Swimming in LA...and a few other places

I'm in LA and I swim masters around anywhere I can. The closest group to downtown is SCAQ at USC. The SCAQ website is:http://www.swim.net Since you say you won't have a car you can use the DASH bus for transport. It only costs 25 cents. You can find more info at the LADOT site: http://www.ladottransit.com/

Julie - in Houston, you have the Woodlands pool that is hosting LCM Nats... and if you're having trouble finding a place to swim in Honolulu (and I will have no sympathy for you on that trip), just walk down to the big blue...

Check the SCAQ website: http://www.swim.net/scaq.cfm They have workouts at the USC pool, which might be convenient to you downtown. I was there last weekend and got workouts in at both Loyola Marymount and Culver City. Thanks to SCAQ!

Julie White Plains isn't too far from CT. There is Wesport Swim Club www.westportswimclub.org/ Tues, Thurs 8 PM and Sat Mornings. I think this is about 30mins away. I think they have some pretty good swimmers here maybe 4-6k workout. and Mount Kisco Boys and Girls Club. Friendly people, with diverse swimming backgrounds and levels of expertise. Practices are: M W F: 11 am - 12:30 pm M, T, W, R: 8:30 pm - 9:45 pm Sa: 7 am - 8:15 am I don't know guest swimmer policy at either but sure you can get a welcome. You're also welcome to come swim with me at my Local Y but it's about 45-60 mins from White Plains, I have no coach or group..but if you need me to stand on deck and yell...I can do that ;) You might find something in NYC that you can go to by train, or in White plains itself.

Austin, TX is a HUGE swimming town. So along with all the pool choices there is lots of competition for lane space. USMS places to swim page: www.usms.org/.../placswimform.php So TX LMSC team list: www.southtexasmastersswimming.com/.../clubs.html The landmark places to swim are Barton Springs Pool (more like open water, but still a pool) and Deep Eddy Pool (complete with lane lines). Both are spring fed (i.e. COLD!) and have a lot of history. These two city run pools are very close to each other, near downtown, and defiantly worth a visit. www.ci.austin.tx.us/.../pools_schedule.htm www.ci.austin.tx.us/.../pools_schedule.htm These two pools can be a bit tricky to get to for an out-of-towner, but they are easy to get to. Running the addresses through MapQuest may help some. http://www.mapquest.com/ I’m fairly certain any of the master’s teams here would let you join in on one of their practices gratis (I did so at UT when I first visited here, and they have a big schedule). I practice alone so I don’t know much about the teams, but I’ve never met a group of master swimmers that I didn’t like. :-) UT www.utexas.edu/.../masters.html These two sites represent the facility where I usually swim: www.teamtexasmasters.com/ JCAA Feel free to em or pm me if you want to know more.

Julie- I'm in the Phila area. My team swims in the Northeast Phila area. LCM pool (it's a tub, but it works for practice). There are also several other groups that swim SCY in the area. Here's some links: My team: Pennypack Aquatic: members.aol.com/.../Pennypack.html Also check: www.bee.net/.../ValleyForgeMasters.htm and http://www.dvmasters.org/ Feel free to contact me about Pennypack if you're interested. Dana

I posted this in the Southern Pacific LMCS section down below, but either no one on this forum swims in LA, or no one checks those discussions. Anyways, is anyone around here familiar with swimming in Los Angeles? I'll be there next week for work and staying downtown. I found a YMCA near my hotel (Sheraton Downtown- Hope St) but am not sure if it is ok to walk there from my hotel, if they still have a masters team, etc. I won't have a car so likely won't make it out of downtown so if anyone has any advice on swimming there, please let me know!!! Other places I'm looking for a master's team... White Plains, NY- A few days in April/May Honolulu- mid-May Austin- late-May (Memorial day weekend) San Diego- late-May/early-June Houston- not sure exactly when Philadelphia- mid-June I'm traveling for work for three weeks in May and I can't wait!!! I've already researched teams in these areas, but any advice would be greatly appreciated!!! I'd love to meet some of you while I'm on the road! I swim at the downtown YMCA (Ketchum) quite often when I travel to LA as we stay downtown for meetings. It is a nice pool, I believe 5 lanes 25 yards. The only recommendation I can tell you is to get there early if possible. The lanes can fill up pretty quickly with floaters, if you are swimming before they get there, they don't bother you. It is really the only place to swim if you are downtown without driving at least 20-30 minutes. No real organized program there though, so bring your own workouts. In Houston, check out The Houstonian, it is near the Galleria www.houstonianclub.com/.../AquaticsClassSchedule.shtml. Somewhat pricy for a guest fee, but awesome pool and facilities. 25MX25Y and beautiful set up. Also check out http://www.h2oustonswims.org/ Emmitt Hines runs a god program and they workout close to downtown at Lamar High School (at least they used to). In Austin, if you swim anywhere, go to Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center. Home of our esteemed Ande Rasmussen. Not a better place in the country to swim, and hopefully you get to see some of the best swimmers in the world working out if Eddie and company are there. It can be a bit difficult for guests to get in there. Contact Ande, he might be able to pull some strings. UT is located right near downtown Austin.

I swim at the downtown YMCA (Ketchum) quite often when I travel to LA as we stay downtown for meetings. And it costs $25 per day! I just walked up there with $15 and 45 minutes to swim before meeting my co-workers for dinner. I walked back to the hotel and am now trying to figure out who to use the public transportation to get to USC maybe tomorrow. I may have to just do drylands/yoga this week as $25 per day is a little out of my budget. If I have a day I can spend 1.5-2 hours in the pool I may do it though. Thanks everyone for the input. Hope to see some of you in May/June. Oh, and add San Francisco to my list of places I'll be...2 days on my way to Honolulu. Julie

And it costs $25 per day! I just walked up there with $15 and 45 minutes to swim before meeting my co-workers for dinner. I walked back to the hotel and am now trying to figure out who to use the public transportation to get to USC maybe tomorrow. I may have to just do drylands/yoga this week as $25 per day is a little out of my budget. If I have a day I can spend 1.5-2 hours in the pool I may do it though. Thanks everyone for the input. Hope to see some of you in May/June. Oh, and add San Francisco to my list of places I'll be...2 days on my way to Honolulu. Julie Sorry! Forgot about that. My company covered my costs.

Oh, and add San Francisco to my list of places I'll be...2 days on my way to Honolulu. going a little south of the san fran... Stanford has a really nice facility - just try not to irk their men's varsity coach or your FXCM Masters records may mysteriously disappear. :dedhorse: Mountain View (www.mvm.org) in Mountain View, south of stanford, has a nice SCM pool - SwimmieAvsFan and I hit up their morning practices several mornings during our stay out there for Worlds. They were very friendly and welcoming! Say hello to Coaches Marcello and Chris if you see them!