Terse exchange with woman - lane swimming

[SirChenjins]

I've just joined a gym and have been using the pool in the evenings when it's quiet. It's not the biggest pool (20m x 8m) and is sectioned off lengthways, with half of the pool for classes and general use, the slower lane in one quarter and the faster lane in the other quarter. The lanes have boards at the end on the poolside showing the direction you have to swim in, and this is also covered in your induction.

When I got to the pool last night an aqua aerobics class was in the half sectioned off, so I swam in the slower lane. 2 people were in the faster lane, I was the only one in the slower lane. Around 25 minutes in, the aqua class finished and everyone left, although a few stayed in the pool. One woman got into the slower lane where I was, waited till I finished a length and asked if it was OK if we swam side by side. I wasn't sure what she meant, so said no, we're meant to swim in single file clockwise like the board shows. She wasn't happy and asked why, so I repeated what I'd said, and started swimming again. I was aware that she was close behind me, and when we'd finished a further 2 lengths she asked why we couldn't swim side by side. Again, I repeated what I'd said, and she wasn't happy - she said she was swimming faster than me, and it made sense. I said she was in the slower lane (it wasn't marked on the board last night for some reason, but I've seen here there before and it's always marked - plus we're told at induction which lane is which) and if she wanted to go faster she could use the faster lane where there was only one person swimming. Lots of huffing from her, before she reluctanctly moved into the faster lane where I could hear her complaining.

I spoke to the manager afterwards and asked if they could make sure the signs were on the board. They were really annoyed with her and said that the lanes are not wide enough for 2 people, that it's dangerous to swim side by side as people can be kicked, and that she absolutely should have been using the faster lane and not arguing with people in the pool. They want me to fill in an incident report. WWYD?

I swam side by side with another lady tonight and it worked well. She was swimming back stroke and me crawl, but it worked OK.

Swimming side by side means that you are blocking anyone else from coming in and using the lane, aside from anything else, so it should never be done.
You were in the right OP and it was v odd of her to be in the slow lane anyway from the sounds of it
My biggest bug bear is the person in front of you refusing to let you past at the end of a lane when its obvious you are going quicker than them. Or even worse, chosing to start their lap just as you're about to turn and again, swimming much slower than you are. Convinced people must do it on purpose

Part of the reason I like side by side is because I need to swim a lot of backstroke due to disability and I hate worrying I will catch up with the person in front of me

You have contradicted your own point.

If the pool is quiet enough to have only two people in a lane
then splitting the lane means you need give no thought to the speed of the other person for the whole of your swim
nobody overtakes anybody

Nobody is 'blocked'
if the pool gets croweded, third person joins the lane and it reverts to round and round

Can everybody on this thread please understand the following etiquette going forward (pools will only ever say circuits due to their risk assessments but it’s not optimum for 1/2 swimmers only in space for 2)…
1 swimmer - up and down
2 swimmers - up and down
3+ swimmers - circuits

Swimming side by side means that you are blocking anyone else from coming in and using the lane, aside from anything else, so it should never be done

When the third person comes along everyone start swimming in circuits. No one has ever been blocked in all the years I have been lane swimming.

Not really, my arms need two metres doing breaststroke.

Possibly not. If people are swimming side by side it can put people off attempting to join, it does me.

But they are not blocking you swimming, you are choosing not to enter the lane. Get in the pool and they will start going round and round.
Are you saying you’ve got yourself all ready, walked poolside, seen side by side swimming and walked right out again?

Exactly.This clock works swimming is a pain in a neck where you end up stuck behind someone who is too ridiculously slow.Even for the slow lane.

You're that slow that you're holding people up just swim in the general pool.

Your arm span is usually the same as your height. Are you saying you are two metres tall? That’s almost 7ft.

Or stop at the end and wait. They have a right to be there, but should be aware of who else is in the lane.

A large arm span is a very positive physical asset for swimmers, but you are not spreading your arms as wide as they can go for breast stroke.

So, if PP needs 2 metres for her breast stroke then she may be over 7 foot tall!

Yes, fill in an incident report. You’re perfectly within your rights not to want to swim side by side with a complete stranger. If she’s faster than you, you could have just said, Please go ahead of me on this lap.

And then let her get a good few strokes away from you before you started your lap, so there was a good distance between you.

No. But i would generally in that situation choose to swim in the unlaned half if there is space.

I don't even understand the side by side thing.In case you get kicked ive been kicked in a clockwise lane motion by somebody overtaking.

Not one person has ever asked for the weird side by side swimming thing in all the regular council/social enterprise pools I've swum in over the last four decades in towns and cities all over the UK.
In the one private pool I used for a year or so it happened every time.

Side by side doesn't literally mean swimming next to the person. In fact you can start at opposite ends. You would only pass each other once.

Someone wasn’t taught ‘elephant, monkey, mouse’.

exactly this! It's no different to passing someone swimming in the opposite direction. people at my gym nearly always offer to swim side by side if there's only 2 of you in a lane then you can swim at your own pace. if a 3rd person gets in you go to swimming in a loop.

to be fair that's an issue with your breastroke!!

Yes it's definitely a private gym thing not a council pool thing
And it's literally the reason why I pay for a private swim membership. I don't like swimming circuits and usually in a private pool you very rarely have to. Don't really speaking there's only one or two people in the lanes and people happily agree to swim side by side.

Then presumably you have to avoid circuit swimming too?

Although my mind is boggling at the thought you need that much space. My husband is well over six feet with long arms and even he can swim in a normal lane

This is why I'm too terrified to take up swimming again. I love it... but you are compleat the mercy of everyone else, unwritten rules etc.

isn't that just the same as clockwise or anti clockwise lane swimming ,following with distance as theres only 2 in the lane rather than side by side?