Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Please Turn Off The Heat

I know I've complained about how HOT our pool has been before, but here's yet another post about it. Feel free to skip this one if you aren't interested in reading about the nausea that accompanies swimming hard in water that is 86+ degrees.

When I sit down and plan our swim workouts (a week or more in advance) I don't normally take into consideration the water temp at the pool (though at this point I'll probably have to start). I just think about the type of work I want us to do. So when we're doing threshold work, typically the intervals are tight. Sometimes tighter than others, depending on multiple factors.

This morning the intervals were tight. And getting tighter as the set progressed. Given that the water was so HOT on Monday that I thought I was going to die at the end of workout, I knew that this one was going to be especially tough. The intervals were for 100's that I wasn't sure I could do even if the water was 78 degrees. My solution? Bring a bottle full of ice water to squirt on myself between items. Maybe that would help.

I'll cut to the chase and tell you that while it felt phenomenal to squirt my face with ice water (this probably prevented me from actually bursting into flames), it did not help me make the intervals. There really does come a point when it's just too hot to hold a fast pace. Just FYI- that point is apparently right at 3100M in 86 degrees.

Nalani and I were both pretty grumpy upon finishing the workout this morning. I couldn't help but think, in this time of budget crisis for the state, where they are cutting pool hours and lifeguard pay to save money, WHY WOULD THEY SPEND $$THOUSANDS$$ EVERY MONTH ON HEATING A HUGE LONG COURSE POOL WHEN IT IS 80+ DEGREES EVERY DAY NOW AND THE (FREE) SUN WOULD HEAT THE WATER JUST FINE ALL ON ITS OWN???

Walking back to the locker room I asked the lifeguard about who I needed to contact to get the heaters turned OFF. She told me to talk to Barbara, who is the pool manager, who is not normally there first thing in the morning but happened to be in the office today. Perfect.

So I walked into the office and asked the same question... Just a little background information- Barbara is clearly NOT an athlete. Barbara has probably never exercised a day in her life. Barbara was talking to another old lady and when they stopped their conversation I asked my question. Both old ladies responded to me with daggers in their eyes saying, "Don't you dare!!" They were completely serious. They went on and on with a serious tongue lashing tone about the old ladies with arthritis who need to pool to be warm so they can stand around in it and not get a chill. They told Nalani and me that we were young and that we could suffer and if we didn't like it, go to another pool. Well then. Aloha to you too.

Looks like it's gonna be a HOT summer at the pool boys and girls. I'll have to start rationing my ice... set some aside for ice baths while making sure I have enough to take with me to the pool...

17 comments:

Aimee said...

Wow...I can't believe the pool manager and the little old lady said all that! I'm sorry you have to swim in hot water...keep those ice squirt bottles handy! :)

Running and living said...

OK, so I swim indoors at the YMCA and the water is never above 80 degrees! This is plain ridiculous. I can get pretty "passionate" about things like this (as Chris puts it). I don't think the battle is lost. It's not like you are asking for ocean cold water, just some normal temps!

cherelli said...

Oh that makes me grumpy! One day I couldn't swim at my normal "lap" pool - you know, where the water is cooler for the young folk who go FAST -and had to go to the local Y. OMG I felt like falling asleep as soon as I entered the water. Maybe you need to flirt with the lifeguard and gain access to the heat switch...and you know, turn it off the night before you have a hard session planned....just an idea....

Clare said...

the pool i did my masters class in was HOT and it sucked. luckily my usual pool is perfect...there's a separate smaller pool for the old ladies and babies (and i love the warm one when i take andra swimming!).

Angela and David said...

Ha! This is exactly the same reason the pool by my in-laws at the Jewish Community Center is kept at 83 degrees - because the old people love the warm water. Isn't that what hot tubs are for? And I've seen first hand how the old people get testy when you complain about the heat of the pool. Old people are usually a well organized, powerful front that everyone wants to please. Good luck fighting them on the pool temps!

I will no longer complain that every single freaking pool I swim in lately has a broken heater. It takes me forever to warm up these days.

Catching up with Jessica said...

agh! I hate that! That is always the excuse. NOT fair, no way! Especially long course. Guess what, that's made for swimmers!! Real swimmers! Those are not normal temps. 80 would still not be the most comfortable but a compromise! It makes you sleepy, nauseated and light headed. Horrible. You should get more people and complain.

kerrie said...

i love warm pools cause i freeze in colder ones(like those swimmer-temperature-competition-pools)....perhaps i'm just not working hard enough ;).
however, we swim outside year round, in colorado, and if the pool isn't 80, it becomes pretty unbearable to swim in. 79 and i get hypothermia. they do turn it down in the summer though... however, tomorrow, it is supposed to snow again so i'm really hoping they haven't yet.....

Marit C-L said...

Holy cow - that is AWFUL!! Oh wow...they clearly don't care about a) the overall health of their patrons b) keeping your business 3) how idiotic they look. Yikes - I'm so sorry that you're dealing with this... hot water is awful when swimming laps. Its too bad they couldn't (or weren't willing) to find a compromise that would suit all parties. Shame on them.

Rebecca DeWire said...

An 86 degree pool sounds horrible. The pools at the 2 YMCAs I go to are kept at 82-83 which I have always thought was ridiculous. Old ladies with arthritis do water aerobics there so that is probably why it is so warm.

Unknown said...

And THAT'S the reason I quit the Y. The 20 yard pool was (I am not exaggerating here) 88 or 89 degrees EVERY day. I just couldn't do anything hard in there without feeling like I was going to pass out. Same reasoning--"but the arthritis program, yadda yadda yadda." So I decided I just had to take my membership elsewhere.

Big Daddy Diesel said...

My first thought was I wanted to trade, the lake is only 53 degrees right now.....then...... Barbara made me mad.

GoBigGreen said...

Dang it, I go thru this with our pool indoors, and you can imagine what a sauna it becomes indoors with poor circulation. Hard thing is that nobody benefits from this bc a TRUE therapeutic pool ( by rehab standards, and yes I could write a novel on this) is 92 degrees. So by putting it at 86-88 they are splitting the difference and trying to not suck it up and either be a competitive/recreational pool OR a Therapy pool. That line could work but likely you will just get the cold ( hot) shoulder. AT least you arent indoors, I Guess that is the only positve thing:(

X-Country2 said...

You better watch your back, lady! The old people mafia is no joke.

Katie A. said...

Wow...just wow. I can't believe it, and yet I can. And you're right, in the time of budget cuts where even teachers are loosing their jobs and funding, you would think they could do "little" things like turn the heater off! Shesh!
Maybe you could sneak in all stealthy and turn it off yourself! Ha!

Beth said...

Oh man Michelle - that stinks!! I can totally relate because my YMCA swimming pool is kept at 86 degrees also (and it's inside and it's like walking into a 115 degree tropical rainforest!). Same reason too - the old(er) people throw a fit when it's any amount of degrees colder and they ALWAYS win. Luckily though I do most of my hard swims at Pitt where they keep the pool much more reasonable. Get that ice maker going!!!

Anonymous said...

Ha! I get the same stink eye when I yell "track" to the walkers lollygagging in lane 4 on the track. We have to do our track workouts in lane 4 because the school blocks lanes 1 - 3. Little extra per lap never hurt anyone (says the athlete). The walkers do not seem to be of the same mindset!

N.D. said...

I need cold water - I totally understand, it is impossible and so uncomfortable to swim in water that warm.