# Safety Breaks at the pool



## Teenytoona

My DH is from the west and since we moved back here, to Ohio, he is greatly amused at the concept of safety breaks. My DSD also was amused at this this summer. I wanted to know if your local pools do safety breaks, and if you don't mind giving your location, I wonder if it's just a east or midwestern thing... Also are they done in other countries?


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## philomom

Adult swim... all kids out of the pool. It gives the lifeguards a chance to pee and put on more sunscreen.


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## Buzzer Beater

Not done in Montana... sounds like a good idea tho.


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## ASusan

Quote:


Originally Posted by *philomom* 
Adult swim... all kids out of the pool. It gives the lifeguards a chance to pee and put on more sunscreen.

That's what they do here. We're in OH. I'm from NY, and we never did that when I was a lifeguard (20 years ago







).


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## rjruiz_415

I have only been to two public pools, one in CA, and one in Texas. They both had these breaks.


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## lifeguard

I don't really know what you mean by safety breaks but when I was working at pools we would sometimes work mock situations into the public swims. Sometimes that meant clearing everyone out of the pool momentarily so the guards could practice their skills (including crowd control).


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## JollyGG

I used to lifeguard. The break has several functions.

1. It gives the lifeguards a break to jump in and cool off, get a drink, put more sunscreen on or whatever.

2. With lots of people in the water it is possible for someone to have gone under and not be seen (shouldn't ever happen) but it's best to clear everyone out upon occasion and check that no ones under water. Though I will say that proper guard placement, enforced capacities, and good lifeguards should make sure that someone under water is never discovered in this manner.

3. Often little kids will be so busy playing that they don't realize how tired they are. It forces them out of the pool for a brief break

4. It allows the guards to check for floaters (poop) in the pool.

5. It gives the pool equipment and filters a chance to work a little more effectively for a few minutes. Lots of dirt, sweat, and lots of body making the obstructing water flow patterns makes for a dirty pool.

6. It increases revenues for snack bars.

I've seen them in Wyoming and in South Dakota.


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## broodymama

I remember them at the pool I went to in NC when I was a teen. I don't remember what ages it included, maybe 12 and under? 16 and under?


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## Honey693

We don't have them at our pool in Iowa, but when I was little the pool in IL I went to had them.


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## queenjane

Yes, our local pool has these breaks. I think they just make kids get out of the pool? for fifteen minutes. I'm in MI.


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## claddaghmom

Yes our pool does breaks. They have enough lifeguards for rounds so it's not a lifeguard break. They do it to check the pool (and probably for concession $$ haha).


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## Thalia

When I was a guard in AZ, we safety drills infrequently (maybe once a week or even less). But a drill was a full-on re-enactment of an actual emergency. One of the guards would put on a t-shirt or white swim cap and try to find a spot that wasn't being guarded as carefully (such as right under the guard chair, or behind it). Or they would wait until a guard was preoccupied with talking to a couple of unruly kids. Then, as soon as one of the guards saw the "victim" they would blow the whistles and everyone would leap into action just as if it were a real emergency. This served several purposes:

1. Keeping the guards on their toes at all times
2. Helping keep the emergency procedures fresh in all the staff minds at all times, like how to get a spinal injury victim out of the water safely
3. Helping the regular pool patrons know what to do in an emergency and to keep calm

We sometimes did a drill if the pool was very very crowded or the kids were very feisty that day, just to calm things down. Inevitably when we did the drill, some people would leave.


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## MonP'titBoudain

Nope we don't do them here (in MO). I've worked as a guard at several pools over the years as well. As a guard and aquatic director my policies were always pretty strict re: pool population. If the bathing load was such that guards felt they couldn't see the bottom of the pool, then management kept some people on the deck and closed the entrance until things cleared a bit. And I always worked for pools large enough to have a rotation so everyone rested 15 minutes of every hour. I'm with the OP's husband on this one, I think it's a little silly (and maybe a good excuse to force folks to the concession stand)!


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## Peony

I'm in CO, years back when I was a kid, the pool in another town did them. It was adult swim for 10 minutes every hour, it was an outdoor pool. The rec center pool in my town is indoors and they don't do them, thank goodness. I wouldn't want to get my children out of the pool every hour for 10 minutes. They rotate the lifeguards every 15 minutes though, I don't remember the pool that had safety breaks doing that.


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## baileyann3

we had them when I lived in new jersey.


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## Sasharna

Huh. I'm a lifelong swimmer and have never even _heard_ of this term before. You learn new things every day I guess!


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## Delta

A little girl in Houston drowned this week during the safety break/adult swim.
























http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...g/6529114.html


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## snoopy5386

yes, adult swim, all kids out of the pool for 15 mins every hour. I hated them as a kid and now I hate them as an adult - all the big kids invade the baby pool area.


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## sebarnes

I'm in Utah and our pool does them every two hours. They also disinfect the pools during this time. We had a big problem with some bacteria a couple of summers back, which is when I think this started.

ETA: This is everyone out of the pool, not an 'adult swim' time.


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## RunnerDuck

There are lots of pools near me. I have only been to one and they did not do an adult swim at all. There is another one much closer that I just heard does adult swim for the first 15 minutes of every hour.

I am in Pittsbugh, PA.


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## confustication

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Buzzer Beater* 
Not done in Montana... sounds like a good idea tho.

We do them over here on the eastern end.









10 minutes every hour, time to slather on sunscreen, let the guards get a drink, pee, jump in the pool, etc, and then the guards change positions.


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## Britishmum

Our pool does adult swim for 15 mins every hour. I love it.

It's a great way for me to schedule our swim time. My kids refer to it as 'how many swims are we staying for?' Even if we're staying for several hours, I like it that the kids have to all get out at the same time, get sunscreened, use the bathroom, get a drink of water, etc.

Now, my dream is of the day that I can take advantage of that adult swim time and get 15 mins exercise myself...... but the day that I can leave my youngest safely for 15 mins seems a long, long way off.......by then I'll be in a zimmer frame.


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## ancoda

I had almost forgot about those. We do not have them here(Portland, Oregon) that I have seen.
We did have them in Texas when I lived there.


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## ashleyhaugh

i grew up in houston, and we had the 15minutes every hour break. some pools were everyone out, and some were adult swim

our new neighborhood pool opened this summer, and we've been going a few times a week for a few hours, and ive been there for one break. caused an absolute meltdown for my 21month old- we had just got there, and he had just walked in the pool when i had to take him out.

i dont know why they did it that particular time. there are always tons of lifeguards there, enough that a bunch of them hang around in the shade chatting, and at that time i think there were only 2 other families in the pool. they didnt do any cleaning or anything either.


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## calpurnia

so a safety break is either when everyone has to get out of the pool, or all the children have to get out of the pool, for 10-15 mins each hour?

never heard of that! i'm in the uk. you can tell the difference in our climates by the fact i instantly thought of a bunch of blue-lipped, teeth chattering children, shivering on the edge of the pool waiting to be allowed back in!

public pools often have a lap swimmers only area though.


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## rabbitmum

Never heard of it! Sounds like a load of nonsense to me!







I'm in Norway.


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## Twinklefae

Quote:


Originally Posted by *calpurnia* 
so a safety break is either when everyone has to get out of the pool, or all the children have to get out of the pool, for 10-15 mins each hour?

never heard of that! i'm in the uk. you can tell the difference in our climates by the fact i instantly thought of a bunch of blue-lipped, teeth chattering children, shivering on the edge of the pool waiting to be allowed back in!

public pools often have a lap swimmers only area though.

I'm in NS, Canada and I'm thinking the same thing. Never heard of them, and am really glad they don't happen. The poor kids!


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## sarajane

Yeah they do that here. While I am sure they have a logical reason like giving the lifeguards a break and the kids a break from swimming....when I was little my brother always told me that they did it so the adults could swim for awhile without all the noisy kids in the water. LOL Who knows, maybe that was part of it.


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## RunnerDuck

Quote:


Originally Posted by *rabbitmum* 
Never heard of it! Sounds like a load of nonsense to me!







I'm in Norway.

I found it really odd myself when I heard about it. Just seems mean to me. Plus the pool I mentioned (where they do adult swim 15 minutes of every hour) has signs posted that "Lounge chairs are for adults only." So it's like you make all the kids get out of the pool and then they're not allowed to sit anywhere? Mean!!!

I don't know if we will ever go to that pool. I've heard from various people that the water is always freezing. The baby area is too deep for babies to sit. They make you pass a swim test to use the slide, they won't let you just catch your kid if he/she can't pass. The other pool where we have gone, they have warm water, a shallow baby area, and they have a lifeguard at the top and bottom of the slide - the one at the bottom's sole job being to catch kids if they need. Now THAT is service with a smile.










As a safety measure, adult swim makes a lot more sense ... but I don't know, the pool I went to where they didn't have it seemed plenty safe and clean and the lifeguards were plentiful and attentive. I guess it depends partly on staffing.

Looking for people on the bottom of the pool every 15 minutes doesn't seem exactly adequate... and if there's poop floating someone will yell ASAP anyway. (I was at a pool once that got cleared out due to poop. A little girl yelled "Look at that pinecone!" and then the lifeguard yelled "Everyone out!!!" LOL)

eta - as an "adult swim" measure it seems sort of silly to me as so many adults are there with little kids and won't be able to go in alone anyway... if someone is there with no kids it seems like 15 minutes of every hour is just too short a time, like taking 15 minute naps all night long instead of just getting a few hours. Would make more sense to dedicate at least an hour or 2 to adult swim but that's just my opinion. The whole deal seems like one of life's mysteries to me...


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## Teenytoona

Wow, such a wide variety! I grew up with them, so I just expected them. I was shocked when we lived in Vegas and never had to get out.

As far as I know it's officially adults only around here too. Usually every hour for 10 minutes. Probably for "scanning the pool purposes." It's even done in indoor pools, so it's not a sunscreen break. It gives us a bit to take a break, reapply sunscreen, make sure the kids drink something. Most adults I see usually end up getting out of the pool because they're there with the kids anyways, so the pool is mostly empty.


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## Ceili

They do a "kid's break" at our local pool for the last 10 minutes of every hour (we're in Louisiana). The lifeguards rotate stations and duties during this time and do a few training drills. They close all of the pools (there are several) including the baby pool to children (anyone under 15). They also do a lot of reconfiguring of the lanes during this time as our club has lots of different activities going on during the day and they pull lane ropes in and out a lot.

They didn't do this at any of the pools I went to when I was a kid, but our parents pretty much made us get out regularly to rest and reapply sunscreen. I appreciate the pool enforcing this as it's a lot easier to get my ds out of the pool when the lifeguards say so and all the other kids are getting out too.


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## Marsupialmom

in Florissant we don't. But I know a city about 90 south one pool has them the other doesn't. It is about staffing/schedule breaks, giving life gaurds a functional break schedule. It is this weird rotaing spots and who is breaking. The only person/s allowed in the pool is life gaurds. I thought it was odd and asked about it. They said it was either do it this way or not have enough life guards. Their community can not afford another life guard.


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## Spirit Dancer

I have never heard of them up here in Canada and I have lived in a number of places in this country/ I have to say I am glad they do not do that here.


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## Graceoc

Quote:


Originally Posted by *philomom* 
Adult swim... all kids out of the pool. It gives the lifeguards a chance to pee and put on more sunscreen.

Same here. It is every hour, on the hour, for 10 minutes. Makes planning pool trips easy : ) I try to time the leaving for when I know they will have to get out of the pool anyway LOL! The do this at the YMCA and our neighboorhood pool. We are in the South - AL.


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## 34me

I work at a rec center with a pool in CO. We don't do them here or at the outdoor pool. We do have adult only hours M-F from 11:30-1pm at the rec center though. No one under 16 can be anywhere in the facility but the lounge.

However, in the city I live in all the pools do them - 10 minutes every three hours or so (can't remember). Indoor or outdoor it doesn't matter. They are at certain times, we just hardly ever go here


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## uumomma

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ancoda* 
I had almost forgot about those. We do not have them here(Portland, Oregon) that I have seen.
We did have them in Texas when I lived there.

we just did it yesterday @ sellwood pool....


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## just_lily

Never heard of them. But our local pool usually has public swims, family swims, adult only, lane only, swim clubs, and swim lessons scheduled throughout the day. No session is probably longer than two hours, and they clear out everyone in between. So serves the same function I guess.

ETA: I first read this thread as "Safety *Brakes* at the pool" and I was trying to figure out why a pool would need brakes??


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## cocoabean8

Yeppers!!


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## Whistler

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Sasharna* 
Huh. I'm a lifelong swimmer and have never even _heard_ of this term before. You learn new things every day I guess!

This.


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## liliaceae

I'm from FL and I've never heard of this.


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## Polliwog

So THAT'S the reason for Adult Swim times. We were just talking about it the other day at a pool party. There was no one in the pool except for two kids who were having a swim lesson with their instructors. No other adults. The reasons that were posted here make more sense than the reasons we were joking about.


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## columbusmomma

Yep we have them here and are in Ohio. Adult swim time!


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## inkslinger

I'm in Southern California and my town doesn't have them. I have seen it while on vacation with my cousins in Iowa, though.


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## mumm

We have them here in Mass but only at outdoor pools where families may come to spend a few hours.

From when I was a lifeguard I remember that it really cut down on the amount of poop in the pool because it would force little kids to be closer to their parents who would then realized they had a full load and change it. As I guard I liked it but didn't feel like I needed it every hour since we were rotating and got a break every hour anyway. As a pool supervisor I loved it because I knew the place would clear out at the 5:00 and 6:00 breaks and then be quiet until close.







As a parent I don't have a need for it.


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## fruitfulmomma

Yes, I remember them when I was younger. We are in Colorado. We only go swimming maybe once a year now and I think the pool we go to doesn't usually do them unless they are crowded.


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## LizaBear

Ontario, Canada here. Never heard the term before, nor witnessed anything close to what's been described either.

Many public pools do an out time every hour or two - EVERYBODY out, and they do a head count. Takes maybe 5 minutes at most, and everybody gets back in.


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## lafemmedesfemmes

we're in georgia, and the one county pool we frequent does it-- everyone out for 10 minutes every hour. i'm not convinced that it enhances safety, but it's useful to me nonetheless, for planning arrival and departure, for re-applying sunscreen, and whatnot.

christina


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## Bug-a-Boo's Mama

I've never even heard of a safety break before! So that would be a no for us. We're in Florida. At our public pools, the lifeguards rotate every 15-20 minutes though and I am assuming at some point during that rotation they could take a pee break.


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## reece19

I grew up in Houston and we had 10 minute adult swim every hour. It was annoying at the time, but I understand the need for a break for the lifeguards. We didn't have a ton of guards at our pool and they needed a few minutes to rest and grab a drink, test the pool water, etc.


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## Teensy

Our neighborhood pool used to have "adult swim" for about ten minutes each hour, but this year they have not been doing it and I really miss it as a mom of two not-very-good swimmers (my oldest can swim, and touch the bottom in the deeper parts, so he is much less stressful). Making the kids get out of the pool for ten minutes because mom's eyes and neck need a break from the constant watching is much more difficult than having them get out because the lifeguard blew the whistle.







And we used to leave "at the next break" also.

OT - but my "well, I guess it is official, I am a grown-up" moment came during an adult swim. I was pregnant with #1 when the pool whistle blew and the pool emptied of all the children, leaving just me, alone in the pool. I realized that with a college degree, house, mortgage, 401(K), job, husband, and baby-on-the-way, I was definitely an adult. No denying it!







:


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## StoriesInTheSoil

In this area, the public pools and the smaller country clubs (tennis/pool only) have swim breaks/adult swim. The country club that my family goes to does not have them so I wasn't used to them growing up and was TOTALLY confused when I was a preteen at my friend's pool and we had to get our every hour!


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## Belia

Here in IL at the public pools we have them. A couple of years ago they blew the whistle for Adult Swim and I started to get out of the pool when I said "Hey! Wait a minute! I'M AN ADULT!!!" And I kept on swimmin'. It was awesome.

I have to say, though.... reading this thread..... I had NO idea POOP IN THE POOL was such an issue!!!


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## katiesk

never heard of that - i'm in alaska


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## LizaBear

How is that a safety break ?

Who is minding the kids if the adults are all in the pool ? (Yes, I realize that not ALL adults are required to be in the pool, but it seems a recipe for disaster for those families where the parents choose to be in the pool and leave the kids alone).


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## Ceili

Quote:


Originally Posted by *LizaBear* 
How is that a safety break ?

Who is minding the kids if the adults are all in the pool ? (Yes, I realize that not ALL adults are required to be in the pool, but it seems a recipe for disaster for those families where the parents choose to be in the pool and leave the kids alone).

Honestly in the 10 years I've been going to our pool I've never seen this happen. More often than not the parents weren't in the pool to begin with and the ones that were usually get out too. Most of the kids that aren't being rounded up by parents just sit on the edge of the pool and wait for the 10 minutes to go by. The bigger kids used to invade the baby pool during kids break, but now they close that pool too, I think in part as a response to that problem.


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## mommyto3girls

Our pool has a break or ten minutes every hour. All those under age 18 must get out. Adults and ages 3 and under WITH a parent are the only ones allowed in.

I like it for getting the kids to leave also. We will say we are staying for one rest time, or we are leaving after 2 rest times. Its great, the lifeguard is the "bad guy" in the sense that they blew the whistle so there is no arguing about getting out. Also reminds parents to check swim diapers, apply sunscreen, make kids have a drink, etc.

Oh, I am also in Ohio


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## LDSmomma

We have them in GA. They call them Adult Swim. I rarely see any adults get in, though, as most adults present are with children, so they have to watch the kids! I get the safety reasons for the lifeguards. The idea of the filters working better, as pp mentioned, is an interesting idea!


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## Thalia

I posted earlier, but wanted to add:

At the municipal pools in Phoenix in the nineties, all the guards did one 30 minute shift on, and then 30 minutes out of the chair. We had enough guards that we didn't ever have to do 'adult swim' or the kind of safety breaks described here. As I mentioned before, our safety breaks were really emergency drills, for everyone's practice.

Sometimes that 30 minutes of break time was spent resting, sometimes you were doing work, like cleaning the restrooms, or scraping gum off the deck. I can't imagine being on duty all day in 115 degree heat. But I also can't imagine staying truly alert and ready to go without the constant breaks. Good guarding takes concentration!

I also can't imagine having people in the pool without the guards being fully on duty, even if the patrons are all adults. Adults can hit their heads, have seizures or heart attacks, or get tired and slip under quietly, and so you ALWAYS need someone on duty, IMHO.


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## FireWithin

I'm near Boston. We have safety breaks in our pond. I overheard the director make the decision. She said all the little kids were making her nervous. My guess was that they were looking at the water when it was still and gave enough time for all the kids to link back up with there parents. There are no food here and enough lifeguards for natural breaks.


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## Cinder

I've never heard of a safety break, I grew up in michigan and now live in colorado.


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## Evergreen

Both of my pools have had it. It's called "Adult Swim" though. I live in NC. I hated it as a kid, especially an older kid but I love it now that I am a mom.

It's when my kids get fresh sunblock, snack or lunch and hydrated.


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## Right of Passage

I've never heard the term "Saftey Break" I did most of my swimming as a kid in Wyoming and very much remember the the Adult swim. Oh I hated that time!


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## mysticmomma

we were never allowed to stop watching the pool during adult swim. We couldn't even leave the deck if someone was in the fenced area.


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## loraxc

Nope.


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## JollyGG

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mysticmomma* 
we were never allowed to stop watching the pool during adult swim. We couldn't even leave the deck if someone was in the fenced area.

We weren't either. However, we were able to reduce the number watching the deck and the occasional adult in the water. So about 1/2 the guards got a chance to get a break. The other 1/2 would go on the next swim break.

I worked at a pool where our rest in the rotation was watching the deck (so there was no real break).


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## aran

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mumm* 
We have them here in Mass but only at outdoor pools where families may come to spend a few hours.

Weird. Not at my outdoor pool in Mass. Practices must vary pretty widely.


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