It's summer and time to swim outdoors! Show us where you swim!
We swim at the Roeland Park Aquatic Center, in Roeland Park, Kansas (a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri). The main pool is covered by an air-supported dome in the winter. In May they remove the dome for the summer.
PHOTO 1: Note the four long-course lanes. We swim long-course every Saturday during the winter, and pretty much all the time in the summer. The lanes next to the long-course lanes are short-course meters. If the ropes were turned 90 degrees, the lanes would be short-course yards.
PHOTO 2: If you looked carefully in Photo 1, you saw the bulkhead at the bottom of the long-course lanes. In this photo we're done with practice and they're raising the bulkhead before the pool opens to the public. The bulkhead drops into the bottom of the pool; it is raised by means of an air bladder inside the bulkhead.
PHOTO 3: The end of the pool, showing the 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards.
(Continued in next post... I can't put all of the photos into one post.)
I do most of my training at the City of Scottsdale's lovely Cactus Park Aquatic Center (see www.scottsdaleaz.gov/.../Cactus.asp and first picture below). This is a 8 lane 50 meter by 25 yard pool and is the competition centerpiece of the City's four wonderful pools (each of which has some portion available for lap swimming in a 25 yard course).
Much of the year the bulkhead is in so that we've got
a fairly deep (6') 25 yard up to 10 lane competition course in which the Masters train in the mornings
An additional 10 or so lanes going widthwise, but more shallow (4 or 5 feet) where the club team trains
Starting next week, the mornings will be LCM Monday to Saturday and the Masters team will get 3 lanes. I LOVE Cactus Pool. My only minor complaint is that the water cooling system is not that effective, meaning that summer training (usually mid-June-ish to late August) is in pretty hot water.
When I'm not traveling and can't get to Cactus, I head over to Lifetime Fitness (2nd & 3rd picture) where I have access to:
5 lane, indoor, 25 meter pool
6 lane, outdoor, 25 meter pool
I always swim inside as they keep the water temperature cool (78ish), have a digital pace clock and there are rarely more than 3 other folks swimming, so I almost never have to fight for or wait for a lane.
It's summer and time to swim outdoors! Show us where you swim!
We swim at the Roeland Park Aquatic Center, in Roeland Park, Kansas (a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri). The main pool is covered by an air-supported dome in the winter. In May they remove the dome for the summer.
PHOTO 1: Note the four long-course lanes. We swim long-course every Saturday during the winter, and pretty much all the time in the summer. The lanes next to the long-course lanes are short-course meters. If the ropes were turned 90 degrees, the lanes would be short-course yards.
PHOTO 2: If you looked carefully in Photo 1, you saw the bulkhead at the bottom of the long-course lanes. In this photo we're done with practice and they're raising the bulkhead before the pool opens to the public. The bulkhead drops into the bottom of the pool; it is raised by means of an air bladder inside the bulkhead.
PHOTO 3: The end of the pool, showing the 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards.
(Continued in next post... I can't put all of the photos into one post.)
Nice pool. Plus, that kind of kills two birds with one stone. Half LCM, half SCM or SCY. I am so jealous of all the water slides.
Every USMS team that I've been on or visited that has slides has mandatory sliding at the end of practice. Is that commonplace or am I just a child, or both?
Every USMS team that I've been on or visited that has slides has mandatory sliding at the end of practice. Is that commonplace or am I just a child, or both?
Both. We sometimes go down the slides after practice. The guards are always greatly amused. Especially because one of our 50-ish swimmers manages to break more "slide rules" than any kid...
That's a beautiful pool, Anna Lea. You are so lucky to be able to swim in such lovely surroundings. That water looks so clear and refreshing. Makes me want to dive in.
I don't want to post a picture of my pool now. Next to that it is going to look so dingy! I swim in an indoor 25m pool. It's not particularly pretty at all, but it serves its purpose. It has a spa complex attached to it with jacuzzis and saunas. Those are great after a hard workout. A lot of the pools in Taiwan are indoors. Most people would think this strange for a place that has such a hot climate. However, they are built like this, not to keep the heat in, but rather to keep it out!
You folks must have never seen the Williams College pool, then. Beautiful facility with an 8 lane LCM pool and bulkheads to split into two SCY pools. Huge windows along the far end by the diving boards. Swam there for 4 years after 12 years in a windowless dungeon. Can't find a photo online so you'll have to go check it out yourselves some time. There IS good swimming in Western MA!
Yeah but Williams college is sooo westerm mass that its almost more eastern NY or southern VT. I think its about a 2 hour drive from my house.
Laurie
Eppley Recreation Center Natatorium at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Shown set up for a SCY meet, pool has two bulkheads can be configured to 50m, 2x25m or 2x25y courses. When the pool is set up the short way, we can have up to 23 short course lanes.
Also included, behind where this photo was shot, is a 7 lane 25 yard instructional pool.
Very shameless plug: if you'd like to come swim here, we're hosting a meet in a couple weeks :-)
OK, I finally had something better than a nearly worthless cell phone camera with me at the pool yesterday, so here's Colman Pool in West Seattle. How many other pools out there can you take a ferry to?
There are a few other interesting things about the pool. For example, its at least partially filled with salt water from Puget Sound (the pool is literally adjacent to the Sound) and getting to the pool requires about a ten minute walk from the parking lot. It's a beautiful walk, though.
