Conditions were “perfect” but the incoming tide threw slightly off course some of the 70 competitors in last Saturday’s harbour swim, say organisers of the inaugural bridge to bridge fundraising event for heating Raglan Area School pool.
Despite the challenge it was an “awesome” day, spokeswoman Lisa Thomson told the Chronicle, with a couple of hundred people on the beach to cheer on and support the swimmers in races of varying distances around buoys placed between Kopua footbridge and the single-lane traffic bridge.
The biggest field on the day was for the longest swim of two kilometres which attracted 30 competitors, says Lisa.
“But our younger 500-metre swimmers did an amazing job (too), crossing over the inner harbour, swimming across the current, many of them coming out of the water for the first time in a proper ocean swim.”
Results:
250m
1. Sophie Carr Patterson (Otorohanga)
2. Bailey Gallagher (Hamilton)
3. Hunter Sullivan (Te Mata)
Special mention for our youngest local competitor Caleb Brydon, who took part in his first open water swim!
13 years 500m
1. Hamish Kennedy (Hamilton)
2. Ocean Kereopa (Raglan)
3. Ryan Foster
500m Open
1. Rebecca Eivers (Raglan)
2. Tainui Rossi (Raglan)
3. Lana Milicich (Raglan)
1km Open
1. Mark Haimoana (Hamilton/Raglan)
2. Eiko Yoshimura (Raglan)
3. Sean Dillon (Raglan)
1.5km Open
1. Peter Aim (Raglan)
2km Open Female
1. Leah Stanley (Hamilton)
2. Sarah Mortimer (Hamilton) Sovereign Ocean Swim National Series 2013 age group winner
3. Abby Armstrong (Hamilton)
2km Open Male
1. Paul Abbott (Raglan)
2. Pat Gallagher (Hamilton)
3. Tim Greeny (Hamilton)
