Windermere is England’s longest lake and for open water swimmers it’s something of a rite of passage. For our member Luke, it was a challenge that had to be taken on, so 2025 became the year to do it.

The swim was organised by Chillswim, who run several Lake District events including the iconic Windermere crossing. September 6th was the date, with around 300 swimmers signed up. Entries require you to declare your intended pace, as swimmers are set off in waves. For the first hour you must stay with your wave, so pacing matters – too slow and you’ll spend the swim frustrated, too fast and you risk blowing up early.

Training started in the pool through the winter before moving into open water in early May. Luke kicked things off with a 5km lake swim, where he was beaten by his 15-year-old son, a reminder he is not as young as he once was! However rather than denting morale, it sharpened Luke’s focus.

Next up was a 9km swim at Lake Bala. True to form, the Welsh weather delivered rain, wind and chop. It was a tough and slightly unnerving experience, especially knowing it was only half the distance of Windermere. Confidence returned later in the summer during a 4.5 hour training swim in a large, flat-calm lake in France. Luke swam the entire session alone (phone safely in his tow float and always close to shore). After that, he was ready!

Event day begins with registration in a field at the north end of the lake, followed by a minibus ride to the southern start, an uncomfortably long journey when you know you’ll soon be swimming the whole way back.

The route is 17km (11 miles in the event’s preferred metric). Feed stops appear every mile, with small boats offering isotonic drinks and jelly babies, yum! Luke also carried carbohydrate pouches in his tow float and aimed to refuel roughly every two miles, about once an hour.

The opening miles were perfect. Flat calm water, a group of around 40 swimmers, and a pace that felt just right. The first feed stop broke the pack apart and from there it became a steady process of overtaking swimmers from earlier waves.

Just before halfway, the course cuts across the lake from east to west to keep swimmers clear of other lake traffic. It’s a welcome change of direction before the halfway point and the scenic stretch past the islands, where the waves begin to merge and the water fills with swimmers.

Beyond the islands the lake opens into its wider northern section. More boats, more waves and by now the weather had picked up slightly. Fatigue started to creep in, and thoughts turned increasingly to the large yellow rubber duck marking the finish line. At one point Luke spent nearly a mile chasing a swimmer with a small yellow duck tow float before realising it wasn’t the finish..!

The final mile crosses toward Ambleside, the real duck finally in sight. Tired arms are replaced by determination as the shoreline gets closer. At the finish, the enclosure is full of tired but happy swimmers, supporters and volunteers and the unmistakable camaraderie that seems to define open water swimming.

Huge well done to you Luke — you’ve shown the way and inspired a few of us to give it a go! An iconic swim, and a brilliant one to tick off the list!

The post Conquering Windermere: Luke’s 17K Open Water Swimming Challenge appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

Captain Rossco had summoned a few intrepid Spencerites who would be travelling down to Hastings, where coach Steve resides in his watch tower, aka the Coast Guard Café. If you have never been, this is worth a trip; the views are stunning and there is service with a smile!

Arriving promptly at Hastings train station at 10 am, and after a short visit to the shop to stock up on food and beverages for the day ahead, a taxi delivered us safely to Steve’s place.

Mike was not having any of this train nonsense and stylishly arrived by motorbike, a scene straight out of the movies, whereas super swimmer Robyn was nowhere to be seen, as she didn’t heed her morning alarm after a night at a festival! But determined not to miss a good party, she eventually joined us later in the day to participate in the festivities.

After a quick snack and coffee, Anna, still relying on last year’s hand-drawn map, led us down the coastal path to the beach, with Steve occasionally shouting directions in case we dared take a wrong turn. As we walked and talked and snacked on blackberries, we mentally prepared ourselves for what was to come. This was not just an ordinary beach, but a discreet and rocky enclave, which therefore required additional mental preparation.

The last stretch to said beach requires an almost abseil holding onto an old rope, but nothing that Spencerites can’t handle, and we all arrived safely on the beach. As we readied ourselves by stripping off layers, hats and goggles on, wetsuits for those who didn’t fancy the cold, and plenty of Hannah’s famous lanolin cream to prevent salty chafing, a curious seal bobbed up to wish us well on our swim. Stuffing our tow floats with our belongings, we were ready to set off.

Safely in the ocean, we set off in small groups. There was a slight breeze on the day which caused some chop and made the swim all the more challenging and for some, enjoyable. Occasionally stopping and regrouping, we carried on, with views over the cliffs to guide our way. After about an hour or so we safely reached the beach at Hastings, and went ashore for a little recovery, and a taxi journey back to Steve’s for those who didn’t fancy the two-way.

Back in some of us went, this time with the wind at our back, which made it all feel slightly easier, to compensate for the fatigue. Safely back to our launch spot, it was time to trek back up to where a taxi awaited us to transport as back to Steve’s. Hungry and ready for a feast.

Our generous host (incidentally celebrating his birthday) provided a lovely BBQ with an array of meats, fish, potatoes, salads and even dessert, all welcomely devoured by the intrepid swimmers. Helen presented Steve with a throughfully prepared celebratory cake she carried carefully from London, from which we all shared the dividends while cheering another year round on the calender for Steve. The afternoon flew by with chat, BBQ, and tunes, curated by DJs Robyn and Paul.

All too quickly, it was time for our departure.

However, it wasn’t all over. Another quick stop to stock up on more beverages, the journey continued, with much fun and laughter and a few photos which will surely serve as future banter material. An impromptu sing-along made the trip back fly by and rounded off a terrific day.

This was the third year of this seaside outing, and each time has been a resounding success. We hope that this tradition will continue. If you have never done an open water / sea swim, this really is the perfect opportunity to try it out, it is truly a fabulous day out with fellow Spencerites.

Article written by club member Christine L.

The post Spencer Seaside Swimmers Conquer the Waves off Hastings appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

Whether you’re based in Crystal Palace, Dulwich, Herne Hill, Peckham, Forest Hill or the surrounding neighbourhoods, this is a great opportunity to get involved with one of London’s leading Masters swim clubs. The session is designed for adult swimmers who want to improve their fitness, develop their technique, or train for competition in a supportive and high-quality coaching environment.

Spencer Swim Team offers a structured training programme across the week, and this additional session ensures more swimmers can benefit from our coaching and community—no matter their schedule.

Come along and give it a try. We’d love to see you in the water!

Contact us for more information on joining or booking a trial session: spencerswimteam@gmail.com

The post New Wednesday Night Training Session at Alleyn’s School, Dulwich! appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

At the weekend, Spencer swimmers had a mega record breaking evening at the South East Region Relay event at K2 Crawley on 22nd March, breaking 3 European records in the space of 70 minutes.

The Team of Chris Dunn, Godfrey Admans, Esther Iseppi and Amanda Heath beat Spencer’s own records in the Mixed 280+ distance relays, all previously set at the same event in 2023.

In the 4x200m free, they took 9 seconds off the current record, setting a new best time of 11:30.65. The 4x100m medley was next up, with Godfrey on backstroke, Esther on breaststroke, Amanda on fly and Chris on freestyle, racing to 5:51.10, which was more than 10 seconds inside the previous record. Finally, their 4x100m free knocked 8 seconds off the record.

This was all after Chris Dunn had won the men’s 75-79 age group 1500m freestyle earlier in the afternoon with a time of 22:38.83 (notably faster than the winners of the younger 3 age groups!).

Also swimming in the 1500m were Jennifer Kelly, who took 3rd place in the 40-44 age group in 23:32.29, and Sara Luder who was 6th in the 55-59 age group in 26:58.62.

Derby Winner

The previous weekend, out of towner, Alan Parkins knocked over 2 seconds off the British record for the men’s 65-69 400m IM, swimming 6:12.59 at the Derbyshire County championships, where he also won the 200m IM.

Cold Water Swimming

Also on the weekend of 16th March, in slightly less serious circumstances, a team of plucky Spencer swimmers competed in the Heron Cup at Tooting Lido. As the sun rose over Southwest London, the ambient temperature remained stubbornly low but contrastingly pleasant relative to the temperature of the water, which peaked at just over 7°C.

It was a morning for hot drinks, woolly hats and dry robes, as our swimmers tried to keep their core temperature up long enough to complete the event. A brave and commendable effort by all those who took part, and a lot of fun was had. Thanks to the club members and families who came along to offer their support.

With four teams going head-to-head in a series of individual and relay races, the competition remained tight going into the last event, the cannon relay. Starting off, Spencer fell behind the rest of the field, but gradually overhauled the deficit to take a commanding lead. Would it be enough to win?

Yes, it would, much to our surprise. Spencer has done a clean sweep of the SLSC Lido summer relays and won the Heron Cup, showing Tooting Lido is a successful venue for the team. Now for the cold water training to defend the team’s title.

The post Spencer Swim Team Record More Competitive Success appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

At Bracknell, the team welcomed Annabel Barker to pool side, finding her way back into competition. She had a busy schedule with individual races, and she also played a significant role in the team’s relays, including the unconventional canon event. Annabel produced a personal best of 39.88 in the 50m backstroke and two excellent performances in her 50 fly and 100 IM, both new events for her. 

Annabel showed some of the more tenured swimmers the value of focusing on the underwaters, setting an example for us all to follow. 

Out of town members, Matthew Taylor and Simon Berrey were both on deck too. Simon took gold in the 200m backstroke (2:41.94), silver in the 200m IM, and bronze in the 200m freestyle. Matthew came away with a PB in the 50m fly (31.98), 2 golds (50/100m back), a silver (50m free), and a bronze (50m fly). Simon was competing in the 50-54 male age group and Matthew in the 55-59 male age group. 

Barbara Halls continued her return to form after a long layoff from competing, harvesting 4 gold medals in the 100m and 200m breaststroke, and 100m and 50m freestyle. Barbara was back on the podium to collect a silver for the 50m breaststroke. 

Godfrey Admans produced some good swims with a 39.2 for the 50m backstroke, 34.14 for the 50m freestyle, and 1:27.12 for the 100m backstroke. On the day, Godfrey topped up his medal cabinet with several golds, silver and bronzes in the 70-74 male age group. 

Emily Hayter delivered one gold in the 50m fly and two silvers, 50m freestyle and 100m freestyle. These results added to great relay performances, contributing to the 4x50m fly and the canon relay. Emily was competing in the 35-39 female age group. 

Joining Simon in the 50-54 male category were Luca Milana, Karl Simpson and Daniel Cotton. Luca competed strongly in the 100m breaststroke, getting pipped to the bronze medal position. Karl Simpson secured a bronze in the 50m freestyle and a silver in the 200m freestyle after getting beaten in a very close head-to-head race. Karl also took silver in the 100m freestyle, ensuring that Spencer secured a one/two, with Daniel Cotton taking gold in the same event in a new event record time of 57.74. 

Dan achieved two other gold-winning record times, 100m IM in 1:04.15 and 50m backstroke 29.01. These performances won Dan the ‘best male swimmer of the meet’ award. 

Overall, it was a superb day of swimming, with the team collecting a total 15 gold, 8 silver and 4 bronze medals. More importantly, a good time was had by all with great team spirit on show.

Swim Wales Masters Championships 2025

Spencer was represented by Diane Ford and Amanda Heath at the Welsh Masters Championships, which started on a very sunny St David’s Day in Swansea. World record holder in the 80-84 age group on breaststroke, Di unsurprisingly won the 50m & 100m breaststroke and then added the 50m & 100m freestyle titles to her medal haul. Amanda (65-69) also won 4 golds – 50m, 100m & 200m breaststroke and 400m IM, with silvers in the 200m IM and 200m fly.

Out of towners Tony Cherrington and Alan Parkins, swimming for their home clubs, were undefeated in their races, with Tony winning the 80-84 men’s 50m, 100m and 200m free, and Alan winning the 65-69 men’s 200m & 400m IM and 50m & 100m fly.

The post Spencer Swim Team Shines at Masters Championships appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.