Kind of dumb question. (I haven't gone swimming in about 15 years.)

Cellar_Door

My question is...how do the lanes work? Do they divide up some of the pool for proper, hard swimming, and the rest is for leisure/paddling?

How many people are allowed per lane?

Stark

That would depend on your swimming pool. They *should* have them divided into fast, medium and slow lanes. A lot of the council pools only do an hour a day of "lane swimming" with maybe an extra "adults only" hour and the rest of the time it's a piddling pool for kids.

onimpulse

Cellar_Door wrote: »

My question is...how do the lanes work? Do they divide up some of the pool for proper, hard swimming, and the rest is for leisure/paddling?

How many people are allowed per lane?

Usually there are three lanes, slow, medium & fast. You swim up one side & down the other - depending on the signs - usually if lane one is clockwise lane two will be anti clockwise (so swimmers going in opposite direction won't lock arms over the rope). There are always signs saying which way to go though.

There is no limit on the number of swimmers per lane - I've swam in lanes with 7 or 8 at a time (in a 25m pool) but obviously you'd need everyone to be of pretty similar speeds for this to work.

I'm glad you asked because you would not believe the amount of people that haven't a clue! Very frustrating!!

lonestargirl

onimpulse wrote: »

I'm glad you asked because you would not believe the amount of people that haven't a clue! Very frustrating!!

+1

When you are stopping to rest at the end of the lane stand to one side so that someone who is continuing on has space to turn at the wall.

cjt156

lonestargirl wrote: »

+1

When you are stopping to rest at the end of the lane stand to one side so that someone who is continuing on has space to turn at the wall.

+1 some of us come to swim, not chat! And if you find you've always got people on your toes, maybe try one of the slower lanes - we won't think less of you.
(not directed at you OP, just venting my chlorine-scented spleen!)

Balmed Out

- When there are more than two people swimming, all swimmers must swim in a circle pattern to avoid head-on collisions. This means that each swimmer swims down one side of the lane and back on the other side, staying off the centre line.

- When theres more then one lane they should be arranged so that they alternate between clockwise and anti clockwise so as to avoid arms hitting eachother etc.

- Each swimmer should leave at least a 5-second gap between him or herself and the swimmer ahead

- Within a lane, swimmers should arrange themselves with the fastest swimmer leading and the slower at the back.

- If you need to pass another swimmer, touch his or her toes once as a signal that you wish to pass. The swimmer ahead should pause at the end of the length and allow you to pass.

- When resting at the wall, move to the side of the lane so that others may turn freely without fear of injuring you or themselves. Stopping in the middle of the lane should also be avoided. If the lane is crowded and one person stops, all will have to stop. Be aware of the swimmers around you.

- Always use a feet-first entry into shallow water. If the lane is crowded, wait until there is a gap in swimmers and ease in using a feet-first entry. Please don't jump or push off into the oncoming swimmers

- When swimming in a lane, choose your equipment wisely! Don't use equipment that will take up too much room and possibly injure someone e.g. flippers.

- If a person in your lane appears unsure of the rules, please bother to explain, in a polite manner.

Cellar_Door

Thank you for the replies