Had a great time at the Atlanta Short Course Nationals event, however what was up with the lack of pool etiquette in the warm-up/down pools? I have competed in triathlons and open water swims and this event by far was the most dangerous swim experience in terms of etiquette. I spoke with many swimmers who felt the same.
In the warm-up/warm-down pools, I had someone actually jump in as aggressively as they could on top of me, pushing me under. The one time I tried to warm-up in the competition pool during a break, I was pushed in the head and told "Move" & when it was completely crowded with no where to go, I had someone pull my leg, push on my lower back, push me under the water and then they actually swam over top of me to get in front, which was pointless as everyone was touching? Really? I was also very disappointed to hear that younger swimmers were not only crowding the 65+ designated lanes, but were actually just as dangerous and argumentative with the older swimmers. Really?
Perhaps we need a revised USMS Pool etiquette for Nationals and similar type events in addition to the following,
www.usms.org/.../pooletiquette
Well I didn't say it wasn't good pool, I just ranked it at the bottom of the pools where I have attended SCY nationals...
1 - turbulence created a lot of small buddles that did not clear very fast creating visibility issues
2 - Bulkhead was a real challenge for me, especially on the course near the scoreboard...
I'm with you on both points about Atlanta. It was a fine enough pool, but I just think there are better pools.
As for Mesa, I think -- PAUL SMITH, please clarify -- that we'll be swimming widthwise, which means real walls on both courses and no bulkheads. I much prefer racing into walls and not bulkheads, part of the reason why I ranked Clovis over Atlanta, even though I swam faster in Atlanta on a same event basis.
...Another problem that I had in Austin and Atlanta is with breathing. Betsy, Mesa is outdoors, so that won't be a problem. You'll have other issues to deal with -- SUN! -- but the air should be good.
Well I didn't say it wasn't good pool, I just ranked it at the bottom of the pools where I have attended SCY nationals...
1 - turbulence created a lot of small buddles that did not clear very fast creating visibility issues
2 - Bulkhead was a real challenge for me, especially on the course near the scoreboard...
I'm with you on both points about Atlanta. It was a fine enough pool, but I just think there are better pools.
As for Mesa, I think -- PAUL SMITH, please clarify -- that we'll be swimming widthwise, which means real walls on both courses and no bulkheads. I much prefer racing into walls and not bulkheads, part of the reason why I ranked Clovis over Atlanta, even though I swam faster in Atlanta on a same event basis.
...Another problem that I had in Austin and Atlanta is with breathing. Betsy, Mesa is outdoors, so that won't be a problem. You'll have other issues to deal with -- SUN! -- but the air should be good.
