KEEPING the outdoor pool at the Manning Aquatic Centre open for longer proved a good decision for Bathurst Regional Council.
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The pool traditionally closes for the winter at the end of March due to cold temperatures, but was kept open for an additional month this year due to public demand, costing council around $5000 per week.
Regular swimmer Doug Fisk publicly called for the pool to remain open in April last year and was pleased to see a positive outcome.
"It was so great to see council and pool management to listen to the community and extend it," he said.
"Every morning there was at least a couple of people in the lane.
"It would be great if they can continue it in future years."
The request to keep the pool open was due to changing temperatures, which had made it warm enough to keep swimming outdoors in late March and April.
Mr Fisk said the temperatures experienced this year felt similar to how they were in 2018, making the extended season greatly appreciated.
"The pool is heated, so your first lap you squeal when you get in, but once you got moving the temperature was fantastic," he said.
"My concern was it was going to be a freezing cold April and it wouldn't be worth [council's] while, but it wasn't like that."
Although pleased with the situation, Mr Fisk did say he would like to see the aquatic centre open at 5.30am instead of 6am during the winter months, as the indoor pool became crowded in the mornings with the outdoor pool shut.
