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Wow! First time in a competition pool - what a difference. Anyone else?

67King

Transitioning from mostly a solo swimmer in a 4' deep, 3 lane pool with slab sides at the local Gold's gym to actual Masters practices.  Have done some 25M stuff with one team, but have started with a different team.  First team was great, but most folks there are tri-athletes, and the practices seem geared a little more towards that.  This team is mostly pool swimmers who are training for meets, etc.  So this team is a better fit for my goals.  Been at it a couple of weeks after recovering from my first bout with COVID.

Anyhoo........so I'm now in a real pool.  8' deep, good gutters, lane ropes as big in diameter as basketballs, and not set at 84-86 degrees.  It is U. of Tenn pool, FWIW.  First time I go out, my stroke count is 1-2 strokes fewer than Gold's.  My "cruise" pace is 1:15/100, rather than 1:20.  Wow, I knew the pools made a difference, I always just assumed it was for racing.  But training is huge, too.  I still haven't gotten back to pre-2020 levels (fighting life's clock vs getting back to a good training regimen), especially with Fly or sprinting.  But man, I was blown away by the difference.

Anyone else experience anything like that?  Is that typical, or maybe the team environment is a bigger factor?

Parents

  • I train in a pool somewhat similar to yours at Gold's Gym.  It's a 5-lane pool with two lanes roped off.  The depth is 5 feet at the deepest, and the water temp. is 83-84.  When I go to another pool to race, my times are always faster than my practice times due to the pool being faster and cooler.  I always love that! 

    On December 9, I was in a SCM meet at Georgia Tech.  It was a big shock to the system to swim in a 78-degree pool with cool indoor air.  As much as I loved it at the time, my body didn't.  I have dysautonomia and Raynaud's, so my internal thermostat got whacked out.  I've been paying for it ever since with my body temperature ranging from 95.6 at night to a peak of 97.3 during the day.  (My normal is 98.1).  I also experienced 4 hours straight of severe muscle spasms and Restless Leg Syndrome late at night, the next night after the meet.  It was a living hell!

  • in reply to Elaine Krugman

    i've swan 2 meets in that pool. always cold, you have to dress accordingly. not a fan of Omega touch pad starting wall, nothing to grab on fly or breast and slippery as all get out. parking can be problematic. 2nd time there my stroke count to the walls for backstroke were different at either ends. spoke to the official, who was skeptical at first but they had move the bulkhead as it was set for yards. not at all impressed. don't plan on returning. north Charleston SCM is a better meet and facility.

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  • in reply to Elaine Krugman

    i've swan 2 meets in that pool. always cold, you have to dress accordingly. not a fan of Omega touch pad starting wall, nothing to grab on fly or breast and slippery as all get out. parking can be problematic. 2nd time there my stroke count to the walls for backstroke were different at either ends. spoke to the official, who was skeptical at first but they had move the bulkhead as it was set for yards. not at all impressed. don't plan on returning. north Charleston SCM is a better meet and facility.

Children
  • in reply to jackback

    Wow, my daughters have done several sectional meets there, and love that pool.

  • in reply to jackback

    I am sorry you had a bad experience at the Georgia Tech pool. It is a great facility. That you cannot grab on for walls is actually something I welcome because no one can cheat pulling themselves into the wall. 

    Regarding parking, there is a huge visitor parking garage just across from the pool. I am unsure why you find that problematic.

    Tech is known to be a cold facility. Just plan accordingly. The water has also gotten a little warmer since AQUA raised their minimum temp for competitions.

  • in reply to Britt03

    Hi, Britta!  I hope you are enjoying time with your family!  

    What is the new minimum temperature?  Just curious... 

    At some of the GA Tech meets in the past, they let us dunk into the dive tank or even warm up/down.  I guess they were short-staffed on lifeguards this time around, once the dive team left.

    I had never experienced it to be that cold at Georgia Tech.  I heard a lot of grumbling around me in the stands!  My parka and cap kept me warm enough when I was dry, but I got really cold when I needed to warm up a different stroke for another race.  (I swam fly, breast, and back at that meet).  It was also the longest meet we had that I can remember, so my internal thermostat took a dive...

    I'm with you on the walls at GA Tech.  I never grab the walls when I train.  (It helps that the edge is too high in our gutter-less pool!)