I started diving off of starting blocks when I was eight years old. I am now 51, and train at the Y, almost always alone, as there is no Masters program in the county where I live, or in any of the immediately adjacent counties. (There are several age group programs.) I want to work on my starts, but none of the Y's where I swim will let me use the blocks - saying that a national Y policy prohibits anyone from using the blocks unless a team/club coach is on the deck.
I have never heard of anyone suing a YMCA because of an accident on a starting block.
Yes, perhaps a coach would be valuable to me in this regard, but I'm not looking for a coach - I need and want a cooperative facility. The age groups' program schedules are not conducive to my schedule, and besides, the age group coaches already have enough on their hands during those times with lanes full of kids working their programs. I also am not excited about having to dodge those kids to do the work I need to do.
Anyone find a way to conquer this litigation-fear-induced insanity yet? Thank you.
Parents
Former Member
Originally posted by KenChertoff
Not at my pool -- there's no "shallow" end and the bulkheads are opposite the blocks. We enter the pool at the starting block end. Besides, have you never seen a swimmer cross the lane lines?
Sure. In fact, if they cross my lane at the starting block end of the pool, I can see it while I'm standing on the starting block, and I can delay my start until they're out of the road. You really sound like you're grasping at straws here in a vain effort to justify an unjustifiable policy!
You forget that in my hypothetical the lifeguard was busy "explaining" to the Lipitor Dude why he couldn't dive. I would think that that would be a significant distraction. Anyway, it seems to me that a clueless swimmer getting in the way of someone diving off the block is a much more serious matter than a teenager swimming in the adults' lane.
At my pool, the lifeguards have to explain to adults why they can't swim in the teen lane, and explain to parents why their kid can't swim unsupervised in one of the family lanes, and explain to lane swimmers why they can't exit the pool under the diving board when people are using it, and explain to lane swimmers why they can't enter the pool from the deep end, etc., etc. , etc. It's hard to see why this would be any different.
If you post a rule saying "Starting blocks cannot be used during lane swim unless the lane is free and swimmer has a certification badge," most swimmers will read the rule and obey it, and for those who don't, it's a pretty simple matter for the lifeguard to point them to the posted rules.
Of course, we all know, Ken, that your real motive is to keep us from practicing our starts so that you can gain a competitive advantage over us! ;-)
Originally posted by KenChertoff
Not at my pool -- there's no "shallow" end and the bulkheads are opposite the blocks. We enter the pool at the starting block end. Besides, have you never seen a swimmer cross the lane lines?
Sure. In fact, if they cross my lane at the starting block end of the pool, I can see it while I'm standing on the starting block, and I can delay my start until they're out of the road. You really sound like you're grasping at straws here in a vain effort to justify an unjustifiable policy!
You forget that in my hypothetical the lifeguard was busy "explaining" to the Lipitor Dude why he couldn't dive. I would think that that would be a significant distraction. Anyway, it seems to me that a clueless swimmer getting in the way of someone diving off the block is a much more serious matter than a teenager swimming in the adults' lane.
At my pool, the lifeguards have to explain to adults why they can't swim in the teen lane, and explain to parents why their kid can't swim unsupervised in one of the family lanes, and explain to lane swimmers why they can't exit the pool under the diving board when people are using it, and explain to lane swimmers why they can't enter the pool from the deep end, etc., etc. , etc. It's hard to see why this would be any different.
If you post a rule saying "Starting blocks cannot be used during lane swim unless the lane is free and swimmer has a certification badge," most swimmers will read the rule and obey it, and for those who don't, it's a pretty simple matter for the lifeguard to point them to the posted rules.
Of course, we all know, Ken, that your real motive is to keep us from practicing our starts so that you can gain a competitive advantage over us! ;-)
