Lap swim can be intimidating when all the lanes are occupied, but lane sharing goes smoothly if everyone follows a few basic rules of etiquette.
Showing up at the pool and finding all the lanes occupied can be a bit daunting for a new swimmer. But don’t be intimidated; the etiquette isn’t that complicated. If you’re aware of your surroundings and courteous to others, you’ll get on fine.
Here are a few tips to make sure you and your fellow pool users all swim in harmony.
Note which lanes are being used by fast, medium-paced and slow swimmers and pick a lane that fits your speed. (Some pools will designate specific lanes for different speeds, but if you watch the other swimmers for a few minutes you should have a good idea of where you’ll fit in best.)
Make sure the others swimmers in your chosen lane see you and know you’re going to join them. You can sit with your legs in the water for a minute or stand in the corner of the lane until they make a turn and acknowledge your presence. If you want to be polite, ask if you can join them, but it’s more of a rhetorical question since they don’t really have the authority to forbid you if it’s a public pool!
If there are just two of you in a lane, you will need to decide whether to split the…
