What holds 598,000 gallons, contains 15 lanes, and has a capacity of 188 people? (Hint: It not your grandfather pool.)
When team captain Zander Granath 20, a sociology major from Salt Lake City, led 91 swimmers through a rapid-fire rendition of Io Triumphe at Taylor Pool before the Jan. 11 Pomona-Pitzer meet, no one paid any particular attention. It was a pre-meet ritual that had occurred hundreds of times before at Taylor, which turns 90 in November. Things were looking up: The sun was out, with temperatures in the high 50s; the sometimes balky scoreboard and timing system were both working; and parents from as far away as Washington state were in the stands to cheer the Tigers on.
Im really grateful I got to swim in this pool, Granath said between races as towels draped over the arcade iron railing dried in the sun. Weve produced national champions in this pool. It fun to compete against a Chapman or a Pomona and beat them in a meet here. But at the same time Im envious of the first-years who will get to enjoy most of their career in the new pool.
Cindy Dong 22, a media arts and culture major from Sarasota, Fla., manages the swim team Instagram account and has been responding to a constant stream of messages asking when the new pool will be ready. Of course, were all looking forward to it, says last year SCIAC champion in the 200 fly. The first time I saw it filled with water it was like, wow, this is really happening.
Some of the delays were unavoidable, including 40 days lost to rain during construction, says Tom Polansky, associate vice president of facilities. Others were due to the complexities of building a pool on a sloping site and dealing with inspectors from multiple city and county departments. But when the crew you bring in to plaster the pool tells you how beautiful the pool is compared to the other jobs theyve worked on, that helps put it all in perspective, Polansky says.
After winning the women 1,000-meter free at the Pomona-Pitzer meet, Siena Lucido 22, a cognitive science/group language major from San Pedro, ran through a list of some of the ways the new pool will make a difference. Its 15 lanes mean the team will no longer have to practice in shifts. Team divers who now have to practice and compete in Pasadena will be able to come home for the first time in decades.
It looking really nice, Lucido said. Were excited to finally get in.
As a sprinter, Granath said he is excited about the new pool starting blocksthose will be hugeand the faster times that will come with a bigger, deeper pool. We will be able to do so much more, he said, adding wistfully: I really am a little bit jealous.
After De Mandel opens, current plans call for Taylor to be filled in and the arcaded E.S. Field Building that surrounds it to be restored. The resulting Cannon Plaza will be used as a multipurpose event space.
It a lovely pool. It a piece of classic California architecture, said Ann Rendahl of Tacoma, Wash., who has two sons on the swim teamjunior Sam Sachs and first-year Nate Sachs. Im glad theyre not going to tear all of it down, given all the history and meaning it has for the College. But the new pool will be much better.
