Any way to the line. More waves in the sky.
Richie Strewart has been at the heart of organising The Big Swim for all 34 years of its existence. One would go a long way to find a better person.
A friend said to us at Newport a few years back, after the ocean swim there: "This is what surf carnivals used to be like 30 years ago."
We gather this must be Stacey Hansford, 18, of Quakers Hill, laydees winner of The Big Swim, about to cross the line. Another welcome addition to the ranks of ocean swimmers from the black line syndrome, we quizzed Stacy at the start about her credentials for starting in the Preferred/Elite wave. She showed us, didn't she! Well done, yourself!
Dash for Cash.
Leading ocean swimming scallywag, Reg, leader of the People's Front of Judea, didn't swim from Palm to Whale, although he'd entered. Perhaps he found the company on land more enjoyable.
Is that a paunch on Spot Anderson? No, surely, it must just be the angle at which Glistening Dave has captured him with a fisheye lens.
Tossed in a turbulent sea ... this was real ocean swimming.
As we were stopped by the final booee to stick our Brownie Starflash-in-a-plastic-bag gratuitously in the faces of innocent swimmers, a passing tragic thought we were in trouble and stopped to offer his help. We would expect nothing less of Peter Joseph, one of the true gentlemen of ocean swimming.
oceanswims.com had three teams entered in The Big Swim. We named two of them for two of our cobbers -- oceanswims.com roses was named for Rose Saltman, now recovering from a broken neck suffered two weeks back whilst body surfing at Manly; and oceanswims.com grahams was for Graham Hardy, who couldn't be at Palm Beach because he hasn't worked out yet how to operate the GPS in his car. No really, Graham fell over the handlebars on his mountain bike on the Southern Tablelands after Xmas and shattered his left sholulder. Both are recovering and we wish them well. Our third team was the oceanswims.com squadders, made up of willing laydees who swim in the oceanswims.com squad which has operated throughout January at Crummy Drummy pool. We're just waiting now to hear whether we can get lane space to keep the squad going indefinitely, or for the rest of the season, at least. We've even renewed our coach's ticket to boost our credibility in this regard. But here, this is why the oceanswims.com roses finished third and not first, becasue Martina Eyre stopped to have her photo taken by the last booee.
Mark our words ... This photo, of Tacoma Jim, will turn up next year on Glistening Dave's ocean swims calendar 2010, and he'll call it art!
Just had a funny thought.
Eyeballing.
The chase.
One of the terrific aspects of ocean swimming -- one we all hold dear -- is the tradition of support for good causes. Most ocean swims support surf clubs, and organisations such as Can Too and the Shepherd Centre are leveraging off ocean swimming now to support their own micro-causes, cancer research and helping deaf children to hear, respectively. You can support another cause, too, at the Malabar-Little Bay Challenge on February 15, which Murray Rose is organising in support of the Rainbow Club, which teaches disabled kids to swim. Click here for Can Too! ... The Shepherd Centre ... Murray Rose's Malabar-Little Bay Stockland Challenge ...
It's been 30 years or so since Steve Hall emigrated from the Old Dart, and only now has he resolved his aversion to water.
Mike Nelson.
What better way to celebrate your 50th birthday, Robyn Gardner, than by swimming from Palm Beach to Whale Beach ... Happy birthday from ocean swimmers everywhere!
"I can too!"
"Hello ... is that you dear? ... I'll be home late ... Swim was bigger than I thought ..."
This scene was not isolated, we gather. So unfortunate, but The Big Swim website did say, indeed stress, that whilst parking would be free until 3pm, parking must also be legal. Wheels on the roadway or the footpath or something like that is not legal, apparently. Check out the oceanswims blog on The Big Swim for a better explanation ... (click here)
Tapestry of vignettes.
Just about all done.
Like boaties, ducky crews are a breed apart, but the same wherever you go.
The turbulent Pacific ...
... that irascible sea.
All done for another year ...
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