Sometimes it's not the actual physical act of swimming that makes you so glad you got up in the dark and rain... It might be the chance to be uplifted by such a friendly bunch of people, see amazing marine creatures, get a work- out done before work... For me sometimes it just takes my breath away to look up and see that amazing sky when I'm in the ocean. You just feel immersed in the beauty and awesomeness of this beautiful natural environment! What a gorgeous morning it was. How lucky are we to swim in this special place?
There's always inspiring people around to push you that bit further or make you grateful for being able to partake in this great experience so often. Tracey is so determined to get her 'Winter without wetsuit' badge she came down at 6.10am to swim on her own today before rushing off to be at Ravenswood school for work at 7.30am. Luckily Cheryl swam with her, before swimming more laps across the bay.
Simon grabbed me for a pre-swim photo but when I asked what I could tell blog readers about his friends, he insisted Shaun on the left was a ballet dancer! With a nickname like 'The Greyhound' I think he meant runner.
This is the beautiful scene that awaited us as we entered the 18 degree water...
Sue and Heather, always 'rays of sunshine'!
At The Point. Name the swimmer
Always worth looking up to catch the sun popping over the clouds. Matthew Hawkins with a good, high elbow.
and then... just near 'Attracta's Rock' near Shelly beach a few of us see two Giant Cuttlefish looking as weird and alien-like as ever. They only live to 18 months/2 years and start to go a bit white around the tentacles when they're on the way out. I dove down but didn't get too close after the incident with the rogue Cuttlefish who likes to zoom in on divers/photographers with tentacles flared!
It was a little dull for some great underwater pics but I saw a Wobbie, Porcupinefish and of course Old Wives
The sun started to shine as we finished the swim. Here are Shane, Wendy and Jo. (Wendy's son Chris is in The Manly Daily today. He's a very successful electronic artist and record producer with What So Not)
Sooze and Lisa exuding joy and energy!
This is the lovely Jac Shell who led the run in to 8 degree waters at the Skinny Solstice swim at Hobart on Friday and got n the ABC news. Well done Jac!
Have a great day folks
Lainey x
Monthly Dinner – 10th July 2018 – Guest Speaker
The next B&B monthly dinner for the year will be held on Tuesday 10th July at 6.30 pm at Bluewater Restaurant. Our guest speaker on the night will be sailor and B&B swimmer, Matt Hayes, who represented Australia at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Matt and his crew of Rob Iles, Syd Seymour and Nicky Kukulka will talk about their upcoming two-year world circumnavigation aboard a Dufour class 56 feet yacht. Hear about the route they will sail, the pitfalls, dangers, highlights, yacht and personal preparations, oceans they will cross and the countries they will visit.
The cost of the dinner is great value at only $25 a head, which includes shared entrees, and a selection of mains to choose from (including a vegetarian option). Glasses of beer or wine and desserts are also available at the special price of only $5 each. Numbers are limited, so bookings are essential: To avoid disappointment and secure your spot please book HERE.
WINTER BADGES:
The Winter swimming season is finally here!
Although the water temperature may be a little colder than you might like, there are several advantages of swimming in winter, including flat seas, good visibility and no bluebottles.
Perhaps the biggest advantage is that you can also qualify for a winter badge by swimming a minimum of 20 times between 1st June and 31st August.
You must also swim in at least 7 different weeks. If you manage to do all of your qualifying swims without a wetsuit (or other thermal enhancing equipment), you will also qualify for the coveted WWW badge (Winter without wetsuit).
So start now, and don’t forget to log your swims to qualify.
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