Today I went down to my first early pool workout (pool open 6:15-8am). I’m starting to begin my cooldown when I hear “time to get out” in the distance. The pool girl was kicking me out at 7:47. I got out, showered and changed in 6 minutes, drove home and walked in my front door at 8:02. I’m kinda pissed because I paid 5 bucks to not finish a workout.
My question is, if a pool closes at 8am, does that mean get out of the pool at 8 or out of the locker room by 8? Should I have put up a stink to keep swimming (not my personality)?
If anything has a closing time, say 8, you need to be out of their doors and off their premises by that closing time. A closing time is a closing time. Not a notice for you to start your shower at 8 so they can wait for you.
Edit: Seeing as how she got you out of the pool @ 7:47 and it took you :6 to shower, 7:53, I guess you could have completed one more lap. It prob takes most at least :15 to shower and hit the exit doors.
Most pools that I have been in post the swim times which means a 6:15-8:00 swim in your case. If they post hours of operation instead then they should probably post the swim as 6:15-7:45 so that people are out of the building by 8:00.
If the pool is not the only offering in the facility then I’d agree. If it’s the only entity in the building, close at 8 means doors lock at 8. Either you locked in or locked out.
TC, I agree with you. 8am means that the pool itself is available to 8am.
My local pool is open 7-9pm for lap swimming in the winter. If I’m swimming there, I try to finish up by about 8:50pm so that they can go home, but that’s because I’m a nice guy and they probably have homework to do. They don’t make people leave the pool until 9pm.
If the pool is not the only offering in the facility then I’d agree. If it’s the only entity in the building, close at 8 means doors lock at 8. Either you locked in or locked out.
Having worked at and swam in lots of pools, I think this is the correct answer.
If laps are, say, 6-8, and aerobics start at 8, I’d guess you can swim until exactly 8. If everything is done at 8 that’s when the staff is done getting paid, so you need to be out and gone by 8.
Basically, it depends on lots of things, and it’s best to ask if in doubt so you don’t end up frustrated. Pools are generally really bad about specifying.
Funny thing happened to me a couple of months ago. I joined a new LA Fitness and went swimming on a Sunday evening. I thought the club was open till 9 so I got there about 8 for a 45 minute swim. I was the only one in the pool. Well about 8:45 I see a club employee and they’re motioning for me to get out of the pool. So I finished up and went to take a shower. Completed my shower. It was about 8:58. I walked out of the locker room and no one is there. The building was completly empty. Not even any cleaning people. I walked out and made sure the doors were locked behind me. Now I go at 7:45 on a Sunday evening.
I have worked as a lifeguard in the past. The pool closes at the lifeguards opinion of how much time it will take to clear out. I once closed the pool ten minutes early due to a very large group of people being there. The rule was the deck needed to be cleared by the time we closed. Under normal circumstances a few minutes late is no big deal for a few people but for as many as were there it needed to be cleared. I ended up getting yelled at by one mom who showed up just 5 minutes earlier. I was manager at the time so I had to take full force, what it came down to was me saying what I say goes and I am sorry for the inconvenience but I am not going to open the pool for five more minutes. Moral of the story is don’t argue with lifeguards because they have authority and it will not get you anywhere.