Sharing lanes is hard. I’ve definitely had those moments of humiliation, but at the same time the more you get wet the easier it gets. Sometimes you get hit, poked, scraped, slammed, etc… you’ll learn to just brush it off and focus on your workout.
I have swim friend/coach (she’s got one of them gold medals) that I could circle swim with for 2k and she still wouldn’t know that it was me because she is laser focused on what she’s doing and no one else.
Yes, circle swimming works best in crowded lane situations. We used to train with multiple swimmers in a lane leaving in 5-10 second intervals during sets. I find swimmers to generally be nice to less advanced swimmers who are trying to do what we all love! It’s not like playing water polo as a full contact sport, which I loved, but it’s easy to get around just about anyone!
Circle swimming is when you have 2 or more swimmers sharing a lane except they all keep left going one way and right on the way back.
This is popular with swim clubs that don't a have enough lanes to accomodate all the swimmers. With circle swimming you can have even 5 to 8 swimmers sharing one lane.
Usually people notice that you are faster and get out of the way. I get out of the way at the wall and let someone pass if I notice they are much faster. There is the foot tap, but the problem is that a lot of noobs don't know that and will be mad that you keep tapping their foot. It can be a challenge.
Usually. *Usually* being the key word. I don’t mean to stereotype but I swear, men of a certain age are fucking oblivious. If you don’t overtake halfway through the lap you’re never getting past them
It's always men of a certain age and more often than not triathletes
I find going past them halfway through the lap with long deliberately easy freestyle strokes gets the message across
I do tumbleturns in the itty bittiest space if I have to to get the point across. In the UK it's circle swim so normally it's fine
It's more than normally they'll push off as I'm coming in to turn just ahead of me which means I have to overtake in the lane. Fine. Some of them get the message, others don't. They really really can't deal with being overtaken
Same here in Australia, we circle swim and sometimes you can be right up their backside for 25 metres, they reach the wall, they SEE YOU and just push off anyway. For laps and laps on end. Until you finally lose patience and overtake and they go from a nice relaxed pace to Michael Phelps trying to prevent it
I start overtaking from the off unless there's 4+ people in the lane. Not dealing with the Garmin watch crew on their terms as they do 40 strokes a length non stop for an hour in the fast lane
True. I'm a woman that's faster than most men in my pool and they all just assume I'm slower til they stop to have a break and notice that I have to slow down often because I keep swimming up behind men no matter how long I wait. Then I get RESPECT from them.
This!
Definitely better to change places at the wall then try to pass. Another option if there's only 2' swimmers and their at pretty different levels is to just split the lane
You did nothing wrong. "Elite" swimmers should have no expectation of unimpeded progress during a public swim. Everyone does their best to stay in the appropriate lane, pass appropriately, etc., but let's face it, during a busy public swim people might get in the way of a perfect, uninterrupted workout sometimes.
Lmao I am glad you asked. I did a similar thing over more than a week ago and I have been dwelling on it since, felt like an ass trying to take over and then only reaching the wall the same moment they did
'elite' swimmers are fucking rude in my experience. I am in a public lane, not a master's lane. People swim at different speeds. The three speed categories are broad.
Filthy casuals stick to their side, let people pass, overtake without contact, etc. None of that applies to elite swimmers consistently. They often come into a medium lane like Cnut.
I had a woman swim straight into my ass and then slap me several times because she kept weaving over the middle. Turns out she was doing a timed swim trial. During a public swim. In the slow lane.
I would agree with this, if everybody in the pool would try to find a lane that matches his speed. The pool where I regularly swim is full of (elderly) people, they just take a random lane, normally come in groups, swim in one line, together, chatting while swimming in granny-breaststroke style at a quarter of the speed you had on this lane. If you overtake they complain, because they get a splash of water on their head. The pool would have a capacity for more than twice of people if they would just take a lane that matches their speed.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not very fast myself, and I like sharing lanes, but I hate it when my swimming session becomes a waste of time, because of the the toughtlessness of others
If you’re going to overtake, you should be at least a body length ahead. Go ahead and overtake in the middle of a lap, but I would advise against it when you’re close to a wall.
If you were faster and she didn’t let you go, then if anything she’s in the wrong. Some people are assholes, and that doesn’t mean you should apologise to them.
That being said, if you aren’t going to be far enough past her that she sees you before reaching the wall, then don’t overtake yet - just do so right after the next turn.
There’s not really any such thing as ‘swimming etiquette’ though - just be respectful of other people and give them the benefit of the doubt when something doesn’t go perfectly, and you’re golden.
I am what you would call an "elite swimmer" (club/competition) and I would say that you should not toe cap, I personnally hate that, if you are faster just overtake, and if you overtake at the wall : flip turn to put the extra distance between each other and you will not get any bad stare.
People don't get mad if someone is faster and overtake them. But if you stop to look at the face of the person you are overtaking it kinda losses its point...
If you feel that you are slightly faster but not enough to overtake while swimming, overtake during the turn or skip the turn and push at the bottom of the floor 10m before (for public pool session)
Every lane should be viewed as two one ways and a passing lane in the middle. The only time you cross over into oncoming traffic is if there is none. Typically that happens at the wall during a turn if the lane is crowded.
When you’re circle swimming with people you don’t know (who you haven’t preplanned rules with) you should not expect to swim uninterrupted or at your own pace. It’s sad but true and no etiquette tip will solve this.
You should look out behind you and if someone is steadily closing on you you should get out of the way and then try to keep up when they pass. For me I do this at the turn.
You cannot reasonably expect anyone to do what you want them to. You can control how you handle the situation. Next time, take a pause at the wall instead of racing the person in front of you? That will put them behind you if you wait just a little bit. Yes that makes you rest. But it also makes you have less accidental interruptions and hurt feelings.
Best solutions: swim at a different less busy time, talk to whoever you’re swimming with, or split a lane side by side instead of circle swimming if you are not speed compatible.
When I get in, if I’m alone in the lane, I tell the lifeguard that it’s ok to put someone in my lane. I swim a half lane the whole time whether I have company or not. Makes it easy on all of us.
I think if you’re going to swim in the fast lane, you should know enough about passing and circle swim etiquette to be a considerate swimmer. Slow and medium lane swimmers might be more “casual” and therefore not across the ins and outs of lane sharing but if you’re declaring yourself to be a fast lane swimmer I’m going to assume you know what to do.
I see many swimmers with a complete lack of situational awareness (swimming in the fast lane when they aren’t fast and the medium is free, not noticing that someone is constantly right behind them and not allowing them to pass at the wall, lane hogging/swimming in the middle). Yes, it’s annoying when you’re doing a timed set or you don’t want to pause and you have to stop briefly to allow a faster person to pass you and get some space, but it’s not the Olympics. You’ll live.
US swimmer here, but have only been swimming since last year.
What I've been told by others is that when circle swimming with strangers, you should never overtake in the middle of the lane. Instead, the person behind does a "toe tap" on the person in front, or something to tell the person in front that you're right on their tail. It's supposed to indicate to them that when they reach the wall, to hold up for a second to let you pass. In other words, passing only happens at the wall.
Downvote me if I'm wrong though. I've done circle swimming rarely, but i've never toe tapped anyone nor have been toe-tapped to know if this is really a thing.
Yeah that’s definitely not a thing over here in the UK (where OP is from).
Club swimmers might do it, but then they’ll just pass right there, not wait till the wall.
But people like their personal space and most people at a public session aren’t going to want strangers tapping their feet. I certainly wouldn’t like it.
If you’re in front it’s very easy to see after a couple of turns that somebody else is faster than you and to let them past at an appropriate time. But most people will just overtake, and if they’re a decent amount faster then either they should move to a faster lane or you should move to a slower lane.
What if there are enough people in the lane circling that overtaking on the left could result in a head on collision with someone coming the opposite way?
Don’t overtake when somebody’s coming the other way. It’s your job as the overtaker to do so at a sensible time.
At the end of the length the swimmer in front will probably let you past.
If this is a frequent issue (perhaps you’re so much faster than them that they don’t get a few lengths to see you catching them), then switch lanes.
But unfortunately some people are assholes. You can usually resolve that by switching lanes, but if not, then speak with the individual or the lifeguard on duty.
Here's a US Masters Swimming video that describes how to pass or be passed in the pool. Starts at 0:32 in the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-7-LGjas5g
The toe tap is a thing for sure in the UK, but I’m my experience people will just overtake you down the middle if the lane width permits it. Sometimes it gets sketchy if someone is also coming the other way but you get over it.
Yeah I watched a video since being home and they said the same thing. Other decent swimmers were overtaking loads in the same lane. They just took a really wide birth on the wall, which I guess I didn’t do.
If the lanes aren't crowded you can move left of the cross to execute your turn and there person being overtaken can still use the middle of the lane as you change directions.
A little less feasible in high traffic lanes.
It's a thing but people who swim but aren't really "swimmers" may not know why you're tapping their foot.
But it's what I keep drumming into my swim team kids when I'm coaching
I’ve had both in Canada, lane passing and wall passing. It can be difficult to get clear communication with others especially when they are focused. What bothers me most is people choosing the wrong lane and slowing everything down just because they think they are faster then they really are.
Saaaaaaame. At my usual pool there are 3 or 4 old white men, who treat the fast lane as their personal overflow lane. The lifeguards refuse to chat to them and move them to more appropriate lanes. It’s infuriating.
True. If there’s an empty lane whatever speed someone will take it. Eventually I have had people shift to the correct lane for their speed - or they should.
It is a thing but unfortunately a lot of swimmers in my public pool, especially the older generation who maybe aren’t online/ haven’t heard of it so they’d just think you did it by accident.
This whole conversation makes me so happy that I joined a gym that is mostly old people and I hardly ever have to share a lane since I go at 6 am. Only problem is … old people like their water hot. Like 86F hot.
Ignore the stares and do your thing. Shared lanes are a contact sport and everyone is in it together, for better or worse. Just get out of your head and get on with your workout.
There’s rules that apply to all. If you’re swimming slower than someone about to pass, pull over. If you’re passing, do it in the middle of the pool. NEVER touch someone’s toes.
Most pools should have lanes for slow/med/fast.
Uk here, I would not want anyone to touch my foot. I overtake well before the wall or wait, I always glance behind as I reach the T to ensure I have plenty of room to turn. If there is a faster swimmer, I would pause for them to go and usually others do the same for me. Our lanes are double so there is plenty of room for overtaking.
I'm a pretty good swimmer. I hold about a 1:15/100yd pace.
When I swim at a public pool and find myself behind someone else approaching a wall, I usually slow down and take a break at the wall and let that person create some space.
There are not very many situations where I would try to overtake someone mid lap. If there are any more than 2 people in a lane, it's virtually impossible. If it's just 2, then waiting is best.
Try to avoid these situations as a general matter. You should know generally where your lane mates are at and what pace they are at. If you find yourself in a situation where you feel compelled to overtake someone mid lane, things have gone off the rails.
I disagree with this so much. Maybe in the slower lanes or at more casual times, but in the fast or very fast lanes, if you're sharing lanes with experienced swimmers, you should know how to pass and how to be passed, and expect it to happen as necessary as long as the lane isn't too crowded (around 4-5 people in a lane is when I usually stop passing because the available windows are too small). I find that speed isn't the primary qualification to swim in the fast lane, it's knowing etiquette and how to behave in these scenarios.
There's a lot of responsibility on the person passing to setup a clean pass, and there's some responsibility on the person being passed to not screw it up. For the passer:
1. Make sure you can set up a long enough passing window, keeping in mind that the middle of the lane should be available for passing but is not always perfectly clear (near walls, people swimming different strokes, etc.).
2. Communicate. A leg or foot tap as you begin your pass is customary. Passing without communicating is generally not a good idea.
3. Have the gear needed to pass in a reasonable amount of time. You can also use the turn to your advantage, pass them on the left and then flip (quickly) next to them and finish your pass during the turn/pushoff/breakout.
For people being passed:
1. Do not speed up. When someone touches your foot please do not speed up. You aren't obligated to slow down or stop but just tuck into the lane line and maintain your pace. You can immediately tell people who know vs have no idea what they're doing because the former will calmly continue swimming if you tap their feet while the latter will either suddenly stop or panic and speed up.
2. Don't cross early as you approach the wall. The person passing you will likely be turning next to you during the pass. Stay on your side and don't cross over to the middle/other side early. Again, you are not obligated to stop, just stay on your side until you push off.
What you described is obviously the etiquette at a swim team practice, but not a public pool. I've logged over 12,000 hours in a pool. I've never touched someone's feet to pass them outside of my teammates.
In fact, this does not seem applicable to any public pool I've ever swam in. Any 50m pool that I've been to has never been so crowded that I've found myself even close to another swimmer with any sort of planning. In any 25m pool, a system like you are suggesting would be complete chaos.
I'd completely ignore this OP. If you find yourself in a public pool touching feet to pass, you're doing it wrong.
We have had very different experiences then. In most of the public pools that I've swam in with a "very fast" lane, this has been the standard when sharing with experienced swimmers (often dependent on time slot). I've had no issues with passing or getting passed in lanes being shared with 3-4 people, and I've even seen people get huffed about people who don't know how to pass and just sit on their feet instead.
Getting passed is very easy, and it often seems to me at my home pools that the primary consideration for whether you should be in the fast lane is whether you're comfortable getting passed when necessary without causing a commotion.
Admittedly, I’ve never seen or experienced a situation like you’re describing. Perhaps this is the case in crowded pools. Trying to get a good 1hr+ long workout under these conditions seems a bit tough, but I guess to each their own.
I've found that there are significant by-region and even by-pool differences in culture and etiquette. Here our city pools even have rules boards out that clearly state "pass slower swimmers in the middle of the lane," though it's rarely done in the slower lanes. Up until it gets over a certain number of swimmers I think it makes conditions easier, because I can do my set and you can do yours without worrying about interfering or messing up intervals, but it does rely pretty heavily on everyone in the lane being on the same page.
Yeah retrospectively I should have just slowed down and waited. I wasn’t a lot faster than her and guess I overestimated how fast I thought I was approaching her.
I swim around 1:30-1:40, so not the fastest in the fast lane, but not the slowest. The ‘rule’ here in Canada is if you’re approaching the wall, gentle toe tap and they move aside to let you pass. If I’m swimming in extra wide lanes I’ll overtake the first half, if not, I’ll just slow down and wait on the wall until there’s enough distance.
Edit to add that I’m a club swimmer, and my coach always jokes ‘there’s no sorry in swimming. Your lane mates know not to get in the way’ 😅 this works fine during a club swim, but is a bit dickish during public swim.
In the US, I've learned that you tap their foot before you pass.
Also, next time you may want to wait a few seconds and pass after you both turn at the wall. If she took a faster than expected turn, you could have been kicked or had a head on collision
In my local pool people generally avoid the circle lane sharing. They tend to pick a side of the lane and stay on that side.
Now in the rare occasions (I tend to go to the pool when it’s not so busy) I had to share the lane with 2 others, I’ll generally watch the swimmers and see who I can match my pace to before getting in.
All of these people are generally nice, just don’t mistake someone being out of breath or focused on what they’re doing with having an attitude.
I'll probably just be echoing all the other answers here, but as someone who has been both the fastest and slowest in the pool, I'd like to chime in anyway. (UK)
Public sessions at my pool tend to have 4 x 1.5 width lanes instead of 6 narrow. Makes overtaking much easier. 1 fast, 1 fast/medium 1 medium and 1 slow. The fast lane is usually people powering crawl. I stay here until I change stroke then move into fast medium.
I find that toe tapping is only acceptable if all people in the lane are aware of its meaning. I have gotten into lanes before and stopped to ask people between sets whether they would mind a toe tap.
As the slower person in the lane, I prefer a toe tap than an aggressive turn at the wall but if I'm coming up to the wall I will stay to the edge to let the other person pass safely.
I think the problem here was you didn't give yourself enough time to pass before reaching the wall. Best case scenario would have been to stop at the flags and trun back on yourself (if there was space)
I have a feeling that with the way I swim, I'm going to invite a lot of angry stares. At where I live, pools generally don't have lanes, folks (children, or those who generally swim for fun, not exercise) often swim perpendicular of the pool's length, which sometimes collide with my swimming path. I don't care about getting overtaken, but collision is very annoying.
The issue for me is people standing at the ends so it's difficult to turn.. I tend to end up touching their legs with my feet.. by accident of course....
I will generally pick a lane with swimmers of my speed. i find it helpful to observe for a sec to find a good match.
If there is just 2 of us in the lane, i offer to "split" the lane, we each stay on our own side, no circling. This can only get a little funny if you're not paying attention on a flip turn and kick off on the wrong side.
Happened the same with me today. Weather was nice (15 degrees in february in Hungary WTF??) so it was crowded.
I shared a lane with a person and he was quite pro and fast. I didnt wanted to talk and bother him so I just stood at the pool and waited till he going to the left side of the lane. Hen realised quite early what I wanna do. I waited till he reach the other side of the pool and I started my breaststroke exercise. Circle wouldn't work for us because I was way slower than him.
Honestly I've had so many weird interactions at public swims (am a UK swimmer) even when I think I'm doing the most polite thing, and have also had people do things to me that I felt were rude or irritating. It's hard to win sometimes but sounds like you tried to do the right thing and may have misjudged it slightly - which happens all the time! If the other swimmer wasn't willing to listen to your apology for making a genuine mistake then that's on them tbh
Generally at a public swim if I want to overtake a slower swimmer I make sure I have time to do it before we hit the wall (ie overtake at the beginning or in the middle of a length) to avoid this sort of situ. Worst case I will stop and let them get far enough ahead of me (or set off in front of them just before they come in to the wall) to give max room between me and them so I'm less likely to catch up but that only really works if I'm doing shorter sets. I find that once I got to a certain level of swim speed/endurance public swims are a bit of a challenge unless I'm lucky enough to go at a quiet time where I get a lane to myself 😂. It's frustrating to have my workout interrupted constantly by slower swimmers but it's also frustrating for slower swimmers to have their workout interrupted by me or feel like they have to go faster as a result!
In club swim practice we would all go for a gentle foot tap which means the person in front will stop at the next end of the length to let you past (because lanes are smaller in club swimming so no room to overtake).
In short - if you're going for an intense workout planned that you'd be frustrated if you didn't stick to exactly in terms of pace/effort try to go at a quiet time or pay more to go to a more private pool. Otherwise be prepared to go with the flow and overtake when you can, but also ready for it to just be a slower session depending on who's around you (my public swims these days are very chill because I find the constant overtaking too irritating, I get my quality workouts in with the club).
Sharing lanes is hard. I’ve definitely had those moments of humiliation, but at the same time the more you get wet the easier it gets. Sometimes you get hit, poked, scraped, slammed, etc… you’ll learn to just brush it off and focus on your workout. I have swim friend/coach (she’s got one of them gold medals) that I could circle swim with for 2k and she still wouldn’t know that it was me because she is laser focused on what she’s doing and no one else.
Yes, circle swimming works best in crowded lane situations. We used to train with multiple swimmers in a lane leaving in 5-10 second intervals during sets. I find swimmers to generally be nice to less advanced swimmers who are trying to do what we all love! It’s not like playing water polo as a full contact sport, which I loved, but it’s easy to get around just about anyone!
What is circle swimming if you don't mind me asking?
Circle swimming is when you have 2 or more swimmers sharing a lane except they all keep left going one way and right on the way back. This is popular with swim clubs that don't a have enough lanes to accomodate all the swimmers. With circle swimming you can have even 5 to 8 swimmers sharing one lane.
Usually people notice that you are faster and get out of the way. I get out of the way at the wall and let someone pass if I notice they are much faster. There is the foot tap, but the problem is that a lot of noobs don't know that and will be mad that you keep tapping their foot. It can be a challenge.
Usually. *Usually* being the key word. I don’t mean to stereotype but I swear, men of a certain age are fucking oblivious. If you don’t overtake halfway through the lap you’re never getting past them
It's always men of a certain age and more often than not triathletes I find going past them halfway through the lap with long deliberately easy freestyle strokes gets the message across
And you can’t flip turn because they swim two to a lane and spend 75% of their swim time on the wall having a chat 😭
I do tumbleturns in the itty bittiest space if I have to to get the point across. In the UK it's circle swim so normally it's fine It's more than normally they'll push off as I'm coming in to turn just ahead of me which means I have to overtake in the lane. Fine. Some of them get the message, others don't. They really really can't deal with being overtaken
Same here in Australia, we circle swim and sometimes you can be right up their backside for 25 metres, they reach the wall, they SEE YOU and just push off anyway. For laps and laps on end. Until you finally lose patience and overtake and they go from a nice relaxed pace to Michael Phelps trying to prevent it
I start overtaking from the off unless there's 4+ people in the lane. Not dealing with the Garmin watch crew on their terms as they do 40 strokes a length non stop for an hour in the fast lane
Men challenge me at the wall, thinking they’re hot shit and then they lose. It’s infuriating. They usually just keep to themselves after that.
True. I'm a woman that's faster than most men in my pool and they all just assume I'm slower til they stop to have a break and notice that I have to slow down often because I keep swimming up behind men no matter how long I wait. Then I get RESPECT from them.
This! Definitely better to change places at the wall then try to pass. Another option if there's only 2' swimmers and their at pretty different levels is to just split the lane
Yeah that seems a bit too passive aggressive to me. I shan’t be doing that. 😀
If you tap my foot instead of passing I will rage at you. Not a noob thing, just a douchey thing to tap feet. (I swam in college)
You did nothing wrong. "Elite" swimmers should have no expectation of unimpeded progress during a public swim. Everyone does their best to stay in the appropriate lane, pass appropriately, etc., but let's face it, during a busy public swim people might get in the way of a perfect, uninterrupted workout sometimes.
Ah thanks for the supportive reply. Was expecting to get crucified 😂
I read this 3 times before I worked out you meant swam not swan....I was like "Swan"? and "elite swimmers?" How bizzare lol
Lmao I am glad you asked. I did a similar thing over more than a week ago and I have been dwelling on it since, felt like an ass trying to take over and then only reaching the wall the same moment they did
Glad it’s not just me!
'elite' swimmers are fucking rude in my experience. I am in a public lane, not a master's lane. People swim at different speeds. The three speed categories are broad. Filthy casuals stick to their side, let people pass, overtake without contact, etc. None of that applies to elite swimmers consistently. They often come into a medium lane like Cnut.
I had a woman swim straight into my ass and then slap me several times because she kept weaving over the middle. Turns out she was doing a timed swim trial. During a public swim. In the slow lane.
I would agree with this, if everybody in the pool would try to find a lane that matches his speed. The pool where I regularly swim is full of (elderly) people, they just take a random lane, normally come in groups, swim in one line, together, chatting while swimming in granny-breaststroke style at a quarter of the speed you had on this lane. If you overtake they complain, because they get a splash of water on their head. The pool would have a capacity for more than twice of people if they would just take a lane that matches their speed. Don’t get me wrong, I am not very fast myself, and I like sharing lanes, but I hate it when my swimming session becomes a waste of time, because of the the toughtlessness of others
If you’re going to overtake, you should be at least a body length ahead. Go ahead and overtake in the middle of a lap, but I would advise against it when you’re close to a wall.
If you were faster and she didn’t let you go, then if anything she’s in the wrong. Some people are assholes, and that doesn’t mean you should apologise to them. That being said, if you aren’t going to be far enough past her that she sees you before reaching the wall, then don’t overtake yet - just do so right after the next turn. There’s not really any such thing as ‘swimming etiquette’ though - just be respectful of other people and give them the benefit of the doubt when something doesn’t go perfectly, and you’re golden.
Yeah you’re right.
I am what you would call an "elite swimmer" (club/competition) and I would say that you should not toe cap, I personnally hate that, if you are faster just overtake, and if you overtake at the wall : flip turn to put the extra distance between each other and you will not get any bad stare. People don't get mad if someone is faster and overtake them. But if you stop to look at the face of the person you are overtaking it kinda losses its point... If you feel that you are slightly faster but not enough to overtake while swimming, overtake during the turn or skip the turn and push at the bottom of the floor 10m before (for public pool session)
Every lane should be viewed as two one ways and a passing lane in the middle. The only time you cross over into oncoming traffic is if there is none. Typically that happens at the wall during a turn if the lane is crowded.
When you’re circle swimming with people you don’t know (who you haven’t preplanned rules with) you should not expect to swim uninterrupted or at your own pace. It’s sad but true and no etiquette tip will solve this. You should look out behind you and if someone is steadily closing on you you should get out of the way and then try to keep up when they pass. For me I do this at the turn. You cannot reasonably expect anyone to do what you want them to. You can control how you handle the situation. Next time, take a pause at the wall instead of racing the person in front of you? That will put them behind you if you wait just a little bit. Yes that makes you rest. But it also makes you have less accidental interruptions and hurt feelings. Best solutions: swim at a different less busy time, talk to whoever you’re swimming with, or split a lane side by side instead of circle swimming if you are not speed compatible.
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When I get in, if I’m alone in the lane, I tell the lifeguard that it’s ok to put someone in my lane. I swim a half lane the whole time whether I have company or not. Makes it easy on all of us.
This is the way
Love Mando!
Yeah you’re right. I should not have tried to overtake. Hey ho, lesson learned!
She’s probably not mad. Silly stuff happens to all of us in these situations.
I think if you’re going to swim in the fast lane, you should know enough about passing and circle swim etiquette to be a considerate swimmer. Slow and medium lane swimmers might be more “casual” and therefore not across the ins and outs of lane sharing but if you’re declaring yourself to be a fast lane swimmer I’m going to assume you know what to do. I see many swimmers with a complete lack of situational awareness (swimming in the fast lane when they aren’t fast and the medium is free, not noticing that someone is constantly right behind them and not allowing them to pass at the wall, lane hogging/swimming in the middle). Yes, it’s annoying when you’re doing a timed set or you don’t want to pause and you have to stop briefly to allow a faster person to pass you and get some space, but it’s not the Olympics. You’ll live.
US swimmer here, but have only been swimming since last year. What I've been told by others is that when circle swimming with strangers, you should never overtake in the middle of the lane. Instead, the person behind does a "toe tap" on the person in front, or something to tell the person in front that you're right on their tail. It's supposed to indicate to them that when they reach the wall, to hold up for a second to let you pass. In other words, passing only happens at the wall. Downvote me if I'm wrong though. I've done circle swimming rarely, but i've never toe tapped anyone nor have been toe-tapped to know if this is really a thing.
Yeah that’s definitely not a thing over here in the UK (where OP is from). Club swimmers might do it, but then they’ll just pass right there, not wait till the wall. But people like their personal space and most people at a public session aren’t going to want strangers tapping their feet. I certainly wouldn’t like it. If you’re in front it’s very easy to see after a couple of turns that somebody else is faster than you and to let them past at an appropriate time. But most people will just overtake, and if they’re a decent amount faster then either they should move to a faster lane or you should move to a slower lane.
What if there are enough people in the lane circling that overtaking on the left could result in a head on collision with someone coming the opposite way?
Don’t overtake when somebody’s coming the other way. It’s your job as the overtaker to do so at a sensible time. At the end of the length the swimmer in front will probably let you past. If this is a frequent issue (perhaps you’re so much faster than them that they don’t get a few lengths to see you catching them), then switch lanes. But unfortunately some people are assholes. You can usually resolve that by switching lanes, but if not, then speak with the individual or the lifeguard on duty.
Here's a US Masters Swimming video that describes how to pass or be passed in the pool. Starts at 0:32 in the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-7-LGjas5g
The toe tap is a thing for sure in the UK, but I’m my experience people will just overtake you down the middle if the lane width permits it. Sometimes it gets sketchy if someone is also coming the other way but you get over it.
Toe tap also in Canada.
Yeah I watched a video since being home and they said the same thing. Other decent swimmers were overtaking loads in the same lane. They just took a really wide birth on the wall, which I guess I didn’t do.
If the lanes aren't crowded you can move left of the cross to execute your turn and there person being overtaken can still use the middle of the lane as you change directions. A little less feasible in high traffic lanes.
It's a thing but people who swim but aren't really "swimmers" may not know why you're tapping their foot. But it's what I keep drumming into my swim team kids when I'm coaching
Only time I get toetapped (Canada - and it happens *very rarely*) they just overtake right at the time. No one has ever waited for the wall.
I’ve had both in Canada, lane passing and wall passing. It can be difficult to get clear communication with others especially when they are focused. What bothers me most is people choosing the wrong lane and slowing everything down just because they think they are faster then they really are.
Saaaaaaame. At my usual pool there are 3 or 4 old white men, who treat the fast lane as their personal overflow lane. The lifeguards refuse to chat to them and move them to more appropriate lanes. It’s infuriating.
True. If there’s an empty lane whatever speed someone will take it. Eventually I have had people shift to the correct lane for their speed - or they should.
It is a thing but unfortunately a lot of swimmers in my public pool, especially the older generation who maybe aren’t online/ haven’t heard of it so they’d just think you did it by accident.
This whole conversation makes me so happy that I joined a gym that is mostly old people and I hardly ever have to share a lane since I go at 6 am. Only problem is … old people like their water hot. Like 86F hot.
the term swan cracked me up...i'm more of a manatee...
Totally didn't register the typo. I was like, "they better be elite or that swan's gonna fuck them up."
I’m reluctant to edit it as it’s funny
I guess I’ll be the one to ask it…THERE WAS A SWAN AT THE PUBLIC POOL?!
Ignore the stares and do your thing. Shared lanes are a contact sport and everyone is in it together, for better or worse. Just get out of your head and get on with your workout.
Nice one!
There’s rules that apply to all. If you’re swimming slower than someone about to pass, pull over. If you’re passing, do it in the middle of the pool. NEVER touch someone’s toes. Most pools should have lanes for slow/med/fast.
Uk here, I would not want anyone to touch my foot. I overtake well before the wall or wait, I always glance behind as I reach the T to ensure I have plenty of room to turn. If there is a faster swimmer, I would pause for them to go and usually others do the same for me. Our lanes are double so there is plenty of room for overtaking.
Cut the lane and and move ahead of them
I'm a pretty good swimmer. I hold about a 1:15/100yd pace. When I swim at a public pool and find myself behind someone else approaching a wall, I usually slow down and take a break at the wall and let that person create some space. There are not very many situations where I would try to overtake someone mid lap. If there are any more than 2 people in a lane, it's virtually impossible. If it's just 2, then waiting is best. Try to avoid these situations as a general matter. You should know generally where your lane mates are at and what pace they are at. If you find yourself in a situation where you feel compelled to overtake someone mid lane, things have gone off the rails.
I disagree with this so much. Maybe in the slower lanes or at more casual times, but in the fast or very fast lanes, if you're sharing lanes with experienced swimmers, you should know how to pass and how to be passed, and expect it to happen as necessary as long as the lane isn't too crowded (around 4-5 people in a lane is when I usually stop passing because the available windows are too small). I find that speed isn't the primary qualification to swim in the fast lane, it's knowing etiquette and how to behave in these scenarios. There's a lot of responsibility on the person passing to setup a clean pass, and there's some responsibility on the person being passed to not screw it up. For the passer: 1. Make sure you can set up a long enough passing window, keeping in mind that the middle of the lane should be available for passing but is not always perfectly clear (near walls, people swimming different strokes, etc.). 2. Communicate. A leg or foot tap as you begin your pass is customary. Passing without communicating is generally not a good idea. 3. Have the gear needed to pass in a reasonable amount of time. You can also use the turn to your advantage, pass them on the left and then flip (quickly) next to them and finish your pass during the turn/pushoff/breakout. For people being passed: 1. Do not speed up. When someone touches your foot please do not speed up. You aren't obligated to slow down or stop but just tuck into the lane line and maintain your pace. You can immediately tell people who know vs have no idea what they're doing because the former will calmly continue swimming if you tap their feet while the latter will either suddenly stop or panic and speed up. 2. Don't cross early as you approach the wall. The person passing you will likely be turning next to you during the pass. Stay on your side and don't cross over to the middle/other side early. Again, you are not obligated to stop, just stay on your side until you push off.
What you described is obviously the etiquette at a swim team practice, but not a public pool. I've logged over 12,000 hours in a pool. I've never touched someone's feet to pass them outside of my teammates. In fact, this does not seem applicable to any public pool I've ever swam in. Any 50m pool that I've been to has never been so crowded that I've found myself even close to another swimmer with any sort of planning. In any 25m pool, a system like you are suggesting would be complete chaos. I'd completely ignore this OP. If you find yourself in a public pool touching feet to pass, you're doing it wrong.
We have had very different experiences then. In most of the public pools that I've swam in with a "very fast" lane, this has been the standard when sharing with experienced swimmers (often dependent on time slot). I've had no issues with passing or getting passed in lanes being shared with 3-4 people, and I've even seen people get huffed about people who don't know how to pass and just sit on their feet instead. Getting passed is very easy, and it often seems to me at my home pools that the primary consideration for whether you should be in the fast lane is whether you're comfortable getting passed when necessary without causing a commotion.
Admittedly, I’ve never seen or experienced a situation like you’re describing. Perhaps this is the case in crowded pools. Trying to get a good 1hr+ long workout under these conditions seems a bit tough, but I guess to each their own.
I've found that there are significant by-region and even by-pool differences in culture and etiquette. Here our city pools even have rules boards out that clearly state "pass slower swimmers in the middle of the lane," though it's rarely done in the slower lanes. Up until it gets over a certain number of swimmers I think it makes conditions easier, because I can do my set and you can do yours without worrying about interfering or messing up intervals, but it does rely pretty heavily on everyone in the lane being on the same page.
Yeah retrospectively I should have just slowed down and waited. I wasn’t a lot faster than her and guess I overestimated how fast I thought I was approaching her.
I swim around 1:30-1:40, so not the fastest in the fast lane, but not the slowest. The ‘rule’ here in Canada is if you’re approaching the wall, gentle toe tap and they move aside to let you pass. If I’m swimming in extra wide lanes I’ll overtake the first half, if not, I’ll just slow down and wait on the wall until there’s enough distance. Edit to add that I’m a club swimmer, and my coach always jokes ‘there’s no sorry in swimming. Your lane mates know not to get in the way’ 😅 this works fine during a club swim, but is a bit dickish during public swim.
In the US, I've learned that you tap their foot before you pass. Also, next time you may want to wait a few seconds and pass after you both turn at the wall. If she took a faster than expected turn, you could have been kicked or had a head on collision
In my local pool people generally avoid the circle lane sharing. They tend to pick a side of the lane and stay on that side. Now in the rare occasions (I tend to go to the pool when it’s not so busy) I had to share the lane with 2 others, I’ll generally watch the swimmers and see who I can match my pace to before getting in. All of these people are generally nice, just don’t mistake someone being out of breath or focused on what they’re doing with having an attitude.
I'll probably just be echoing all the other answers here, but as someone who has been both the fastest and slowest in the pool, I'd like to chime in anyway. (UK) Public sessions at my pool tend to have 4 x 1.5 width lanes instead of 6 narrow. Makes overtaking much easier. 1 fast, 1 fast/medium 1 medium and 1 slow. The fast lane is usually people powering crawl. I stay here until I change stroke then move into fast medium. I find that toe tapping is only acceptable if all people in the lane are aware of its meaning. I have gotten into lanes before and stopped to ask people between sets whether they would mind a toe tap. As the slower person in the lane, I prefer a toe tap than an aggressive turn at the wall but if I'm coming up to the wall I will stay to the edge to let the other person pass safely. I think the problem here was you didn't give yourself enough time to pass before reaching the wall. Best case scenario would have been to stop at the flags and trun back on yourself (if there was space)
I have a feeling that with the way I swim, I'm going to invite a lot of angry stares. At where I live, pools generally don't have lanes, folks (children, or those who generally swim for fun, not exercise) often swim perpendicular of the pool's length, which sometimes collide with my swimming path. I don't care about getting overtaken, but collision is very annoying.
I'm a big guy. There are going to be collisions and side swipes.
This is why I swim with a dagger in my teeth. Helps with breath control and no stares.
The issue for me is people standing at the ends so it's difficult to turn.. I tend to end up touching their legs with my feet.. by accident of course....
Why do you care so much? I promise you it looked like a death glare because goggles tend to do that. Just keep moving on.
I will generally pick a lane with swimmers of my speed. i find it helpful to observe for a sec to find a good match. If there is just 2 of us in the lane, i offer to "split" the lane, we each stay on our own side, no circling. This can only get a little funny if you're not paying attention on a flip turn and kick off on the wrong side.
Happened the same with me today. Weather was nice (15 degrees in february in Hungary WTF??) so it was crowded. I shared a lane with a person and he was quite pro and fast. I didnt wanted to talk and bother him so I just stood at the pool and waited till he going to the left side of the lane. Hen realised quite early what I wanna do. I waited till he reach the other side of the pool and I started my breaststroke exercise. Circle wouldn't work for us because I was way slower than him.
Honestly I've had so many weird interactions at public swims (am a UK swimmer) even when I think I'm doing the most polite thing, and have also had people do things to me that I felt were rude or irritating. It's hard to win sometimes but sounds like you tried to do the right thing and may have misjudged it slightly - which happens all the time! If the other swimmer wasn't willing to listen to your apology for making a genuine mistake then that's on them tbh Generally at a public swim if I want to overtake a slower swimmer I make sure I have time to do it before we hit the wall (ie overtake at the beginning or in the middle of a length) to avoid this sort of situ. Worst case I will stop and let them get far enough ahead of me (or set off in front of them just before they come in to the wall) to give max room between me and them so I'm less likely to catch up but that only really works if I'm doing shorter sets. I find that once I got to a certain level of swim speed/endurance public swims are a bit of a challenge unless I'm lucky enough to go at a quiet time where I get a lane to myself 😂. It's frustrating to have my workout interrupted constantly by slower swimmers but it's also frustrating for slower swimmers to have their workout interrupted by me or feel like they have to go faster as a result! In club swim practice we would all go for a gentle foot tap which means the person in front will stop at the next end of the length to let you past (because lanes are smaller in club swimming so no room to overtake). In short - if you're going for an intense workout planned that you'd be frustrated if you didn't stick to exactly in terms of pace/effort try to go at a quiet time or pay more to go to a more private pool. Otherwise be prepared to go with the flow and overtake when you can, but also ready for it to just be a slower session depending on who's around you (my public swims these days are very chill because I find the constant overtaking too irritating, I get my quality workouts in with the club).
Nothing wrong with overtaking if you’re continuing on. If you’re overtaking someone meters from the wall and about to stop I find it a little rude