Seen at 8.15am: As I drive towards Bondi Beach in Sydney's eastern suburbs I notice my first 'typical' eastern suburbs couple of the day, aged in their late 20s. They sprint along the footpath in streamlined unison.
Both are golden and toned. She wears a running ensemble of striped tank top and short leggings, tight midriff revealed. His thighs are sheathed in black leggings, buff torso exposed. I am struck by their physical perfection as she paces him, taking broad confident strides reserved for those blessed with upward financial mobility (and let's not forget good genes).
Heard at 8.30am: As I stroll towards the beach after parking the car, I fall in behind a woman walking a small, fluffy, white dog.
She looks fit and I guess she's around 40. She's talking on her mobile phone: "You've got lovely lips. I think you should get it done but remember it only lasts for six months and costs a fair bit of money... Yeah, well if you're going to get that done make sure they inject it in the middle, otherwise it will make you look odd."
It's all fun.
Once on the beach at North Bondi, my focus turns to the conditions in the surf. Perfection. Golden. Toned even.
It is incredible that, after the inundation* of Sydney for the past two months, today could be so beautiful (though it's raining again as I write). Amazingly, the water is so clear that when I dive under a wave I can see the other swimmers around me, their legs kicking out bubbles as they rise to the surface.
The waves are small and soft and the rips that can make Bondi a challenge are absent (or so small that they're not an issue).
I decide to do both the 1km and 2km swims.
At the moment I can't think of what not to like about the swims. The buoys were clearly marked, there was heaps of support on the water and the conditions were divine.
NO CHOP. IT'S ABOUT BLOODY TIME.
After all the choppy wild northern beaches swim, I am tired of swallowing so much ocean. Today was a blessing. After adjusting foggy goggles, I find a rhythm for both swims. Though I thought I'd be buggered for the 2 km swim, I feel fine.
I don't know what my times are (they're not up on www.oceanswims.com yet) which is why I probably feel pretty good. Sometimes it's best not to find out!
Afterwards my squad mates and I headed to the North Bondi Surf Club to find out if we'd won the lucky draw to win a trip for two to Hawaii for the Waikiki Rough Water Swim in September. Had I won, I would be out celebrating, not writing a blog post.
Next week? Not sure. I think it's the Tamarama to Clovelly but that's tough. I'll get back you on that one.
*'Inundated' is the Word of the Month on the east coast of Australia, which has experienced heavy rain and floods for longer than Noah floated around in his ark. I heard this Ocker bloke from a country town in Queensland being interviewed about the floods. I think he was nervous because he told the reporter the town had been "unindated".
2 comments:
One k and 2 k swims. Impressive. Looks like a lovely day at the beach. DC
I am now formally impressive.
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