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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Swimming pool etiquette?

202 replies

miaowmiaowhiss · 28/07/2015 16:36

Went swimming today and it was one of the set ups where they have slow/medium/fast lanes, and you pick the lane you swim in based on the people already swimming in them, not your own ideas of speed (eg you might think you're extremely fast, but if the fast line is full of Olympians, you'd pick a different lane). There are signs up specifically telling you to pick your lane in this way.

I was swimming in the fast lane with two other people -we were clearly faster than people in the other lanes, so it was the right place to be. Another man came and got in the pool twenty minutes after I got in, and he was swimming much faster than any of us were going - which obviously means he kept running up the back of other swimmers! Every time I knew he was directly behind me I'd pause at the end and let him overtake me for the next one, but he kept huffing and rolling his eyes. He then started overtaking all three of us during lengths - which is fine in principle, just not if it means the person coming the other way had to stop and wait and the person he was overtaking got nearly kicked in the face each time.

AIBU to think this is really inconsiderate/rude? There was just so much tutting and eye rolling at the audacity we had to be swimming faster than people in other lanes, yet not swimming as fast as this man clearly wanted to. Minor issue in the grand scheme of things but it really annoyed me - as well as actually being quite dangerous RE being kicked in the face/kicking him in the face - and made my swim a lot less enjoyable Angry

Surely if you want to swim faster than everyone else you time it right and wait for everyone else to be on the length back before you start, or something, not just passive aggressively showing your displeasure at other swimmers?

OP posts:
dun1urkin · 28/07/2015 21:33

Mine came with a clip thing and I attach it to my goggles. For some reason the instructions say not to use the clip thing in water. I couldn't see why not....
But they will sit under your cap quite happily as well.

SantanaLopez · 28/07/2015 21:35

Thanks. They look really good.

Mermaid36 · 28/07/2015 21:37

I tuck mine in my cap....I'm partially deaf, so it needs to be quite close to my good ear :-)

dun1urkin · 28/07/2015 21:39

Santana whilst I'm on the subject, have a look at waterproof MP3 players as well (swimp3)
They sit on your cheekbones so your ears are free. You can check online for what songs are what no of beats per minute and if you're cleverer than me, can match your tunes to the swimming tempo you need.

aoife24 · 28/07/2015 21:42

I rarely swim now because of this stuff. It should ideally be quite a serene experience, get into a good rhythm and go but it is so often fraught and in my experience the pool attendants do nothing to regulate the lanes.

Tanaqui · 28/07/2015 21:42

Some of the people doing fast 50 and stop are probably doing speed training or HIIT rather than just being annoying!

SantanaLopez · 28/07/2015 21:43

Chuckling at the thought of a beepy thing in one ear and a waterproof MP3 as well Grin

All the gadgets to compensate for none of the endurance!

Micah · 28/07/2015 21:45

Turqouise When I swim train with swimmers in swim / tri clubs this etiquette is understood and a tap on the toes usually indicated to people to pull over and let someone ahead. This all happens at club training without any hassle it s understood

I hate toe tappers. Its rude and unnecessary. I've been swimming for over 30 years in club, masters and tri. Yes it's understood, and people will move over, but it's very annoying. I have only come across a couple of toe tappers but they didn't tap for long, people got pissed off and stopped letting them past until they moved up a lane :). Most club swimmers know when someone wants to pass and will move over, or wait briefly at the end of a length so they can pass. No tapping needed. Alternatively you can cut short your length and pass while they turn. In a masters/club session the lanes should be paced correctly anyway so overtaking should be unusual- move up a lane if you are.

If I'm too fast for the fast lane in a public session I move to the unlaned half and swim down the lane rope until a lane is free.

Puffinlover · 28/07/2015 21:45

I lane swim at local pool every week mid afternoon. I nearly always go in slow lane and usually have no issues except one lady who gives me lane rage. She can literally hardly swim, takes 4 times as long as me to do one length (and I'm not fast) and does no recognisable stoke. She does however do 'the windmill' which is on her back, flailing both arms and legs out to the side. Sometimes she dances. I'm all for people swimming to improve fitness but this person should not be lane swimming. It's impossible not to lap her however much of a head start I give her. It really can ruin the swim of everyone else in the pool. But don't want to swap to fast lane and ruin other peoples swim

sleepwhenidie · 28/07/2015 21:45

I don't have an issue with HIIT training, but don't loiter at the end of the lane then start swimming just as the oncoming person is about to turn, leave 10 secs before they reach you or be clear that you are letting them pass!

Original poster
miaowmiaowhiss · 28/07/2015 22:00

Yep sleepwhenidie! I can understand why people swimming differently to you (eg not understanding this toe tapping business) might be annoying if you're used to club level swimming or are doing special training, but you can:

a) keep your swimming to club sessions

or

b) if you have to go during public swimming, don't swim at peak times, or alternatively arrive early (letting you set the pace of the lane) or late (when pools empty out)

OP posts:
Original poster
miaowmiaowhiss · 28/07/2015 22:01

Should have added, if you're used to club level/doing training AND you can't be considerate of other lane users, not that you should automatically be barred from public pools if you're doing HIIT!

OP posts:
ElkeDagMeisje · 28/07/2015 22:02

YABU. Swimming pool etiquette is that swimmers in the fast lane swim to the speed of the fastest swimmer. Because beyond the fast lane, faster swimmers have nowhere else to go.

If he was overtaking 3 swimmers per length, none of you were clearly fast enough to be in the fast lane, and you should have moved down a lane to feel more comfortable, using the behaviour you described if necessary.

The fast lane is for fast swimmers, not self-ranked medium swimmers who want more space. Swimming fast is a positive thing, theres no point in a fast swimmer going in and swimming slowly. They would be as well not bothering.

YABU also to be so put out to find a fast swimmer in the fast lane.

TalkinPeace · 28/07/2015 22:10

Elke
If everybody has paid the same price to get into the pool, what give some people more rights than others?

Should Ferrari drivers be allowed to race through traffic jams at 80 because they have a faster car?

Original poster
miaowmiaowhiss · 28/07/2015 22:10

...but the entire point of the lane system is that it IS self-ranked! Whether or not you are a fast swimmer depends on who else is the pool! As it happens I do swim fast, but today someone happened to be faster (obviously fine) AND knobbish about it.

Whether or not I was swimming the same speed as him, I was still one of the top 4 fastest people in the pool today - how does that not allow me to use the fast lane?

My point is NOT that he should have slowed down. My point is that he could have maintained his speed without acting rudely and pissing off the other 3 users of the lane.

OP posts:
Kayakinggirl · 28/07/2015 22:14

Finding it very amusing that on a swimming discussion group I am a member of a guy this evening had started a discussion about people going slow in the fast lane. That just because they were there first they feel they can set the speed!

Personally don't know why you did not talk talk to him if the lane was 1.5 wide. Could he not have the .5 to boom up and down and the rest of you hand the 1 space to plod along. I often do this when I know I am slower/ faster than the rest of the lane.

ElkeDagMeisje · 28/07/2015 22:17

I don't believe in dumbing down TalkinPeace ie slowing down everyone to a slower pace. The pools around me are full of interval swimming Masters swimmers getting extra sessions in. In fact its quite hard for clubs to get pool time more than twice a week, so keen fast swimmers have to swim in public sessions.

I honestly feel really embarrassed if I'm the slow one in the fast lane, getting in the way of fitter and more talented swimmers.

Despite that, there is a man and daughter combo that swim breadths regularly every Saturday when there are no lanes up. Despite the lack of lanes, its publicised as a normal public swim (not family session) and the usual many fast swimmers are there. The man and daughter combo cause chaos (the man more than the daughter, as she seems to have some common sense). Do you think because they have paid the same, they should be encouraged to swim breadths?

Oddest thing that ever happened to me in a public session. I am a middle lane swimmer, occasionally fast. I started swimming in the middle lane one day and halfway down the length, a man swam right into me doing breastroke. I retrieved my googles that had been knocked off, and swam to the end. I then saw him turn, and swim side by side with his friend, right down the "wrong" side of the lane again. So I politely pointed this out to him when he reached the end. He went ballistic. He then started making comments about my appearance, asked me what age I was, and so on. I ignored him, and went into the fast lane, did my swim, and when I had changed and came out, he was waiting for me. He followed me and my husband to our car, all the time shouting strange remarks at me and asking my DH if he "allowed" me to get away with behaving like that!

Since then, I've had very little tolerance and a lot of suspicion that some people just like to slow down faster swimmers to get some kind of perverse kick.

TalkinPeace · 28/07/2015 22:18

Kayak
ooh, splitting lanes ....
that is what my pool do and some people get the red mist about it and rant that the law says we have to go round and round

I smile and nod and stay in the sunny part of the pool Grin

Peshwari · 28/07/2015 22:20

Is it obvious that they are self-ranked?

The pools I swim at have time guidelines for each lane. I thought that was fairly usual until now.

SantanaLopez · 28/07/2015 22:30

The pools I swim at have time guidelines for each lane. I thought that was fairly usual until now.

I've never seen that.

Welshwabbit · 28/07/2015 22:31

Tanaqui yes, I used to do 50 free sets and thus stop at the end of the pool but you have to be a bit flexible when there are others in the pool and not push off right on the heels of another swimmer. Plus the blokes in question never seemed to be clock watching to time their sets and rested far too long at the ends!

drinkscabinet · 28/07/2015 22:33

We don't have lanes split by speed because it's not really busy enough for that (boast: I had a lane to myself when I went swimming on Sunday morning, bliss!) at my local pool but we still get bad lane etiquette. I was in a lane with a couple of other people and we were all quite happy going up and down at different speeds and overtaking at the ends if need be. Then a bloke got in and was a faster swimmer than everyone else. That's fine, but his technique was shite (DD1, aged 7, had a lesson in the next lane and was splashing less than this guy) and when he overtook he didn't give people enough space so kept banging into us Angry. He was very rude to a woman who he caught up with at the end of the lane. So I did the breast stroke and made sure I brushed his bum a few times as he swam past, funnily enough he started giving me some more room as he overtook.

Turquoiseblue · 28/07/2015 22:36

I wouldn't expect everyone in a public pool to know about toe tapping sorry if I wasn't clear on that.bI don't have a problem with it and it s been my experience that it s a way if communication (mostly to me Smile).

In a public pool -I did illustrate that I personally would try adjust my swim and training to NOT intimidate other swimmers. And I manage it well afaik, I personally would hate to intimidate anyone, and I often have to move over stop, slow, wait, to let faster swimmers ahead and swap lanes too to avoid having to overtake slower swimmers. However luckily enough the pool I swim in is a big 50m with 2 lanes of each speed and additional 25 m free swim section, combined with trying to swim at off peak times, I guess that avoids lots of confrontations.

Motorway was a bad example of the pacing but I wasn't suggesting dangerous driving was ok.

I was agreeing with the OP in that the close overtaking and toe tapping and eye rolling were unnecessary. I don't think it s fair to say fast swimmers should push off though, that s all. I don't think anyone should be rude about it and I wasn't justifying rude behaviour, but I can understand the frustration of the fast swimmer.

Club swims often aren't frequent enough and additional training is needed sometimes. I was making the case for the faster swimmers.
YY to speed training HITT 50m lengths - it s quite stop start-y. I am not looking forward to getting back to those (currently pregnant).

And massive thanks to the poster who assumed I was a young un! (Am currently approaching a milestone birthday). I swim masters these days and am no self proclaimed expert, I just swim a lot, it suits me as a sport (can't co ordinate myself on land and have Hypermobility and joint issues- so yes I know how it is to manage a chronic condition to the poster who asked, I started swimming when I couldn't work due to pain and immobility at a particularly bad stage) i m no Olympian, I just love swimming and it s given me back a quality of life when I was at a stage of beig told that surgery and immobility was the next step for me. My swims are important too so I find it frustrating to not get a decent session. And getting in having to swim slowly behind some one or despite leaving space constantly catching up with another swimmer and trying to tread water to avoid them is just really annoying too.

Happy36 · 28/07/2015 22:37

At "my" pool, we touch the swimmer in front's foot if we want to overtake. I have done this at other pools too. Maybe this would help?

Agree with you that the other swimmer was rude.

KevinKnowsImMiserableNow · 28/07/2015 22:49

Talkingpeace why on earth are you misquoting me?

I said according to the OP's own rules the fastest person sets the tone.

You've accused me of having no manners for quoting the OP's own rules?! How very dare you!

In fact, how rude!! Don't you know that manners maketh man? Wink

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