'AITA for telling some kids to behave at the pool?' 'Nobody apologized.'

"AITA for telling some kids to behave at the pool?"

Yesterday I went to the community pool. The shallow end is roped off for children. The deep end is usually used for lane swimming (but they don't have actual lane ropes). Yesterday, there were a ton of children in the shallow part, some of them over the rope.

I started lap-swimming, but a mom started teaching one of her teen to swim in the deep end and going perpendicular to me. So I adjusted course and started going in their direction to avoid collision. Another child, one of hers based on their interactions, started swimming in a box shape in the middle deep end instead of doing laps, which I found annoying but just avoided her.

Then a father threw a ball into the deep end from the shallow part and started chasing after it with his kid, nearly crashing into me. I've been going back and forth in a very predictable trajectory.

Once that happened, the game of Marco Polo from the shallow ended started bleeding out and some older kids started playing out in the deep end. Soon the deep end is a mess with kids and parents playing around and it's getting hard to swim laps.

I pulled to the edge of the pool to take a breather and assess the situation, then some of the kids started jumping in the water right next to my head. The lifeguards are of course teenagers too, and were joking and playing around with the kids and laughing at the jumping instead of stopping it.

I finally got really fed up and loudly told the lifeguard to do his job and tell the kids not to jump in the pool, especially so close to other people. The parents stopped to see what's going on, and I told them to watch their children and teach them to respect other people's space.

The mom started going off about how it's a community pool, and who the f do I think I am to tell them where to go, blah blah. I didn't want to start anything so I just said, "Look I'm just saying, some common courtesy would be good for everyone's safety. I'm not interested in an argument, I said what needed to be said." and swam off.

Nobody apologized. Everyone just ignored me and kept on as they were. I tried doing more laps, but ended up feeling uncomfortable and went home. Got weird looks on the way out. Am I in the wrong here and have no chill? Or am I justified and these people have no manners?

EDIT:

I come every week day, and usually kids stay in the shallow end and adults swim laps in the deeper end, this is the first time I've seen it get this chaotic. There are no other affordable pool options around. I pay a membership for this pool, but it's cheap at $35 a season. The only other options within a 20 minute drive are in luxury hotels and yacht clubs that charge hundreds a month.

Here's what people had to say to OP:

Usrname52 said:

YTA. What do you mean by "open for lane swimming." Yea, if there is room, you can swim back and forth, but if there are no lanes, it isn't made for lane swimming. It's made for playing and enjoying yourself.

For kids and adults to share space and enjoy the water. Someone swimming around in circles in a smaller area, is much less disruptive than someone swimming in a "predictable trajectory" that cuts through things, making it hard to play.

The lifeguards were doing their jobs. Their jobs aren't to stop kids from playing so someone can treat a community pool like their own private lap pool. Go join a gym with a pool.

jdmac87 said:

I’m going to go with YTA, because this sounds like it was a public swim time, not a lap swim time. If the lane ropes weren’t in place, and the shallow and deep ends were split, that sounds like standard public swim marking at every pool I’ve been to - it’s to mark out shallow and deep, not lane swim vs public swim.

Every pool I’ve ever lane swam at (probably around 10 at this point) does not divide the shallow and deep end for lane swimming, they mark out lanes that go from shallow end to deep end. If you want to try and lane swim at public swim time, keep your head up, swim around others, and prepare to get splashed and fend off the odd rubber ball that goes astray.

anglflw said:

So the deep end isn't actually reserved for lane swimming? YTA. The entire pool is for everybody.

Frosty-Business-6042 said:

ESH. The pool wasn't marked with lanes, so expecting ppl to act as tho it were is a bit presumptuous of you. But, you were there first, and using a set area in a predictable pattern. Expecting that they could push you out and take over was presumptuous of them.

The real TA is pool management. "I want to get some exercise" and "I'd like to play in the water bc it's hot out" are both totally valid ways to use a community pool. There should be rules or separate times set up to allow for both uses w out chaos.

AcrossTheUniverse82 said:

YTA. It’s a shared pool. Kids have the right to cool off and have fun during the summer. Yes they could be more mindful but they’re kids having fun and learning to swim. You sound like you think people should revolve around you, but life isn’t like that. Join another pool geared towards adults and lap swimming.

Evening_Lead3036 said:

ESH. Yes, people should be more considerate of others. Yes, management at that pool sucks for not anticipating the situation you described and ensuring it doesn't happen. I also understand that it's frustrating to have so many people in the pool when you're trying to do laps, but...

(1) it's a community pool; (2) there were no lanes; and (3) when there are that many people in the water doing various things, maybe it isn't the best time to do laps. I've been in that situation and I've had to cut my pool time short a few times. It's annoying, but you get what you pay for.

ScroochDown said:

YTA. Unless there are lane ropes, it's not a lane swimming area. You can use it for lane swimming, certainly, but others free swimming are NOT misbehaving. You're not in charge of the pool, so quit acting like the Queen of it.