Now available for €10 from Centra Crosshaven – this year’s must-have fashion item is here.  While most of us mere mortals won’t be able to make these T-Shirts look as good as the top models shown below, we’ll still give it a try 🙂

They’re available at the Centra for convenience, rather than flogging them from a car boot at the beach. €10 is the cost price – not marked up!  Get yours now – they’ll sell out fast. Get a new Hat too 😊

A local audiologist, Mary Duggan of Vita HEAR, has worked with the Phoenix Kayak Club and – I’ve now learned! – a few Myrtleville swimmers, to provide customised ear moulds.  Everyone has been very happy with the service and product.  Since she’s locally based and thus more flexible, we’re going to go with Mary for the moulds.  Also, importantly, the cost is €70, rather than €99 from the other vendor.

For those who have signed up, you’ll get an email shortly about the times for fitting on March 19th (we’re sticking to that date).

The moulds come from Bachmaier in Germany.  They float and the cost includes fitting, a case and a lead.

Here’s some information on Swimmers Ear:

If you haven’t signed up and want to do so, email Damian O’Neill – myrtlevilleswimmers@gmail.com.

Unfortunately we got late notice that actress, Rose Henderson, was coming down for a swim, so she didn’t get to meet any of our famous swimmers.  She says she’ll come back again with her autograph book.  Rose has lots of roles to her credit, but for anyone who loved Father Ted it’s hard to forget Sr. Assumpta – even though Dougal did, nearly.

She got a couple of pics anyway.  Before and after her swim.  The cold water does wreck with makeup and hair colouring.  Didn’t Siobhan Russell have the same colour hair one time?

We’re looking at getting a sheltered changing area and B. Lynch discovered that there was once a ladies-only changing area on the beach.  Men had to go around to Poll Gorm to change there.  A bit more searching on olden times led him to start thinking that a fixed structure might not be the way to go after all.  Options now being considered are individual shelters – but they still don’t cover your head in the standard model.

The Skreenette – very popular in 1929.

The main interest, though, centres on the much sturdier Bathing Machine.  The only thing it’s missing is a shower.  However, as luck would have it, apparently the Condon Shower Company are very interested in a joint venture with e-brinks, once they can advertise on the removable signs.  That should corner the market, I’d say.

The Bathing Machine – All Mod Cons and then some.

You just wheel it into the water and emerge dry and ready to swim.  Once you get back from the Dutchman, in you go and you will be just toasty.

Model demonstrates how it works – Germany 1893.

Of course, the basic model is never going to do for some people.  We’ll have escalation and keeping up with the Lowrys going on in no time.  Some fellas will have to have the horse-drawn model.  No lugging it down the beach for them.

Before long, it’ll be hard to get into the water past them..

Maybe we should just stick to the concrete one after all.

With the drop in sea temperatures, we’ve taken the opportunity to run some tests under lab conditions.  First, there was the “Do wetsuits stop your eyes from freezing closed?” Test.  The results were inconclusive.  It seems that 50% of swimmers can avoid frozen-eye-syndrome by wearing a wetsuit, while 50% can not.

50% frozen-eyed in the wetsuit sample of Dave and Brian.

100%  of togs swimmers contract it, though.

100% of togs swimmers contracted frozen eyes in the Bernard and Jim sample.

The second test was the Riana Parson’s “What would happen if two feet went swimming alone?” test.  It appears they would cause the sun to come up and then trigger an argument of the “Mine! No – Mine!” kind.

Feet point the way for the sun.

I found a foot!

Further experiments are planned.