Posted by Playing the daily lottery
I live in Montgomery County, MD where rules, generally speaking, are rather strict. There are speed cameras on nearly every major road. There’s a long list of guidelines about what you can/cannot recycle or throw out in the weekly trash pickup. Unlike most of the country, grocery stores cannot sell alcohol. If there’s something that can be regulated, Maryland finds a way.
So it goes with pool access during COVID times.
I don’t belong to any gyms or country clubs, so when it comes to getting my swim workouts in, my only options at present are the Montgomery County-run pools. Many of them have competition high dive platforms and indoor inner tube slides for recreation. It’s magnificent. The pools are quite good. Being that they are such good facilities, they are also quite popular. And currently, access is restricted.
Even though I am a Montgomery County resident and have purchased a year-long pool pass, I cannot show up to the one of facilities when I feel like it; I need to sign up through an online reservation system in advance. There are 45min time slots and limits to the number of people who can claim spots, typically one person per lane. Slots are released about a week in advance at midnight and they go fast. My morning alarm is 5am to fit in my training before the rest of the day starts; staying up to grab a slot means compromising on sleep and my next day’s workout.
Regulation goes both ways though. Fortunately for me, there is a penalty for repeat no-shows—loss of access to the reservation system—so there’s an incentive for folks to cancel when they can’t attend. If I’m lucky, there’s a morning slot that opens up just beforehand.
So I play the daily lottery to win a ticket for a lane and, every now and then, I get to swim. All this to say I’m grateful for being able to play at triathlon now more than ever.
Out and Back 