I have used the gmap-pedometer app for years to measure running routes. It's good, but can be off after several miles if you don't track turns properly. Then I wondered how accurate it would be on a specific short distance. So I tried it on a town pool (Colonie NY) which states it is Olympic Size. I have always logged laps there in meters, but you never really know when they say that, whether it's yards or meters. Here's a link to the map which showed me exactly 50 meters.
www.gmap-pedometer.com/
This method might still be useful when you wind up swimming at an unfamiliar pool. I just paced off the hotel pool in Puerto Vallarta, estimating it to be twenty meters. I might have made a better estimate with a pedometer app on my phone.
I have used the gmap-pedometer app for years to measure running routes. It's good, but can be off after several miles if you don't track turns properly. Then I wondered how accurate it would be on a specific short distance. So I tried it on a town pool (Colonie NY) which states it is Olympic Size. I have always logged laps there in meters, but you never really know when they say that, whether it's yards or meters. Here's a link to the map which showed me exactly 50 meters.
www.gmap-pedometer.com/
For competition, the pool must be measured with a surveyors tape or transit. Many facilities say they have Olympic size pools. I've seen 20 yard hotel pools advertised as Olympic sized. The pool in Colonie looks like 50 m.
