Anonymous wrote:So how do these private pools work?

I mean once you manage to join one, what is the culture like? Do families go for a whole Saturday and just hang? I guess you get to know other families? Or are the pools so big that you feel like a stranger?

Are adult beverages allowed?

Depends on the pool. Usually your neighbors or school friends are there. Once kids are 12 they go alone and hang with their friends all day.

So how do these private pools work?

I mean once you manage to join one, what is the culture like? Do families go for a whole Saturday and just hang? I guess you get to know other families? Or are the pools so big that you feel like a stranger?

Are adult beverages allowed?

Highlands is really nice...it is tucked back in the woods away from any main roads so it kind of gives you a sense of being "away" from everything.

The swim team is division 1 but isn't nearly as intense a program as Chesterbrook, Overlee, or Tuckahoe....it really depends on what you are looking for...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are there so few public pools in VA?

There’s a terrible history of white people creating private pools so that they could exclude Black folks from swimming. Here’s just one article about the phenomenon: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/06/10/americas-swimming-pools-have-a-long-sad-racist-history/

And that pretty much continues with the private pools...

Then maybe advocate for your VA county to build more public pools? MoCo and DC have quite a few.

The pool culture in this area is so fascinating to me, there were few public or private pool clubs where I grew up (Great Lakes city). The wealthy burbs had country clubs, but in the non-wealthy burb I lived in (~75k residents) the only option at the time was a YMCA, which I don't even think had an outdoor pool. You congregated at the house of whoever had an above ground pool. Although the waitlists for the private ones seem to be long, it's cool that the DMV has more options.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are there so few public pools in VA?

There’s a terrible history of white people creating private pools so that they could exclude Black folks from swimming. Here’s just one article about the phenomenon: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/06/10/americas-swimming-pools-have-a-long-sad-racist-history/

Exactly

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are there so few public pools in VA?

There’s a terrible history of white people creating private pools so that they could exclude Black folks from swimming. Here’s just one article about the phenomenon: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/06/10/americas-swimming-pools-have-a-long-sad-racist-history/

And that pretty much continues with the private pools...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whichever one is attended by the most families from your elementary school/school cluster (so kids will have friends there).

+1. We're at Chesterbook, which is a lovely pool, but we live in Arlington so don't know many families there, meaning there aren't as many playmates when we go.
Also consider whether you want your kids on swim team: ours is highly competitive and my DD won't have a chance of making it this year. My pool growing up pretty much allowed anyone to join and I had a ton of fun every summer.

Is the swim team at Highlands competitive?

Less so than chesterbrook, but pretty competitive.

you can look at NVSL divisions. Assume division I will be very competitive, and 2 or 3 will be competitive. Once you drop out of the single digits, athletic kids who aren't year round swimmers should be able make A meets

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which one is closest to your house?

I would prioritize proximity, too. We sometimes go back and forth between our club and home multiple times a day during the summer.

if the close one has a 5 year waiting list, it's a moot point. Get on multiple waiting lists and get in where you can

Most McLean pools have much more reasonable wait lists. the 5-10 year waitlists tend to be in Arlington from my experience. And still worth getting on the waitlist of the pool your kids friends will be at even if you do something in the interim.

I would talk to people in your neighborhood. Like you said you really do want the kids your children are friends with to go to the pool ideally. That will lead to a lot more use. And considering swim team competitive-ness is definitely worthwhile. I grew up at overlee (competitive like Chesterbrook) and had a tonnn of fun but swimming became a bit of a lifestyle (year round swim) and I probably won’t make the same choice for my own kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which one is closest to your house?

I would prioritize proximity, too. We sometimes go back and forth between our club and home multiple times a day during the summer.

if the close one has a 5 year waiting list, it's a moot point. Get on multiple waiting lists and get in where you can

Anonymous wrote:Why are there so few public pools in VA?

Real estate.

Anonymous wrote:Which one is closest to your house?

I would prioritize proximity, too. We sometimes go back and forth between our club and home multiple times a day during the summer.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Whichever one is attended by the most families from your elementary school/school cluster (so kids will have friends there).

+1. We're at Chesterbook, which is a lovely pool, but we live in Arlington so don't know many families there, meaning there aren't as many playmates when we go.
Also consider whether you want your kids on swim team: ours is highly competitive and my DD won't have a chance of making it this year. My pool growing up pretty much allowed anyone to join and I had a ton of fun every summer.

Is the swim team at Highlands competitive?

Less so than chesterbrook, but pretty competitive.

Which one is closest to your house?

Anonymous wrote:Why are there so few public pools in VA?

There’s a terrible history of white people creating private pools so that they could exclude Black folks from swimming. Here’s just one article about the phenomenon: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/06/10/americas-swimming-pools-have-a-long-sad-racist-history/