So I've been waiting and waiting and waiting for the new rec center up the road to open. I've been thinking how cool it will be... walk a mile and a half to the pool, work out, walk a mile and a half back... think of all of the calories burned! Think of the workout to be had!
Didn't really think they'd rip me off on the pool.
When they said "warm water fitness pool," I thought "25x25 pool warm enough to keep the blue hairs happy." I did not think "warm puddle just big enough to wave around your pool noodle." After all, all of the high schools in the area have swim teams and they use the rec center pools for practice. It would only seem logical to have a pool of an appropriate size to use for that purpose. Um, no.
What we have is a warm puddle (which I didn't even bother getting into) then we have a kiddie pool with all of the accompanying stuff to climb on, and then we have this "current area" (that's what they call it) which is sort of like a thin lap lane that winds around and through the kiddie area, and has a current to it, to add to your workout when you're walking around with your pool noodle.
Of course, sticking the "current" area in the middle of kiddie land makes absolutely no sense, being that the blue haired ladies don't like to get their hair wet... and being in the kiddie area ensures that you're going to get wet!
I was pondering the merits of trying to swim against the current, but it's not really a wide enough channel to pull that off. Not to mention that I'd probably get whacked with a noodle if I tried that.
Oh well, I guess I'll just go back to the old pool. At least it's quiet and generally noodle-free.
Urbana is 25 meters 6 lanes, and 25 yards 8 lanes the other way, and is a very nice pool. But the lockerrooms are a nightmare if you are a woman trying to get dressed for work. Floor is constantly wet, no place to put your things, or dry your hair(not that I ever dry my hair). My son tells me the mens lockerroom does not have the floor wetness problem, that it drains better.
I use the Y because I don't like to wade through muddy water in my good clothes. That is what the floor in the lockerroom looks like.
The Y is also closer to my home and work. It take a lot longer for me to get clear across town to Urbana. There is no easy way to get there and it takes 25 minutes, the Y takes 10.
When the Y was down, I went to UHS to swim, and the pool is absolutely wonderful, but if I don't have a good lockerroom, it is not worth it to me. I will swim in a crappy pool for the better lockerroom. Also, the air quality at UHS is really, really bad. It was bad at the Y, but they have worked to improve it. They also balance their water better. UHS does not seem to understand how to balance that pool. The Aquachief swimmers have a lot of trouble with that pool's balance.
Yes, I am on the Y board, and every chance I get, I ask them to reconsider and put at least a 6 lane pool in, but it is falling on deaf ears.
Urbana is 25 meters 6 lanes, and 25 yards 8 lanes the other way, and is a very nice pool. But the lockerrooms are a nightmare if you are a woman trying to get dressed for work. Floor is constantly wet, no place to put your things, or dry your hair(not that I ever dry my hair). My son tells me the mens lockerroom does not have the floor wetness problem, that it drains better.
I use the Y because I don't like to wade through muddy water in my good clothes. That is what the floor in the lockerroom looks like.
The Y is also closer to my home and work. It take a lot longer for me to get clear across town to Urbana. There is no easy way to get there and it takes 25 minutes, the Y takes 10.
When the Y was down, I went to UHS to swim, and the pool is absolutely wonderful, but if I don't have a good lockerroom, it is not worth it to me. I will swim in a crappy pool for the better lockerroom. Also, the air quality at UHS is really, really bad. It was bad at the Y, but they have worked to improve it. They also balance their water better. UHS does not seem to understand how to balance that pool. The Aquachief swimmers have a lot of trouble with that pool's balance.
Yes, I am on the Y board, and every chance I get, I ask them to reconsider and put at least a 6 lane pool in, but it is falling on deaf ears.
