Just Keep Swimming...

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming as Dory from the Disney Pixar film "Finding Nemo" says.... That's all well and good for most of us, but what if you are a wheelchair user and have specific requirements that you need in order to go swimming in the first place? Since moving to Melbourne and I needed to find somewhere local to swim as swimming compliments riding and is also one of the only ways I can exercise. I did a little bit of a Google search and found the pools in my local area. At first I thought I'd have to try out a few different ones before I'd figure out which one was best for me. Little did I know that the first place I'd go, would be the place I'd continue to go! Thomastown Recreation and Aquatic Centre (TRAC), is where I go to swim...


So what's so great about, I hear you ask? Well firstly, it is HUGE! TRAC has four pools, a spa, a sauna, and a steam room. All those facilities are wheelchair accessible bar one pool, which is the kids pool.

TRAC not only has wheelchair access to three of their pools and the spa via a series of ramps with their water wheelchairs, they also have incredible toilet / shower / changing facilities which make it possible for just about anyone to swim there. These facilities are not only big and spacious, but they have tracking in the ceiling with a hoist which moves you around the room so you can go from the toilet to the shower etc with ease and it eliminates the need for the swimmer to be able to do standing transfers.

I think photos pretty much tell my story for me!

The photos above pretty much tell the story of the awesome facilities, however there is one other really great thing about it. One of the three bathrooms has the tracking in the ceiling for the hoist that goes around the room but also goes straight out the door to enable the swimmer to be hoisted straight into the hydro pool. This also means the swimmer can not only access the hydro pool, but the spa and the teaching pool.

I tried to take more photos of the actual configurations of the pool but I was told I wasn't allowed to because of the public photo taking laws etc.

I feel like I've hit the jackpot! I've never seen such a well thought out pool which enables me to go swimming independently of other people. If I could give TRAC some kind of award, I would!