I am responsible for booking the venue for our SCY state championship meet in 2012. The location we have been using for the past 10 years is getting too small for us. A new pool has opened up in the area with a lot more seating and deck space. The pool is a 25Y by 50M pool with two bulk heads. For SCY competition, the two bulk heads are used right in the middle of the pool with warmup/cool down lanes on either side of the bulk heads. A couple of issues have been raised concerning the configuration of the pool as it pertains to Masters swimmers and I am hoping to get some opinions on these issues.
1. Bulk head starts - while the pool can be used for SCY swimming from wall to wall, the touch pads and starting system are meant for the bulkhead and the starting system is integrated into the bulkhead. The bulkhead isn't that wide (~6 feet) and some are concerned swimmers will fall off the bulkhead.
2. The other issue is that the bulk heads have "cut outs" above the waterline and some are concerned bad flip turns will result in feet going into these cut outs. They wouldn't get stuck but since the material on the bulk head is a little rough (to prevent slipping) it could result in cuts.
Any thoughts or experiences with running large meets in this type of configuration. I could post some pictures of the pool if that would be of any help.
Thanks,
Brian
Parents
Former Member
Please post photos, if possible.
Are there starting blocks on the bulkheads only? Or can they also be used on the fixed sides of the pool?
One thing to keep in mind is that, if you are swimming against one or more bulkheads, you will need to measure the course several times during the meet. It's not difficult to do; you just need to be prepared to do it. Before the start of the meet, you need to measure every lane. After each session of the meet, you need to measure a minimum of three lanes (the two outside lanes plus a middle lane). Your state meet, if I recall correctly, is a 3-day meet so you would be measuring the pool four times - Friday before and after the session; Saturday after the session; and Sunday after the session.
Please post photos, if possible.
Are there starting blocks on the bulkheads only? Or can they also be used on the fixed sides of the pool?
One thing to keep in mind is that, if you are swimming against one or more bulkheads, you will need to measure the course several times during the meet. It's not difficult to do; you just need to be prepared to do it. Before the start of the meet, you need to measure every lane. After each session of the meet, you need to measure a minimum of three lanes (the two outside lanes plus a middle lane). Your state meet, if I recall correctly, is a 3-day meet so you would be measuring the pool four times - Friday before and after the session; Saturday after the session; and Sunday after the session.
