We were blessed with a break in the run of bad weather, swimming a short course of about 700m in relatively calm seas. Terry Bone pushed hard over the first leg, challenging Luke Kelly and Oxford Bayley to match his pace. Luke broke away on leg two and extended his lead to the finish, winning ahead of Oxford, then Terry. …
Port Nelson Sea Swims, Race six, December 12, 2019
Perfect conditions for tonight’s swim. Not much current to the first mark, as the first four swimmers stuck together heading south parallel to Rocks Rd. On the leg out to the dolphin, Alec Swan and Fergus Drummond went to either side, while Luke Kelly and Bendi Kepess stuck together in the middle. Fergus turned first at the dolphin, making a …
King of the Bays, December 7, 2019
Ten Nelson swimmers joined a field of just over 500 for the 2.8km King of the Bays swim between Milford and Takapuna on Auckland’s North Shore, winning six age group medals and with 16-year-old Abbey Smale finishing sixth overall, splintering the women’s field to win the women’s title with a minute back to the second-placed swimmer and another minute back …
Port Nelson Sea Swims, Race five, December 5, 2019
SWIM CANCELLED Conditions marginal at 5.15pm and with winds predicted to rise the only option was to cancel tonight’s swim. This week it’s high tide at 5.04pm, but it’s a very small tide, so although the current will be flowing out, it shouldn’t be too strong. Chances are we’ll swim out into the harbour, then back closer to shore. At …
Port Nelson Sea Swims, Race four, November 28, 2019
A sombre night, with low cloud and low water, but conditions were pretty good, although the chop coming back was a surprise and there seemed to be a bit of early current from the incoming tide. As usual, Luke Kelly led out on the 900m swim, with a large group to the first mark, spreading a bit on leg two …
Clements Endurance Swims, Race 1, 2019-2020, The Opening Splash
Conditions were absolutely perfect, with flat seas, a slightly hazy sky and no current. Alec Swan set a cracking pace along the shoreline, swimming alone for the whole race, while Luke Kelly led a bunch a bit further out. When they converged at the final mark, Alec had a clear lead and went on to lead Luke in, breaking the …
Port Nelson Sea Swims. Race three, November 21, 2019
Nice night in all respects. Sunny skies, relatively calm and not much current – just a bit of sun-strike on the first leg of the long swim. With many of our top swimmers in attendance at the Sportsperson of the Year awards, Luke Kelly was able to cruise to victory in the long swim ahead of Oxford Bailey and Hayden …
Port Nelson Sea Swims. Race two, November 14, 2019
TONIGHT’S SWIM IS CANCELLED High winds, rough seas, a forecast of heavy rain in the hour between 5pm and 6pm and a pollution caution notice have all contributed to the decision to cancel. This week it’s low tide at 5.39pm, so we’ll again face an incoming tide. The course will be much the same as last week, but just a …
Port Nelson Sea Swims. Race one, November 7, 2019
A cold windy night and cooler water temperature were a contributing factor in keeping numbers down tonight. The total of 105 swimmers over the two distances was the lowest in recent years, but the competition was as hot as ever. Bendi Kepess, Luke Kelly and Fergus Drummond battled it out at the front of the field, with the leading women, …
Port Nelson Schools Triathlon Championships
What a perfect day. Flat calm sea with an overcast sky that broke into full sunshine during the morning. More than 150 competitors swam, biked and ran their way to glory, with Waimea Intermediate winning the Port Nelson cup for the second consecutive year. Here’s the competition results Here’s the school competition results Here’s the photos by Janice Coyle