Hackney Swimmer's wavemachine

Everyone needs targets

hackneyswimmer — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 20:20:27 +0000

Filed under: Uncategorized

new uses for London’s swimming pools

hackneyswimmer — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 00:41:22 +0000

The Pool from lloyd ramsay on Vimeo.

Filed under: national news

keep in lane

hackneyswimmer — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 23:59:11 +0000

Filed under: culture

The Leisure Review: March 2011 – WTF!

hackneyswimmer — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 11:03:34 +0000

Surprise, surprise, at the end of the day it’s the clubs’ fault. Funny how clubs are dismissed so easily in statistics thrown out before coffee and biscuits. It’s only ‘one club’ after all, and it wouldn’t do to call it, ” a minimum of three or four hundred young swimmers, a hundred masters swimmers, and forty or fifty water-polo players – per year!”, would it?

A positive note for the assembled with the ASA ‘dissing’ its membership and then, “mine’s a custard cream”.

In parts of London facilities have been made difficult to use with vanity facilities imposed upon the public, profit from gym-membership is maximised, lifeguards are outnumbered by numbers of membership-agents and loyalty-marketing operatives. This is a shocking article that smacks of trying to work out how to raise a goldfish in your cupped hands rather than go out and buy an aquarium.

Swimmers are ignored by local authorities and architects at the design stage. Achievable energy-saving ideas are rejected as fanciful. Many leisure centre management staff are bitter misanthropes with ADHD promoted beyond their abilities and determined to settle scores with a world outside the leisure centre that they don’t understand aided and abetted by arrogant local authority gauleitters.

If adult fitness-swimming is increasing how many of them are the club-swimmers of yesteryear? Where is the publishing of contracts between local authorities and leisure asset contractors? Where are the local authority aquatic-sport strategies. Can we please have a wikileaks for the leisure-scam operated in many areas.

Why do adults bully the young so much?

Less hot air more action.

“Any discussion of swimming facilities and programming will sooner or later arrive at the subject of swimming clubs and The Leisure Review swimming summit was no exception. Some noted that many clubs have prime evening sessions that could be better used to generate revenue, although the issue of young swimmers being pushed back into later time slots was acknowledged as an issue. The Shropshire Academy has been in discussion with all its clubs, outlining an agreed way forward in which the local authority takes responsibility for learn to swim while the clubs accept the role of coaching. Under this arrangement many clubs will need to adjust their business model but it will mean that they need less time in the pool. The ASA accepts the likelihood of a rationalisation of swimming clubs as a result of the government’s spending review and agrees that clubs are not necessarily the best place to teach people to swim but there is a demand for learn to swim programmes that is not being met.“

(CLICK HERE FOR MORE »» The Leisure Review: March 2011: .)

Filed under: advice, ASA stuff, British swimming, employment, School Swimming

Places People Play – have your say

hackneyswimmer — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:40:46 +0000

Sport England is gathering the views of community sports clubs, so have your say by completing a short online questionnaire/survey, which can be accessed HERE

For more details on the legacy click HERE

Filed under: clubs news, funding

Financial strength survey

hackneyswimmer — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:38:09 +0000

The Sport and Recreation Alliance is surveying sports clubs to assess their financial health (find out more about the Sport and Recreation Alliance). Completing this survey will allow us, and the Alliance (on our behalf) to campaign for reduced rates of VAT for sports clubs, lower utility rates, alcohol licensing costs, music licensing costs, drainage charges, Gift Aid, improvements to the CASC scheme, access to facilities and other important issues for clubs. Only with good data can we make politicians listen.

Click here to take part in the survey.

Filed under: clubs news, funding

Mayor of London – Sports Participation Fund

hackneyswimmer — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:35:41 +0000

The second round of the Mayor’s Sports Participation Fund opens on Monday 21st March. Full details, funding prospectus and application form will all be available HERE. Applications close on 06 May 2011.

Filed under: clubs news

Swimming microbots master U-turns, next step a cattle-prod in the pool

hackneyswimmer — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 20:11:10 +0000

At last electricity is shown to be the way to get middle-aged north-Londoners to tumble turn (not really)

Tiny robots swimming through our bodies zapping polyps or delivering drugs has been the stuff of future tech hype for decades. But even as this concept becomes closer to reality (albeit slowly), one of many big questions is: How do you steer the micromachines? North Carolina State University recently demonstrated a technique to make their microbots do U-turns. From New Scientist:

The microbot, a mere 1.3 millimetres long, is essentially a diode – an electrical element that only allows current to pass in one direction. The diode is exposed to an alternating electric field, which induces a voltage across it, creating an electric dipole. This dipole pushes on ions in the water, driving them backward and propelling the microbot forward.

In order to make the bot turn, the group added a DC element to the field, modifying the initial AC field. Rachita Sharma and Orlin Velev believe that the DC field changes the distribution of the ions near the diode, and the torque they exert on the electric dipole causes the microbot to rotate. Once the microbot completed its 180-degree turn, the researchers turned off the DC field, and the microbot swam off in the other direction.

“Microbots made to twist and turn as they swim“

(MORE »» Boing Boing Swimming microbots master U-turns: .)

Filed under: tips and tricks, world news

Hackney swimmers’ charity challenge

hackneyswimmer — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 15:01:17 +0000

“HACKNEY swimmers can make a splash for charity as they take part in Swimathon 2011.

London Fields Lido, Clissold Leisure Centre in Clissold Road, Stoke Newington, and Kings Hall Leisure Centre, in Lower Clapton Road, are part of the 580-strong nationwide pools raising cash for Marie Curie Cancer Care and the Swimathon Foundation.

Swimmers at London Fields will not want to lose their crown as the best in Britain after having come top of the fundraising across the whole country for the last two years with £26,000.

The event takes place between April 8 and 10 where it is expected 22,000 swimmers will raise more than £2 million.

Individual and team entries to Swimathon 2011 are open until April 6 2011. To enter go online to www.swimathon.org or call 0845 36 700 36.”

(CLICK HERE FOR MORE »» Hackney swimmers’ charity challenge – News – Hackney Gazette: .)

Filed under: Aquatic Hackney, masters

Over 400 competitors for UK Cold Water Swimming Championships 2011

hackneyswimmer — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 15:00:41 +0000

Where: Tooting Bec Lido, Tooting Bec Road, London SW16 1RU
When: 9.00 am – 4.30 pm, Saturday 22 January 2011
Interviews: Race Organiser, Margy Sullivan, SLSC

Over 400 people and 66 teams will take part in the 5th SLSC Cold Water Swimming Championship 2011 at Tooting Bec Lido in South London. Organised by South London Swimming Club (SLSC), the event attracts around 1,000 people and provides the spectacle of a race every couple of minutes from 9.00 am through to the awards ceremony at 3.00 pm.

This year’s event has attracted competitors from all over the UK, and from Germany, Latvia, Kazakhstan, Sweden, Ireland and the USA. There are well over 20 Channel swimmers taking part. And age is no barrier: two of the oldest competitors, Cyril and Yvonne Woods are 87 and 88 years old respectively and the youngest, Damir Kurleutov from Almaty in Kazakhstan, is just seven.
Margy Sullivan, an experienced winter-swimmer and the SLSC’s chief organiser of this event, believes that this year’s Championships are going to be better than ever. “At Tooting Bec Lido, we’ve been swimming in cold water year-round since 1906 and now it seems to be catching on. This year’s event was over-subscribed and we have a fantastic mix of some very serious swimmers and a lot of silly hats! All the trophies will be hotly contested but if you ask anyone, they’ll tell you it’s really all about taking part. It’s about being an amateur in the true sense of the word.”

The race schedule is posted here: .

The day’s programme kicks off with a ‘brassy’ opening ceremony at 9.00 am, followed by individual races from 9.10 am through to 12 am. Team-relays then run through to 1.15 pm when the individual-finals take place, followed by the endurance-swim at 2.30 pm. The Awards Ceremony is at 3.00 pm and the event closes at 4.30 pm, leaving time for competitors to get ready for the Barn Dance at 7.30 pm.

The Cold Water Swimming Championships celebrates the fun and camaraderie of cold water swimming. Entry to watch the Championships is £2 and this gives you access to grandstand-seating, lots of good food and drink including Volcano coffee, Championship ale, hog roast, pancakes and faerie cakes. There are lots of interesting stalls in the marquee and even a free cycle-powered cinema. Visitors can also sign up for a £5 swim in the dipping-lane, followed by a hot tub and sauna.

Useful resources:
Online:

Website: and click on the CWSC 11 tab;
Blog;
Facebook Fan Page
Twitter:
(hashtag: #coldwater2011)

Cameras: You can film but need to register with Maria Horn, Film Manager, Wandsworth Film Office, Battersea Park, London SW11 4NJ. mhorn@wandsworth.gov.uk. 020 8871 7119. www.wandsworth.gov.uk/film .
Photos: PICASA

Further information

Press:

Jonathan Buckley on 07985 575 261 JBuckley@betweenthelines.fsnet.co.uk or Tom Butler on 07726360558 at twebutler@yahoo.co.uk .
General: coldswim@slsc.org.uk and 07985 141 532

poolingresources : Message: Over 400 competitors for UK Cold Water Swimming Championships 2011.

Filed under: British swimming, Lido News, open water swimming