There were not only humpback whales swimming along side us as we embarked on our 8km adventure from Magnetic Island to Townsville this morning, but we also encountered Tiger Sharks, Crocodiles, Sea Snakes and Irukandji…
It’s a beautiful day up here today, so we have sunburn for our efforts too.
Sadly none of us got prizes, but everyone one did really really well !
The official times will be up on the Magnetic Island website later this evening, as will Nicola and my interview on the Townsville news online website if anyone is interested.
But the juicy info goes:
Nicola Davidson from Bondi, who we inherited as one of us when we arrived up here on Friday, finished around the same time as myself at around 2 and a half hours.
Alison Christie appeared next from the barge as she unfortunately got a sore shoulder at around the 5km mark 🙁
Our dynamic duo, James Ley and John Masters came in next looking fantastic, full of smiles and great team spirit at around 2 hours 50 minutes. They had a great swim and James tells of one occasion when he touched something that was alive as he was climbing into the boat… but thankfully the water wasn’t clear so he couldn’t see what it was.
Stephen Coulter came in next very closely followed by Kelly Johnson at around 3 hours and 5 minutes. They both looked very fresh but Kelly says that’s cured her of Rottnest solo… Yes, yes Kelly, you’ll do it… 🙂
Richard Murray came in next at around 3 hours 10 minutes. Brendan Maher came in next at around 3 hours 20 minutes closely followed by Michael Christie, the most senior competitor in the event, who finished right on the knocker of around 3 hours and 30 minutes.
This was particularly fantastic for our dynamic duo, James, John and Stephen as it was their first ever official long distance event swim.
We’ve all now enjoyed our well deserved burgers and chips and despite spending the morning submerged in salt water we were all still grateful for the salty chips 🙂
It was a really fun and very friendly ran event, the organising committee were very inclusive and friendly, the paddlers who they organised for us where all outstanding, all in all it was a great event which we would all highly recommend to anyone who is interested in doing it in the future.
Enjoy the post swim B&B team photos below, including the one of Stephen who’s technology needed charging even after he’d been in the water for 3 hours 😉
For today’s regular blog, kindly written by Gaetan Guilhon 😉 please see the previous post, thank you.
9 comments
Sherieli
July 31, 2011 at 4:45 pm
Congratulations team B&B on tour!! Great effort all round! Can’t wait to see your tans and hear all about it. Safe trip home 🙂 xx
Linda
July 31, 2011 at 4:59 pm
Well done guys, looks nice and warm up there xxx
lesley
July 31, 2011 at 5:48 pm
Ok…um…that’s all very nice BUT can we just go back to your first paragraph!! You encountered crocodiles, tiger sharks and irukanjis!! What does that mean? They swam near you? Bit you? Stung you? ate you!? More details please! 😉 lol…. Sounds like fun, glad you all had good time! We missed you all! 🙂 and well done!
Gaétan
July 31, 2011 at 9:05 pm
WELL DONE guys, very proud of you all!
Results are available now:
http://www.magneticislandswim.com.au/images/2011/Results%202011.xls
Iain
August 1, 2011 at 8:51 am
Great work guys!
Anna Alvsdotter
August 1, 2011 at 12:44 pm
Well done guys!
I look forward to hearing all your tall stories soon 🙂
john Barrett
August 3, 2011 at 3:37 pm
Glad that you enjoyed the swim and hope to see you in Townsville back next year
John
Stephen Coulter
August 3, 2011 at 3:46 pm
Some more info!
Jawsville: sharks flock to the region
ANDREW STRUTTON
TOWNSVILLE has earned the dubious title of Queensland’s shark capital, with almost twice as many ocean predators caught in local waters than anywhere else in the State.
A total of 138 sharks had been caught in Townsville waters as part of the State’s shark control program since the start of last year, the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries said yesterday. The Sunshine Coast was next on the list, with 74.
Townsville also lays claim to the two largest sharks caught in Queensland waters during the period, with 4.1m and 4m tiger sharks hooked on drumlines off Magnetic Island last October.
The disturbing data comes after a 60-year-old woman was savaged by a 2m shark while swimming in the Whitsundays at the weekend.
The figures, coupled with the Whitsundays attack, yesterday prompted a caution from Primary Industries and Fisheries Minister Tim Mulherin for people to follow shark-safety advice.
”Any-size shark can cause serious injury or death if they attack, however, sharks more than 2m long are particularly dangerous and are more likely to cause fatal injuries,” he said.
”In addition to the size of sharks caught off Townsville, tiger and bull sharks – two of our most dangerous species – comprised nearly half the catch.
”To reduce the risk of a shark attack, people should avoid swimming near river mouths, in canals, artificial lakes and waterways, particularly early in the morning, evening and at night.
”Beaches protected by shark control equipment and lifesaving services are certainly a safer option if going for a swim.”
There are 54 drumlines in place around Magnetic Island, Pallarenda and Kissing Point to control local shark populations.
Local fishing guru Eddie Riddle said sharks were ‘out of sight, out of mind’ for most people, but the reality
was much more sinister.
”I wouldn’t be surprised if the figures (for shark catches) were double that,” Mr Riddle said.
”Halifax Bay (north-northwest of Magnetic Island) is the world’s largest breeding ground for tiger sharks, and the figures reflect that.
”But the number of sizeable tiger sharks we see pales into insignificance compared to the larger, aggressive, whaler sharks that are about.
”They often frequent the shallows to predate on smaller fish, and I’ve see some large (sharks) in no more than five or six metres of water in Cleveland Bay.
”So in a way I think we’re lucky stingers and crocodiles keep us out of the water, otherwise we might see more frequent attacks on people.”
James Cook University shark expert Dr Colin Simpfendorfer said Townsville’s shark tag was not necessarily a detracting factor. He said although the 4.1m tiger shark was a ‘large animal’, the predators often grew to more than 5m.
”Sharks are an important part of the ecosystem and the fact we have so many swimming around in our waters shows the local ecosystem is quite healthy,” Dr Simpfendorfer said.
”And while we have fairly large populations of sharks, shark attack is very rare and usually an unfortunate case of misunderstanding.”
Nick
August 4, 2011 at 10:39 am
http://townsvillenewsonline.com/?utm_source=Bold+%26+Beautiful+Newsletter&utm_campaign=9313b0e621-B_B_204_16_2011&utm_medium=email
5:19 into the video on this link is JULIE!! Doing her WOW factor ..