It appears water-polo skills could pay dividends in the Wharf to Waves ocean swim.
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After the sage advice from swim coach Zoe Philipzen in Friday’s BDN, Philipzen proved her tactic was worthwhile, winning her age swim by a margin of almost 100-metres on Sunday.
She also claimed second in the main event just eight seconds behind winner female Splash for Cash winner Hannah Hobson.
And it was a similar scenario for the gents with former Australian water polo coach John Fox finishing a close battle in second just seven seconds behind four-time winner James Macri in the Splash for Cash.
The two winners Hobson and Macri both secured a $500 cash prize and a unique photo courtesy of photographer Kit Goldsworthy.
Using the forward vision afforded by a handful of water polo strokes ensured a number of the front runners stayed true on both the 600m and 1200m courses in almost flawless conditions at Tathra Beach.
There was nearly a full contingent of 150 swimmers for the headline swim with about 135 taking the plunge.
In the age swims there were entrants as young as 10 and those well into their 70s competing with about 300 swimmers across the different age divisions.
Organisers estimate it was a climb of about 30-50 entries from last year.
Committee member Kylie Dummet said it wasn’t something organisers really spoke about, but they were pleased the event had been “ticking over nicely”.
She said the reception to the Waves had been fantastic and there were plenty of registrations on the morning.
“People get up and look at the conditions and then think ‘yeah okay i’ll swim’,” she said.
She said there was now an army of volunteers helping to run all the events and estimated about a quarter of the Tathra community were involved in some way in the success of the weekend.
She said it was a true sign of just how involved the community were and the homegrown spirit of the event, while also thanking Ian Campbell for his efforts commentating and announcing from the beach.
An anticipated northerly shift never eventuated with the winds pushing south.
“It was expected to be a nor-easter which would just put alot of slop and chop into their faces and been an impact on the longer leg,” said lifesaver and beach announcer Tony Rettke.
Rettke said the best factor of the shift was that northerlies tend to push cold water into the bay.
“We’ve competed in about 15 degrees, but Sunday was around 20, which is perfect,” he said.
Organisers said they were delighted with the turnout for the iconic ocean swim on Sunday with almost maximum entries in the Rettke Builders Splash for Cash.
An emerging facet of the Wharf to Waves is that the “beach sprint” has become substantially shorter after a storm in 2016 flushed metres of sand from Tathra Beach.
“The storm took a good couple of metres of height in sand and now the waterline is much closer to the dunes,” Mr Rettke said.
“The rising tide meant we were pretty squeezed against the dunes and the water was lapping at the finish line,” he adds with a laugh.
For swimmers it mean a cleverly timed wave washed them within metres of the finish, unlike the 20-30 metre beach sprints that used to take place.
Mr Rettke commended the organisers and committee of the Wharf to Waves and said it was great to see growth.
“Thank you to the public and the visitors for their faith and support in the Wharf to Waves,” he said. “It’s fantastic to see growth like this in such a wonderful event.”