Hello,
I have not posted here before, but I need help. Hopefully some in this group will have ideas to share.
I'm a member of my local YMCA, which has a Masters Team. It's a really great group of people, and I would hate to see it go away. But our YMCA has decided to start treating us like an organized sport, rather than like a class (like aerobics or spinning). They're planning on charging us each $400 per year to be a memeber of the masters team, in addition to being a full program member ($55/month). Maybe it's just me, but this seems WAY out of line, especially since nearly every class is offered to full members for FREE (including spinning and aerobics). This expense could be justified if someone actually coached us, but our "coach" just writes the workouts on the board, and sits there watching to make sure nobody drowns. By the way, our pool is a 3-lane, 25-yard pool, that's generally kept at 88 degrees.
A fair number of people in the group have mentioned that they'll drop out before paying. And the YMCA will terminate the program if we don't have good membership.
Has anyone else dealt with a similar situation? Could someone from USMS or YMCA on the national level be of help? Am I going off for no reason?
Help!!!
Lou Savastani
Parents
Former Member
Thanks so far for all the help.
Our executive director is coming to practice on Friday to "address" us. So, we'll see what happens. At least now, I'm armed with some information about what other Masters swimmers have to pay.
It's not so much the cash. I can afford it. It's just that we generally get treated like second-rate members of the Y already (the pool is kept at the temperature recommended by the arthritis foundation, the lane lines are left loose and dangerous so they can turn the pool over quickly for water aerobics, we had to live without flags at one end of the pool for 6 months, etc).
Emmett, you hit the nail on the head. Their budget just isn't balancing, and they're looking for additional sources of income. However, for $55/month, someone can use the gym every day, plus take unlimited aerobics, yoga, spinning, etc classes to their heart's content. I swim, and maybe use a treadmill a dozen times a year. That's it. They're not losing money on me. If they're going to add a surcharge for us, they need to do it accross the board. They do have to pay our "coach" a premium for showing up at 5am, but they're not giving up any lap swim time.
Originally, we were totally member-run. One of our members had a key. We'd unlock the doors in the morning (5am), and would start our workouts at 5:30. Unfortunately, we were told that we had to have a lifeguard on deck at all times, due to insurance, I believe. That's when all the trouble began.
Thanks so far for all the help.
Our executive director is coming to practice on Friday to "address" us. So, we'll see what happens. At least now, I'm armed with some information about what other Masters swimmers have to pay.
It's not so much the cash. I can afford it. It's just that we generally get treated like second-rate members of the Y already (the pool is kept at the temperature recommended by the arthritis foundation, the lane lines are left loose and dangerous so they can turn the pool over quickly for water aerobics, we had to live without flags at one end of the pool for 6 months, etc).
Emmett, you hit the nail on the head. Their budget just isn't balancing, and they're looking for additional sources of income. However, for $55/month, someone can use the gym every day, plus take unlimited aerobics, yoga, spinning, etc classes to their heart's content. I swim, and maybe use a treadmill a dozen times a year. That's it. They're not losing money on me. If they're going to add a surcharge for us, they need to do it accross the board. They do have to pay our "coach" a premium for showing up at 5am, but they're not giving up any lap swim time.
Originally, we were totally member-run. One of our members had a key. We'd unlock the doors in the morning (5am), and would start our workouts at 5:30. Unfortunately, we were told that we had to have a lifeguard on deck at all times, due to insurance, I believe. That's when all the trouble began.
