Galway Girls – ready to go!

Brenda Sisk and Marie Watson have left no stone unturned in their preparations for the Galway Bay swim next Saturday.  While many of us have seen their efforts in the pool and sea right through last Winter, there’s more than just training needed to make a swim – and swimmer – successful.  Thankfully, the Galway Girls seem to have it all in hand.

They’ve got the promotional posters and star paparazzi to record the events.

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They’ve got the nails painted aerodynamically and also to look good for the aforementioned paparazzi person.

Marie Watson - attention to detail is admirable.

Marie Watson – attention to detail is admirable.

They’ve had a kiss for good luck from the main man, Mr. Redmond (Brenda has to share it – Marie grabbed it).

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Finally, they’ve recognised the risk that their spirits may flag in mid-swim, so they’ve employed the services of Ann “The Dominator Motivator” Smyth as crew.

I'd keep swimming if I was ye, girls. Ann Smyth as boat crew...

I’d keep swimming if I was ye, girls. Ann Smyth as boat crew…

Barbara Anne Richardson and Brendan O’Brien are going for the swim on Saturday too – but I didn’t have incriminating photos of them, so they’ll have to make do with “Good Luck!!”.  Good luck to all four, in fact 🙂

Tea by the Sea

Here’s one to completely piss off anyone stuck in an office.  Me.

Hardcore Myrtlevillian swimmers sticking rigidly to their training diets at Tea by the Sea in the Pine Lodge, Myrtleville.  Yes, I do wish I was there.  Yes, I am jealous.

Myrtlevillians enjoying Tea by the Sea at the Pine Lodge.

Myrtlevillians enjoying Tea by the Sea at the Pine Lodge.

Drop in local sea temperature explained

Sea swimmers in Cork have been wondering for some weeks now why the normal Summer temperatures have reversed, leaving us with sea temps as low as 11c on some days.  Not content to accept standard weather-related explanations, we dispatched intrepid reporters to investigate and can now reveal the cause.

Our investigators were led initially to news of rumblings of discontent down West.  Apparently a certain Vermontian was unhappy at the thought of running his Distance Camp in balmy 14 or 15c waters, as we had in June.  An unhappy Ned Denison is not a pretty sight.  Here’s a file pic of same.

No, that’s not a good one.  Here’s the one we meant.

Open water sea swimming in Cork, Ireland

Ned – not happy.

Not even Ned can change the weather, though.  Can he?  The answer was revealed yesterday with photos taken off Oysterhaven of a temporary moorings licenced by the Dept. of the Marine.

The moorings are registered to a “Mr. N. Den-iceman” – a shoddy attempt to throw us off track.  The steadily-melting glacier has spread freezing water, explaining the drops in sea temperatures and making Ned – and not another feckin’ soul – happy.

Turtles on the way

Eoin Lowry began the big day, leaving Shakespeare beach at 06.27 this morning and the team is flying so far.  Click on the tracker here.

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Follow updates on Twitter @MulcahyMaeve. She’s doing a great job!

Myrtle Turtles flying the flag on Galivant this morning.

Myrtle Turtles flying the flag on Galivant this morning.

July 14 is T Day

Looks like it has finally arrived – T Day (when the Myrtle Turtles swim to France) is scheduled to begin at 5.30 am tomorrow, Thursday, July 14.  Bastille Day.

They are on Gallivant with pilot, Mike Oram and the tracker will be live from the start time tomorrow morning.  Click on the tracker link here

Unfortunately, during the waiting around there have been some disturbances – with a man sighted loitering in the bushes near the caravan.  Vaguely familiar look to him, I thought.

Open water swimming.

Anyone know this man – the Dover Loiterer?

The ladies have now deployed divine assistance, with the Child of Prague warding off bad weather and unwanted bushmen.

Open water swimming

Child of Prague in the Varne Ridge bushes.

Vive les Turtles!  Can’t wait for tomorrow.

Myrtle Turtles English Channel Relay team

Turtles in waiting – manager overboard.

Follow the Myrtle Turtles on Facebook just click here.

Follow the Myrtle Turtles on Twitter at: @MulcahyMaeve.

Resting is training too

Yes, no less an expert than Roy Keane himself said that recently. Resting is training too. Delighted to see the Myrtle Turtles have this core skill down pat and are, indeed, quite expert at it themselves.

Here’s Caitriona, Anne and Eoin from the Turtles training hard while bound for Dover 🙂

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IMG-20160709-WA0007-20160709-193047815Go Turtles!!

Myrtle Turtles Training video

Nice work by Anne Sheehy on some of the images from the Myrtle Turtles Channel Relay team training so far.  Only a few days to go now 🙂

Follow the Myrtle Turtles on Facebook just click here.

Follow the Myrtle Turtles on Twitter at: @MulcahyMaeve.

Courtmacsherry Lifeboat Swim: August 13, 2016

From Ray McArdle:

The 6th Annual Courtmacsherry Lifeboat Swim takes place at Blind Strand, near the picturesque fishing village of Courtmacsherry at 1.00 pm on Saturday, August 13th. Courtmacsherry is a 45 minute drive from the Bandon Road roundabout.  The swim will be well sign posted from the village.  Please leave plenty of time for parking and registration (by 12.15 at the latest). The safety briefing will take place at 12.45pm.

The swim course starts on the beach at Blind Strand and proceeds anti-clockwise around 2 markers. 

Participants can choose between 1 lap (1.5K) or 2 laps (3K). Swimmers who elect to do 2 laps will run/walk a short distance on the beach prior to starting lap 2. Courtmac swim

The Courtmacsherry volunteers will provide soup and sandwiches for all participants and volunteers. This year I am delighted to announce that we have new sponsors for the event.  IT@Cork Skillnet will be providing the first 100 swimmers registered with a generous goody bag.  Really nice gift inside each one.

All proceeds from the swim go to the Courtmacsherry Lifeboat and Swim Ireland membership is not required. 

Registration this year is again via Active. http://www.active.com/courtmacsherry-cork/water-sports/swimming/courtmacsherry-lifeboat-swim-2016

Registration closes on Thursday, August 11th.  Online registration costs €15, or you can register on the day for €20, until the maximum number is reached.

If you know of anyone who would like to volunteer to kayak, please have them contact me directly. (Ray McArdle -087-754-6953).

Any further updates will be posted on the event web page and emailed to those registered.

I look forward to seeing you for a fun swim on August 13th.

Ray McArdle

Polling suspended as hackers hijack towel vote

Voting in the most fiercely contested poll of the year (Brex who?) has had to be suspended, when the poll was hacked.  IP address searches by our experts tracking the hackers indicate Kinsaleish area involvement.  Known skilled IT types with anti-Myrtlevillian grudges are suspected – primarily Eoin “Flash Trader” O’Riordan.

Right up there on the list of good advice with “never get into a land war in South East Asia” is now “never run an online poll”.  Having possibly encouraged multiple voting in a few polls in the past (thanks for that ILDSA award, by the way), we had expected some attempts at same on this poll and had guarded against it.

The shock came when the poll was hacked and a spurious “third candidate” inserted as an option – Towelly McTowelface.  Here’s the poll online before our crack team of anti-hackers sprang into action and asked someone who knew what they were doing to fix it.  

Hacked poll with spurious third candidate.

Hacked poll with spurious third candidate.

Seriously, though – it’s not even original.   Must try harder, Eoin unidentified hackers. Here’s a close-up of the “candidate”.

Yellow Towel

We are now recounting the thousands of votes cast in the poll, to clarify the voting position prior to the hacking.  Tallymen indicate a blue win, but final results are not yet to hand.  

We will be in a position to report on the result we want – as opposed to the actual result, if necessary – after multiple recounts, analysis of hanging chads and querying of the accuracy of the e-Voting machines.  Sometime in 2017, I’d say.  Maybe.