nov 19-20, 2011
Big weekend of swims...
Woy Woy at Umina, Sat, Nov 19
Dawny, Cockatoo Island at Balmain, Sun, Nov 20
Cook Community Classic, Cronulla, Sun, Nov 20
Whitehaven Beach Swim, Hamilton Island, Sun, Nov 20
A big weekend of swims, and, from what we can see, a big weekend of record attendances. Woy Woy at Umina was a new swim, so it set a record by default. But all other three swims on Sunday set new records from previous highs. At Balmain, the Dawny swim organisers said they entertained c. 460, after record online entries of 358. Cook at Cronulla also had record online entries and record ultimate starters on race day, and so did Whitehaven Beach, around the corner from Hamilton Island. Noice to see, particularly after, at the corresponding point last season, numbers were down.
We're told the day was glorious in Sydney on Sunday. It was like that, too, at Whitehaven Beach, where we were.
ocean swimmer feedback survey
This season, we're introducing a new feature on oceanswims.com, our Swimmer Feedback Survey. It's basically the same survey for each key swim. We'll see how it goes through the season, but we're hoping it will form the basis of a system of end-of-season awqrds for swims. We had 83 respondents to our initial survey following Collaroy last week, which was around 24 per cent of the field, so that was quite encouraging. The surveys give you an opportunity to tell us -- and swim organisers -- what you think of their events, how they can improve, etc, as well as through more established means such as the oceanswims blob and our chatter forum. And just plain pub whingeing, which is a very traditional, well-established means, albeit often less effective.
Right now, we have surveys open for the Dawny Swim at Balmain, the Cook Community swim at Cronulla, and the Whitehaven Beach Swim at Hamilton Island. Use these links to complete your relevant survey...
Dawny at Balmain
Semi-retired landscape gardener
Murray Cox -- who has travelled much in Sydney Harbour -- was at the Dawny swim. He sent us this postcard...
Across the water there's nothing left of the red gum forest that attracted the cockatoos to the island the local Aborigines called Biloela. On this side is the panorama of the Dawn Fraser pool surrounded with glossy figs, palms and wattles that colour the water a milky satin green. Along the sandstone seawall stands the bright flesh of 400 bodies ready for the first (harbour: ed) swim of the Sydney season. It's a water start and a slow churn as we leave the verdant shoreline and splash out through the moorings to go around this island of colonial and industrial relics from a much harsher harbour life.
Along the east side of the island I start counting the pier posts. The lines of wooden trunks vanish into the darkness under the wharf, 10 every two strokes, so there could be a thousand trees in that structure. Around the north side I'm in the company of other slow swimmers and a couple of ladies-who-breaststroke so I can't offer any information about the race.
I'm swimming in a reverie of history and hard labour. In the 1850s the hard-case convicts were sent to this island to quarry and square the sandstone for their prison and the docks. From the 1880s free men worked the shipyards, but it wasn't until 1947 that a 40-hour week became law and 1957 before protective garments were mandated for metal workers. The island would have been a working version of hell for a hundred years, with the subtle change of toiling as prisoners of capitalism rather than colonialism.
From the west end of the island I can see the pool. What was Frederick Ward thinking when he made his escape in 1863? Did he think about sharks? Did his half-Aboriginal wife Mary-Anne actually swim across to file off his leg-iron? For sure she was close by with food and clothing and perhaps a light. They made the journey north together and he lived another seven years by robbery under arms, calling himself Captain Thunderbolt.
Back at the pool there's the hubbub of local kids splashing around and the post-race ease of people who swim for pleasure, not from desperation. Mostly.
Take from The Glistener...
Whilst we were at Whitehaven, our staff snapper, Glistening Dave, was on duty at Balmain, where he also took out a minor placing in his age group as well as capturing photograrphs of you lot. Here's how Dave saw the Dawny swim...
Click on Thumbs For larger size shots and Click on Page Number For more shots
Here are a couple of pics from Chris Ivin...
Click on Thumbs For larger size shots and Click on Page Number For more shots
Abbey Digital also was at Balmain, snapping punters as they emerged from the water. Check their photo gallery and order a pic of yourself... click here
 Olympus Tough fine ocean swimmers series
The longer Dawny swim also was Race 1 in the Olympus Tough fine ocean swimmers series 2011/12. Series points will be posted as soon as we receive the results and we can process them.
The winner of the random draw of the Olympus Tough 810 camera at the Dawny swim was Naomi Malone. The winner of the View Swim Pack was Marcus Anderson. Well done, yourselves! And thanks for swimming at Dawny.
Whitehaven Beach
Click on Thumbs For larger size shots and Click on Page Number For more shots
Here's our Flickr feed of Whitehaven Beach and Hamilton Island...
Go to our pics individually for a closer look and to leave your comments... click here
Woy Woy Swimming Club at Umina
Two videos have been posted on YouTube...
A view of the peloton rounding the first booee in the 1km and 2km events... click here
See how a good ocean swimmer does it: Jarrod Port in the 5km... click here
Credits
 Pics by Glistening Dave (@glistenrr on Twitter), Chris Ivin, Murray Cox and oceanswims.com (@oceanswims).
oceanswims.com uses Olympus cameras, this time the Tough 810 and PEN E-P1.
Our thanks to our favourite ocean swimming brewer, Chuck Hahn, for the
James Squire Award.
Follow us on Twitter - @Aquagirl72, @glisstenrr, @sparkleocean, and @oceanswims
Have your say and tell us what you thought of these and other swims on the oceanswims blob... click here
You can also have your say on the oceanswims chatter forum... click here
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