Just wondering from you more experienced public pool swimmers what the general social rules are for swimming in the roped off lap lanes?
I've tried doing so once with kickboard, but found myself going quite slow (and also needing to rest more) and decided to not use them until I felt I had the speed and stamina to not slow the lane down.
Our pool uses circular lane swimming, where a person can swim up the sides (either left or right) of a lane and then swim down the middle of it when going back.
Depending on the day, the lanes can either be completely open or have as many as 4 people in them.
Should a person requiring significant rest between lap cycles get out of the pool during that time? Should a slower person use the open pool area instead of lanes? What type of lap lane etiquette have you guys found most common in public pools?
Just wondering from you more experienced public pool swimmers what the general social rules are for swimming in the roped off lap lanes?
I've tried doing so once with kickboard, but found myself going quite slow (and also needing to rest more) and decided to not use them until I felt I had the speed and stamina to not slow the lane down.
Our pool uses circular lane swimming, where a person can swim up the sides (either left or right) of a lane and then swim down the middle of it when going back.
Depending on the day, the lanes can either be completely open or have as many as 4 people in them.
Should a person requiring significant rest between lap cycles get out of the pool during that time? Should a slower person use the open pool area instead of lanes? What type of lap lane etiquette have you guys found most common in public pools?
I've been swimming since age 8; Masters since age 34 (now 60 yrs. old).
I understand about YMCAs....I grew up in one and have done almost all my masters swimming/"training" in a Y pool. All kinds of people use the Y pools.
We recently moved to FL part-time. The Y nearby has an outdoor pool. I usually come to FL in Sept. or October each year. This year I signed up for the 200 back at the Huntsman Games. (I am a sprinter.) I was working hard getting ready for my 200 back. One day, I was doing some repeat 200 backs, saw a guy get in my lane near the end of 100 yds., I move to one side of the lane after my flip turn(they "split" lanes at that Y). As I turned on the belly at the 150, there he was again, at the wall of the pool, standing in the middle of my lane. I flipturned NEXT to his body and mentally got ready for my last 50. He LITERALLY grabbed my ankle/leg to stop me to tell me he was going to swim in my lane. I was LIVID. Never in all my years has that previously happened. Yelling and screaming followed. He accused me of being a SELFISH SHOWOFF. (I had never even seen this man at the Y.) I got out, still livid, with the lifeguard just staring at me. I have never been back to that Y!
I will never in my lifetime understand this.
Some people have a specific lane they want to swim in. They want to swim there no matter what and might even ask you to move. I have a friend who shortly after he joining a masters club had someone tell him he should quit. This guy had been swimming in the fast lane for ten years and wasn't able to any more as he was always getting lapped by my friend.
Three weeks ago I was at the gym and someone came in who seemed surprised and then said I was using their usual locker. He kept talking about how he always got that locker and this was the first time anyone else had been using it. I think he wanted to ask me to take my stuff out but was sane enough to know that would be a crazy request.
That happened to me last week as well during Masters practice. Coach told the guy to move to another lane he never did. The guy had a scuba mask and board shorts that went down past his knees and kept trying to do some version of *** stroke and elementary backstroke. I started to do 50 fly sets. I thought that would make the guy leave. nope. I moved to another lane with our other masters swimmers but it was crowded.
I swear I must have written on my cap "swim here". If I'm in a lane with another person and there are other lanes with 2 people in them--I seem to always have the 3rd person want to join us (and I'm swimming in the middle of an 8 lane pool). And that 3rd person turns out to be someone wanting to breaststroke (and none too well). Why can't people look at the speed people are swimming and THEN make a decision about joining them?
I've been splitting a lane with someone who is much faster than I am (and that's why we split). We'll get a 3rd person who wants to use a kickboard!!! Given that we have an adult only swim --and people are swimming laps--please pay attention to what others are doing.
