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2011 Swims 24 September 2011 Location: A loch somewhere left of Glasgow Distance 2km Target Time : 35 Minutes --------------------------------- 2010 Results 2000 Swimmers. Overall Position 124th Overall Gender Position 94th Age Group Gender Position 11th (Age 44-49) Age Group Gender Position 19th (Age band 40-49) Time 26:51 So Well Chuffed. Thanks to everyone that has sponsored me for the Salford Swim so far. This page will remain open till December.  If you have not sponsored me and would like to, then please follow the instructions. Or you can of course send a  cheque. Many thanks. -------------------------------------------- The 2010 Appeal. Hi, Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. Having done all the training (ok - a bit of training) and having looking forward to the Great North Swim in Lake Windermere which was due to have taken place on the 4th of September it was certainly a shock that the event needed to be cancelled due to blue green algae in the lake. I went over to the lakes for the night as I had prebooked accommodation and really I don't know what all the fuss was about. The algae was certainly not at all obvious although the weather / water conditions had changed due to high winds overnight. I had not got round to setting up a page on justgiving for this years event so perhaps in hind site that is just as well.  However, I have now committed to do two events before the end of September.  The first one is the British Gas Great Salford Swim this Sunday on the 26th September which is one mile open water swim. My only two previous open water swims have been around the 27 minute mark so I’m hoping to slightly better than that. Link for the event is <a title="blocked::http://www.greatswim.org/Events/British-Gas-Great-Salford-Swim/" href="http://www.greatswim.org/Events/British-Gas-Great-Salford-Swim/">http://www.greatswim.org/Events/British-Gas-Great-Salford-Swim/</a>  Apologies for my typo if you got an email from me. The Salford Quays swim could possibly be in more dodgy water than the cancelled Windermere swim but it is more of a point to point course. I will perhaps be looking out for shopping trolleys rather than fish.  The finish is approximately a seven minute walk back to the start at the end so I will need to find an old pair of slippers which should be a good look with a wetsuit. Water termperature is currently 15 degrees so wetsuit is now compulsory. The other swim is a small event on the 30 September that takes place once a year at Ponteland Leisure Centre and sounds much more arduous than the Salford mile. It is to swim as many lengths of butterfly in an hour as I can. Thankfully it is done in a relay (I hope) with a small team of 4 swimmers in each lane. even so, I think the cold of Salford is somewhat more appealing at the moment. The butterfly event is specifically in support of a fellow swimmer who has raised money for the Teenage Cancer Trust since the loss of her teenage son. Rather than do a door to door traditional sponsorship appeal I have come round again to setting up a JustGiving page which has worked so well over the last couple of years. Having collected over £4000.00 for the NSPCC since 2008 I am happy to take a year out from that and support another worthwhile charity. Previous Swims 2008 <a href="../alastairruffman.1435921">http://www.justgiving.com/alastairruffman.1435921</a> 2009 <a href="../alastairruffman">http://www.justgiving.com/alastairruffman</a> For more charity information please look at  <a href="http://www.newcastle-hospitals.org.uk/hospitals/transforming_transforming-the-royal-victoria-infirmary_teenage-cancer-unit.aspx">http://www.newcastle-hospitals.org.uk/hospitals/transforming_transforming-the-royal-victoria-infirmary_teenage-cancer-unit.aspx</a> Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity. So please dig deep and donate now.   Many thanks. Alastair Ruffman  C/O Norseman Travel Ltd. 157 Kenton Road, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE34NQ Tel 0191 2847271 My direct mail is alastairr@norsemantravel.co.uk Thanks for visiting my fundraising page.

Alastair's Open Water Swims 2011-12

Alastair's Open Water Swims 2011-12

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