SwimmerParticipantProtocol-LiabilityAcknowledgement

Swimmer Participant Protocol and Liability Acknowledgement - DRAFT
	1. Historie of B&B The Bold and the Beautiful swim squad was established by Pacific Jules (Julie Isbill) *and Jenny Knapman in the Spring of 2008 when four lasses swam the inaugural 7am daily swim "to Shelly Beach 'n back"* from outside the Manly Surf Pavilion in what** burgeoned into B&B. *Julie proved to be the driving force in labeling and establishing B&B* and was awarded** the inaugural 'Manly Sportsperson of the Year Award' on Australia Day in 2012. Julie has since moved to Perth to further her studies to become a medical doctor. A handful of *Volunteer Assistants, not limited to John, Ian and Shaun, have "steered the ship", on an "all care, but no responsibility"* basis, over recent years, where participation numbers have proliferated. ‹‹‹‹‹‹‹‹ 2nd pic is Pacific Jules on a B&B visit from Perth in 2012
================================================================================================== 2. B&B culture Three words typify the ethos of B&B: * Inclusive - everyone is welcome provided s/he knows their swimming limitations and can comfortably swim 1.5km in the surf conditions on each day s/he opts to swim with B&B. * Respectful - of fellow B&B swimmers and Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve. * Discipline - all B&B swimmers participate according to the below protocols and accept personal liability for their participation, because - * "no one holds a gun at your head" around 7am, when most of use enter the domain of lots of Fishies for over 3 billion years - Homo sapiens has only lived outside East Africa for around 75,000 years (we are the new boys on the block); and * B&B relies upon a handful of workaholic Volunteer Assistants to "steer the ship", take all the daily swim pics, maintain the Blog, present the awards and organise the monthly restaurant night, usually with a guest speaker. ==================================================================================================
3. B&B swimmer numbers *Each day of the year, B&B* swimmers marshal outside the Manly Surf Pavilion in time for the 7am swim "to Shelly Beach 'n back". On days such as Australia Day and Boxing Day, over 400 swimmers usually participate in the 7am 1.5km swim, with a further contingent of B&B** early-risers that swim over to Shelly Beach at 6:30am, because "time is of the essence" and Federal Treasurer, Scott Morrison, wants them at their desk "bright eyed and bushy tailed", not long after "Sparrow Fart" to get his budget "back-in-the-black". And Malcolm would agree, as Malcolm generally *reaches agreement with his "broad church".* Whereas, in late Winter when the water temp can slip down to a less-than-pleasant 16 degrees circa, on a less-than-ideal damp morn', under overcast skies, with lumpy seas, there would likely be several handfuls of B&B Junkies who muster outside the Manly Surf Pavilion intent upon starting each day by "attending their church service", followed by a caffeine fix and social intercourse 'in situ' or at nearby Bluewater Restaurant. Up to half of B&B's perennial swimmers refrain from neoprene protection, even in July/August.
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4. *Window of swim start times to ensure "Let's Go" sounds at Shelly around 7:20am* *Depending on the speed of swimmers (slow, average or fast), B&B* swimmers enter the water from 6:55am and not after 7:05am out of courtesy to the customary call at Shelly Beach around 7:20am to Let's Go.** All but the very slow swimmers will swim to The Point (about 100 metres from the shoreline and beyond The Breakers) and wait until the Volunteer Assistant for that morning's Shelly swim to call out loudly Let's Go (usually around 7:06am), whereupon the Assembled Throng that are Treading Water at The Point and engaging in meaningful chitchat, will then swim the remaining 650 odd metres to Shelly Beach and wait for the SlowCoaches. Slower swimmers usually tread water twds the front of the Assembled Throng at The Point to steal a lead. *A few Trundler Swimmers* (who fought the good fight in the old days) that usually enter the water around 6:55am, do not wait at The Point for the customary Let's Go. Rather they Soldier On at Military Medium to Shelly Beach in ample time to participate in the Happy Birthdays to you... and the 7:20am circa Let's Go. It is incumbent upon any swimmer that enters the water, before 7am and after 6:30am, to "Keep to the LHS", so they do not "Clash Heads" with any swimmer that is returning amongst the 6:30am B&B swimmer throng that swims from 6:30am "day, after day, after day", and all regular swimmer know that.**		Photo HERE of swimmers waiting at The Point.
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Overhead photo HERE of the ocean between Manly Surf Pavilion and Shelly Beach with a thicker dotted small black arrows along the normal swimming route to Shelly Beach, and a thinner dotted red arrows along the LHS of the normal route but avoiding the rocks at Fairy Bower. *Above and below pics of The Rocks* at Ferry Bower**	5. Mitigation strategy to facilitate the 7am swimmers returning from Shelly Beach circa 7:20am and avoid a Head Clash which might trigger litigation under the common law tort of negligence because the same laws of negligence that apply when driving a motor car, also apply when riding a bicycle and probably also swimming into a returning throng that habitually takes off from Shelly Beach around 7:20am "day, after day, after day." In Australia we drive on the LHS of the road. When walking on a footpath we walk on the LHS so as not to collide with a pedestrian coming from 180 degrees. When swimming laps at Manly Olympic Pool, we swim up the LHS of the lane and return up the LHS. *Out of Respect* & Safety for other B&B swimmers, any B&B swimmer that does not think that s/he will arrive at Shelly Beach before 7:20am, will swim** on the LHS of the course to Shelly Beach, so as not to impede returning swimmers as Let's Go is usually hailed around 7:20am, depending on how many swimmers are having their birthday and ceremoniously splashed. In a Big Swell, swimmers entering Shelly Beach along the LHS should stay away from The Rocks near Fairy Bower that don't have any Soft Bits. Older folk are more vulnerable to suffering a subdural hematoma in the brain from a Head Clash which may not become evident for a couple of weeks after a Head Clash. Hence, the need for any SlowCoaches that won't arrive by 7:20am to swim on the LHS into the northern end of Shelly Beach, so that they are not in the 'firing line', but to be careful to avoid The Rocks near Fairy Bower if a Big Swell is running. If a B&B swimmer who commenced the return leg after hearing Let's Go, suffered a Head Clash with a swimmer swimming against the returning throng, and the B&B swimmer who was swimming with the throng, suffered a subdural hematoma, s/he could litigate the swimmer who was swimming towards Shelly and against the direction of the returning throng. A magistrate might determine that the Defendant (the causer of the Head Clash) had been negligent by effectively "driving on the wrong side of the road". Alternatively, if you are late arriving at Manly Surf Pavilion, then you could 'high tail' it around to Shelly Beach to swim back. Risk Warning: If you have tender feet, there is a 150m patch of rough, spiky old bitumen and another short patch of prickly concrete 'en route' to Shelly. *If you are too late to start from the Manly Surf Pavilion, you are too late to enter from the Stainless Steel Staircase.*
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6. Risk mitigation for when the ocean isn't flat 'n balmy If a Big Swell is running and it is lowish tide, we may opt to walk about 250 metres around to the Stainless Steel Staircase (see pic on RHS) in the more sheltered Cabbage Tree Bay and enter the ocean there. *If there is a highish tide and a Big Swell* is running, entering from the Stainless Steel Staircase is a No No, 'cause** Large Pounding Waves could smash you against a wall that doesn't have any Soft Bits (see lower pic on RHS), whereupon we may opt to walk across to the bay side and swim there. Or walk around to Shelly Beach and swim back to the Manly Surf Pavilion. The height of the tide, size and direction of the swell all impact which is a safer swim. *On other occasions if there are Blue Bottles* or tiny Jimble Jellyfish in Cabbage Tree Bay, we may opt to swim up towards Queenscliff Beach and not across to Shelly Beach.**
Can someone use Photoshop to insert an 'x' with notation 'Staircase' in above pic at the location of the staircase.
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The Rocks on LHS of the return leg to Manly Beach - just past The Point (refer 2nd Risk Warning)		7. Risk Warning *Below are warnings to mitigate physical, and possible mental, injuries when joining the daily B&B* morning swims: It may be dangerous to enter (or leave) the water from the Stainless Steel Staircase** in Cabbage Tree Bay at Highish Tide in a Biggish Swell, because Large Pounding Waves have been known to break against The Rock Wall that doesn't have any Soft Bits. Avoid the rocks at Fairy Bower in a Big Swell. On the return leg if a Big Easterly Swell is running, swim well away from The Rocks on the LHS just past The Point, because Large Pounding Waves can wash swimmers towards those Rocks. If you always ‘breathe to the right’, then ‘breathe to the left’ every 15 breaths or so, as you approach The Point, and glance over at those Rocks that don't have any Soft Bits. Don't wear worn-out foggy old swim goggles 'cause it is harder to determine just how close that you might be to those Rocks that don't have any Soft Bits. Swimmers in B&B's 6:30am swim should enter the water at Manly Beach in time to return to Manly Beach by 7am. Hence, some participants will commence before 6:30am in every such swim and nearly all participants will commence before 6:30am in rough seas. Swimmers that commence the 7am B&B swim prior to 7am should swim to the LHS of the route to Shelly Beach to avoid causing a Head Clash with a swimmer/s returning from the 6:30am B&B swim. Swimmers in the 7am that wear flippers should delay commencing the return leg from Shelly Beach (for up to 30 seconds from Let's Go when the *Assembled Throng* is large) until the initial surge has "moved off", so that swimmers that wear flippers mitigate Flippering another swimmer in the Noggin, because a Flipperer could cause an injury to another B&B swimmer, not limited to damaging a pair of goggles. The per annum fatality rate from shark attacks in Australia over the last 50 years is a fraction under two deaths each year. The average fatality rate has increased over recent years particularly along the North Coast of NSW and around Australia's SouWestern Coastline. Per capita, Sydney beaches evidence one of the lowest shark attack rates in Australia, seemingly because Great Whites, Hammerheads and Tiger sharks are not known to frequent Sydney waters. Notwithstanding, a shark attack could occur in Cabbage Tree Bay which is abundant with healthy Fishies. And such an attack could occur on a B&B morning swim, particularly as there are a lot of B&B swimmers on a lot of mornings.
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*8. A collaborative 'share your thoughts approach'* to achieve consensus regarding each B&B swimmer's Duty of Care to each other B&B swimmer Each B&B swimmer owes a Duty of Care to each other B&B swimmer, not to - (i) cause a Head Clash by swimming into the returning - (a) 6:30am** B&B swimmers as they approach Manly Beach; or (b) 7am *B&B* swimmers as they return from Shelly Beach, by swimming on the LHS on the route to Shelly Beach (as explained in Section 5. 'Mitigation strategy' above); or (ii) delay B&B swimmers commencing the return leg from Shelly Beach around 7:20am each morn' by swimming into the path taken by returning swimmers, but rather by swimming on the LHS of the route to Shelly Beach (as explained in Section 5. 'Mitigation strategy' above). *Any B&B* swimmer that believes that the Duty of Care owed by any of the** Volunteer Assistants is any greater than that owed by each B&B swimmer to each other B&B swimmer, should - (A) send an email to the B&B 'Contact' email address (at the upper RHS of the B&B website) that explains the reason/s for holding such a belief and request an email response; and (B) inform by face-to-face Chit-Chat (at least once) the Volunteer Assistant on a 7am swim that they participate in of their rational regarding each *B&B* Swimmer's *Duty of Care* to each other *B&B* swimmer and any additional *Duty of Care* that s/he may believe that a Volunteer Assistant owes to other B&B swimmers.