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Swimming
January 21, 2008
Swim instruction: Who's the best?
This is the second part in a review of Austin-area swim instruction, and includes info on facilities and quality of instruction. In terms of a final assessment, one location stands out in several ways — although I was able to find positive attributes at each facility (well, mostly). Your own personal preference may depend on where you live in Austin, what else you like to do besides swim, and how into the whole swim team experience you are.
Click here to read the first part of this review.
Austin YMCA
I spoke to Sarah Kreisner, the aquatics instructor at the Town Lake Branch of the YMCA. She is very friendly and helpful, much like the rest of the staff at the Y, and the facility is large and well-maintained. There is a smaller, shallower pool for children’s lessons. The indoor lap pool is heated to 72-82 degrees, and the instructional pool is kept a good 10 degrees warmer. The instructors range from a 72-year-old swimmer who is, I am assured, an excellent teacher and has provided swim instruction for many years, to 19-year-old swim team alum.
As it happens, it is possible to participate in swimming instruction, from youth classes all the way up to their “YBATS” Masters Swim Team without being a member of the Y, although the per-session cost is higher for non-members. One additional downside to not being a member is that the facility cannot be used for practice outside of the scheduled lesson.
I personally don’t see much point in taking lessons at the Y without joining up, as one of the main advantages the Y has over other local swim instruction is flexibility in location and activity. If you are already a member of the Y, or want to take advantages of the many programs the Y has to offer, I see no reason to pursue one’s triathlon or masters swim instruction anywhere else.
With 7 other sites besides Town Lake (instruction does vary from location to location), the Austin YMCA wins the “convenience of location” category.
Nitro Swimming
When I walked into Nitro Swimming, I thought I had died and gone to aquatic heaven. This, coming from a native Atlantic Ocean swimmer who generally has little patience for treated, heated pools and finds Barton Springs positively balmy. Stretched before me in the 28,000-square-foot facility are 23 lanes of 25-yard laps, and one multi-lane instructional pool. Many lanes are filled with slickly moving swimmers. Bleachers surround the pool, and the bleachers, too, are filled with parents and siblings shouting encouragement. Several of Nitro Swimming’s seven full-time coaches (teaching staff expands to 40 in the summer) wander around the enormous pool. Many of the instructors are NCAA All-Americans, and all conform to a teaching manual developed by Coach Mike Koleber.
These people are intense about their swim instruction. When I speak with Coach Mike, it is clear he is passionate about his job. He talks about providing encouragement regardless of ability level and seems eager to accommodate every possible need; from providing information to moms and potential instructors, to removing lane dividers from the entire pool for his triathlon class, to providing introductory swims to potential students. His staff is all likewise professional and exceptionally friendly.
Frankly, except for us North Austinites, Nitro Swimming won’t win any awards for convenience of location, although Coach Mike enthusiastically reports that he coaches swimmers from Dripping Springs to Buda to Temple (one family recently moved from Waco to be closer to Nitro Swimming, which may seem a little, um, insane — but now that I’ve seen Nitro, I can understand). Maybe someday Coach Mike will open additional branches. Still, in terms of pretty much everything else, including cost-to-value ratio (all adult swim classes include access to the small-but-high-quality fitness area); quality of instruction, and amazing support, Nitro Swimming is the fins-down winner.
Tom’s Dive and Swim
Not everyone who wants swim instruction — be they adults or kidlets — want the frenzy of a Y or Nitro Swimming. The first thing one notices about the indoor, heated pool at Tom’s Dive and Swim is that it is small. But instruction is offered on a private basis only for adults, with two persons maximum in a class; and privately as well as in very small classes for children. The pool is absolutely sufficient for as many students as it is likely to contain at any given time. Still, like the non-member YMCA option, there’s no use of the pool outside of scheduled lessons. Nikki Allen is the swim coordinator for a staff of three qualified, friendly instructors, and private lessons for adults are held Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The atmosphere at Tom’s is definitely relaxing, and is obviously geared towards SCUBA diving. My recommendation? Tom’s Dive and Swim is a good option for Central Austin swimmers who don’t want distraction, spectators or hubbub, and don’t mind spending the dosh on private lessons. The children’s group classes are a much better value.
West Austin Athletic Club
There are things I like about the West Austin Athletic Club. The chance to swim in an outdoor, heated pool, while wearing my diamond-encrusted bathing cap and contemplating my stock portfolio, for instance. Oh, I kid. But membership is darn expensive, and even the non-member swim cards are comparatively pricey, and this dulls my appreciation for the very beautiful facility.
The pools are maintained during the winter at 80-82 degrees. The temperature of the air surrounding the pools tends to fluctuate. The facility includes an eight-lane, 25-yard pool, a four-lane, 50-meter pool and six lanes in WAAC’s island pool (25 yards). The masters/triathlete program is directed by Andy Williams, and four additional highly qualified coaches teach children and high school students.
I would recommend WAAC to Austinites who have an aversion to the hoi-polloi.
January 9, 2008
It's never too late to learn how to swim ...
Wanting to buff up your stroke? Prepare for the next tri? Tired of blow-drying your mermaid tail to walk among the bipeds? Here’s the first of a two-part review of available options for adult swim classes in and around Austin. The first part will focus on price and location, while the second will provide info on facilities and quality of instruction, and will award highest marks for each category. Read on, Aqua Men and Women!
Austin YMCA
We all know what the Village People said, but is it also fun to swim at the Y? Swim classes range from 6-month-old humans (not that you would know it from all the “Shrimp” and “Guppy” class designations) to 1,188-month-old humans. A masters class is available with “structured, supervised swim workouts and stroke technique analysis” and average workouts of 3,000-4,200 yards. Sessions run monthly, with instruction provided three times a week, and online registration is available for specific classes and locations.
Price: This is complicated. First, there’s a one-time joining fee: $50 currently, $150 normally. Membership is $55 per month for individuals, $75 month for families (although this provides access to all six Austin locations, plus Buda and Pflugerville). The adult masters class adds an extra $20 per month to the bill. For an individual, the cost comes out to $79 each month (including the joining fee: if you are already a member, $75/month), and for a family it’s $99 per month.
Location: If you live in or near Austin, it is easy to get to a YMCA. Eight locations from Pflugerville to Buda mean you can pop in for a swim on your way to the Whole Foods, or fit one in after a business meeting across town.
Nitro Swimming
Ever see the crazy finned N plastered on car windows, especially north of the “hip” line, and wonder what the sticker stands for? Those folks partake in the swim programs at Nitro Swimming, a “USA Swimming program with practice groups ranging from the very beginner level swimmer up through the national level and beyond”. Classes are offered at multiple times a week, and scheduling is flexible.
Price: Adult fitness, triathlon, and masters classes all cost $75 per month and provide access to the Nitro Swimming fitness area.
Location: Way up north. Great if you live in Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Round Rock, or even North Austin. Not so great if you live in Hyde Park, East Austin or South Congress.
Tom’s Dive and Swim
Swim classes at Tom’s are primarily geared to youngsters, but private classes are offered to adults. This is not necessarily a bad thing: many of us do have kids, and the possibility of scheduling some synchronicity between their classes and yours is quite appealing.
Price: Private lessons are $40 per half-hour, $55 for a semi-private half-hour (maximum of two students). What this would be monthly is largely up to you, but even just limiting to a class a week, the cost is $160 per month for a single individual, and $110 per person per month if you schedule your class with a friend.
Location: One facility, centrally located.
West Austin Athletic Club
Offers an adult masters/triathlon class to members in an outdoor pool only. Classes are available five times a week.
Price: For an individual, full membership will set you back a $275 one-time “initiation” fee and $50 per month thereafter. (For a family: the one-time fee is $575 plus $80 per month). Although this seems steep, it averages to $73 per month for individuals and $128 per month for families. I’m sure there are a number of people in Austin, especially in Westlake, who have a spare $300 to put up front, but I ain’t one of them. Much less expensive six-month memberships and non-peak lap cards are available from November to April, but remember folks, WAAC has outdoor pools only. Looks like us steerage passengers have to freeze.
Location: Good for the Southies.
