Action Line #90715 -- Swim Lane

  • Published
  • 39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey --  Complaint: 

I am writing in regards to the pool setup on the weekends. I have already tried using the ICE system and never received an answer back to my concerns. During the week, Tue-Fri after lap swim is complete, the pool staff leaves one lane open on the south side of the pool for laps. This lane is out of the way of the diving board and slide. So my question is why do they leave the lane open during the week but not during the weekend?

I do not have a problem paying $2.50 if I cannot make it to the allocated lap swim times as long as there is a lane to swim in. There are many individuals out there training for certain events/careers, wanting to go into SERE or Spec Ops. I have asked the staff at the pool about this and they said it is not their decision and to bring it to ODR. That is why I tried using the ICE system first but did not receive anything back, even though I asked for a reply. With the pool only being open Tue-Fri for lap swim, and having mandatory squadron PT on Wednesday mornings, that only leaves three mornings for myself to swim. But I am not on a regular shift, I am on Panama shifts. So that limits my days to two days a week. To become a better, faster swimmer and gain more endurance, two days is not enough. Then there are other individuals who have to be in at 6:30 or 7 a.m., so when are they suppose to swim?

Can we leave one lane open on the weekends for people to swim laps if they so desire? I still swim on the weekends but have to swim the width of the pool and it seems that people don't really pay attention since there is no lane rope. If there is nobody swimming in the lane then sure people can "play" in the lane but it would be nice to have the option to get a good workout in on the weekends at the pool. I hope I don't get the answer back of "the weekends are busier." During the week the CDC/Youth Center brings can bring 40+ kids to swim and the lap lane seems to stay open. That is the busiest time I see the pool and it's during the middle of the week.

Thanks again for taking this into consideration. I am not speaking only on my behalf as I have heard other people voice their opinion and nothing has been done.

Response: 

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to address your concern about lap swim; especially as it relates to the weekend program line up. As I am sure you know from being a frequent customer, weekends are the busiest time for the pool. We typically have over 200 visitors every Saturday and Sunday, excluding private parties. By enclosing the lane for lap swim during our busiest time, and considerable portion of the pool and half the entry/exits ladders would be inaccessible to our weekend swimmers. This in itself could pose a problem with large numbers of folks in the pool.

Additionally, by enclosing the lane, the ladder leading out of water by the large diving board would be blocked. Those divers would have to exit the pool by swimming directly in front of the small board; thus creating an unnecessary safety hazard.

We have gone to great lengths, and several iterations, to try and accommodate all the requests to utilize the pool for various activities. In fact, we extended lap swim during the lunch time hour to accommodate the requests of our lap swimmers earlier this season. We are limited by time, space and more importantly funding. We applaud you for your efforts to stay in shape and improve your lap swim time. We hope to continue to see you there Tuesday - Friday!

One last thing, FSS management takes pride in responding to ICE comment cards within 24 hours of receipt when a contact name and phone number is submitted. Unfortunately, we did not receive contact information for this particular inquiry. If you ever have any questions about the pool I encourage you to contact management at Outdoor Recreation at 676-6044. I have found them to be very responsive in doing everything they can to meet the communities requests.