Any top level coach or swimming co-ordinator will know that the sustainability of a successful swimming program is largely dependent on its feeder programs, quality learn to swim programs and the good development of junior squads.
One of the biggest factors facing learn to swim programs is water space and water depth, this is why the Swim Teaching Platform has been developed. Children as young as three can begin their swimming journeys in safety.
The Kirby Swim Equip (KSE) ‘Swim Teaching Platform’ (STP) is a secure platform for children not yet tall enough to stand on the bottom of the pool. Its unique handrail system creates a clear distinction between classes and can be removed from the pool for easy storage. Wheels have also been fitted so that they engage when the Swim Teaching Platform is lifted to an angle of over 30 degrees, this makes them very easy to transport around pool deck. This minimises the wear and tear to the Swim Teaching Platform and means the instructors never have to lift them, so much less OWS/OHS risk.
KSE offer two sizes of STPs a 1200mm model and an 1800mm model. The 1200 can handle three to four children each side and the 1800 five to six children each side. The weight of the Swim Teaching Platforms is approximately 23 kg for the 1200 model and 30kg for the 1800.
With many years of development and many prototypes Kirby Swim Equip has developed the most user-friendly platforms on the market. So much so that it has taken over as the number one platform in the Australian Market and is making inroads into the USA and worldwide market through Finis, one of the top ranking Swim gear companies in the world with agents in 68 countries around the world.
One of the biggest factors considered in design was to balance the need to make the Swim Teaching Platform heavy enough to sink and be stable enough for exuberant young classes of kids; and yet easy enough for only one person to handle putting in or pulling out the STP from the pool without fear of injury or strain.
The STP is a product designed and produced by Aussie Olympic Gold Medallist Bill Kirby OAM. Bill has been using them every day in his swim schools (based in Perth, Western Australia) for the past 20 years. The use of STPs enables Bill’s swim programs to cater for swimmers as young as three years of age. Bill has developed swimmers as young as five who can swim over 50m freestyle with bilateral breathing.
Bill says “Not only do the STPs provide a firm base of support that makes the nervous children feel safe and secure, they provide a clear distinction between teaching areas to avoid inter-class collisions and make giving instructions to the swimmers easy. Another great advantage is that swimmers are at eye level to the swimming instructors. Also young swimmers are unlikely to try to stand when they know they are out of their depth when swimming between platforms”.
The Turnmaster Pro walls create spaces for squads and classes within the one lane. They can be placed at any distance from the wall to allow coaches to gradually extend squads as the swimmers develop. These walls are so strong and stable to push/streamline from thatmany coaches across the USA college system use them as a way of enhancing their elite swimmers turns and underwater skills.
Our storage solutions that will outlast the instructors that use them, are an essential for any pool operator. We have developed a coach cage with a white board for the squads and coaches to use daily, these are able to be wheeled into whatever lanes their squads have been programmed to be in for that day. Like our heavy duty shelving units made for chlorine corrosive environments and equipment, these storage solutions are never going to rust or let you down.
To make the most of your pool and improve the environment for your children and staff, have a look at the great range of KSE’s products. Our end users love being able to add more classes and cater for greater range of ages and abilities all at the same time.
