Report by Catherine Alexander, Postal Swims Coordinator

It wont be long before we are back in the pool and if your considering extending your swim sessions from training to a further pathway to enjoy swimming and extended fitness, Postal swims may be for you. Below is an article giving you some insight into this swim category.

Our club has strong Postal swims participation.  These members compete in our pool, for the satisfaction of completing a swim challenge, presented from a distant club.  Our swimmers have taken part in far-ranging events from Bunbury in WA to Toowomba in Qld without leaving the Tuggeranong Valley!  They do it for the “fun and the fitness”, but the merchandise awards for successfully completing the swim are always a nice bonus.

The last swim completed was the Surrey Park Seahorses, “The Animal”.  Each swim has a different format and this one is a real beast, as the demanding list of swims must be completed on one single day.  To be a successful entrant each swimmer had to complete:

•  200m each of Butterfly, Backstroke and Breaststroke
• 400m Individual Medley, and
• 800m Freestyle.           

Postal swims occur throughout the swimming calendar and are a good partner with the Endurance 1000 program.  They are a great way to build fitness and endurance, and a great way to get to know other club members.

It has been a tough time with Covid lockdown and I hope everyone is managing ok. Remember, we will be back in the water. We did it last year and we will do it again.

We do have some members braving the cold lake and many are out running, walking, and riding. Even gardening helps with keeping active and enhancing your well-being.

If you want to use this time to develop your swimming knowledge, our website is a great place to start, with lots of info including technique and tips articles.

The club is planning to have some swims in the lake in October and hopefully we will be back in the pool late October.

As I was walking this morning I was thinking about swimming and what I personally miss:

– Remember your love of swimming and why you swim.

– Swim for the joy of swimming. Remember how it feels to slide through the water and forget your worries.

– Swim for your mental health.

– Swim for socialising and enjoy catching up again with your swimming friends.

Going fast and hitting those times will come again in time.

… and as Arnie said we will be back!!!

Anne Smyth, Head Coach

Don’t forget our AGM is on Monday, 27 September 6.30 pm via Zoom. Join us online and contribute to your club!

In July 2021 our Head Coach, Anne Smyth, outlined the Breastroke focus for the week’s training via our club email.  In response, our wonderful Technical Director, Gary Stutsel, provided this enlightening and entertaining response …

I had a little laugh when I read “this week’s article with the focus on breaststroke” (7/21).  I thought I focused on breaststroke for 40 years!

Learning at age 13 within 1 year and 4 months I was an NSW junior finalist (4th). It then took me 5 years to place and 8 years to get first place. This was inspite being coached by 4 of Australia’s then top coaches and having a serious road accident mid way through the 7th year. Then competing and training at a lower level of intensity it took me another 29 years with intermittent coaching and stroke correction to do my lifetime best times.

Over these years the rules and stroke have evolved or relaxed depending on your point of view. The video you have recommended we watch before training is a far cry from the “flat on the water” style of the 1950s where the head could not submerged the arms were fully extended to the sides of the body, as hinted at in the attached photo.

Gary Stutsel

“It is always interesting to hear about some of our member’s history and how swimming has changed”, Anne Smyth.