How tough is it to get “pool time” in your area ?
As the fall and winter months approach, paddlers
occasionally use indoor community/municipal pools
for training preparation prior to next season.
Good access around here
An Olympic sized pool that is a longish drive, 45 minutes or so, but still able to operate without a formal registration process for inexpensive rates. And a set of weekly, reservation required formal instructions in a smaller pool closer in, starting in January. The latter are also relatively cheap compared to what I see elsewhere.
No problem
Local kayak club “rents” a college pool for training during the winter months. At least one Sunday afternoon per month and the fee charged by the college to the club is very reasonable. College provides lifeguard which it pays and club members chip in a tip for the lifeguard. No cost to club members for the training.
This afternoon volunteering to help vets learn to kayak at local VA hospital pool. Sessions are every Tuesday afternoon. I think the volunteers get as much or more than the vets. 90 degree pool and helping great people.
The trick to getting pool time is to have an active club that’s involved in the community and being good stewards of the facilities when you get access.
YMCA
Our YMCA has “free time” twice a week where we can get n for 1.5 hours at a time and work on rolls and play moves. We like to keep it a secret though…
Local university also offers classes one day a week.
every other week Nov-Mar
through WNCkayaking meet-up group. Modest $10 fee buys 2 hours of indoor pool with showers and skills guidance from others. Actual lessons for additional fee. I try to go about once each month. For me is a 120 mile round trip.
Rent three pools
We (Cincypaddlers.org) rent three pools from a health club chain. While the prospect of that incremental revenue didn’t really float their boat (sorry about that), the hook was that we would be making repeated announcements on our web site, exposing their name to over 2,000 active people who would be good prospects for memberships.
We struggle with this
If we have scheduled pool instruction then we try to arrange for an hour’s use of the pool by group members in exchange for using their boats for instruction. But pools are being closed in our area for economic reasons and the remaining pools are heavily scheduled. In fact it looks like we won’t be offering scheduled pool instruction this year.
Used to be Better
Our local pool wants X number of people to commit to X number of sessions at X number of dollars. Screw it. I’ll bundle up and roll around in the cold lake. Or just wait for warm weather.
It is near impossible where we live…
They seem to be okay with ww boats, but sea kayaks tend to freak them out. We went to a large private school the year before last and they said no to us last year…not really sure why.(there was only 3 of us) we were neat and cleaned our boat thoroughly before and after. tried to stay in our own section and everyone seemed interested in us, we will keep trying. A pool is re-opening in our near area, i am going to lean on them. But if not we will drive up to 45 min. just to try and get pool time…ugh. They all claim that’s it’s an insurance thing. No y’s in area, closest is maybe 1.5 hrs. away, the Y’s tend to be a little more willing to work with the community.
good here
Our local Y pools are all available for rent on the weekends. $200-250 for 2 hours. Carpe Diem Kayaking usually runs pool sessions one afternoon for $25 too. One way or another, we don’t have much trouble getting in the pool up here.
Nate
Great Relationship
– Last Updated: Oct-11-11 8:03 PM EST –
with our local Athletic club. We show up 30 minutes prior to the club closing on Saturday.Sign waviers; pay a small fee,and the pool is ours.We are required to have at least 2 people up to about 15. We stay as long as we want. The club has given us a special code to set the alarm when we leave.We have a contact number if we need assistance. There are no official life guards on duty. We are required to wear PFDs during the sessions. A few times, they use our group to teach others(youth groups, church groups etc.).
Pool time
I’ve been using a pool for the last years, but last year, to reduce operating costs, they reduced their normal hours and said we were welcome on the off hours at “double time rates”.
Now, I’m looking for other pools.
The pools tend to be available to registered clubs (we’re not) that have insurance (we don’t).
The local YMCA was willing to talk, but their pool is tiny.
Try your local high school. Call their adult ed people to inquire about evening use.
Willi: Call me for more info. Jerry Smith
What a diverse country …
Just looking at some of the responses here. Kind of a narrative on our current situation in America. Some businesses and organizations open and flexible others so strapped financially or so unwilling to adjust how they do things. I’ve lived places where it was very easy to get things done as a community: Tucson AZ, Madison Wi, Westminster Colorado - other places not so much: Michigan, Eastern Pennsylvania, NJ, San Diego. Some places used to be very community minded like Logan Utah. Now a sense of I’ve got mine, you can go to hell, seems to be taking route around the country.
‘Our’ pool has been closed
since March because they needed to do 2-3 weeks of resurfacing work. It was used two evenings a week by kayakers for practice and two different instructional schools for classes.
The reason it is still closed is because of the environmental challenges of ‘disposing of the water’. This is a pool that uses a different salt ion other than chlorine - can’t recall what it it, but it seems familiar to me since I’m usually in salt water.
It may not reopen this year, so the guys that teach rolling classes there, and the WW club that depends on it for their $ income, have had a tougher time than usual this year. I have practiced a lot less than usual because of it, but virtually always do some rolling every weekend paddle at some point.
Easy here–in late winter and spring
– Last Updated: Oct-17-11 5:17 PM EST –
Fall and early winter, not so good.
The times are allotted based on assumption of minimum number of boaters showing up. They need to make adequate revenue off the time blocks.
I would love to extend rolling and other small-area practice past when the lakes are closed, but the really nice pool I like doesn't start boat sessions until late winter. And that pool is an hour's drive away. The time blocks are shared by 2 large organizations who have opened the sessions to individuals, to increase revenue for the pool management agencies.