The first swim of autumn was on Sunday, March 1, with 19 Ducks attending Dubbo RSL’s Indoor Pool for some great racing.

The regular four-event card had all swimmers vying for victory in the last hit-out before the annual Dubbo Ducks Age Championship season begins next week.

First up, the 25-metre freestyle sprint with Henry Wilcockson excited to touch first in the final – only to be done-in by the clock – swimming too fast for his time, handing the win to Ron Everett with Peter Hargreaves second, Rob Rich third, and Craig Ross touching in fourth.

The brace relay was up next with both team members needing to swim 50 metres' breaststroke, a feat worthy of a few murmurs from the poolside. In both the heats and finals, Tim Gratton and Warren Williams were victorious coming in first; Brian Schloeffel and Peter Allen were in second; Nicole Johnstone and Jack Allen grabbed third; John Wherritt and Mal Cavanagh were fourth; with Peter Hargreaves and Neil Harris rounding out the five.

A 100-metre freestyle race was the third event on the card, with the winner being the swimmer who was closest to their handicap time. This made for lots of calculations on the desk, perhaps making them reconsider it easier for a final to have been swum instead!

The top five swimmers were in the end all less than two seconds outside their handicap time with excellent consistency from all of these competitors and well done, “Mr Handicapper”. When the dust had (proverbially) settled, Peter Hargreaves was first, Amy Barling second, Craig Ross third, Neil Harris fourth, and Mal Cavanagh fifth.

The “at go” swim on the morning, a 25-metre butterfly, had Amy Barling closest to time on 0.07 seconds, David Sparkes second on 0.42 seconds, Jack Allen third on 0.46 seconds, Katharine O'Rourke fourth on 0.52 seconds, and Craig Ross fifth on 1.06 seconds.

An exciting example of the true grit and nature of Ducks' swimming was evident in the results of the Jokers Ink Screenprinting and Embroidery Trophy Race. Seven swimmers took the top-five closest-to-handicap times for this exciting event, and normally while only a winner is announced, these placings all need recognition.

With Warren Williams at 0.24 seconds, Henry Wilcockson and Ron Everett on 0.20 seconds, Peter Hargreaves at 0.17 seconds, David Sparkes and Rob Rich on 0.14 seconds, and Mal Cavanagh the winner in a time of 0.09 seconds, shows how well everyone swam, well done!

Lucky numbers were won by Brian Schloeffel and Ron Everett.

Next week’s racing will involve all swimmers lining-up for the butterfly and backstroke events in their age championships. All competitors must have their annual memberships paid to compete, so ensure you have done so.

It is also March meeting day, which will then be followed by lunch at the Dubbo RSL Bistro.

Notice to all members past and present, we are seeking interested parties for our trips to Austinmer and Harbord, both to be held later in the year.

Please let Henry know of your interest as numbers are required for accommodation bookings; Henry's details are displayed in the Community Diary section of the Dubbo Photo News under “Sunday”.

That's this week’s tidings from the Duckpond!