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AIBU?

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Original poster

Lane swimming (again).

85 replies

lurkerspeaks · 20/05/2012 20:07

Things got a bit unpleasant today at the pool as I was obviously pissing one of the other swimmers off but I'm not entirely sure I was in the wrong.

Medium lane. 3 swimmers. All swimming about the same pace so maintaining nice even distances between us. So far so good.

The problem is that my wretched goggles have started leaking and I need to stop roughly every 8 lengths to empty them of water and de-fog (I've got new ones on order....)

My habit (which I'm fully prepared to be told is wrong) is that when I stop like this I tuck myself over into the far corner of the lane facing the 'up the pool' side of the lane. My rationale is that you can still swim 'down the pool' straight onto the wall to turn and push yourself off at a slightly angle into the 'up the pool' traffic.

However blokey today likes to swim 'down the pool' angling into the wall and then push off 'up the pull' straight. I am so sorry if this is confusing.

He got pretty cross with me at one point as I was standing where he wanted to turn although i was well tucked away into a corner and there was plenty of room across the top of the lane .

I appreciate that my constant stopping was annoying (it was annoying to me too) and I would be interested to know where other folk stand if they are forced to stop for a breather/ goggle fiddle/ MP3 track adjustment?

OP posts:
MissM · 20/05/2012 22:39

I hate that they can clearly see you coming through their goggles, and yet wait for you to move out of their way. Pixwix I wish I could swim as well as you as what you did would give me huge satisfaction!

CelticPromise · 20/05/2012 22:43

I have no view on your question OP, but I am lurking for tips on lane swimming etiquette. I have been having a few lessons to learn to put my face in perfect my front crawl and I am afraid I will unwittingly break a rule. I have to stop quite a lot because I haven't quite mastered a breathing rhythm, I try to get out the way though.

pixwix · 20/05/2012 22:45

Miss M it was just practice, (I did a lot of it!) feeling more normal by swimming when preg, and a refusal to feel intimidated x

Swatchdog · 20/05/2012 23:06

CelticPromise - it's quite easy re etiquette. Just try not to get in people's way! Don't block the end of the lane so people can't push off and if someone is tapping your foot every other stroke then wait for them to turn at the end so you then swim behind them - continuing on in front of them yes, I mean you Mr alpha male at Virgin Active Clapham and holding them up is liable to cause friction. Also, it's bad form to do drills in the fast lane!

Well done on your lessons though, it's great when crawl finally clicks and you can sail up and down the pool super fast!

KateShmate · 20/05/2012 23:13

YANBU, goggle re-adjusting is definitely allowed!

I went lane swimming last week and there was a man with his son (about 9) which didn't bother me at all. Until, the child started swimming up and down in the middle of the lane!!! Angry
It was so bloody annoying!
It was the type of lanes that take up 2 lanes and you go around in clock-work fashion, so really not enough room for a child doing butterfly up the middle.
Had no problem with him being in lanes obviously - it was slow lane and he was, admittedly, a good swimmer; but it was not necessary for him to swim in the middle.

ConsiderYourself · 20/05/2012 23:15

I love alpha male swimmers, because I'm an alpha female swimmer, fast lane, club swimmer and I can usually overtake them....

What you did is just fine. I want to come in straight to do a tumble turn, and pushing off at an angle is fine. I could cope if you were at the other side, but would be "worried" that you would move across as I accelerated in for the turn. Biggest nono is to stand in the middle.

If someone is annoying you by tapping your foot, turn back halfway along a length to put a length between you.

LittlePicnic · 20/05/2012 23:17

Forgive my ignorance- but how do you use MP3 player in the pool?

Original poster
lurkerspeaks · 20/05/2012 23:40

I've got a swimming mp3 player.

Like this www.finisinc.com/swimp3/

I love it as I get sooooooo bored swimming. But I get even more bored running.

OP posts:
CelticPromise · 20/05/2012 23:47

Thank you Swatchdog I look forward to that! It's annoying because I am quite fit and strong but I just can't get the breathing quite right. Must keep practising...

CelticPromise · 20/05/2012 23:48

Thank you Swatchdog I look forward to that! Must keep practising...

CelticPromise · 20/05/2012 23:50

Damn phone Blush

Clary · 20/05/2012 23:56

I think what you do sounds fine. Man sounds like tosser.

In our pool people often seem to be stopping at the end of the lane - a couple the other day were canoodling a bit even (What happened to no petting???) and certainly more in the way than you sound.

I'm not fussed about people standing at the end, it's fine. What gets me is the guy who swims in our lanes who thinks he is a fast swimmer so goes in medium, but he is sooooo slow in fact that I know I will overtake him on every single lap - I cannot bear this so am forced to choose between slow lane of old ladies (it's fine that they are there but I would bug them) or fast lane full of long-haired front-crawling men!

(I usually choose fast and stop to let them past every 3-4 lengths)

startail · 20/05/2012 23:58

YANBU

Poulay · 21/05/2012 01:12

Can't you get some new goggles?

Original poster
lurkerspeaks · 21/05/2012 01:25

I'm waiting for them to arrive (mail order).

OP posts:
piprabbit · 21/05/2012 01:27

I sometimes go swimming in a late night ladies only session. On occasions, there has been no space at all anywhere across the whole 10m width of the pool. The whole of the wall in the shallow end is taken up with gossiping women. Nowhere to push off at all, you have to do that horrid thing where you stop a couple of metres short and shuffle round and push off from the bottom. It mucks up my count for the no. of metres I've swum.
OP YANBU.

MrsTerryPratchett · 21/05/2012 02:43

My personal favourite is to do breast stroke in the medium lane while overtaking the wannabe alpha twunts male swimmers doing freestyle in the fast lane. I love doing this.

bowieiman · 21/05/2012 02:48

I think your main problem was not realising this man is the most important man in the world and you were stopping him from collecting his noble peace prize. Twat!

lottiegb · 21/05/2012 03:01

MrsTerry, me too!

I do fast breaststroke (when fit and not pregnant / post-natally challenged) and always had the dilemma in a two-lane plus open space pool of whether to annoy people in the fast lane or be annoyed in the slow one. I'd go for whichever was best on the day and the difference in the fast lane was often less, slow lane often busier. You describe a perfect day!

MrsTerryPratchett · 21/05/2012 03:15

lottiegb, glad someone else is mean like me Grin

Brightspark1 · 21/05/2012 03:32

YANBU. Man is a twat. He should join the two that clogged up the medium lane today who were oblivious to the fact that they were too effing slow and kept holding me and two other women up. The etiquette is to let faster swimmers past at the ends, which they refused to, leading to me having to turn before the ends to get past them. Not to mention Mrs Foxtrot (slow slow quick quick slow) who thrashes past you only to slow right up when she is in front.

EmmaBemma · 21/05/2012 06:23

What you do sounds fine to me. All I care about if there's a slower swimmer in the lane is that they'll let people pass them at either end - as long as they do that, I don't care where exactly they stop or what stroke they're doing.

Glittertwins · 21/05/2012 06:32

I train at our local club and if we stop mid part of program at the lane end, we stick ourselves in the corner that people are coming down. This is because towards the end of the pool we always tend to move away from the side towards the middle anyway which gives us a better angle to flip and push off.

If we swim in public sessions then we always look up slightly to see where people are at the lane end and adjust accordingly.

We have 2 lanes wide into one lane and a normal lane width for "fast" in our public sessions. What annoys me most is the woman that can barely keep afloat being in the faster lane when there was tons of room in the other double width part. I think I am reasonable in that I was by far the fastest in there, was nowhere near full training speed and waiting at the end to give lady in front half a length space before I started off again. What does barely afloat woman do? She bobs off just as I'm about to go, even though the other lady and I have been swimming in harmony like this before she even got in.

I find a few lengths of butterfly thrown at random keeps the alha male at bay ;)

fluffiphlox · 21/05/2012 07:47

The Hairy Torpedo is what Victoria Wood called this type.

misty0 · 21/05/2012 08:46

Arrrrrrgggghhhh! Its all flooding back to me!

YANBU at all.

I used to swim 3/4 times a week in the early mornings at my gym and this lane stress used to really get to me some times. The pool was lovely, but quite small compared to public pools and the lanes were narrow, and there were no signs up about swimming clockwise or whatever. Surely thats common sense though! No it seems!!

I used to try to time my swim to try avoid certain other regular swimmers. I would change days even. It got to the point where my heart would sink if i came into the pool area and saw Mrs. Blue Flowery Hat had arrived early and was already thrashing her painfully sloooooooow way up the middle of the middle lane like a drowning cat! (and there she would stay, in the middle of the lane, even if you were trying to pass in the oposite direction) Or see the 4 members of the 'Swim one slow length abreast of each other and then all stand and gossip filling the end of the lane club' arrive half way through my swim. Grrrrrrrrrrr Angry Its gym for christ's sake - chat in the cafe afterwards!

Someone up thread said that the raise in blood pressure at all this surely counter acts all the benefits - yes i used to wonder that too!

Cancelled my gym membership as i cant afford it any more so its all in the past now. These days i do a brisk walk round one of the fields up the lane, its free, i can go when i like, i dont get wet (much) and i dont have to worry about any of the above Grin

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