Bryant Lundy's alarm goes off every morning at 4:15. His daily routine begins by 4:17. Stretch. Shower. Dress. Consume breakfast as quickly as possible. Duck into the driver's seat of a 2001 Chevy Tahoe (he keeps it looking new) and begin the 45-minute drive to Reynolds where work awaits.
"It's a peaceful ride," Bryant says, "but I have to be alert because of the deer and the darkness."
A few jobs with this kind of early schedule immediately come to mind: Donut maker. Newspaper deliverer. Radio host. Bryant's role is stealthier. Like an owl, he arrives without anyone noticing, does his work, and disappears. His team of four is the reason the pools at Reynolds look as if every morning could be a grand opening.
"The expectations are high everywhere you go at Reynolds, so the pools have to look perfect by the time the first people show up. Perfection is our motivation."
This kind of perfection requires a lot of work. The checklist includes:
Test the water chemistry and rebalance it if necessary.
Check every connection in the pump rooms and mechanical rooms to find a potential problem before it becomes an actual problem.
Clean the pool deck.
Skim the pool.
The daily routine ends with a trip to lost and found. In addition to pulling pine needles and leaves from the pool, Bryant and his team retrieve sunglasses, goggles, sandals, wallets, and socks. "A lot of socks," he says.
A year ago, Bryant pulled Bryant from the pool. He'd been skimming and talking to one of his technicians and... splash.
"That was embarrassing," he says, "but it did feel kind of good."
It's hard enough to keep one pool looking new when dozens of Members use it every single day. Now multiply the work required for one pool by 18. That's right, there are 18 "bodies of water" around Reynolds, not counting backyard pools and Lake Oconee. Any body of water on a filtration pump is considered a "pool." For example, The Lake Club has seven pools: The upper infinity pool, indoor pool, outdoor spa, and indoor spa.
The only way for the pool tech guys to beat Members to all of the bodies of water is by borrowing a strategy from golf.
After meeting at Bryant's truck (it doubles as his office), they use a shotgun start to hurry to the pools at Great Waters, The Landing, Richland Pointe, and The Preserve. This happens every day, 52 weeks a year. The pools are never covered, which means they need constant attention.
A burning question for Bryant, considering his ridiculously early start and the repetition similar to Groundhog Day, is this: Do you enjoy your work?
"Absolutely," he says. "When I was growing up, I'd help my dad mow the yard. When we finished, he'd want to wash the cars, too. Then he'd stand at the end of the driveway and look at how nice everything looked. That's the kind of satisfaction I feel every morning when the first person arrives at the pool."
Actually, that would be the second person.
