Arrival and Check-in

The next Saturday morning I drove through the coastal mountains and arrived at noon. The outdoor centre was right next to a lake, with great views over the mountains and the distant sea.

Julie, the receptionist, showed me to my room where I met my room mate Caspian, a cute 19 year old student from my university. We've been friends for some time since he joined our swim team.

Our First Swim

"Let's go for a swim!" Caspian said with a smile.

We both put on our fullbody speed suits, grabbed a towel and headed for the pool.

We asked Julie if we could use the pool and what the dress code was. She said we could wear anything as long as it is clean and we wear it in the shower first, especially after outdoor activities. The idea that pool rules require you to take a shower in all your clothes before entering the pool was cool.

We went into the showers to clean up and rinse our swimsuits. Then we dove into the pool and swam a few lengths.

It was amazing how fast we could go in our full body swimsuits and what freedom of movement they provide. We played around for a while, doing all sorts of aquabatics. Great fun.

Meeting the Lifeguard

Then we climbed out and talked to Alex, the lifeguard. He showed us the facilities of the pool and how to use them. That was good fun as we jumped in and out of the pool.

Then we sat down by the poolside with Alex, who was dressed in his lifeguard uniform, yellow T-shirt and hoodie with red sweat pants, socks and canvas shoes.

"You guys look hot in those wet lycra suits." Alex said with a wink.

"Yes," replied Caspian, "we're sexy and we know it."

"But seriously," continued Alex, "these suits make a good base layer for more clothes when you do your resistance training. Let me show you something."

First Swim in Clothes

Sean took over from Alex as lifeguard as we went to the drying room next to the pool hall. It was full of clothes on hangers, drying in the surplus heat from the pool heaters. There were hoodies and jogging pants, jeans, anoraks, overalls and ponchos.

"The clothes along the back wall belong to our visitors, so don't touch them," Alex said, "but all the ones in the front you can wear in the pool whenever you like. Go ahead, put some on."

Wow, we were totally stoked. Caspian picked nylon canoeing pants and a yellow anorak. I put on blue jogging pants and a dark blue hoodie which got a bit damp from the wet swimsuit I wore underneath.

"These fit alright," I said, "now what?"

"Now you put your hoods up and jump into the pool to swim some lengths fully clothed." Alex knew what was awaiting us.

We stepped to the pool edge, looked at each other for a moment, and then jumped into the pool. Alex also jumped in, still wearing his full uniform. I was impressed.

"Do you enjoy swimming in your uniform?" I asked Alex.

"Yes, I do. The management prefers staff who like swimming in clothes, as they are more ready to assist the guests in the water."

"How often do you have to go into the water with all your clothes on?" Caspain asked.

Alex smiled: "About 3 to 5 times a day. I'm loving it."

Swimming in these clothes was hard work, but great fun. Could there be more? We swam a few lengths, then Alex climbed out and asked us to follow him to the drying room.

Swimming in Ponchos

"We use the 3 layer approach to keep warm," he explained, "you'll learn about it later. For now have a swim in ponchos. See how far you get."

Alex kept his jogging suit on underneath his yellow poncho. We took off the heavy clothes and put on thin nylon ponchos over our fullbody swim suits. Looking good we all headed back to the pool.

Alex went in first at the shallow end, showing us how to control the poncho when you're chest deep in the water.

Then Caspian and I waded into the pool. It was fairly easy to swim in a poncho because it just hugs your body as you move forward.

We played around until Alex was needed back on pool side. He took his poncho off and hung it up to dry. Then he got back on the high chair in his dripping wet jogging suit.

"That's how you keep cool in the hot pool hall, right?" I asked and he nodded with a smile.

"Remember the party tonight," Alex said with a wink as we left, "dress to impress, but in comfy clothes. There will be many surprises."