to stick to swimming lane etiquette (light-hearted)

[Anonandonandonandon]

I am bemused by an exchange with a fellow swimmer this evening and wondering whether this is normal...

I was half way through my set this evening, swimming clockwise as specified by the lane signage, when a lady got in and started swimming directly at me. I thought she’d correct her positioning, so kept swimming slowly, but she didn’t budge. I stopped, smiled and the exchange went something like this:

Me: “oh, it’s the other way round”
Her: “can we just do it this way?”
Me: [puzzled, checking the signage] “this is a clockwise lane”
Her: [irritated] “I know, but can we just stick to our own sides?”
Me: [even more confused] “well, it’s the fast lane for swimming laps. There are other people around”
Her: “not in this lane. It’s perfectly easy for me to have this side and you to stay on that side”
Me: [not articulating myself well due to continued puzzlement] “no, we’re meant to swim laps”

She then moved to the medium lane, asked the (much more leisurely swimming) lady in that lane if they could swim side by side. Said lady agreed, so I got a death stare to hammer home my unreasonableness.

I wish I’d been able to articulate all the reasons why it was a mad idea:

• It’s not normal and I’m programmed to swim laps, so I will forget and bump into you, particularly swimming backstroke
• lanes alternate direction specifically so you’re not swimming alongside people for too long, with the risk of clattering arms etc.
• it would effectively exclude anyone else from swimming in the lane
• I can’t tumble turn if I have to stick to half a lane

This was weird, right?

Oooh I could write a whole thread about lane swimming etiquette or lack thereof at my local pool I don't mind sticking to one side each provided that there are just two of us in the lane, it's agreed mutually at the end of a lane (not Just assumed when you are halfway down the pool) and most importantly THAT THEY ACTUALLY STICK TO THEIR SIDE instead of barrelling down the middle leaving me right next to the lane ropes on my side trying not to accidentally kick the people in the neighbouring lane Obviously if anyone else comes into the lane we'd switch to going in the given direction.

I always swim in the medium lane as I'm not quite fast enough for the fast lane but it's a bit of a gamble as to what type of other swimmers you'll get - some days it feels like the fast lane overspill and I struggle to keep up, ther times it's filled with people who should really be in the slow lane. There is one particular lady who always chooses the medium lane but manages to overtake everyone every single time 😤😤😤😤

This is very common at my pool at the moment as Covid regs mean no more than 2 people per lane. If the speeds of those in the pool mean normal lane swimming is awkward, the lifeguards will suggest that you each swim one side.

@Goldrill

I started with masters when my kids were little because the sessions for my local one were late evening, so it fitted in well. I had similar gap to you, by the sound of it - think you get a lot of people reappearing at that point! First meet since lockdown in a few weeks and I'm just deciding if I'm brave enough to enter and see how far from my pbs I am now!

Oh gosh, I don’t think I’ll ever get near my PBs ever again!

I’m slightly nervous because the swimming friends I’ve kept in touch with became Olympians and professional triathletes. I became...a lawyer. I have it in my head that I’ll keel over during the first session and never be able to show my face at the local pool again! I go to one a bit out of the way so I don’t come across anyone I know

What if someone else gets in though? YANBU OP, this is why OWS is the way.

Speed is definitely an issue too!

I am generally the faster swimmer (though I will clear the pool for one particular man who sometimes shows up). I have no problem with a minor discrepancy- I’ll adjust. But walking, sculling or floating in the fast lane? No. Should be illegal.

I can’t remember which former Olympian came up with this, or else I would credit them, but I love it.

It's fine just saying you dont want to, but now you're saying you had no idea what she meant. It's pretty clear what she meant. Pretending to not understand and act all faux naive is just silly.
Each taking one side and swimming back and forth doesn't need any explanation.

Again, perfectly fine if you dont want to but she wasnt exactly walking up to you with an unsolvavle riddle spoken in word salad.

It's the norm in my local pool though. If only 2 people then you take a side each. If anyone else gets in, you just start going in laps.

Ooh no!! Honestly! Because almost all of us stopped and then restarted, and we are all shapes, sizes, speeds- we all know the pain of those first few sessions!
I should have said my recent pbs btw. No danger of hitting the teenage ones, and am heading up the age groups rapidly now so we all have to mentally recalibrate as the years go on.
(Ping me a pm if you are swithering and want some encouragement btw; it has been one of the best things I've done and I feel a bit evangelical about it!)

It’s really quite amusing that people think I would pretend I don’t know what she meant, create a thread enquiring about whether it is normal, and engage in a discussion about any advantages that I’ve missed.

Honestly, I’m obviously just stupid.

I love swimming lane etiquette, it's like a whole new culture that I'm not sure anyone who swims understands absolutely everything about it. It is pretty much the only thing I can think about when swimming, about if people in my lane are doing it well, or the lanes next to me. Swimming is never boring when there's others to be cross about, or grateful for.

If there is 2 of us in a lane, we do tend to do the 'let's have 1/2 each', returning to the circle if a third person gets in. I prefer it, as it stops the goldfish going around a fishbowl feeling, and means that I can do backstroke more freely but it has to be a consensus.

@Anon, I love that diagram. I wish that was posted at each lane end of our pool.

If there are only 2 swimmers in the lane it makes sense to stick to a side each, then neither is ever stuck behind the other. That was probably her thinking?

@UnsuitableHat

If there are only 2 swimmers in the lane it makes sense to stick to a side each, then neither is ever stuck behind the other. That was probably her thinking?

Apparently so. I’ll know for next time! I’m not convinced I’d like it in the narrow laned 20m pool at this particular club, but in a bigger one, maybe.

Not unusual in my pool either, I’m relaxed generally, happy to do laps or stick to a lane side each. I did once take the initiative to suggest it to the man who thought it was perfectly normal/acceptable to overtake me BY SWIMMING UNDERNEATH me. That was most disconcerting and certainly not a lane etiquette I’ve ever come across. And I swam a lot when training for a cross channel relay.

This is common at the pool I swim in. It means you can crack on without getting caught behind another person. If a third joins, you just slip back to clockwise.

@PandoraP

I think if you are only two people in the lane I am often asked to just stick to a side each and I am fine with that. Also ok to stick to the rules of course.

But another person could get in at any point, so sticking to the normal clockwise/anti-clockwise lap swimming makes more sense surely.

DH is a masters swimmer so I know more about swimming pools than I could ever wish…

I am a stickler for following the rules of the lane too. Someone else could join the lane at any time. So if we're all doing clockwise/ anti-clockwise then it just works!

That would annoy me, and I’m not even a serious swimmer. I try to get in the correct lane for my speed (some sessions this puts me in the slow lane, some in the fast even…) and use the clockwise rule, because it works.

Very common at our pool now since covid. I'm always asking people if there's only two of us left in the lane. That way I can do my times sets and not even have to think about anyone else. Covid means set sessions, so if there's only 20 minutes until the end of the session you can be pretty certain no one else is going to join.

I'd recommend looking at masters clubs around you. I. The club I swim with if you're an ex club swimmer you'd probably easily keep up even if you don't quite have the fitness yet in one of the slower lanes. And you'll gain fitness back far more quickly.

@Queenoftheashes

Yabu. It’s super annoying when there’s only two of you and the other person insists on going round and round. As PP said it means you don’t need to worry about overtaking.

then take it with the swimming pool

swimming clockwise as specified by the lane signage,

People making up their own rules and ignoring the signs are a pain in the arse.

I only have 40 mins so like to swim fast, tumble turn and not be slowed down at all. I even get a bit annoyed of a slowish swimmer is in fast lane. I want to finish my mile. I point out there are 3 lanes, slow, medium and fast. If I catch the person in front up and touch their toes and they don't stop at end for me to overtake I also get annoyed, especially if they should be in a slower lane. When swimmers don't stick to rules I get swim rage.

YANBU - I used to swim 900x25m per week. I was a runner prior to taking up swimming and found swimmers generally to be very selfish and unsociable compared to runners who often give a wave or say hi as we pass - obviously talking opportunities in the pool are limited to those moments when you stop to at the ends to fiddle with your goggles or take a rest. You have to accept that some people might not know the way things work - when the sessions have not had many people, even with 2 in a lane, I'd still prefer to go clockwise or anti-clockwise instead of halving the lane and, as you say - it's confusing for anyone else wanting to get in the lane once you start doing this. She was being an idiot - don't sweat it.

As said already, it's to be agreed depending on a number of factors. If both are similar speeds, clockwise is great. If one is much faster/slower, then it can be very annoying for the fast swimmer. Although it's common courtesy for the slow person to stop at the edge and let the fast swimmer to get past, in which case, that might be the best option.

Each on one lane is best if both are doing the front crawl and relatively slim. I had one guy suggesting it and I didn't dare to say no, also suspected he would be much slower, but he was huge and each time we passed, I worried he would kick me and I ended up smashing in the side a few times. It can also be a problem when one does the breast stroke and does a big kick just when you pass them.

You still inevitably pass each other clockwise, but not as much than side to side. The standard is to stop and agree what's best.

In my local pool, everyone does the 'each take one half of the lane' thing. I get nervous about either approach, to be honest - I'm a breaststroke swimmer so scared of kicking people, but I'm also in that weird grey area where I'm way too fast for slow lane, but not as fast as some in the medium lane.

I just want my own swimming pool so much at this point.

It means no more people can join that lane. I think this is why selfish people do it!

@eurochick

This is pretty common in any pool I have used if there are only two of you. It means no overtaking and is generally more pleasant. It goes back to laps if someone else gets in.

^ That. Our local tumble-turners can tumble while doing circuits, too, anyway, mind.

No worries, OP. It's good you asked. You'll get it next time.