Sydney Harbour Swim Classic: What to worry about - pollution or sharks?

Wow. Sydney had sunshine for three days in a row. Today it's raining again.

But yesterday was an open-water swim organiser's dream. Blue sky, warm air temperature, just-right water temp and light winds ensured a strong turn-out for the event.

I was there and more concerned about pollution from run-off than bull sharks (see my last post). The day before I'd walked my dog along the Parramatta River and it was a dirty brown colour. Goodness knows what was floating around in the harbour yesterday but I'm sure there was plenty of grime, grit, grease and garbage.

Spanner, who is so supportive of my swimming (and everything else I do) said: "You'll get a virus." Thanks Spanner. The man is a freakin' love god.

I suppose I should be grateful. He did drive me to the Sydney Opera House and then fled before I could ask if he wanted to accompany me and maybe, just maybe, have a coffee together. 

Turns out he drove to a quiet cafe in the Inner West and indulged in the Sunday newspaper and a flat white. He was mentally preparing for the return home where our 15-year-old, The Hiss (as in hissy fit), was ready to inflict her special sort of torture on anyone within a two-hundred metre radius as she struggled to come to grips with the esoteric wording of a commerce assignment. 

If The Hiss struggles, we all struggle. Poor long-suffering Spanner. No wonder he's addicted to shows with 'mega' (structures) or 'monster' (garage) in the title. That's what living in a house full of women (including the dog) does to a man. He needs some serious chill time.

Hang on. Where was I? Admiring the most beautiful harbour in the world.

I met up with my swim-squad mates Mr Mild Mannered (MM) and Mr Very Big (VB). MM was there with his beautiful wife who had set up a picnic blanket under a shady tree. 

It's so easy to take for granted the Opera House, Harbour Bridge and the harbour. I've seen the view thousands of times. I wonder if people in cities like Cairo, Rome, Venice, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Prague and New York stop, look around and think: "OMG, this is an amazing place. How could I take it for granted?"     

That's how I felt yesterday. The sails of the Opera House glowed like mother-of-pearl and the sky was an intense blue that makes you squint. 

I did both the 1 km and 2 km swim. Madness rules in my head. I jumped in with the rest of them at the Man O' War Steps right next to the Opera House and momentarily considered sharks before the start gun sounded. Then I bolted.

What is not good about this swim is the water quality, which was poor yesterday, and, of course, thoughts about sharks. I say 'thoughts' because I don't think the swim would be run if there were any concerns about bull sharks popping in for a squizz. Every year a fire tug is positioned about 500 metres out from the event. It sprays huge spouts of water in every direction into the harbour. I wonder if it's there to freak out any bullies that might be cruising by. Dunno.

What is good is everything else. I breathe to the left so as I swam away from the Opera House towards Mrs Macquarie's Chair I could see the 'House' and the 'Bridge' over my left shoulder on every breath I took. Far out. How unreal is that? 

After the first swim I was buggered but I dived in for the 2 km and took my time. This swim chucks a right at Mrs Macquarie's Chair and heads into Farm Cove in the Botanical Gardens before turning back to the Opera House. You climb out at the end of the swim via a ladder and onto a pontoon. Often there are things that make you itch in the water. But not this year.

I'm not sure what's happening this weekend. A swim around Shark Island in The Shire is one option. I'll keep you posted.

PS: I'm still waiting for the predicted virus to attack my immune system.

No bull! Actually, there's heaps and they're having a sojourn in Sydney Harbour

Here we go again. The minute I enter a swim that takes place in Sydney Harbour yet another story about bull sharks pops up in the local rag. 

And it's about my favourite (not) the bull shark.

The news is not really new but it's unnerving all the same. Since 2009 Dr Amy Smoothey and her team have planted tracking devices in the stomachs of 36 bull sharks found in Sydney Harbour. 

The other night when Sydney hunkered down under the force of a wild storm, Dr Smoothey got herself a biggin: a 3-metre long female caught near Sow and Pigs Reef, which is located close to the harbour entrance. 

I've cut and pasted a bit of the story from The Sydney Morning Herald. It's fascinating:

The sharks arrive in late November or early December and depart in mid to late April, spending from a day to three weeks in the harbour on each visit, with an average sojourn of 17 days.

There are no hot spots, where they gather. ''They're going everywhere,'' Dr Smoothey said.

They dive from the surface to more than 30 metres deep and water temperatures ranging from 19 to 30 degrees.

And they often come back each year. Of the 11 sharks tagged in the 2009 and 2010 seasons, nine returned during the summer and autumn of 2011.

The feisty female that Dr Smoothey and her team caught near Sow and Pigs Reef last month had been tagged just seven days before near Parramatta River.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/animals/expert-shedding-new-light-on-shark-patterns-20120309-1upnu.html#ixzz1ogmkaKJM

I love it that the sharks have a 'sojourn'. It sounds so civilised.

Dr Smoothey's team has only caught bull sharks, which suggests that other shark species aren't venturing inside the heads. I feel better now...

It seems the bully is the one to look out for if you're in the harbour, as I will be tomorrow for both the 1 km and 2 km swims in The Sydney Harbour Swim Classic. 

Crazy lady. "Hey shark! Here I am! And if you don't get me the first time, there's another chance later on!"

I'm getting hysterical.

For the other eejits diving in to a murky Sydney Harbour tomorrow, there are reassuring words from Dr Smoothey:  

On Australia Day in 2011 there were seven present, when thousands of people also took to the water. ''There were no incidents. Not even a sighting. It suggests bull sharks may not be the voracious predators we once thought,'' Dr Smoothey said. ''… sharks and humans can co-exist."

This will be my fifth Sydney Harbour swim and I did one earlier this year. I'm still around to tell the tale with all my bits intact. 

I'll report back tomorrow to let you know if Dr Smoothey is right! And if I don't... ]no flowers please, just a donation to the WWF. And can someone make sure the dog gets walked every day?

PS: Though I'm not a fan of bull sharks, I respect these amazing creatures and value the role they play in keeping our oceans healthy. Without them we're stuffed. I oppose shark finning and despise people who launch their own 'attacks' on sharks after a human has unfortunately got in the way of one (this happened in WA late last year).    

My short story won the Little Gems Diamond Short Story Contest: good news on my writing blog

This is a Bali Sunset

I never write on my writing blog because I never write. 

That's not quite correct. Occasionally I turn over the creative sods and it's finally paid off. 

I won the 2012 RWA Little Gems Diamond contest for my short story Bali Sunset.

The good news arrived via email last week and I'm still dazed and confused. I pipped 86 other entries to take out first prize: some money (it will cover the other contests I've entered over the years) and my story's inclusion in the 2012 Little Gems Diamond Short Story Anthology. 

You can read more about it over at my Wordpress blog - there's a link to it in the right-hand column. 

If you're not winning in the ocean, there has to be some sort of compensation. Maybe I can bring my winning streak into my swimming?

The Barney Mullins Swim Classic at Freshwater: the long run in and back out

Bringing in the buoys after the Barney Mullins Swim Classic at Freshwater

The ocean swimming community has been lucky this year because the sun always decides to pop in for a visit on the day of an event. Afterwards, it skulks back behind dark ominous clouds and disappears for the rest of the week.

Today was brillo. Sun. Sun so hot that it could fry an egg on an old codger's barnacled back.

Ms Fivestar came with me today because she had the urge to be near the sea. A good decision. The conditions at Freshwater were perfect for paddlers even though there was a bit of a rip to begin with.

I don't know a lot about Freshwater except that it's the beach over the hill from Queenscliff. It's a gorgeous beach and more wavy than I remembered it from my last trip there about 20 years ago. 

The course was a clockwise 1.5 km (afterwards there was a rumour going around that it was more like 1.8 km, which I'd like to believe considering my time). 

The problem for me was the getting out as it was really shallow for the first 50 metres or so. Then I got whacked and dragged back by a crappy wave. Getting back in after the swim also required me to run through the shallows - not my strength. I was still happy with my time - until I encountered my opposition Mr Very Big (VB). He did the swim in 33 minutes to my 35 (adjusted since first putting up this post because the female swimmers started three minutes after the men). Ah, life. 

When the swim was over Ms Fivestar, Ms Loveachat (who turned up) and I went to the Pilu Kiosk for a bite to eat. I thought I took a photo of it but I can't find it on my camera. It's lovely. We sat on the deck in the shade and drank fantastic single origin coffee and ate ricotta drizzled with honey on sourdough toast. Here's the link to Pilu: http://www.piluatfreshwater.com.au/the-kiosk.php   

Signing off on another successful swim in a half submerged City of Sydney. Soon to float away. The problem is, when the rain stops the fires usually start.

PS: Have you noticed a whiny "poor me" tone creeping into my swimming reports? Mmm... I have. I always have a ready-made excuse for my inability to thrash Mr VB.

Note to self: stop whining and seek revenge. To steal the motto from Miss Hissy's school: 'Facta non verba'... I think that's it, without having to go and check her school blouse! It means: (better Google it to make sure I'm right) 'Deeds not words'. Dirty deeds...