GregInTheWater
GLASGOW OPEN WATER SWIMMING COACH
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New Years day 2014, and I am in New York City, the city that never sleeps. Though when the temperature drops I am sure there is a lot of hibernation going on. After going to a show in the East Village to bring in the New Year, what better way to clear the cobwebs with a dip in the Atlantic Ocean. Each New Years Day, the Coney Island Polar Bear Club hosts… Read More
Here is a copy of a talk I gave on Wednesday 2 October 2013 as part of a swimming yarns program. There were nine speakers, and I was fortunate enough to be one of them. The night raised money for cancer research, and was held at the Woolloomoolo Bay Hotel in Sydney. It was a fantastic evening with some great yarns told around the theme of my first time. THE FIRST TIME… Read More
It is now the end of May, which means it is time to report on my adventures for the twelve months ended 31 May 2013. This corresponds to the custom that the open water season in Australia finishes on 31 May each year. So what have I achieved during this period? I completed a total of 19 swim races, four in New York city, and 15 in Sydney, covering a distance… Read More
North Bondi beach was the site for my 50th swim, after the swim at Caves Beach last weekend was postponed. This is the beach where our squad does a number of sessions in the surf, so I have become quite familiar with it. I have also undertaken this races a few times before, so I decided to only enter the 2 km event in order to savour my milestone. The morning was… Read More
The month of November seems to come round quicker each year. As the jacarandas blossom throughout the city, thoughts of ocean swimmers turn to the opening of the season. Once again the Cockatoo Island swim in Balmain marks the start of the year of swimming in the open water in Sydney. It only seemed like yesterday when I completed the last of my four swims in New York City. Those swims had… Read More
The last Saturday in July and the last of my swim adventures in New York City was due to take place. The location was Governors Island just off the southern tip of Manhattan in New York Harbour. The swim was around a large portion of the island over a distance of two miles (or 3.2 km). The island has an interesting history as it was a key army base up until the… Read More
Another summer weekend in New York, and another open water swim race. I had entered a swim run by CIBBOWS at Coney Island, known as Grimaldo’s Mile. I had been swimming with the CIBBOWS group on weekend mornings since I arrived in New York, and I found them a warm and welcoming group of open water swimming enthusiasts. The race is named in honour of Grimaldo Medrano who was a New York City… Read More
That’s right. The Statue of Liberty in New York. The one that was a gift from France to the USA to celebrate 100 years of US Independence and opened in 1886. The one that is there to welcome immigrants from the Old World as they sail into New York Harbour on their way to Ellis Island: “Keep ancient lands your storied pomp” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your… Read More
Each year a swim is held in New York that circumnavigates Manhattan Island. Sounds easy swimming around an island. Except this swim is 45 km long if you swim in a straight line, and the winner took seven and a half hours to finish. This year’s event was held on 23 June 2012, and I was there. Well when I say I was there, that does not mean I swam in the… Read More
GregInTheWater 