To not want to get splashed in the face whilst swimming

[IKnowImAGrump]

Went for what was supposed to be a nice, leisurely and peaceful swim at 9pm on a Friday night and yet again some inconsiderate twat gets in and starts hammering from one side of the pool to the other, arms and legs flapping about everywhere and splashing me all over the face and hair (I'm doing breaststroke) every time he shoots past me. I even said "EXCUSE ME!" hoping he'd move across (he had room I didn't).

Yes it's a pool and yes you get wet, it doesn't mean you should put up with other people disturbing you with their fucking splashy, watery presence.

People are cunts.

greenlanes
Ok that context makes a bit more sense. I was thinking roped off lanes wih fast, slow etx categories. She should have joined to one side if one was free.

As an aside, us splashy folk can't help 'disturbing' others. It's a pool. We are just as much trying to swim as people approximating breaststroke. There's going to be ripples from us and splashes wherever we go.

Although I am a good swimmer myself - a medium/fast lane steady crawl for 30 uninterrupted lengths 3 times a week - I do get something of what the OP is saying.

Some people have no passing skills in lanes - I have barked/sworn at ( and it is always men) people who take a 2/3 of the lane position, making no attempt to either keep properly over to their side or swinging their arms about inefficiently with a wide stroke, excessively splashing or even hitting unfortunate lane mates. I refuse to be cowed by it and either they get a ‘move over ! ‘ from me or I have a word with the lifeguard, but I know some women feel intimidated by it. The really good swimmers don’t behave like that, nor do they cause such ridiculous churn in the water.

YABU for expecting to not get wet in a swimming pool. Lmao.

Are you really that thick?

Come and swim in the sea, you can either splash away or frog stroke as much as you like! My regular beaches have all sorts from competition triathletes to octogenarian face up breaststrokers. And you get to see all sorts of wildlife.

Tbf, teenage girls aren't actually going to a pool to swim. They're going to hang out (rather than just hanging round outside), spend a limited amount of money and talk shit with their mates. They're quite limited in places they can do that actually.

Breast stroke with your face out of the water makes your neck hurt like a mo-fo

It's all about how you hold your head. If you look slightly down it takes the strain off your neck and then it doesn't hurt.

PMSL. Someone going swimming and complaining about people splashing water on them.

You couldn't make it up!

This thread is Mumsnet at its entitled best. Love it.

The really good swimmers don’t behave like that, nor do they cause such ridiculous churn in the water

Are you suggesty that only really good swimmers are allowed to swim front crawl? How is anyone supposed to become any good and develop an efficient stroke that doesn’t cause as much churn if they’re not allowed to practice?

Op yanbu. I'm not a regular swimmer but did go pretty often when pregnant and I used to get so pissed off with blokes swimming past and me getting a huge tidal wave in my face each time. I don't put my face in the water when I swim so to all posters saying about that, not everyone does!

Swimming is so shit. I used to go swimming when my kids had their swimming lessons and everyone in that pool started their swim at the default level of murderously angry and got worse as their swim progressed. I can't do breaststroke, only crawl, and even though I did try to be as unsplashy as possible when passing people, the elderly ladies doing that dry hair breaststroke would still be shooting me evils from halfway up the first length. But I was slower than the thrashy men who for some reason thought that their training for the Olympics freestyle was best done at 3 in the afternoon when all the kids' lessons were on and the pool was rammed. If you're such a hardass why don't you come at 5am when the pool's empty?

Totally agree, toomuch. I thought I liked swimming until I tried going regularly in the mornings. I usually try to think the best of people but communal swimming definitely brings out the murderous rage in me.

We had a creepy old man at our pool who would swim underwater widths when the lanes were set up for lengths.
I say creepy because he did seem to deliberately time it so he'd go underneath females - thankfully pool attendant had words.
I more or less gave up on lane swimming. There is generally someone annoying there and its usually a very splashy man land grabbing as much room as he can with no awareness of others.

If you're such a hardass why don't you come at 5am when the pool's empty?

Maybe they’re there at that time for the same reason as you?

YANBU it’s usually men and they’re usually the middle aged ‘still got it’ sort that want to me in competition with everyone.

Is this like parking in a completely empty car park and coming back 5 mins later to find a car either side of you? Not a problem but massive irritation factor.

I’ve just started swimming again as I’m so unfit. I do front crawl with head in water etc but because I’m so unfit I can’t do more than 2 lengths without stopping for a breather, which is why I’m “hogging the rail”. I try to move though when someone comes

We used to swim early morning - dp is a fast, big man and he splashes. The ladies with hairdos did love to complain about 'getting their hair wet' and 'splashing their faces' and 'making waves'.

We stopped going.

i assume, those who don't like the waves and water, that you never swim in the sea?

If you don't like your hair getting wet, take up jogging instead?

I was having a lovely swim at the infinity pool on the 52nd floor of The Shard. Waiters at this pool serve you cucumber water by the poolside and there is tinkly hypnotic music playing. It’s a small pool but perfectly formed. I was enjoying every peaceful moment. Then a bloke came into the pool area. He was big and fat and was bellowing (in German I think) at his wife and mortified teenage dd. He then did a cannonball move into the pool and thrashed up and down doing a front crawl on steroids (is it possible to arm flop, like a mini belly flop?). I think I swallowed half the pool before clambering out to safety.

The Shard my arse, private pools are the way to go.

I'm a contact lens wearer. I can either go into the water with no contacts and see everything and everyone as vaguely coloured blobs, or go in with contacts and hope upon hope that no-one splashes me in the face, so I don't get an infection that could take away the little sight I have left. I wear goggles but do remove them from time to time when they fog or let water in. My hair and face are generally wet, what with the swimming, that isn't an issue Just don't splash me unpredictably in the eye region as you flail past.

There’s a perfectly good and sensible etiquette for overtaking in swimming pools used by anyone his ever done group training or tri competitions. The faster swimmer taps the feet of the swimmer they have caught up with - once - don’t annoy them by bashing them for half a length. The slower swimmer feels this and stops briefly at the end of the lane letting the faster swimmer pass. No splashy overtaking or swimming head on at someone coming the other way and you get delayed by moments at worst. I don’t understand why swimming pools don’t put signs up explaining this and request people comply with it.

I feel your pain OP. I have experienced this a few times. IME It’s always men who are unaware/uncaring about those around them in this way. I don’t care about getting wet I just don’t like to be splashed suddenly in the face. I imagine a woman who wants to go fast and swim in a more ‘splashy’ style makes sure they give others a little more personal space and that they tone it down when they pass people.

To those of you saying you have to put up with this is you want to swim - if you were having a shower does that mean it would be ok for someone to randomly throw a bucket of water directly in your face every 5 mins? You are already wet - you shouldn’t mind right!

You aren't doing breaststroke properly if you aren't getting your face went. You are swimming too stiffly, getting no benefit and may as well not bother.

You could ask them to empty the pool of water, I’d avoid diving in though!