Lap Swimming in the Sports Pools
 

Can anyone share their experience swimming laps in the Sports Pools since they reopened Monday? Since there are only 4 lanes open in each pool for lap swimming, no more than one person at a time per lane, and there is a limit of one hour of use, I have the following questions.

Is there a long wait for the use of a swim lane?

Is there a better or worse (less or more crowded) time of the day to get a lane without a long wait?

Are certain Sport Pools more or less crowded?

Is someone strictly monitoring the one hour time restriction or is it the honor system?

Is someone monitoring the use of the swim lanes to be sure water walkers are not taking up a lap swimming lane?

How does the Q work when waiting for a lane (does everyone line up far apart and the person in the front of the line get the next available lane, or do people wait at each lane for that particular lane to open up)?

I would greatly appreciate any feedback from those who have ventured out to swim laps since last Monday. It's been 55 days since I swam a lap and I really want to get back at it, but want to know what to expect.

Thank You :)

I'm having some difficulty understanding your questions.

Could you be a little more specific!

Seriously. we've only walked around the pool at the everglades recreation center anywhere from 6 p.m. To 7:30 p.m. and have only seen 1 person in the lap pool and one other in the open area. There was a monitor checking info but that's all we've noticed.

Mrs Fox and I have been twice and immediately got a lane each both times. Someone outside checking us in (via side gate) and someone inside keeping an eye on things. Time of entry is noted so if there are people waiting you will be asked to get out after your hour, otherwise you may carry on. We were told we could lap-swim in the open area as only one person was walking in it, but didn't need to as two lanes emptied as we arrived. Can't advise re which pool or which time to try, but I should think "first thing" might be the busiest as that is when serious lap swimmers used to attend.

I'm trying to understand why, in a sports pool that has 10 lanes, only 4 lanes are being allocated for lap swimmers. Why not half the pool for lap swimmers and the other half for water walkers? As it is, only 4 swimmers can utilize the pool at one time and they have allocated space for 35 water walkers at one time. Doesn't seem fair to me but, I know......life is not fair. Please no snarky comments. Just would like a reasonable explanation as to why more space is allocated for the walkers vs the swimmers.

Are there ten lanes? It seemed this morning that the four lap lanes accounted for about half of the pool, but it may have been deceptive.

Colony and Seabreeze each have 10 lanes. Lake Miona has 9 lanes. Those are the three sports pools I go to. Prior to this pandemic, Colony and Seabreeze always had 5 lanes in for the swimmers and the rest of the 5 lanes open for the walkers. Lake Miona always had 4 lanes in for the swimmers and 5 lanes open for the water walkers.

Some pools 4 lanes is half the pool, gotta have that taint area taint lap or taint bobbing.

Wherever you choose to swim, go early - 0700 & you'll get a lane. I went in after noon & got the last lane. Others came after me & used the open area for "lane" swimming. No complications, no waiting.

Kudos to the attendants at Everglades - helpful, considerate, good humored. It can be a tough job, trying to enforce changes.

I have swam laps at every sports pool north of 44 except for Savana, most have 10 lanes but some only have 8 or 9. The Savana Pool seems to be smaller than the other sports pools and rarely has lap swimming hours. I bring my swim bag with me when I go golfing and usually try to hit the nearest sports pool for a quick mile swim after 18 holes. It’s fun to play Evans Prairie then hit Eisenhower, Lopez to Mulberry, Cane Garden to Lake Miona, Havana to Colony, Hacienda Hills to La Hacienda, Palmer or Glenview to Laurel Manor, Belle Glade to Rohan, etc...

OP wouldn’t it just be easier to go yourself, then to rely on people who swam this morning, or are just guessing.

Since first day they open if you had no problems getting in a pool to swim laps. Course I go at different times to different pools, so answer really isn’t going to help you

Believe me, I would if I could, but I currently am not at our Villages home. Will be there shortly and am trying to get a sense of how difficult it will be to get in lap swimming time with the new restrictions. That way I can plan my days around being able to do some much anticipated swimming. That’s probably my favorite thing about TOV, people sharing helpful information with others.

They should open more lap lanes. The wait was so long that one day I just had to leave. I pointed out a Walker in one lane and the monitor just shrugged and said ,maybe she's resting

I agree, at some pools it is illogical the way they give so much space to walkers, and just a few lanes for lap swimmers. I've been at the pool when there are 3 or 4 people waiting to lap swim, and you have 2 people walking in the section cordoned off for walkers - they easily could have put in a couple more lanes to accommodate everyone. It is especially aggravating when you have someone walking in a lap lane - they should be over in the walkers part of the pool, so serious swimmers have a place to swim.

Its called social distancing.

Sorry, but that is not the correct answer nor action on the part of the monitor. Prior to Covid and any of these restrictions, I asked a woman who was walking in a swim lane if she was swimming. Her answer was "no". I let her know that I would like to swim and would she please move to the open area where the walkers were. She did.

If it were me and the monitor gave me that answer, I would have asked the walker myself if he/she were swimming.