Late swimmers!

This is my biggest concern with this. If I am running a full practice and someone jumps in late I will have them swim a warmup which throws off the rest of the group, or throws off the tempo of the practice. I guess I could say that it's just Master's but I hold the program in higher regard than that....expecting too much?? I don't think you would be unreasonable to have rules such as: --If a swimmer comes in late, and there is an empty lane, he will be asked to warm up in that empty lane. When he is ready he can join his regular lane at whatever place they are in the workout. --If there isn't an empty lane, the swimmer may get into his regular lane, but he must not impede the set in progress. If he needs to warm up he needs to make sure he stays out of the way of the swimmers who are in the middle of a set (by going last, for example). --If possible the swimmer should notify his lanemates that he has joined the lane.

On my team, most of us hit the pool on time and at most are only few minutes late. If one misses the warmup, they stay at the back of the lane until they are ready to crank it up in a set. We all know each others speeds and make room when appropriate. We also appreciate the friendships that have been forged. Thus, we would all rather have someone show up rather than miss. That being said. If we had a newbie who stated showing up 45 minutes late for a one hour workout and then got in everyone's way, that is a problem. But I have never seen that happen. All of us are adults and know what is reasonable and what is rude. And we genuinely like each other. Realistically, each lane seems to have its own culture and set of expectations. The slower swimmers are not out to set the world on fire and seem more relaxed about their wrkout and in a learning mode. As the lanes get faster, with more college level experience etc., there is less talk due to the added intensity of the sets and a greter level of seriousness with the swimmers. So, in a way, the behavior in the lane conforms to the speeds of the swimmers. If our coach started laying down rules due to the perceived transgressions of one or two, that would not go down well at all. We are all grown up adults and we are doing something that very few are willing to do by throwing ourselves into a pool and swiming hard. In my book, that by itself is enough to allow the extra latitude and respect that makes Masters such a fun choice and not a chore. Rob

My work location and schedule are such that I have to cut it pretty close and I'm doing well to get in the pool for our practice by the beginning of warmup. In the summer I can only make it on time if I sneak out of work about an hour early. Life would be easier for me if I was consistently arriving to work early. I have a few options: * Swim on my own in the morning at a health club if I know I'll be very late. * Pursue another form of exercise that day (ie, bicycle) * If I'm really late, ask the coach if I should swim or if I "missed practice" * If I swim, I do my first few repeats at the back of the lane. They are either just a warmup staying out of everyone's way or jumping into whatever the group is doing (depends on the set). We don't normally have a spare lane but that would be preferable. Thanks for your comment(s)! Since our practice is in the morning, I do have swimmers leaving a bit early to make work/drop kids off at school, etc. We will see if we run into issues with regard to late/no-shows when we open up practices at night. I will bet my last dollar that no matter what we do we will always have a couple of late swimmers in the mix.

If our coach started laying down rules due to the perceived transgressions of one or two, that would not go down well at all. We are all grown up adults and we are doing something that very few are willing to do by throwing ourselves into a pool and swiming hard. In my book, that by itself is enough to allow the extra latitude and respect that makes Masters such a fun choice and not a chore. Rob Rob, I definitely agree. At this point I have put a "self-start" section into practice for the late-comers. The self-start area tells them what to do for warm-up(s). It has worked this past week very well, and haven't gotten any complaints yet which is a good thing!

I don't think you would be unreasonable to have rules such as: --If a swimmer comes in late, and there is an empty lane, he will be asked to warm up in that empty lane. When he is ready he can join his regular lane at whatever place they are in the workout. --If there isn't an empty lane, the swimmer may get into his regular lane, but he must not impede the set in progress. If he needs to warm up he needs to make sure he stays out of the way of the swimmers who are in the middle of a set (by going last, for example). --If possible the swimmer should notify his lanemates that he has joined the lane. I like those suggestions! Flexible, but conforms to the needs of the overall group!

My work location and schedule are such that I have to cut it pretty close and I'm doing well to get in the pool for our practice by the beginning of warmup. In the summer I can only make it on time if I sneak out of work about an hour early. Life would be easier for me if I was consistently arriving to work early. I have a few options: * Swim on my own in the morning at a health club if I know I'll be very late. * Pursue another form of exercise that day (ie, bicycle) * If I'm really late, ask the coach if I should swim or if I "missed practice" * If I swim, I do my first few repeats at the back of the lane. They are either just a warmup staying out of everyone's way or jumping into whatever the group is doing (depends on the set). We don't normally have a spare lane but that would be preferable.

I appreciate your desire to hear from the swimming community. I have all the respect in the world for swim coaches. Swimming is certianly not a sport for those who want to use it to become wealthy and it flies under the radar except once every four years. Yet, I love the sport and those who care about it. Swim on, I say! Rob