OREGON
- Bend
Juniper Aquatic Center
SGOL Link
A
Two pools: 25 yard indoor and fifty meter
outdoor. It's cheap- about two bucks. All the typical accoutrements and a jacuzzi.
The mirrors in the locker rooms make
you look fat.
Love this pool. However, Oregon is a freaky
state (Exhibit A: lots of women sporting a full head of armpit hair) and the
swimmers are no exception. They swim down the left side of the pool and trust
me, you will forget this. Circle swimming puts you on a constant alert. Every
flip means you have to realign yourself or crash head-on into a local. I try
to swim when I can get my own lane.
- Grants
Pass
YMCA
SGOL Link
A
25 yards, six lanes, indoors, pace
clocks, lane ropes kickboards, pull buoys.
Grants Pass. Go, and you'll see
what I mean.
Well, I prepared for the worst and I got
the surprise of my life. After a rash of overheated Y pools in the Midwest,
this slice of heaven in southwest Oregon gave me the hippy-happies. It's shaped
like a two pronged fork. The left prong is for water aerobics and the right
prong is for lap swim. The clocks are high enough to be seen at both ends
and the water is crisp and cool, like I like it, baby! Deep throat gutters
swallow every wave and the water feels like it's been worked out in.
It sloshes around your head like it's seen some serious training by
the swim team. Wow.
- Roseburg
Douglas
County YMCA
SGOL Link
A
25 yard indoor pool, jacuzzi,
funky green Dolphin kickboards, six lanes (all roped), two paceclocks.
Roseburg gives me the creepy crawlies.
This Y is the only reason (besides an
empty gas tank) to stop in Roseburg. It has two pools, one cold for the lap
swimmmers and one warm for the aerobics ladies. Like Grants Pass, the water
feels swimmed in and it's cold enough to make even the likes of me kick up
the intervals.
- Portland
Metropolitan
Learning Center
SGOL Link
D
Paceclock, and the pool has
water in it.
Sit down.
For variety's sake, I like to review as
many non Y pools as possible. The MLC is a city pool in the basement of a
school built in 1915. Bad vibes already. How many fifty meter pools were around
during the Wilson administration?
So I walked in, and the
lifeguard looked up from her Spin magazine and sneered, "how did YOU get in
here," like she both knew and hated me. I broke down the concept of the door
by explaining that when I pulled on the shiny knob protruding from that large
wooden panel, a hole opened up in the wall and I walked through it.
She rolled her eyes and
returned to Spin.
Hmmm. What can I say about
a 3 lane, twenty yard pool besides "thanks but no thanks". Go to...
- Metro
YMCA
SGOL Link
B+
Paceclock, 25 meters, indoors, kickboards,
buoys, and it's six lanes across.
The water is a tad warm.
A 25 meter Y pool! The twenty first century
has arrived at the Young Men's Christian Association. There are always a few
lap lanes open, but if you get stuck swimming while the water aerobics ladies
are bobbing, bring your dramomine. You'll be a-bouncing. There is a master's
team that works out early in the morning, before God wakes up and right around
the time I fall asleep.
If you have a weak stomach,
skip this paragraph. You're still here? Ok, I warned you. The biggest grossout
of my year happened when I had to split a lane with a weirdo guy who had a
most disgusting green globule hanging from his nose. He was
totally unaware of it AND trying to engage me in conversation. Then he wiped
his nose and it was gone...floating somewhere in our lane. Pray, dear reader,
pray for chlorine.
- Dishman
Pool
SGOL Link
B+
25 yard pool, lane ropes, clocks,
indoors, equipment, cheap- two bucks, I think.
You probably have to circle swim.
