Like many ocean swimming groups MSOS started out as a group of friends from a pool swimming squad who occasionally met up to swim across the bay at Mooloolaba. Over time it became more organised, with a regular day and time and eventually a Facebook Group back at the beginning of 2019. It was a slow, organic growth to begin with, averaging about five or six swimmers with eight or nine considered to be a big group. Our biggest growth spurt occurred during Covid. With public pools closed everywhere, many swimmers were looking for another way to get wet and found it in ocean swimming. Our growth has been steady since then with swimmers coming from as far away as Brisbane to join our group. These days we usually have at least twenty swimmers and sometimes more than thirty doing a Sunday swim and we are easily spotted with our green caps dotting the route.
The core value of MSOS has always been looking out for our fellow swimmers. We will always try and have a buddy swim with a new or inexperienced ocean swimmer and keep an eye on those at the tail end of the group. It is always great to see the pre swim chat, with new members able to introduce themselves or others just catching up with people they only see on Sundays. Ocean swimming brings together a very diverse range of people all there for the love of the sport and it is amazing to be able to meet people you'd probably never otherwise cross paths with in your everyday life.
As any ocean swimmer will tell you the positive mental health benefits of an ocean swim make the effort of turning up at the beach relatively early on a Sunday morning well and truly worth it. More than that starting your Sunday (and some weekdays too) with an ocean swim and a social coffee afterwards makes for a wonderful ritual that still leaves plenty of time to enjoy the rest of your weekend. Let's not underestimate the motivational quality of the post swim coffee - it just wouldn't be the same without it.
The core value of MSOS has always been looking out for our fellow swimmers. We will always try and have a buddy swim with a new or inexperienced ocean swimmer and keep an eye on those at the tail end of the group. It is always great to see the pre swim chat, with new members able to introduce themselves or others just catching up with people they only see on Sundays. Ocean swimming brings together a very diverse range of people all there for the love of the sport and it is amazing to be able to meet people you'd probably never otherwise cross paths with in your everyday life.
As any ocean swimmer will tell you the positive mental health benefits of an ocean swim make the effort of turning up at the beach relatively early on a Sunday morning well and truly worth it. More than that starting your Sunday (and some weekdays too) with an ocean swim and a social coffee afterwards makes for a wonderful ritual that still leaves plenty of time to enjoy the rest of your weekend. Let's not underestimate the motivational quality of the post swim coffee - it just wouldn't be the same without it.
