After swimming at the same pool for a year now, I was rudely stopped by the person that I was sharing the lane with and told that I could not use paddles when there were more than one person in the lane. Does anyone else have this same issue?
I was really annoyed! Using paddles is an integral part of a swimming workout.
Respectfully I agree with the rule. It can be dangerous if the pool lanes are narrow or the swimmers are inexperience. Swimming is a contact sport but paddles up the ante especially if you have osteoporosis.
Seems like something that should be a consensus among the swimmers in the lane. I swam on my own at the Y this morning. In one lane three women were doing repeat somethings pulling (100s? 200s? wasn't paying close attention). I think two of them were wearing paddles though.
Getting scratched by a fingernail as another swimmer goes past is no big deal. Getting whacked by the edge of a hard plastic paddle can hurt. Maybe one of those webbed gloves would work for you and keep your lane (non-)mates happy?
This is a new one to me, and I've been swimming workouts for almost 30 years. But, I have had run-ins with difficult people. Some I've tried the 'can't we all get along approach' and others pushiness has met my stubbornness.
Best to let it slide first time, but if that person was to try to get in a lane with me again, I'd make sure they know my rules : ). Also may help to double check with the lifeguards or pool manager if there is any such rule.
Favorite pushy story: lady in the lane next to me was annoyed at splashing in butteryfly, told me to stop so I didn't get her hair wet. in a pool : |
To me it depends entirely on who is using the paddles. Most folks I swim with stay where they are supposed to be and there's never a problem. I have witness a person getting whapped on the forehead with some idiots paddles and it broke the skin and drew blood.
My biggest pet peave is swimmers who lap swim breastroke with a super wide and crazy scissors kick. There's a guy at 1 of my pools with long, talon-like toe nails. I was sharing a lane with him once and he scratched me on the leg. Now if he even looks at my lane I shake my head and say "NO BREASTROKE HERE!!!" and he leaves.
I am guilty of a crazy *** stroke scissor kick. Never swam a breaststroke event or an IM without seeing DQ next to my lane assignment and time.
In the pool I swim people who train for results naturally separated from noodlers, so most of us come and occupy 2 - 3 lanes and most of those guys don't dare to get on these lanes. Yes we're using full equipment (all sizes paddles, fins, buoys and even stretch cords) mostly swimming 3-6 person on a lane. Sometimes we have collisions but we are patient to each other because our aims are similar and we like doing same thing. In 99% we manage to deviate from the head-on clash.
Actually the worst injuries I've ever had in the pool was #1 - from the lady with long nails - after that I had long scratches over my shoulder and upper back #2 - got kicked my face with incorrectly done wide breaststroke kick after that I had shiner for 2 weeks.
No troubles from paddles or other swimming gear so far thx God.
Favorite pushy story: lady in the lane next to me was annoyed at splashing in butteryfly, told me to stop so I didn't get her hair wet. in a pool : |
I had a fun experience this weekend trying to jump into a lap lane. Lap swimmers in Scottsdale are spoiled and used to their own lane, but there was a big kids meet at the main pool (usually ~20 lanes available there plus another 15-20 between two other pools), so the other pools were more crowded.
I approached a woman who had her own lane and politely stated, "Would you rather circle or split the lane?" (the option of not sharing was not on the table).
"Well," she says as she pulls on her fins, "I was going to swim some butterfly now, so it might be hard to share a lane."
Note that this is a very nice pool with lane widths at least at 8'.
My potential responses were:
"The Butterfly-Solo-Lane Trick? Lady, I invented that!"
"Awesome! I love butterfly. What set are we going to do and do you want to lead or shall I?"
"Lady, I've swum 200 flys in workout with 4 guys with a minimum 6'6" wingspans in the same lane. No biggie."
"Cool. I'll take the left side, then?"
I opted for #4, slipped in and started my swim without another word.
As for stupid pool rules, I hate the pools that require me to wear a cap ... as if covering 9% of my body (source: en.wikipedia.org/.../Total_body_surface_area) means that the other 91% doesn't have whatever germs or what not they are trying to keep out of the water with a cap.
I think the title to this thread is a little off, perhaps it should read, "Annoying people who make up or ignore posted pool rules"
I often swim in the recreation pool next to the Masters workouts, but most all of the swimmers insist on splitting lanes rather than swim circle patterns, as is the posted rule. Unfortunately, the lifeguards allow this to happen, so they (the swimmers) think it is a rule, not a courtesy. The result is that of the 12 or so lanes available, if you are number 25 on the deck in the morning, you cannot get into a lane without creating a major kerfuffle.
There was one case where I had no issue with the rule itself but with enforcement of it. The rule was everyone had to shower before getting in the pool. No worries, people can be really gross. The issue was one of the lifeguards who insisted on doing some kind of shower check every time I was leaving the locker room to enter the pool deck, as in stop me and look me over from head to toe to ensure a sufficient level of wetness. It found it really irritating, especially since I never noticed her doing it to anybody else, at least not so blatantly.
After swimming at the same pool for a year now, I was rudely stopped by the person that I was sharing the lane with and told that I could not use paddles when there were more than one person in the lane. Does anyone else have this same issue?
I was really annoyed! Using paddles is an integral part of a swimming workout.
To me it depends entirely on who is using the paddles. Most folks I swim with stay where they are supposed to be and there's never a problem. I have witness a person getting whapped on the forehead with some idiots paddles and it broke the skin and drew blood.
My biggest pet peave is swimmers who lap swim breastroke with a super wide and crazy scissors kick. There's a guy at 1 of my pools with long, talon-like toe nails. I was sharing a lane with him once and he scratched me on the leg. Now if he even looks at my lane I shake my head and say "NO BREASTROKE HERE!!!" and he leaves.
I really think the bottom line is "is no paddles a rule at this pool, or isn't it?" If it is a posted pool rule than you should abide by it and the person pointing it out was not being rude, merely citing the rule. I can certainly see why it would be a rule. I've been whacked many times by people wearing paddles.
