Welcome to Waterblogged



Welcome to our Blog. The majority of the content is about our outdoor swimming activities; with other comments, thoughts and pictures along the way. See our website http://community.lincolnshire.gov.uk/blueskyswimming/


and our videos on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Nicola8259



Pages

Wednesday, 14 July 2010

Here we go...


Fantastic footage of a great day jumping, diving, floating, bombing, and lots of laughing too!


In the style of a true Hollywood diva, there are a few thanks in order....


...To all who turned out and jumped in - I think we got 11 plus a couple of dogs? Sounds like a start up gig for a embryonic rock band - you didn't let the dogs in for free did you?!!


...To all the local spectators from The Riverside Inn at Southrey and walkers/cyclists along the lovely Water Rail Way from Lincoln to Boston.


...to Kat from BBC Lincolnshire for reportage, gung ho jumping and glamour

....to Sarah Payne of East Coast Target for continuing media coverage throughout 2010

...to Rachel Grafton of the Sleaford Standard for photographer and 2nd great article of the summer


...to Felix and Leo who went among the crowd chugging in brilliant style and topping up the collection tins for the Leicester Children's Holiday Centre.


...to Roberto at the European Rivers Network for founding this great event; it felt really good to be part of this European wide promotion and to wave the flag for the UK (and lowly Lincolnshire) for the first time.


...to Kate and her team at the Outdoor Swimming Society for coordinating the national participation and all their hard work to date in preparing the Responsibility Statement, event guidance and support to all members throughout the year.


... to The River & Lake Swimming Association who have also been great for advice and enthusiastic support - merci Yacov!


WOW! Lots of people and effort involved, but lots of fun and laughter too!

I think Jumper John should get a special mention for symbolising the power of a little group of like minded people achieving a great thing - he lives right next to the river, heard the radio promotion, did a bit of googling, came down to the river and ended up enjoying the start of his river swimming life right on his own doorstep - PERFECT!

There's plenty more summer and more swimming out there - ENJOY!

Monday, 12 July 2010

Big Jump Tease


Ooh, can't wait for all the photos of our triumphant Lincolnshire Big Jump...
....in the meantime, here's one of "specialist" interest!

Sunday, 11 July 2010

RISING TIDE




Saturday morning saw us setting off determinedly to get to the beach and to get there on good time for a full day at Gibraltar Point. We looked as though we were leaving the country for at least a month judging by all the bags and gear we stashed in the car!

Walk through the dunes was hot hot hot, crossing the panhandle, never easy with enough picnic, buckets, blankets, brolly, spare clothes for the whole beach being carried by packhorse parents. Leo and Felix mooch along nonchalantly carrying just their chosen toy for the day and a spade.

View from top of the hill was STUNNING - sand banks and blue sea (in places) looked positively tropical.

We set up camp half way across the beach and sent a gloating message to Nic and Sue to let them know they'd made the wrong choice not to join us on the coast!

Rising tide was AMAZINGLY strong and fast - I was swimming with all my strength into the tide and at best managing to only stay fixed in one spot. When I stopped swimming I was carried down the beach really quickly - a bit worrying as I didn't fancy wading out of the Wash a mile down the beach!

The boys got straight down to the serious business of wallowing in the shallows where the water was almost steaming hot (and pretty muddy - eat your heart out Turkish baths!)

The speed of the tide meant we had to break camp twice and ended up right back against dunes in time to greet the 5pm high tide (6.1m for geeks!) I got a last swim and came face to face with a (hopefully) friendly seal staring at me from only a metre away. My shriek unsurprisingly spooked him and he turned tail under water, which is even more disconcerting!

Hello to Jane from Edinburgh whose company we enjoyed on her stolen afternoon off work, Josh and his family from Oakham who we chatted with all afternoon, and the swimming couple who joined us today for THE BIG JUMP - more on that tomorrow! Suffice to say, it was a VERY BIG jump indeed!!!!

3 Days in Summer

Perfect start to an exhausting but brilliant weekend started with post work swim at my fave pool - beautiful Bourne. Only managed a couple of lengths as was still trying to shake off the grumpiness of the week. Still, who wouldn't be cheered by the rustling of the lime trees, sundogs in the cirrus clouds and a cup of tea from the perenially friendly cafe lady?

Mood lifted further by the drive home past Grimsthorpe Castle coming across first harvest of the year - the dust was glittering and dancing in the air, the nostalgic scent always takes me straight back to my childhood - aged 6 or so, burning the stubble with Daddy into the night...

I was wishing I could bottle the bittersweet essence of that moment but perhaps that's the point - you can't predict, pin down or recreate those unexpected moments - you can only smile, let it into your heart and make a new memory for duller days.

THE BIG JUMP - SUNDAY 11 JULY

Wow - a fantastic afternoon for our first event with ten of us jumping in the water and plenty of spectators - including our mascot swimming dog Olive. The best pictures and videos to follow from our photographers but here's a taste in the slideshow above - all taken before Nicola got in the water of course. Clips of high jumps from the jetty steps (I chickened out!) and our mass jump in the river all to follow.

A brilliant day - thank you everyone for joining in.... including Mum and Dad 'on the other side' and having to drive 20 miles round the road to join us when we only had to swim a few metres to join them ... maybe we should start a campaign to resurrect the ferry?!

Friday, 9 July 2010

Waterblogged Week

Water filled eyes have been my problem this week, weeping and whining like a good 'un!


Thanks to Nic and Sharn my swimming sisters for pulling me through the other end with a little smile on my face xxx


Anyhow, as we were brought up to say..."I'm too BUSY to be depressed!" ... lots of exciting swim stuff on the horizon to lift my spirits including the much heralded BIG JUMP this Sunday. We've had lots of exciting and slightly unexpected enquiries so wait with baited breath to see if it's just the two of us again!! Felix & Leo have taken to boasting about us being the first UK registration and have renamed the event THE BIG BOMB - they are expecting a good display of pool banned manouevres! (That's where my extra ballast comes in handy!)


Then it's full steam ahead for our SW Odyssey - perhaps I'd better start planning? Nah! Just make it up on the go as usual...















Meanwhile, here's a piccie of my favourite boys getting to grips with the lido lifestyle at Bourne last weekend...














Friday, 2 July 2010

Blue Sky Swimming in Kent

Lesley getting stuck in.... fully submerged!


Here's our Friend Lesley braving the sea at Sandgate, Kent - how BLUE that sea looks compared to the silty North Sea. And how inspiring to do this on her own - at the Summer Solstice too. Lesley is getting as addicted to the cold water swimming as us and is discovering some fab places to swim in the South - planned trip to Camber Sands in Sussex later in the summer.

And here's cheeky chappie Barnaby encouraging his Auntie from the beach.