Downtown Seattle YMCA

31 October 2023 – Halloween morning, and it was a quick swim before heading off to Las Vegas for UFI Global Congress.

I set out early – though after hitting snooze for an extra hour, I was already tight on time. The YMCA is only four blocks up from the Hilton 1000 hotel where I was staying, but every one of those blocks is a steep incline! It was still dark, cold, and foggy over the Puget Sound – the perfect moody Seattle morning.

The Downtown Seattle YMCA is in a very old building – definitely worth checking out its history. Inside, the reception staff were super friendly and helpful. I was about to register for what felt like the third time this week, only to realise they were using my full name, Philip Paul Summers, from my driving licence. Mystery solved! They were kind enough to give me a free visitor pass – for the second day in a row.

The pool setup is pretty unique. The changing rooms are on the fourth floor, so you take the lift up to get changed, then another dedicated lift down to the basement for the pool. It’s a small, 3-lane, L-shaped pool squeezed into a tight space. But it’s brightly lit, which gives it a good vibe despite the tight quarters.

I grabbed the medium lane against the wall and almost bumped my head on the sloping ceiling while making my way to the lane end – the pool deck there is only about two feet wide! I was just about to jump in when I realised the pool looked longer than the usual US 25-yard pools. A quick check on the Worldwide Pool Directory confirmed it’s actually 25 metres. I updated my watch and got going.

Initially, I was feeling too tired to push hard – my original plan was a minimal 1km swim, but then I realised this was pool 150! So, I compromised with a 1.5km swim. My pace felt slow, and I’m still not convinced this pool is exactly 25m – either it’s longer than expected, or I was just feeling the early start and travel fatigue!