Swim Chats

Congratulations to Gráinne on her Oceans Seven!!!!
Gráinne Moss is an ultramarathon swimmer from Wellington, New Zealand who recently completed the Oceans Seven, a series of gruelling swims around the globe. It's been a 39-year odyssey for Gráinne, who swam the English Channel in 1987 at just 17 years old and completed her seventh swim in June this year at the age of 56. Gráinne swims under her Irish passport and is the first Irish woman (and 45th person) to complete all seven swims!
In this episode Gráinne (pronounced Gron-ya) shares stories from all seven swims, including swimming across the choppy English Channel as a teen in the 1980s; a "very, very large" shark encounter in the Cook Strait; battling 12-degree water and lion's mane jellies in the North Channel; the 42km 'Channel of Bones' in Hawai'i; and the thrill of completing the Oceans Seven in her mid-50s. We also talk about the swims that took more than one attempt and how they were learning opportunities that led to future rewards, and the ongoing support of her friends, family, and the wider swim community.
Gráinne's Oceans Seven
English Channel – 3 August 1987 – 11 hours 52 minutes
Cook Strait – 6 March 2001 – 12 hours 25 minutes
North Channel – 22 July 2022 – 13 hours 33 minutes
Moloka'i Channel – 12 May 2023 – 15 hours 7 minutes
Catalina Channel – 7 July 2023 – 11 hours 22 minutes
Straits of Gibraltar – 22 May 2024 – 4 hours and 23 minutes
Tsugaru Strait – 19 June 2026 – 12 hours and 29 minutes
Visit Gráinne's blog grainnemoss.com for detailed accounts of her swims and follow her @swimirishkiwi on Instagram (or Facebook).
Visit Kenziesgift.com to learn more about Gráinne's fundraising. Kenzie's Gift supports children and young adults who need grief or mental health support when a parent or sibling has died or has a serious illness.
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Tracey Baumann is the co-founder and head coach at SwimMastery, which uses evidence-based methods to teach the correct, connected body position in the water – helping us to swim smoother and faster, with more joy and less struggle.
Tracey has 30 years of coaching experience, teaching beginners and ultramarathoners around the world. In this episode she shares advice on improving your technique, overcoming mental barriers, preventing swim injuries, breath management, and optimising your performance no matter what age or swim level you are.
Tracey is based in Brisbane, Australia. She offers virtual coaching and video analysis, runs clinics and open water swim camps, and coaches in an endless pool at the SwimMastery Swim Studio. I have personally found her coaching to be incredibly beneficial for my swimming.
Find out more about SwimMastery: swimmasteryinternational.com
Buy Tracey's The Swim Mastery Way book on Amazon
Follow SwimMastery on Instagram
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Visit ⁠⁠StokedNZ⁠⁠ for your towelies and get 15% off with the discount code SWIMCHATS
Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Contact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot com
Hit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode.
Thanks for listening! :-)

The Scarborough Dippers began with a bet between four friends in a coffee shop on a winter's day: who would take the plunge into the cold sea? Ten years later, the group now has dozens of year-round dippers who meet at 7am at Scarborough Beach in Christchurch.
The group also runs Wet July, an annual campaign to raise funds for local organisations including kindys, lifesaving clubs, and conservation groups. Members pledge to get in the sea every day of the month and the dippers often raise over $10,000. They also host a mid-winter community swim and a quiz night. Their bank details are Scarborough Dippers 01-0811-0814833-00 if you want to chip in!
Founding member Sandra Taylor came on the podcast to talk about how the group got started, their annual fundraising, the importance of a ‘Bucket of Joy’, and the support and connections that have formed from the fun and buzz of ocean dipping. As Sandra explains: “There’s no rules, no cost, no expectations, just a kind and lovely group of people that have all gathered around a love of dipping.”
Visit the Scarborough Dippers public page on Facebook to follow along (new dippers and visitors are welcome – there are daily dippers and their biggest turnout tends to be on Fridays).
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Visit ⁠StokedNZ⁠ for your towelies and get 15% off with the discount code SWIMCHATS
Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Contact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot com
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Timon Wilkinson is the co-owner of Bonobos gym for kids and adults in Wellington and runs weekly Bonobos Swim Squads at Freyberg, WRAC, Te Ngaengae, and Te Huia Pools.
Timon was a competitive swimmer from nine to 15 and started coaching kids while he was at university. He worked at the old TSW Pool until it closed in 2017, and then for Capital Swim Club. In 2017 he co-founded the fun and friendly Bonobos gym in Lyall Bay for kids and adults (including Strength, Mobility, and Balance classes – great cross-training for swimmers!).
Timon talks about leaving kids' competitive swim coaching, opening the gym, and his many years of running adult swim squads. We discuss the joys and challenges of running squads, his top swimming tips, teaching different ages, personalities, and abilities, and how creating a friendly space helps people to learn and have fun so they want to keep coming back.
Visit the Bonobos gym website
Visit the Bonobos Swim Squad website
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Visit StokedNZ for your towelies and get 15% off with the discount code SWIMCHATS
Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Contact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot com
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Thanks for listening! :-)

James Bell is a Professor of Marine Biology at Victoria University of Wellington – Te Herenga Waka, and a huge fan of sea sponges. Check out his colourful underwater photos and videos on his Instagram page, ⁠@sponge_ecology⁠, where he has over 40,000 followers.
James has scuba dived around the world researching this ancient, vibrant, intriguing, but sometimes overlooked marine species. (We both agree that charismatic megafauna – e.g. dolphins, whales, sharks – often get a disproportionate amount of attention.)
In this episode we talk about the characteristics and role of sea sponges, where you can find them, and how they're responding to marine heatwaves and increased levels of sedimentation (e.g. Wellington's current wastewater treatment plant disaster).
James also talks about life as a marine biologist: diving in some of the world's coolest places, teaching the next generation of marine scientists, and sharing information to help people better understand and advocate for our underwater world.
Glossary:
Nudibranch: soft-bodied marine gastropods (sea slugs)
Bioactive: something that has a biological effect on living organisms
Spicules: needle-like elements produced by sponges to provide structural support and protection against predators
Glass sponges: sponges with skeletons made out of spicules (see above)
Image: James's award-winning 'sponge point of view' photo taken with an Insta360 camera from inside a barrel sponge in Indonesia. (James Bell)
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Visit ⁠StokedNZ⁠ for your towelies and get 15% off at checkout with the code SWIMCHATS
Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Swim Chats on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Contact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot com
Hit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode.
Thanks for listening! :-)