Snobby swimmers

I have gotten back into swimming again after a very long hiatus. I love swimming and was delighted that my school had a swimming pool very nearby. It was the only physical activity I was ever good at. I got back into it because I want to lose some weight and it will give me something to do when unemployed. Sean is also going swimming with me, it’s lots of fun.

What makes swimming not fun is when the old, cantankerous blue rinse brigade (old people) believe that they own the pool. This takes me a year or so back when I went to an adults only swim session on my own for the first time. I swam a few lengths of the pool from shallow to deep end and was stopped by an old man who looked very miffed. He swam up to me and said, “Do you see anybody else swimming up and down the pool in this area? You go over there”. He pointed to the deep end, where I then saw that people were swimming lengths cross ways. The pool is two pools joined together, basically. You are able to swim lengths from one pool to the other.

I don’t mind being advised that I am in the wrong area, but I would expect a lifeguard to fill me in. I don’t appreciate having some random swimmer being rude to me. Surely if it was such a problem the lifeguard would have raised the issue? I don’t think I was doing anything against the rules, I believe this old man was just being a grouch and didn’t want some “n00b” on “his” turf, or should I say water? I would have listened if he was not so nasty. Needless to say I haven’t been to an adult swim session again, but I do intend to. Next week I will go to a few and this time I don’t give a hoot about the grumpy grannies. The swimming pool is for the public, not for a select few old gits who think they run it. I bet the guy wouldn’t have said anything to me if I was old. If they have an issue with a young adult going to a public swimming pool, then maybe they should consider going to a more senior session. Even better, maybe they can buy their own pool with their large amounts of pension money.