Hey all, I just got back from Kona and decided I’m going to begin training for my first Ironman 70.3, which will be next July. What I need to know, is there a good place for me to get in longer swims near Maplewood, MO? My current gym only has a 25 yard pool, which won’t help most when training for a 1.2 mile swim. Thanks for any recommendations ahead of time!
Dan
I’ve done almost all of my training in a 25m pool in St. Charles. There is the Rec Plex in St. Charles that is 50m, IIRC, but that’s probably a bit of a drive from Maplewood.
The Rec Plex does have a 50m pool, but it is almost always split in half. The only time I’ve seen it with the bulkhead removed is for a tri or a swim meet.
why won’t a 25yd pool help?
The Maplewood outdoor pool is 50 meters. You could do your training indoors this winter and then treat yourself to a summer pass at Maplewood.
The Maplewood outdoor pool is pretty nice - I’ve been there a few times when visiting family.
The Clayton outdoor pool is 50m, but you have to be a resident or work in Clayton to use it. Its a great pool in the summertime.
Anyway, I have done 80% or more of my swim training in a 27yd pool, including training for my last IM.
Saying you need a longer pool is almost like saying you need a longer treadmill.
SLU has a 50m pool. Not sure it’s open to the public though.
50m is ideal but 25yd is plenty to get ready for 70.3.
Thanks to everyone for the advice. Sounds like the bottom line is that 25y pool is good for almost everyone doing 70.3s or longer, so it should be for me as well. I guess my thought was that I would want to be able to “open it up” a bit more in my practice swims. I have a summer membership to Maplewood pool with 50m, so I think I was spoiled by that. I’ll stick to my current setup and wait for summer to get back to 50m.
Thanks, again everyone!
With a July HIM you’ll have plenty of time to take advantage of the 50m pools once they open up in May.
If you’re interested in a structured workout in a 50m pool, CSP masters will start at Shaw Park in late May '12. They sell a 12 swim punchcard for $72. Info at cspswim.com. Lots of triathletes participate, too.
The Rec Plex does have a 50m pool, but it is almost always split in half. The only time I’ve seen it with the bulkhead removed is for a tri or a swim meet.
I feel like an authoritative source on this as consistent rec-plex’er for the last 8 years; you that you only swim 50m between June and early August, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.