding factor? Consolidation.

"One of the things that we loved about Captyn was that they could do all of those in one platform. I didn't need to have multiple platforms. And, it came with a new beautiful website that we love."

— Jihann Minson

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A Smooth Transition

Once the decision was made, the team moved fast.

"From when we sat down and really went through the whole Captyn system to onboarding, was probably only about 4 months."

— Jihann Minson

To ensure their families felt comfortable, they ran a smart transition strategy.

"We ran our new website with our old website for a month so people could get accustomed... and that went really well. Our families were able to register pretty easily and set up their accounts and get going."

— Jihann Minson

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Key Wins for Families & The Team

The impact was immediate. For the swim team families, managing volunteer requirements—like their recent Salvation Army bell ringing—became effortless.

"They picked their shifts. It was managed in one spot. It was right under their meet requirements. They didn't have to go elsewhere."

— Jihann Minson

Team travel, often a logistical headache, also saw a major upgrade during their trip to North Baltimore.

"Team travel was significantly easier... parents knew what was going on because it was on our website. It was in Captyn."

— Jihann Minson

This transparency helped ease the minds of nervous parents sending their kids away for the first time.

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Operational Efficiency: No More Spreadsheets

Behind the scenes, the operational relief has been massive. The days of juggling separate trackers are over.

"I don't have to have separate spreadsheets. And if I'm doing something with the swim team, my second in command for lessons is able to just log in and pull the information she needs. She doesn't need me to look at anything or approve anything."

— Jihann Minson

Ultimately, Captyn has allowed Coast Guard Blue Dolphin Swimming to focus less on paperwork and more on the pool. As Jihann puts it simply:

"It just makes work more efficient."

— Jihann Minson