Friendship burns strong among Australia's winter swimmers

SYDNEY, July 26 (Reuters) - Sydney, a city of sand, surf and bronzed lifesavers is less known for its fraternity of winter swimmers, who brave the colder temperatures to dive, nearly naked, into the ocean rock pools scattered around the iconic coastline.

Clubs like the Clovelly Eskimo's, Coogee Penguin's, Maroubra Seals and Coogee Huskies hug the eastern shoreline every Sunday morning with the common catch phrase 'fun and friendship'.

"The friendship keeps you warm," Glen Sewell, a member of the Maroubra Seals Winter Swimming club, told Reuters.

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Sewell hasn't missed a swim with the club for 32 years, earning him the prestigious recognition for 100 percent attendance every year.

Over 5,000 swimmers compete weekly, observing the 'no wet suits' rule. The water temperatures in Sydney drop to about 15 Celsius (59 Fahrenheit) in August when it's more likely to be warmer in the water than out.

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Broad shoulders, tanned, healthy men and women depicts the image of Australian Olympic swimming legends but the pressures of sponsorship and body image is less important for the winter amateurs where beer bellies are not an uncommon sight.

The Huskies, motto is, "eight seconds in the drink, eight hours on it!"

Winning is the goal, but not all swimmers can be successful.

Eighty-four-year old Rata Hing has been a member of the Coogee Penguins for 40 years. Hing said she only learned to swim after she retired.

"I'm not a champion swimmer but it's healthy and quite invigorating. It stimulates the blood circulation which I need," said Hing.

Joy Marsden, 73, has been swimming with Clovelly Eskimos for 12 years, she is the oldest female swimmer in the club and is recovering from a knee reconstruction. Her claim to fame is her age is the same as her weight.

While camaraderie and laughter are two of the key ingredients, it is not a sport for the faint hearted.

As storms destroyed buildings and eight meter waves ravaged the eastern coastline last month, members of the Eskimos bravely took on mother nature in the relative safety of their protected bay.

Handicap races were ditched for 'luck of the draw' starts as contestants selected a playing card and jumped into the water as their number was called.

Safety is paramount and casualties few.

Most members agree, though, the hardest thing about winter swimming is getting out of bed when on a wet and windy day, but the spirit of friendship makes it a worthwhile outing.

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