THWARTED!!!!! By a virulent sea monster

Conditions the past few days have been perfect for open water swimming in our little corner of the ocean. Sunny, calm conditions, gentle southerly swells  and warm water temperature. Many swimmers have been happily anticipating completing a 6km swim, taking in the splendid sights of Shelley Beach, the Queenscliff boulders and the Freshwater Beach ocean pool. One might think 2 out of 3 of the weather stats ain’t bad, but when the swell direction changes to nor’east, the wind is from the North, the tide’s coming in and it’s summer time, chances are the bluebottles will descend upon us. Not only this but our Cabbage Tree Bay is no longer protected by the Fairy Bower rocks and the water is choppier and the visibility reduces.

Find more information about bluebottles here

Some swimmers set off at 6:30 am for a leisurely 6. Here are some of them. Bold and beautiful swimmers all. May Huey watch over you.

Sue was jumping for joy at the prospect of getting into the water

I always love the way the shoreline looks when the 6:30 swimmers make their way into the water.

Meanwhile, friends were gathering. The WOWs were very happy to welcome back the lovely Lisa who has been away in the US for a month, showing the Americans the finer points of ocean swimming. Not sure who is the most excited. The BOTs (Blokes of the Tree) and the OMOS (Old Men of the Shop) were overheard muttering about lost opportunities for conquest of the wall.

Edwina receiving a blessing

We welcomed newbies

And families swimming together, always lovely to see

I was originally told that this gentleman had screenprinted photos of his wedding onto his cossie, but it was actually a photo from someone else’s wedding.

The procession in progress

Waiting for some clear space

We have had big numbers the past few weeks, and today there were more than 600 swimmers (see stats below)

Heading to Shelley, watch the swim styles.

On the way over I spotted these lovely swimmers

 

And these

The divers were also out this morning

Sharnie, is that you?

On the way back from Shelley….

And the wedding trunks guy again

Here are some of the doublers and sixers from the 7am

And here’s where it gets interesting.

I’d really wanted to swim a 6 today but wasn’t thrilled by the conditions. There was a big group however and not all were fast swimmers so I decided why not. Was swimming along happily until just before the pipe, when fellow WOW Monica altered me to the presence of bluebottles. Thanks Monica, for saving me from swimming into an armada / fluther / flotilla / smack of them (well, smack is the collective noun for jellyfish so it’s kind of right).

She and I headed into shore. I She was stung but I was not. Disappointing to not complete the 6 (and not even rate a double – I was not motivated to do the extra 700 metres anywhere) but we have until the end of February to qualify or the 6 and 10 badges.

This is what I avoided. Poor Janet got some nasty stings.

Back on the beach swimmers relaxed over coffee and conversation

The obligatory dog shot, you know why

 

And activities on the beach continued

Unusually for me I did not take a single fish photo, so here’s one from the archives

Have a great weekend everyone! Stay cool, stay hydrated, stay safe.

Management information

 

53 new swimmers for a total of 693! Water temp 22.5 degrees.

ALL NEWBIES: handwrite your email address neatly and you will be rewarded with an email from Pacific Jules!!

 

As the Summer long distance swimming season approaches, management thought that it would be a good time to clarify what it takes to earn a badge. Three long distance swims are on offer:

· The 6 km swims are held every summer Saturday morning generally starting with the 7 am swim. The first 6 km swim will be on Saturday 2nd December.

· There is a 10 km swim once a month over summer also generally starting with the 7 am swim. Dates for these will be announced in the blog. The first will be on December 16th.

· If these swims are too long for you, you can try a Triple Manly to Shelly swim any day during Summer (distance 3.5 km) from 6.30 or 7 am.

You will earn a badge if you complete these swims and log them in iLog. The system will only record authorised 6K or 10K swims that are logged on the appropriate days. Badges will be presented at the Summer Badge Ceremony in March. If you are unsure of the routes and protocols for these swims, please ask at the desk before you swim. When swimming these longer distances, we request that, for safety reasons, you stay with the group. We also request that you do not swim in dangerous conditions. The quest for a little cloth badge is not worth putting your life at risk.

Enjoy your swimming.

Sample badge from before:

EXCLUSIVE TO B&B – Introducing the INAMO PINK CURL – waterproof contactless payment tag!  It’s amazing!

ENTER “B&B” IN ‘COUPON CODE’ (& click apply) AT CHECKOUT TO GET YOUR EXCLUSIVE 10% DISCOUNT

Slip your CURL onto your existing watch or fitness band to make tap and-go payments. You never need to carry cash when going swimming again.

Enter “B&B” in the Coupon Code of the Shopping Bag to get your exclusive discount on your PINK INAMO CURL, or any other item on the INAMO website.

If you purchase the PINK INAMO CURL it’s exclusive to B&B, so… if you see someone else donning one, anywhere in the world, you know they are a fellow B&B Swimmer – pretty cool hey !!!

Special offer ON NOW for B&B swimmers. Get Yours today!

Enter ‘B&B’ in the Coupon Code to secure your discount and the benefit of never having to carry your wallet down to the beach when you go swimming again.

* There are NO monthly account keeping fees, transaction or load fees