Swimming

Good advice that, but 200m in 2 minutes. Er yeah.....

oops. My pool is 25 metres, not 50. Sorry. It should be 100 metres.

Bit of a time pressured visit to Tooting Bec this am...was cold, did 7 laps, wasn't late for work.

many advice, much thanks @adroit

http://boulterstobrayswim.org/

I'm doing this tomorrow, my first ever swim race, only for lols as its run by a friend and is about 2k from my front door..

should be nice and cool, the lakes round here are now too hot to swim in a wetsuit in, which is lovely but slow!

Had a horrid case of lane rage directed at me a couple fo weeks ago- very v e r y s l o w swimmer in medium lane did not take kindly to being overtaken so kicked, then shoved me. Got out of pool immediately and calmed down a bit in shower; told manager before I left and she was so ace. V impressed. Brixton Rec do have a policy of telling people if they're significantly in the wrong lane but it was v busy just then etc. Something I wish more pools would do/ be more proactive in implementing.

@Katie-Coo that's shocking!

I sometimes try an exasperated look in the direction of the lifeguard but I get all sorts in my local "fast" lane but there's never been any reaction!

I don't understand why some people take it as a slight to their ego that there is someone in the lane travelling faster than them, it "wastes all of about 10 seconds to stop at the end of a lane and let someone through!

the good thing about it being the summer is that I can at least go open water swimming and forget all that sh1t!

I've been letting people through less and less throughout the year as I've gotten a bit quicker but the local swim team got in the lane on Tuesday evening, including one girl who recently qualified for Rio.... put me right back in my box!

Katie, that's horrid. I really wish lifeguards would monitor that kind of thing and politely suggest to people that they either move lane or that they are attentive to those getting stuck behind.

Last night I had my own minor frustration with the lifeguards. I wanted to use paddles for some technical work (I've made some technical changes and paddles really help cement that feeling). I went at a quiet time but at first the lane was pretty busy so I did some other stuff instead. When things quieted down, I asked my final lane-mate if he minded me using paddles and he said was completely fine with it. However when I was using them, the lifeguard stopped me and said they were against the rules... fine... I understand why some people may see them as a hazard so I took them off. However it was getting late and the pool was beginning to empty and soon I was on my own in the lane but when I asked they still wouldn't let me use the paddles.

Fine, I get that rules are rules, and I understand that it wouldn't be pleasant to clash with someone wearing paddles, but it felt a little bit jobsworthey not to let me use them when I was completely on my own.

I've always found Brixton Rec to be worse than useless in managing people swimming about all over the lanes. Even when I've complained they've not given a toss. This was a while ago though!

My local pool gets busy after work and I've been "accidentally" kicked a few times, also had people making shitty comments when I've asked if they can let me overtake at the end of the lane, like I should be happy hanging about by their feet. By the end of my swim I'm usually quite pissed off and on my last swim I kind of lost it at a group of kids stood in the lane having a chat... no violence but some shouty words...

I don't know if it's the pool you use, but I don't have any particularly fond memories of the pool by Parker's Piece, even so I think it was the best of the pools I tried in Cambridge.

I genuinely don't get how some people manage to be so consistently and wilfully obstructive. When I was slower, moving up to the fast lane was an agonising step. I was terrified of getting in other peoples way and was forever checking behind me. I cannot believe that the slow people don't realise that they are holding people up, they just don't seem to care. What really gets me is when slower people are waiting at the end of the lane and then push off right in front of you... makes me mad!

I know complain sometimes, and it's inevitable that you get lane rage from time to time, but I have to admit that my current pool is by far and away the best that I've used on a regular basis. By and large the standard of etiquette is pretty good and there are enough genuinely fast swimmers to dissuade the super slow people from moving up.

Yep, Parkside Pool. In some ways it's a good pool - about 8 lanes, diving pool, flumes (!) - but it drives me nuts too. The university is building a new olympic pool but in the meantime I should go to the lido more often.

Definitely the slow people know they're holding people up but they don't give a fuck. I now don't swim to the end of the lane and turn round and swim off in front of their faces. I need to get faster so I can move up a lane.

Parkside Pool

Ah the memories. That's where I did most of my swimming growing up (before it was redeveloped) with Granta S.C. (which then became City of Cambridge S.C.)

Don't have a problem with lane discipline on a Friday morning as the lanes are quiet. I have the fast lane to myself for the last 40 minutes or so. Occasionally share it with a few people (one person way faster than anyone else) and one about the same speed as me. Medium lane has 4 or 5 people in it, many ignoring the "slow" and "breaststroke only" lanes to swim slowly, often breaststroke.

6.30am Tuesday morning and 9am Sunday morning are less easy. The fast lane has about 5 or 6 people in, 4 or 5 of which are swimming at any one time. The medium lane has 7 or 8 people in. I'm faster than everyone in the medium lane, but slower than all but 1 or 2 in the fast lane (I'm doing 1:50/100m usually) but I'm aware of the faster lot and the wide lanes (double width) make it possible for easy overtaking.

paging @adroit - where do you recommend for swimming on the Thames. I fancy a ride to Clifton Hampden -but have been told 'no hills'. DO you (or others) know what Hurley Island is like?

I have been to Hurley! (Hurley Lock, near Marlow yes?) It's a fairly straightforward ride and the river is lovely- camping definitely to be recommended as the site is sooo quiet, on an island in the river. But for swimming I don't think it's ideal because of the lock- means there's quite a concentration of boats. You don't have to go far for it to get lots quieter though

What about a tnrc style event to bray, not so much wild swimming and you do have to pay but very safe. Open on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.

The free option round here is the jubilee river, it's impassible to boats so again very safe, if you came out via eggham, Windsor great park, Eton, Rodney and swim by the pineapple pub there's the option of a decent sandwich afterwards...

Is that the Pineapple Pub near Dorney?

Oh, just realised - is Rodney Dorney autocorrected?

Ha, yes

have just fully comprehended the race I have entered on the 8th of august is really really far....

http://www.thebigswimcornwall.co.uk/the-super-serious-swim/

3.2 miles of sea swimming in North Cornwall, I haven't swum further than 2 miles this, year, and while I swim 8-10k a week, I have not idea how i'm going to cope with doing most of my weekly volume in one session!

I've never had to think about nutrition for a swim before, but I suppose a decent breakfast and some nice watery energy gels are probably the way to go!

10k for the week done, with one more swim to go to hopefully get to 12k, this morning session was focussed on improving my vo2 max with 5x200 as fast as possible with a 1 minute rest in between.

witnessed the most outrageous pool rage from an old boy who was running his mouth off at a club mate for "being an F*&king arsehole" and "being a faster swimmer", the old boy wouldn't let him past at the end and every time the lane was free in front of him moved to the middle to block him overtaking.

was tempted to get in the same lane and swim over the bugger, there is no need to be a twat and then swear at people!

@kat has been swimming in the tidal Thames lately with a group and I found this happening next month: http://totallythames.org/events/info/great-river-swim

It's a fiver but FREE SWIMMING HAT to first 100 people there. Fancy it?? The poetry afterwards can do one, obvs #heathen

It's bloody cold too (unless you're @kl, of course).

Hill reps of Church Lane a must after, obvs.

Well apart from leaving my wetsuit drying on the line I'm all set!

Twitter has saved me and a local triathlete has lent me a (slightly tatty) wetsuit that pretty much fits.

Just about to hitch a lift to the start and hopefully I'll be done in 1.5 hours!

1:07. Pretty happy with that!