transformers
Filed Under Places | August 10, 2010
We all go through transformations in our lives, but most of us don’t undergo a conversion from a curling rink to a swimming pool as the new Aquatic Centre at Hillcrest Park has just done as part of the first phase of the 2010 Winter Games community legacy. Opening on July 31st, at the same time as the Percy Norman Pool – which opened in 1960 – closed, we’ve already put it through its paces a few times. Strictly in the interests of research of course.
The Aquatic Centre includes a 50m pool with a movable floor; one, three and five metre diving boards; a 70 person hot tub; and a large steam room and sauna. What we (and our kids) were most interested in however, was the leisure pool complete with beach entry water toys, sprays, jets, water cannons and a lazy river and the summer outdoor pool equipped with sprays, a water cannon and bubble jets. We were surprised at how chilly the outdoor pool was, especially given the balmy weather we’ve been having.
We asked our tiny testers to give us their feedback. Apparently “it’s a very good pool and a very nice pool.” Okay, we didn’t say they were madly discerning. They also really liked the waterfall and swimming underneath it.
One of our big musts when it comes to families and swimming is family changing rooms. The Hillcrest Aquatic Centre includes both family and universal change cubicles which we approached with trepidation on our first visit as it appeared we might be walking into a free-for-all family changing room but much to our relief there were private cubicles and showers.
Our only complaints? Well it’s already very popular and busy and you’ll find it quite loud inside. We also wish they treated the water with ozone rather than chlorine. And if only our kids had summer birthdays so we could throw an outdoor party at the kiddie pool…
Aquatic Centre at Hillcrest Park: vancouver.ca
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