OHS Catfish share pool with other swim teams
By Lisa Lac

Oakland High students have noticed strangers swimming in the pool after school. Rumors circulated that they were students from Piedmont or from Skyline. However, it turns out that they are members of the Oakland Barracudas Aquatics swim team.

Jan. 3 was the Oakland High Catfish swim team’s first intramural conditioning, which only lasted 30 minutes or so due to the Barracudas’ swim time at the pool.

Since then, the teams have made a compromise so that the Catfish can have more time to practice for the OAL season. Starting Jan. 31, the Catfish training schedule expanded to one hour each day.

“We had really good communication on the compromise,” said swim coach Clare Burger.

Live Oak Pool, though located at Oakland High, is not owned by the school but by Oakland Parks and Recreation. Therefore, it is often available for use by people outside of the Oakland High community.

According to their website, Oakland Barracudas Aquatics is “a USA Swimming, year-round competitive swim team offering high quality professional coaching and technique instruction for all ages and abilities. The goal of the Oakland Barracudas is to provide every member an opportunity to improve swimming skills and achieve success at his or her level of ability, from novice to international competitor.”