Posted by Marc Sheridan on Sun, Jun 14, 2009 @ 01:02 PM
Lap Pools and Swim Spas
By Marcus Sheridan, www.PoolSchool.us
Because the exercises of swimming and water aerobics have become so popular in the past 20 years, ‘Lap' swimming pools have also experienced exceptional growth. And with the advances of technology, no longer does a lap pool need be a 10'x50' swimming area. In fact, lap pools can now be some of the smallest pools in the industry. Let take a closer look at some of the various lap pools available on the market today.
Traditional
The original lap pool was usually an inground pool that was longer than 40' and about 10' wide with a uniform depth of about 4'. Although such pools are great for the ‘swimming purist', they are often not ideal for most consumers in terms of cost, year round usability, functionality, and area required for installation.
‘Endless' Pools
This phrase stems from one of the original ‘swim-in-place' pool companies, Endless Pools (http://www.endlesspools.com/) .Essentially, this type of lap pool looks like a very large hot tub(it usually sits on top of the ground) but on one end it has an intense set of jets that allows one to swim against its current. Depending on the user, endless style pools have varying speeds and intensities to customize to the needs of the individual swimmer. Although these types of lap pools can be a very effective way of distance swimming, their disadvantages are: cost (most run 20-30k), cost to keep heated during the colder months (if unit is outside), cost to repair unit if components break down, and swimming difficulty against a current.
More and more companies are coming out with their own version of the endless pool by creating their own ‘Swim Spa'. Pool and Spa Living magazine explains the different types of swim spas:
"
- Jet propulsion systems are the most common. Also known as "pressure-driven" systems, they are typically powered with 4-horsepower motors and feature one or more jets and adjustable current speeds up to 8 mph. Some jets can be adjusted for current direction, allowing swimmers to customize their own workouts.
- Paddlewheel systems create an adjustable-speed current powered by a rotating paddlewheel at one end of the swim spa. The wheel creates a smooth current across the entire width of the spa, moving in a laminar (or sheet-like, layered) flow. The current can flow as deep as 2 feet, and water is circulated under the swim current back to the paddlewheel.
• Propeller-powered systems create a smooth, adjustable-speed current like that of a paddlewheel system, but with the smaller current width of a jet system. A propeller at the front of the spa pushes water through a grate in the spa wall, where the current travels toward another grate on the rear wall. Water often travels back to the propeller through recessed channels, sometimes concealed in bench seats or beyond the spa's side walls."
A few different manufacturers that have come out with their own swim spa are: Master Spas, SwimEx, Dimension One Spas, and Hawkeye Spas.
Tether Systems
One of the newest forms of an endless-style pool can be found with tether systems. Essentially, the system attaches a tether band to the swimmer who then swims against his/her own resistance. (See the following link to better visualize: http://superswimpro.com/) Although these systems may seem primitive, they are extremely effective and have major benefits. For example, as the installer of fiberglass pools, the majority of my customers that are serious about lap swimming us the Super Swim Pro because it's extremely cost effective, makes for a great workout and can be used on any sized pool. These systems can be retrofitted on any pool, including above ground pools, which is why I expect their popularity to explode in the near future as more and more lap swimmers become aware of their availability. The other big benefit of tether systems is the fact that because they no mechanical components, they really don't ever break down (that is until the tether band goes bad). Therefore, their long term cost is much, much less than a jetted system.
As you can see, lap pool consumers now have many options to fit their swimming needs. So whether you choose traditional, endless, or tether for your lap pool; I'm sure you'll benefit greatly from these technology advances and the benefits of aqua exercise and therapy.
To learn more about swimming pools, visit: http://www.poolschool.us/
Posted by Marc Sheridan on Wed, Mar 04, 2009 @ 05:59 PM
Swimming History: Unusual Facts and Figures
By Marcus Sheridan
- The skill of swimming has been known since prehistoric times. Drawings from the Stone Age were found in the "Cave of Swimmers" in the southwestern part of Egypt. Written references date from 2000 BC, including Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Bible, Beowulf, and other sagas.
- The Greeks did not include swimming in the ancient Olympic Games, but did practice the sport, often building swimming pools as part of their baths.
- One common insult in Greece was to say about somebody that he or she neither knew how to run nor swim.
- In Japan, swimming was one of the noble skills of the Samurai.
- Swimming was initially one of the seven agilities of knights during the Middle Ages, including swimming with armor (yikes!)
- In 1538, Nikolaus Wynmann, a German professor of languages, wrote the first swimming book, A Dialogue on the Art of Swimming.
- The most passionate nation in the world for their swimming is Australia. In fact, walk down any beach in Australia or stroll into any shop and you can easily strike up a conversation about the sport, its stars, even its politics - just as one would do in England over soccer(football) or in American over American football.
- Many historians believe the "crawl" stroke was actually first done by the American Indians, and later copied by the colonists.
- The first heated pools started showing up in 1930 -The first topless male swimsuits were worn in the US in 1935
- The first bikini was invented in Paris (what a surprise) in 1946
- Mark Spitz won seven Olympic Gold Medals at the Olympics in 1972, raising greatly the popularity of the sport.
- From 1989-2001 Baywatch airs on TV (Of course I never watched this show, I just heard about it from friends)
- During the 80s and 90s, fiberglass pools start to gain in popularity, exploding by the year 2005
- Currently there are over 10 million swimming pools world wide.
- Out of this 10 million, over 800(above grounds and ingrounds combined) were built by River Pools and Spas