The Bold and Beautiful Swim Squad are a group of individuals who wear fluoro pink caps and set out on their official swim at 7am from Manly Beach and continue to Shelly Beach, once there they wait for everyone to arrive. Then they make the return back to Manly Beach. The group meet together every single day of the year and the distance of the swim is 1.5 kilometres
I have been a member of the Bold and Beautiful Swim Squad now for over two years. Initially, it was a goal of mine to join this fluoro pink cap wearing community and do one swim with them. After lots of practice at Manly Boy Charlton Pools, on the 2 September 2015 I achieved my goal. That one swim on that day has turned into hundreds of swims. You can find me down there most days. One of the major reasons why I come back each morning is to see the glorious sunrise before the swim.
I have come up with a list of 5 things you need to know about the swim and this awesome squad:
- It is FREE. Yes that is right. It is a non profit group that is run by volunteers who tirelessly: show up each day to greet everyone, take the official temperature, sign in the new swimmers “newbies” and give them a fluoro pink cap. Plus volunteers blog every single day of the year and put it on the official Bold and Beautiful Website so that each swim and events of the morning are documented for all to read.
- You swim at your own risk: There are no life guards or professional ocean swimmers who swim with us for the sole purpose to save people. The ocean can be unpredictable and you should make an educated decision each day depending on the conditions if you can make the distance. You do not need to make the entire distance to Shelly Beach and back again. Some days I am tired and I decide to walk back from Shelly Beach. On days where the conditions are rough an announcement will be made at 7am about the conditions and always with an alternative route. This may mean the squad enters the water at The Bower which is half way between Manly Beach and Shelly Beach and swim to Shelly Beach or it could mean that everyone swims north from Manly Beach parallel to the Beach half way towards Queenscliff Beach and back again
- You will form friendships: The Bold and Beautiful Swim Squad is an amazing, positive community to be a part of. You will feel welcomed immediately. There are hundreds of people who swim each day from all walks of life and from all over the world. The positive vibe which the squad oozes is contagious. It is inevitable to be a part of a group this awesome and not make friends. The squad has many social gatherings, one being a monthly dinner at Blue Water cafe where a speaker is invited to talk about certain topics and we share a meal together.
- You will see amazing marine life: On any given day you will see marine life in the water. There are eclectic schools of fish, eagle rays, dusky whalers, Port Jackson sharks or wobbegongs and cuttlefish. It is a true feast for the eyes. Even so much that I don’t go swimming without my underwater camera so I can try and capture the majestic marine life.
- It compliments any other training you participate in: I do CrossFit at CrossFit Manly Vale each morning at 5am. When I finish at 6am I am hot and sweaty and need some cold water recovery and that is when I head down to Manly in time for the Bold and Beautiful swim. There has been much research of late on how cold water on the body helps with recovery and muscle soreness.
www.crossfitmanlyvale.com.au
I am looking forward to meeting you down at Manly Beach for a swim soon.
Natalie Sengchanh
