recreation

A Big Silver Lining
Back in March I received a call from my long-time friend and industry legend, Vance Gillette. For those who might not be familiar with Vance, he has been a beloved business leader in the pool and spa industry for more than 40 years and even now in retirement, he still is. Vance called me to share
Angry Shores
In our last edition, Lauren Stack invoked the concepts of "Blue Mind" and "Red Mind," both terms popularized by author Wallace "J" Nichols. While those references may seem somewhat esoteric, a recent personal experience suggests that Nichols is
Pre-Designed Splash Pads from Water Odyssey
Water Odyssey (San Marcos, TX) now offers pre-designed spray park systems to bring fun and…
2017/3.1, March 8 — Asymmetrical Beauty, Aquatic Insects, Polymer Finishes and more
THE ESSENTIAL E-NEWSLETTER FOR WATERSHAPE DESIGNERS, ENGINEERS AND BUILDERS March 8, 2017 www.watershapes.com FEATURE ARTICLE…
A Mighty Chorus
I've been up on my "river pools" hobby horse for a good while now, which is why I can't believe I missed a great story from the online version of Outside magazine when it appeared on May 19, 2016. Written by Erin Beresini and headlined, "Why Urban Swimming Pools Are Raising Millions on Kickstarter:  Inside the revolution to reclaim
I’m Not Alone . . .
When I wrote about the trend toward floating "river pools" in my July 13 blog (click here), I had no idea I'd pick up quick editorial support from TravelandLeisure.com, the web site for the grand magazine of the same name. In an article entitled, "Absurdly Scenic Floating Pools to Add to Your 'To-Swim' List," Erika Owen flashes through five of the
Racing to the Finish Line
For most residents of southeastern Canada, the winter of 2013/2014 was memorable for off-the-hook low temperatures, plenty of snow and lots of discomfort.  For me and my crew, however, what we'll recall most is how hard we worked right through the teeth of the inclement weather to make a huge project deliverable by its May 2014 deadline. As was reported in the first article of this
The Power of a Pool
Through the past couple years, I've followed with great and growing interest a collection of news items about international efforts to bring safe, spacious swimming facilities to urban waterways. If memory serves, the first stories I noticed were about the Flussbad ("river pool"), a proposal to transform a section of a canal into a
Off the Deep End
'A big part of properly designing watershapes to meet specific client needs has to do with understanding how they'll be using the body of water,' wrote David Tisherman at the start of his Details column in January 2006.   'I always explore this issue with my clients, which is why, for
Community Imperatives
As I wrote in a recent blog ("The Way-Back Machine," September 23), I envy you if you live in a community where your public pools are still being used to teach people of all ages (and especially children) to swim.   It means that kids in your area are able to discover swimming in capable, confidence-building environments - the sort of supportive circumstances that were found just about everywhere