Junior Open Water Swimming

• 8th & 22nd June
• 13th & 20th July
• 10th & 24th August

These sessions are run by our club coaches Alistiar and Jess and will focus on a range of skills to include:

• Open Water Confidence
• Sighting
• Drafting
• Mass starts
• Racing Techniques

We expect Juniors attending these sessions to be confident pool swimers, capable of swimming at least 750m

Experienced volunteers from the club keep and eye on swimmers from kayaks on the water and from the riverbank.. If for some reason we cannot provide enough safety cover on the day, the session will have to be cancelled so it is best to check our facebook page for any last-minute updates. There is a mandatory swim briefing at 0830 that EVERYONE wanting to swim must attend, without exception. A responsible adult will also need to remain on site through the session.

Who can swim?

This session is aimed specifically at juniors aged 8-13yrs old and is open to non-members, but we expect juniors attending to be confident pool swimmers and be capable of comfortably swimming at least 750m - this not a swimming lesson. Numbers are limited due to coaching and safety cover resources, so priority will be given to club members.

What will I learn?

Open water swimming differs to pool swimming in many ways, and provides racing opportunities that involve mass starts. However, water confidence is key to the enjoyment and safety of open water swimming but our club coaches Jess and Alistair will focus on a range of skills including:

• Open Water Confidence
• Sighting
• Drafting
• Mass Starts
• Racing Techniques

What will I need?

You will need the following items to take part in our open water session:

• Any type of wetsuit (roughly until July).
• Goggles
• Swim hat – as brightly coloured as possible.
• Towel
• Chillswim – the club does have some you can borrow
• The correct fee
• To have signed the club's OWS disclaimer, available on the day or here
• To have registered on the event page of the date you intend to swim.

All swimmers must wear a brightly-coloured swim hat and use a towfloat. Towfloats can be purchased or borrowed from the club on the day and help us keep track of everyone, as well as giving you something to have a rest on if you want to admire the view for a bit.

Entry to the water is at 0845 and everyone needs to be out by 0915 to allow for us to vacate the changing facilities before the adult session finished and sailing club arrive for their own session.