Just in case you havent followed Olivers advice above ... Dear swimmer Swims arent like cake, or cities, or jeans: they dont come in favourites. What you like, where you like it, how long for: it varies with mood, the day, the company, the year, as surely as rivers flow and seas ebb. What is safe or enjoyable to one swimmer may be fatal or terrifying to another. This newsletter is all about that individuality. From the Outer Hebrides we have a swimmer writing about her lone swims with a wild seal colony. From within the heart of a family we have a mother talking about introducing her young children to the water. And from the media frontline, or at least some kind of shoreline, we have the acting OSS press officer talking about what its really like trying to inject some sense into the scare stories involving water at this time of year - you know the ones: the stories where water stops obeying any known laws of physics, remains icy even on a hot summer day, has weird and fatal undercurrents, hidden whirlpools, and the only solution to keep people safe can be: ban swimming. We have news of The Trent Challenge, the second group of swimmers we know of who are plotting a long distance path for swimmers on the River Trent (the first group completed the Thames last summer, and hope to map them soon). The Trent swimmers have explored and mapped 18 sections of the river so far on wildswim and invite others to join them (on a social basis) on an 11k swim coming up soon. Finally theres a comprehensive event list of all the open water swims in the country on the OSS website for people who like that kind of structure, and a brilliant kit review of your underwater photography options so wherever you swim, whatever kind of water you love, you can capture it and share it with the rest of the community. (If you load your images on to wildswim you can post to your Facebook friends and networks from there so people can not only see you swimming, but also find the practical details they need of where you swam). Happy swimming! Kate Rew, OSS Director SWIMMING WITH SEALS In the freshest first person story Ive read for years, experienced swimmer, hill walker and eco-writer Ann Palmer writes about swimming with seals on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. Ann is a lone 69 year old swimmer who swims year-round at the same beach. On the OSS site she tells a story from her time getting close to a colony, learning to read their signs of communication and play with them. WATER DEATHS IN THE MEDIA Every summer we see stories in the media prompted by water-related deaths that contain misinformation about swimming and risk. Undercurrents drag unfortunate people into hidden whirlpools. Open water is icy and defies the laws of physics by never warming up, even on hot summers day. (This is especially so in reservoirs, where swimmers - but not kayakers, sailors or windsurfers - also get sucked down by the big pipes and supernatural currents.) The premise of these stories is often that swimming outdoors is lethal. Misinformation is recycled by journalists, lake wardens and safety experts. A few months ago Lynne Roper - paramedic, swimmer and blogger - stepped in as acting OSS Press Officer. I know I am not alone among experienced outdoor swimmers in finding the storm surge of nonsense infuriating. So when I was asked to cover as OSS Press Officer I sensed an opportunity to counter these media-conjured bogeymen. She did not need to wait long for her first experience of a firestorm. Over on the OSS site she tells the story. MAPPING THE RIVER TRENT The River Trent is one of the longest rivers in England, and this summer a group of swimmers, led by pioneers Sarah Lewis and Chris Ensor, are reaching the final stages of an 185 mile journey from source to sea. Here Jane Greene Pettersson talks to Sarah about her mission to swim the length of her river - and map it as a long distance path for future swimmers Britain is criss-crossed with rivers, but while our mountains are coasts are mapped and logged with long distance walks and climbs, the process of logging long distance swim paths has only just begun. Last year a group of OSS swimmers completed their three-year project of swimming the Thames, which they will, in time, map and share with other OSS members in detail. This summer another group are reaching the final stages of swimming their river, the Trent. At 185 miles the Trent is the third longest river in England, after the Thames (215 miles) and the Severn (220). It rises in Biddulph Moor in Staffordshire, flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls and there forms Humber Estuary. It is the original boundary between the north and south of England. KIT REVIEW: UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY Want to take photos while swimming? Smartphones, compact cameras, Single Lens Reflexes (SLRs), and GoPros can all be accommodated within waterproof housing. On the OSS website, OSS kit reviewer Susanne Masters weighs up the options. To me, a waterproof compact camera is still the best option for getting decent photos, she says. But there are merits in many of the different options. MY CHILDREN GREW UP SWIMMING IN LAKES IN SWEDEN The idea of wild swimming seems a bit odd in the Swedish context, says Jane Green Peterrsoon. Everyone goes wild swimming. That is more or less what swimming is. Outdoor pools close in summer because everyone is at the lake. EVENT CALENDAR Check it out! For those who love an event, there are now over 200 listed and linked on the OSS website - thank you Overaquatix & volunteer manager Jamie Cross. DART10K TICKET RERELEASE If you want a chance to swim in this years Dart10k then remember to register for a place on 1st July. The website will be open for registrations between 7 and 8am, and the available places will then be given to swimmers via ballot. This system is a result of a very high demand for returned places, of which there are only a few. BOOK REVIEW: DIP A dream of a book that communed with my wild swimmers soul, says Lynne Roper of Andrew Fuseks DIP: Wild Swims through the Borderland, a story of swimming through depression. HELP! WE NEED SOMEBODY And not just anybody... The OSS is still looking for a writer, editor, commissioning editor or sub editor to help with the production of this email & stories on site. If you have the professional skills and the time, please contact Jamie Cross. Submissions are welcomed for one off stories as well. UNSUBSCRIBE If you would like to unsubscribe from this newsletter, please log in and untick send me newsletter. There is a password and username prompt if you have forgotten yours. We are sorry to see you go - but happy swimming.
Posted on: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 06:57:13 +0000
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