One of the reasons I hate swimming in outdoor community/development pools is the lifeguard glare you get when you come in with all your gear, prepared to swim and hour or two. :banana: I've been swimming outside for 25 years in the summer, and find that the guards are mostly all the same - texting, playing ball, sleeping, eating. Heaven forbid, they have to sit up and watch a swimmer. I feel like they really hate when I walk in because they have to actually do their job. I've treated them to lunch, ice cream, treats and some are fine, but overall, they are mostly very lazy. I tell them I had a guard cert, (I can swim better than almost all of them!), and they don't have to sit in the chair, or even watch, but I still feel the glare. I've even encountered a few occasions when the sun was shining and guards claimed they heard thunder. What happened to the good old days when guards sat in the chair and did their job without resentment? I only see that type of mentality at the indoor pools. On rainy days, they really give me the evil eye. :badday:
Hi, evilwatersprite. From what folks are posting here, it appears outdoor pool lifeguards are the worst. I swim indoors at the county rec center, and most of the lifeguards there are great. They county's strict because they don't want to get sued. They also deal with cranky parents who want to make sure their kids have a good experience. Water aerobics and kid classes are pretty much on-going in the shallow end, and there are always people in the deep end, so the lifeguards have a lot to do.
My friend who got kicked out of the Paris pool also swims at his gym, and he has all sorts of crazy stories about rude people in the pools and apathetic lifeguards. But lane cutters bug me the most, along with the people who hog a lap lanes to do water aerobics when the shallow end is completely empty.
Hi, evilwatersprite. From what folks are posting here, it appears outdoor pool lifeguards are the worst. I swim indoors at the county rec center, and most of the lifeguards there are great. They county's strict because they don't want to get sued. They also deal with cranky parents who want to make sure their kids have a good experience. Water aerobics and kid classes are pretty much on-going in the shallow end, and there are always people in the deep end, so the lifeguards have a lot to do.
My friend who got kicked out of the Paris pool also swims at his gym, and he has all sorts of crazy stories about rude people in the pools and apathetic lifeguards. But lane cutters bug me the most, along with the people who hog a lap lanes to do water aerobics when the shallow end is completely empty.
