“We’ve done a little bit of everything. We’ve done the U.S. Open twice. This will actually be the third time this coming December, and this is a televised event for us,” said Dennis Ryther, Athletic Director/ Natatorium Manager. “The last time we hosted that, we had 1,100 swimmers from 47 countries.”
The pool opened on January 2, 1993, to host the ’93 Summer Olympic Festival. The Natatorium is owned jointly by the City of San Antonio and Palo Alto College. It can seat 2,400 people for special events. Its depth is four feet in the shallow end to 18 feet in the deep end, and it measures 83.11 yards by 25 yards. The pool contains two movable bulkheads that can divide it in half so that it can be set up for two swim meets to be held at the same time. It holds 1.25 million gallons of water and runs on an automated system that is monitored by a certified pool operator. During the summer months, the pool may have 1,500 to 1,800 visitors per day.
The Natatorium has also hosted the Iron Kids Triathlon’s National Championship three times, which was also televised. The Olympic Festival, The Senior Olympics, Junior College Nationals, and various regional and state competitions are just few of the events that have taken place.
Palo Alto offers both swimming and diving lessons for its students, and it is the only Texas community college that offers these kinds of lessons for its own students. The men’s diving team has won the National Non-Scholarship Division twice. The school has had a water polo team in the past. However, a team did not form this year due to scheduling problems.
The Women’s Athletic Conference or the WAC has been held at the Natatorium for the last ten years. It is a diving competition that attracted six diving teams from around the nation this year.
Ryther said that when the pool opened nearly 11 years ago, there were a lot of drownings on the South Side.
“Our second and third graders [who take swimming lessons] are educated about that, and that has made it so it has been much safer for the South Side, and I think more than anything else, the kids understand that flooding can be dangerous,” Ryther said.
Awareness is so important that about 5,000 children go through these swimming lessons each year from area elementary schools.
Palo Alto students, who work as instructors and lifeguards, teach most of the lessons.
“We’re proud of that because it gives them an opportunity to make some money while they are going to school and give back to their community,” Ryther said.
Patricia Estrada is the lifeguard and instructor trainer for the natatorium.
“I see if [the person] can swim, do dives under the water maybe nine to eleven feet, and then we begin the training,” she said. They learn lifesaving skills, such as first aid and CPR. Students who become lifeguards at Palo Alto can be hired at any other swimming pool in the city. Major universities are always looking for lifeguards and the natatorium hires them year round. If a person wanted to be a certified lifeguard, they would need to renew their license every three years and CPR lessons every year. The lessons range from $100-$125.
“I like to watch people swim,” said lifeguard Rita McCord. She has been a lifeguard for four years.
She is not only a lifeguard, but she’s also an instructor for the children’s swimming lessons.
“I teach them how to blow bubbles, streamline with their hands in the air, kick, stroke, and breathe [underwater],” she said.
McCord also teaches the Cadets from the San Antonio Police Academy. “They are grown-ups that don’t know how to swim,” she said.
Even a major theme park uses the Natatorium. SeaWorld of San Antonio rents the pool during the cold winter months to train all of their lifeguards for the summer seasons.
The Natatorium is open Monday through Saturday to the public and to students, and it offers swimming lessons year-round. Its community swim hours are Tuesday and Thursday, 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.; and Saturday, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Adult lap swim hours are Monday through Friday, 7:00 to 9:00 a.m.; Monday through Friday 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.; and Monday through Thursday 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. The swimming lessons for this summer are learning to swim, aqua aerobics, learning to dive, and adult beginning swim.
Child admission is $1.00, adult admission is $2.00, and an adult semester pool pass for 20 visits costs $30.00. Admission is free for students, faculty, and staff with a college I.D. Lesson prices range from $25-$30. Call 921-5234 or visit Room 110 in the Natatorium for more information.