Bundle up.

Brave the cold, the wind or whatever other elements Mother Nature may choose to throw your way.

It’s all for your kid, after all.

That’s what a number of WPIAL swimmers’ parents choose to do when they camp out overnight on the University of Pittsburgh campus, outside the doors of Trees Pool.

The WPIAL Swimming Championships are held at Trees Pool for two days in early March each year. Spectator seating is limited — roughly 700 seats — and fans are limited to no more than four tickets each.

People camp out so they can reserve a good spot in line so as to be in good position to buy those tickets and get in the door.

“No one is encouraging people to camp out like that. They just do it,” WPIAL Executive Director Tim O’Malley said. “With some of the bigger swimming schools like Bethel Park and North Allegheny, it’s almost a tradition.”

Jennifer Ledford, whose daughter Rachel swims for Butler, camped out last year and planned on doing so again the night before the WPIAL competition this past Friday.

“There was close to 100 parents camping out last year the night I was there,” Ledford said. “It’s crazy what we go through. No other sport, no other district deals with a situation like this.

“People get into panic mode because they’re afraid they won’t be able to get a ticket to watch their child. It almost becomes a mob mentality.”

O’Malley admits the situation is not ideal, but lauds the University of Pittsburgh for its system in allotting tickets.

Fans in line are assigned a number. When that number is called, they can buy their tickets. As fans leave the pool, other fans may enter.

“As far as I know, almost everyone there is accommodated. I don’t think there’s a need to stay outside overnight,” O’Malley said.

He added that if tickets were somehow distributed ahead of time through some type of online system, people would still show up to spend the night.

“They’d want to be first in line to get the seats they want because there are no reserved seats in there,” O’Malley said.

With approximately 550 swimmers competing and only 700 seats available, a system whereas each swimmer receives two tickets each would not work, either.

“I’m not real great at math, but we would come in way over capacity,” O’Malley smirked.

The problem here is that no venue in the district is really capable of housing an event of this size. Parking and seating will always be an issue.

As long as people are willing to “do what it takes,” in their view, and spend a cold night outside to gain their desired access, so be it.

But complaining of such circumstances won’t help without offering a viable solution.

“We’re always open to suggestions,” O’Malley said.

Good luck trying to solve this dilemma.

,i>John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle