Wednesday 10th February – Freshness in the air, land and in the water..

Good morning!      Freshness in the air, on land and in the water today!

 

I woke up in the early hours of the morning to the sound of light rain.. soothing & calming…. and at the same time wondering when it would stop and would we be swimming in the rain?   Well, I guess we get wet anyway 🙂     One of the benefits of rain is that it washes things away, cleanses, nourishes, and when the rain stops, everything is fresh again (reminds me a bit of the Norsca ad – the “freshness of scandinavia” – showing my age – heres a linky thing to one of the ads for those who want a trip down memory lane!    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJk54TDoRzQ   ) …. and for some of us, cleansing and nourishing & freshening up is what we needed after swimming the Cole Classic on Sunday in near perfect conditions (my first and hopefully not my last!), navigating the final stretch to the finish through the huge washing machine surf & dumping waves which seemed never ending, just like the super fun after party 🙂 ……..   a HUGE thanks to the Manly SLSC & volunteers including many B&B’ers for their brilliant organisation, and especially to the water safety crew at the finish stretch who worked tirelessly to ensure all swimmers were able to get back through the dumping waves & guide them to the beach safely & spurred & encouraged by a cheering crowd to somehow find the energy to run up the beach to the finish!

 

Freshness was everywhere this morning – in, on and off the water.   The water was a litte cooler today, a fresh 21.7 degrees – it felt and was reported as clean, no bluebottles, waves also seemed calm, no annoying sand tossed around & then sticking to everything & everywhere, waves playing nicely this morning nicely allowing for a lovely ride out through the rip and a nice rolling swell to swim back in….

Maxine, Jo, Greg and Jill feeling fresh after their swim.   Jo (pictured with purple bag) presented me with her last fresh apple from her weekend visit to her family orchard near Mudgee.   It was probably the freshest delicious apple I have ever tasted and a great way to start the day  – thanks Jo!   Greg Cole is planning on posting (more) fresh footage from the Cole Classic on Sunday – if you havent seen his drone footage, i would recommend heading to the B&B pages & checking it out.   It is a brilliant perspective on the swim, the rip and the power behind the challenging waves that we had to navigate (some better than others!) leading into the finish.   Thanks Greg for sharing your brilliance with all of us whether we swam or not.

The Mer-People have now recovered from Sundays swim & superb sunset sessions & nearly caught out by a fresh wave as they were getting in the water!  Natasha arrived in a fresh new cozzie & fresh from night shift (amazing!), Mel fresh from huge weekend with a massive PB in the Cole Classic and launcing her fresh start up – if you are after leadership tips & tools, please seek Mel out!

 

Graeme felt so fresh and energised this morning, he couldnt wait to swim with the Mer-people so he swam earlier with Drinks Express… but we wont let him off without a photo with super speedy simone!!

 

Helen is still all smiles & fresh from a speedy 3rd in her age group in Sundays Cole Classic, backing up from 2nd last year.     Well done Helen!

 

Anita, Tom, Tom, Karla and Chris were looking forward to freshening up with a swim.  They saw a huge school of small, red/rust coloured fish near the bower and a large school of grey fish near the point perfectly contrasted with the bright green sea grass.

 

Megan is a fellow Can Too squad swimmer helping to raise funds for cancer research – she swam Palm to Whale the other weekend in just under an hour – a brilliant effort for a first time palm to whale in pretty challenging & “fresh” conditions!   Her buddy Alex wasnt feeling very fresh as he had just woken up (he lives close by thankfully!) so was looking forward to the swim & a “fresh” start to the day.

 

Fiona and Sheena (sisters) with Anita (who had just completed her swim) & Paul who patiently & brilliantly coaches the Can Too squad (including me!) & a more efficient swimming technique – one day i’ll get it!   Sheena lives in Sawtell and is heading back today – safe travels and lovely to see you Sheena!

 

Sterling, John, Tim, Magic & Bruce by accounts had a great swim – when asked if they saw anything of interest the response was “magic” 🙂

 

John and Robert are B&B’ers since 2011.  Robert now lives out of town and swims with the “Narooma Mullets…

 

Heidi, Cate & Tiff reported beautiful, fresh, clear conditions – they saw a cow nose ray, an eel near the point.  Heidi completed her first Cole Classic on Sunday and this is Tiff’s first ocean swimming season – like many of us a silver lining of COVID was ocean swimming & the friends we have made.  They woke up to the sound of rain and wondered what the conditions would be like and like all of us, glad they swam.

 

Richard, Steve and David – all avid sailors as well as swimmers!   clearly they love the water, on and in it!  Fun Fact – they are of to the Laser Masters (for non Yachties, Lasers are one-person dingys – a type of small yacht with a single mast & sail that my dad once described to a non-yachtie family friend as “an ironing board with a stick in it”) in Jarvis Bay  – Lasers are an Olympic Class and as its Olympic selection year…..hmmm……. Richard is also a keen windsurfer and will be heading to Victoria to compete in the National championships soon!  good luck Gentlemen!

 

Lainey is always smiling and looking fresh….

 

Our canine buddies were hoping for fresh treats :

Jassy (left) & Cookie (right) were lucky

 

Monty was hoping for an edible treat – an ear rub & a loving look from a potential canine admirer would have to suffice today Sorry Monty!

 

Fred the groodle waited patiently to no avail.. (just an ear rub)

 

I didnt swim today (foot injury from Sunday – poor wave technique!) but Brooke took my camera out for a few fresh shots – with the Mermaids and Manmaids (Mer-people) – thanks Brooke!

 

 

 

And last but not least – post swim fresh coffee and treats courtesy of Emily, Gabby, Patricia and Kane!    Tirelessly working every day with post swim fuel to get us through the day 🙂 thank you to the cafe crew!

 

Have a great day everyone and dont forget to log your swims – only 18 days left for the summer badges (only 18 days left of summer – eek!)!

….and good luck to B&B’ers swimming the North Bondi Classic on Sunday!

Jocelyn