The annual 2009 Victorian Open Water Championships were held on the 17th and 18th of October. The Championship was again run at Hazelwood Pondage in Gippsland near Morwell and Traralgon. The man-made lake maintains a temperature of around 22-23 degrees and has played home to the Championship for a number of years. The events contested were the Vic Open Water State Championship 5km & 10km, as well as the Halzewood Sauna Swim 1km & 3km. The 5km & 10km events times are used for those wishing to qualify for the National Open Water Championships held at Nagambie Vic in February 2010, and as such attracts a quality field. This is a great event to enter, for swimmers wishing to give open water swimming a go, and there were many young swimmers aged 9-14 entering in the shorter distance events from most swimming clubs.
On the grassy banks of the Pondage all the SSC swimmers and parents met and set up deck chairs creating a wonderful family atmosphere and excellent support for the swimmers. (Post race it was nice to relax in the sun and fresh air and picnic amongst friends, as opposed the lethargic feeling one gets when sitting around a humid indoor pool feeling dehydrated)
It was a gutsy effort for those representing our club, contending with poor water visibility and breezes conditions making a slight chop, it certainly gave the swimmers an extra challenge. Swimmers had to wade out to a start marker in the water and were given a 30 second warning before the starters horn blew. This gave the opportunity for team mates to share some bonding time and soak up the atmosphere together in the water, a rare opportunity not present at pool swim meets.
SSC will endeavour to provide more opportunities for Open Water Swimming during the summer. Did you know there are lots of Open Water Events around the bay from Nov to March, not just Lorne Pier to Pub.
Congratulations to Sam Russo now ranked 12th in the state and Mikayla Howell ranked 33rd in the Sate for contesting the Vic Open Water State Championship 5km event.