Respect for local residents – keep the noise down

Posted on June 8, 2016 by myrtlevilleswimmers

The Myrtleville residents have been having a rough time lately, with some very anti-social behaviour during the day and late into the night and early mornings. Speaking to some locals today, they mentioned that some nights quiet has only just been achieved – with Garda intervention – and we’ve been arriving down to swim, keeping them awake even more! This message was passed on gently, but we really need to take notice.

If you’re swimming at any time before 10am, please make every effort to keep the noise down. No shouting across the road. Please try to close car doors and boots gently etc. A little bit of effort on our part will go a long way. We can’t stop the less-welcome elements turning up at the beach intent on causing trouble, but let’s not cause any more for the residents ourselves by being less than thoughtful.

This applies to all of us early swimmers during the week (big finger pointed at my own head) but also don’t forget at 8.15 on Saturday morning – many people want a lie in. Let them sleep!!

RNLI Myrtleville-Church Bay: July 4, 2015: Six weeks to go.

Posted on May 22, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

Six weeks to go to the sixth running of the RNLI Myrtleville – Church Bay Swim. Don’t miss this event. Get swimming and entering.

In the earlier days of the event, there wasn’t a clear distinction between Administration staff and Competitors.

B. Lynch would give the safety briefing, then run to the nearest phone box (tough going from Myrtleville, to be fair) and change in to his superman Orca costume. Ta Da!!

Open water, sea swimming in Cork, Ireland.

Crosshaven swimmers Bernard Lynch, Brian O’Connell, Caroline Fagan and Jane O’Connell all set for the Myrtleville to Church Bay RNLI Sea Swim 2010 (pic Howard Crowdy)

This is great, isn’t it? Pictures of Bernard in a wetsuit! Whooda Thunkit?

Get swimming and entering for the 2015 event. Not to be missed.

RNLI Myrtleville-Church Bay: July 4, 2015: Seven weeks to go

Posted on May 17, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

Seven weeks to go. Don’t miss this event. Get swimming and entering.

In 2011, the swim was moved to Camden, due to unfavourable weather at Myrtleville. Judging on the picture below, they bashed down the metal fences to get in there – although that could have been done by Micky, Kenneth or Roy, I suppose.

Then a mad fella in a wetsuit sent them forth into the sea. Plenty of them looked dubious about it. Good to see Moz had used a few bottles of fake tan and had waxed for the day.

RNLI Myrtleville-Church Bay Swim 2011 Safety briefing (pic Howard Crowdy).

To be fair, it must have been bad if even No. 55 was biting his nails in anticipation.

ECHO SPORT – Event organiser Bernard Lynch shows some of the competitors the route prior to the start of the 2nd annual RNLI 2k Open Water Swim at Fort Camden, Crosshaven (pic Howard Crowdy)

Get swimming and entering for the 2015 event. Not to be missed.

RNLI Myrtleville – Church Bay: July 4, 2015

Posted on May 13, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

Entries are coming in steadily for this fantastic swim. Get yours in here.

This is the sixth running of the event and I thought a few blasts from the past would be appropriate. With thanks to Howard Crowdy.

Pictured at the first Myrtleville to Church Bay RNLI Sea Swim 2010 were well known swimmers Imelda Lynch, Diarmuid Herlihy, Billy Campion, Finbarr Hedderman, Ossi Schmidt, Ned Denison and Lisa Cummins (pic Howard Crowdy)

Seriously, look at de baba at the back. Ah, Finbarr….were you about 15?

Ossi is smiling in that one but, at times, he has been know to be a bit….precise or maybe Germanic, shall we say. Apparently on the day of this first swim it was scheduled to start at 2.30pm. There was no way that Ossi was going to begin until the appointed time. As for the rest of the entrants….they were a bit more on the Irish side.

Ossi Schmidt pictured appears to be giving the swimmers a head start during the Myrtleville to Church Bay RNLI Sea Swim 2010 (pic Howard Crowdy)

Don’t miss the sixth running of this great swim. Enter here.

Bunny Swims 2015

Posted on April 7, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

The inaugural year for Bunny Swims seemed to catch the attention of the easily-distracted group in Myrtleville. Not too sure about further West, though.

Started early – got worse. Friday morning.

Some of the Saturday morning crowd.

As with all events, there were sub-plots and by-lines all over the weekend. There was Claire Canning getting back into the water on Sunday….

OK, you made me go in here, but there is NO WAY I’m putting my head in or swimming. So there. Claire Ní Channain folds her arms and puts her foot down. But not her face.

Claire was generous enough to loan her dressing gown to an elderly kayaker after the swim, though. She thought he looked cold, but I’d say the red flushes were more being hot and bothered by the bunnies really…

Mike Hefner and supporters.

Poor old Tom and Pat came down for their daily swim – to be accosted by bunnies. They don’t seem to have minded, though.

These poor men were minding their own business as they do every morning and then……

So, having added an extra swim on Sunday morning, it was on to Sandycove for the evening. I wasn’t there, but you’d have to say the pictures seem to show a level of bemusement as the Myrtlevillian hordes descended for their fourth Bunny Swim of the weekend.

On one side of the road we had….Yeah, I haven’t taken mine off since Friday.

On the other side of the road…

What in the name of God is going on here, Tadhg? Why is there a plague of rabbits over there? Don’t they know this is the world famous, serious Sandycove Island?

Look, I’m sorry – says Angela – it all seemed like a good idea until that Myrtleville crowd got involved.

And so we had two – very separate – groups.

Serious Sandycove Swimmers.

……and the other lot. With Mike Harris in his element and Angela getting dragged into it – like it or not!

It really was a long weekend. By Monday, it was just too much for some young people and a nap was needed.

The Dutchman

Posted on April 2, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

I just liked these two from Siobhan taken at this morning’s swim – makes it clear where the Hat design came from!

Swim tomorrow at 07.00 for the Bunny Swim. For leisurely folk (Denis etc.) there’s also going to be a 10.00 swim. Why you’d bother is beyond me – sure, the day is over at that stage.

Monday nights and Safe Swimming: Always.

Posted on March 30, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

They’re back! With the sea temperature around 9℃ and the forecast for a bit of WSW wind, tonight at 6.00pm is the first Myrtleville Monday evening swim of 2015. Last year we had nights where between 5.00pm and 7.30pm over 200 swimmers took to the water.

Sea swimming is fantastic, but let’s just have a quick reminder that safe swimming is what it is all about. Never take a chance in the sea.

Each individual swimmer is responsible for their own safety.

We all swim at our own risk.

Monday nights have become so popular because they give an opportunity to swim with others. That’s great, but don’t make the mistake of swimming too far from the beach just to stay with a group. Even in a group don’t go too far out to sea – stay inside (well inside) the line between the Dutchman Rocks and Bunnyconnellan. You don’t ever need to be more than 100m out from the coast – and less is better.

Plan your swim. Go only as far as you can comfortably go, while remembering always that you have to get back to where you started. There’s no point swimming 750m to the Dutchman and then struggling back, or needing help. That’s not only pointless, but dangerous. Why not swim 50m or 100m from the beach, then swim back? If you feel good, do it again – as often as you want to and in complete safety.

There are always swimmers looking to do shorter distances – just speak up: ask what people are doing, see if it suits you and only do what you can accomplish safely. Over time, you can build up to longer distances, if that is what you want to do. Be Safe – Always.

Now’s a good time to read for the first time or remind yourself of some very good advice on safe swimming in Myrtleville.

Swim at your own risk.

T-Shirt competition

Posted on February 12, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

Along the lines of the competition for the Hat, we initiated a search for the best design for a new t-shirt for Myrtleville Swimmers. However, the first received entry was so good and so clearly captured our humility and quiet shyness that we have suspended the competition and put in a first order for 15,000 shirts.

Now, that should make us lots of new friends. Keeping the feet on the ground, that’s us. We’ll have to get Brad back to sign the shirts now. He only just finished the hats.

Life and how to live it.

Posted on January 28, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

I’ve often mentioned our daily swimmers – Pat, Tom and Peter, not to mention Brian and Adrian. I think they’re inspirational and capture exactly what OW swimming is about and why it’s so fantastic.

Denis Condon came up with a great idea to record their daily swim and Anne Sheehy worked her magic on the video. This is sheer joy and if it doesn’t convince you that sea swimming is the world’s best medicine – and fun – nothing will.

Take four minutes to savour this. It’s worth it. You’ll probably watch it again 🙂

VOTE!! IT’S YOUR DEMOCRATIC DUTY!

Posted on January 22, 2015 by myrtlevilleswimmers

Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel. As voting closes this Friday, January 23rd, this is as scoundrelly as I can get.

I know I’m stretching it a bit here and that they may not have had the ILDSA Awards specifically in mind, but our forefathers (and mothers – I’m coming to them too) fought for our right to vote. It’s a bit blurry, but I’m sure there was mention of supporting local swimmers and particularly Myrtleville Swimmers in here somewhere – or at least the right to do so.

Don’t let their efforts be in vain! Vote here: Section 10 is us: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ildsaawards2014

And let’s not forget the ladies – or according to Denis – “De Mnás”. Use that vote!

Votes for Women and Women’s votes for Myrtleville!