Free Daily Podcast Summary
Swim Chats: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Shona Riddell
Every swimmer has a story to tell. Writer and swimmer Shona Riddell chats to adventure swimmers, winter dippers, marathon swim coaches, marine conservationists and more to find out how they got started and the lessons they've learned along the way. Whether you’re a swimmer yourself, or just interested in stories about the sea and people expanding their comfort zones, you'll enjoy these swim chats.
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- 3 days ago26 min
'Wet July' with the Scarborough Dippers and their cold-water community
The Scarborough Dippers began with a bet between four friends in a coffee shop on a winter's day: who would take the plunge into the cold sea? Ten years later, the group now has dozens of year-round dippers who meet at 7am at Scarborough Beach in Christchurch.The group also runs Wet July, an annual campaign to raise funds for local organisations including kindys, lifesaving clubs, and conservation groups. Members pledge to get in the sea every day of the month and the dippers often raise over $10,000. They also host a mid-winter community swim and a quiz night. Their bank details are Scarborough Dippers 01-0811-0814833-00 if you want to chip in!Founding member Sandra Taylor came on the podcast to talk about how the group got started, their annual fundraising, the importance of a ‘Bucket of Joy’, and the support and connections that have formed from the fun and buzz of ocean dipping. As Sandra explains: “There’s no rules, no cost, no expectations, just a kind and lovely group of people that have all gathered around a love of dipping.”Visit the Scarborough Dippers public page on Facebook to follow along (new dippers and visitors are welcome – there are daily dippers and their biggest turnout tends to be on Fridays).*Visit StokedNZ for your towelies and get 15% off with the discount code SWIMCHATS Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- 2 weeks ago58 min
Squad coach and gym owner Timon Wilkinson on making lessons fun for kids and adults
Timon Wilkinson is the co-owner of Bonobos gym for kids and adults in Wellington and runs weekly Bonobos Swim Squads at Freyberg, WRAC, Te Ngaengae, and Te Huia Pools. Timon was a competitive swimmer from nine to 15 and started coaching kids while he was at university. He worked at the old TSW Pool until it closed in 2017, and then for Capital Swim Club. In 2017 he co-founded the fun and friendly Bonobos gym in Lyall Bay for kids and adults (including Strength, Mobility, and Balance classes – great cross-training for swimmers!).Timon talks about leaving kids' competitive swim coaching, opening the gym, and his many years of running adult swim squads. We discuss the joys and challenges of running squads, his top swimming tips, teaching different ages, personalities, and abilities, and how creating a friendly space helps people to learn and have fun so they want to keep coming back.Visit the Bonobos gym websiteVisit the Bonobos Swim Squad website*Visit StokedNZ for your towelies and get 15% off with the discount code SWIMCHATS Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- 4 weeks ago53 min
Diving into the world of sea sponges with Professor James Bell
James Bell is a Professor of Marine Biology at Victoria University of Wellington – Te Herenga Waka, and a huge fan of sea sponges. Check out his colourful underwater photos and videos on his Instagram page, @sponge_ecology, where he has over 40,000 followers. James has scuba dived around the world researching this ancient, vibrant, intriguing, but sometimes overlooked marine species. (We both agree that charismatic megafauna – e.g. dolphins, whales, sharks – often get a disproportionate amount of attention.)In this episode we talk about the characteristics and role of sea sponges, where you can find them, and how they're responding to marine heatwaves and increased levels of sedimentation (e.g. Wellington's current wastewater treatment plant disaster). James also talks about life as a marine biologist: diving in some of the world's coolest places, teaching the next generation of marine scientists, and sharing information to help people better understand and advocate for our underwater world.Glossary: Nudibranch: soft-bodied marine gastropods (sea slugs)Bioactive: something that has a biological effect on living organismsSpicules: needle-like elements produced by sponges to provide structural support and protection against predatorsGlass sponges: sponges with skeletons made out of spicules (see above)Image: James's award-winning 'sponge point of view' photo taken with an Insta360 camera from inside a barrel sponge in Indonesia. (James Bell)*Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- Jun 25, 20261h 23m
Corrina Connor on swimming NZ's Triple Crown, extreme ice miles, and having fun in inhospitable conditions
Corrina Connor is a Wellington ultramarathon swimmer, ice swimmer, musician, and the MC of Wellington's popular Sea Panels at Te Matapihi central library.In this episode we talk about Corrina's swim journey from a teenager at the pool to setting 20km+ targets in the open water. She swam across the Cook Strait (Te Moana-o-Raukawa) in December 2021, after a thwarted first go in March of the same year. She swam Foveaux Strait (Te Ara a Kiwa) in 2023 and Lake Taupō in 2024. She also completed a circumnavigation of Rangitoto Island in 2025. (You can read her excellent write-ups of her big swims on her blog, Goggles at Dawn.)We also talk more generally about how to stay positive during very long (or very cold) swims, technique, training goals and swim routines, and feeding plans.This month Corrina is training for the NZ Ice Swimming Championships in July and is also taking part in Coastguard NZ's Big Swim fundraiser – you can sponser her via her fundraising page.Because Corrina has done so much swimming (24km in the pool and sea per week is not uncommon), I asked a lot of questions and this episode is about 90 minutes long. It's a good one – grab a hot beverage of your choice and enjoy! The photo shows Corrina swimming an ice mile (about 1.6km) at St Bathans in 2023. (Corrina Connor)*Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- Jun 18, 202655 min
Ruby Fresh's Eddie Spearing on designing wetsuits, running the Ruby swim, and the joys of Lake Wānaka
At the time of recording, Eddie was recovering from a mountain biking accident so we talk about that at the start of the episode. All the best with your recovery, Eddie!Eddie Spearing lives in Wānaka on New Zealand's South Island, and is the founder of Ruby Fresh, a wetsuit that was designed (by Eddie) for freshwater swimming – he's since grown the business and now also sells wetsuits for ocean swimming. Eddie is the co-organiser of the hugely popular Ruby Island Swim event, which is held every year in late January. Entries are limited and open on September 1st.In this episode we talk about what goes into designing a wetsuit, launching and growing a swim business, how to look after your wetsuit so it lasts longer, the history of Ruby Island and the annual swim (which started in 2015), lake conservation, the pūteketeke (the Australasian crested grebe famously championed by John Oliver), the meaning of 'lake snow/snot' and 'duck itch', and how Eddie went from running snowboarding events in the UK to launching a swim business in Wānaka. Thanks to Lesley Cornish for the photo of Eddie, taken in 2025 during our swim adventure in Wānaka. *Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- May 26, 202644 min
Swimming and sea poems with special guest Sinéad Kehoe
Poetry captures the sensory delights and desires (and sometimes death and despair) of swimming and the allure of open water. In this episode, returning guest Sinéad Kehoe and I take turns reading some of our favourite swim poems, mostly organised by theme, location, or general vibe. Mermaids, grottos, drowning, thrashing waves, darting fish, and naked swims are all captured in these verses. We also got inspired and penned a couple of our own poems! There are no deep dives or literary deconstructions here, and we only read a few lines of the longer poems, so even if poetry isn’t your usual gig let the words wash over you – enjoy the rolling tides and shades of blue conjured by these poems. Here’s the full list, in reading order:‘Mana of the Sea’ by DH Lawrence‘Sonnet to the Sea’ by John Keats‘The Sea’ and ‘Ode to the Sea’ by Pablo Neruda‘E Rere Kau Mai’ Māori whakatauki/proverb (Whanganui iwi)‘And My Heart Goes Swimming’ by Roma Pōtiki‘Sea Swimming in Spring (Instant Poem)’ by Rachel McAlpine‘Morning Swim’ by Maxine Kumin‘Water is my Prayer’ from the blog Swimming at Dawn‘From Sauna to Sea on a Rainy Autumn Day’ by Shona Riddell‘Full Moon’ haiku by Matsuo Basho‘Maggie and Milly and Molly and May’ by ee cummings‘Not Waving but Drowning’ by Stevie Smith‘The Mermaid’ by William Butler Yeats‘Swimming’ by Mao Zedong‘Aquatic Nocturne’ by Sylvia Path‘Nude Swim’ by Anne Sexton‘The Otter’ by Seamus Heaney‘The Swimmer’ by Mary Oliver‘Salted’ by Pippa Best‘Pearl Diver’ by Lady Nakatomi‘Winter Swims, Saturday Morning, Claude’s Cove’ by Sinéad Kehoe*Swimming With Lord Byron episode with John HancockKate Camp’s episode about her swimming and sea poemsSwimming films, books and music episode (also with Sinead)*Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramContact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot comHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- May 21, 202648 min
Mountains to Sea Wellington’s Zoe Studd on the joys, challenges and possibilities of connecting people with the water
Zoe Studd is the co-founder and ‘Chief Enthusiasm Officer’ of Mountains to Sea Wellington and the Project Lead of Love Rimurimu. She helps people of all ages to connect with marine and freshwater environments, and leads marine restoration projects. She’s full of ideas and energy, supported by an incredible team of staff and volunteers. On the MTSW website it says: ‘From experience comes joy, and from joy comes connection’ and I think we can all agree with that! In this episode we talk about how MTSW got started nine years ago, the free programmes they run (like the summer community snorkels and freshwater/awa exploration by night), the challenges that come with running a marine charitable trust (like this year’s Moa Point wastewater treatment plant failure…), NZ’s first seaweed festival, seaweed products (including gin!), and Zoe’s own relationship with the water including her morning ‘bobs’ in the dark at Titahi Bay.Visit the Mountains to Sea Wellington website, follow them on Facebook/Instagram, and become a volunteerCheck out Imagination’s rimurimu gin Visit the Love Rimurimu website to learn more about seaweed regeneration, and follow them on Facebook and InstagramUpcoming event: Sunrise Seaweed Swim, Sunday June 28 2026 at 7am (sunrise at 7:50), Worser Bay Beach, followed by warm drinks and kai at the Worser Bay Boating Club. Organised by Love Rimurimu. All welcome!*Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
- May 8, 202659 min
‘Jump In’ author Nicola McCloy on NZ’s best swimming spots – and how she found them
NZ author Nicola McCloy’s new book ‘Jump In: An Insider’s Guide to New Zealand’s Best Beaches, Lakes, Rivers, Pools and Hot Springs’ was published in late 2025, with stunning photos and tips on the best places to swim. Writing the book involved plenty of personal research as Nicola trekked around the country to experience some of NZ’s most beautiful and epic (but also accessible) swim locations. With support and advice from local communities, Nicola’s swim journey was full of wonderful and unexpected surprises. She talks about how she chose the locations in the book, growing up as a water baby in Invercargill, and swimming with a plethora of marine life in the Hauraki Gulf (her social media includes ‘sh*t photos of well-camouflaged stingrays’ taken with her trusty GoPro) and the Goat Island Marine Reserve.Towards the end of this episode we talk about whio (pronounced fee-or): these are NZ native ducks (blue ducks) and precious to spot in the wild. Buy ‘Jump In’ from your local bookstore or borrow from the library (NZ authors receive some money when their books are in the library). If you own a copy already, put it in your car and go on a swimmer's road trip! Published by HarperCollins.Photo of Nicola swimming in Lake Pukaki, South Island. * Support the podcast via Patreon.com/SwimChatsFollow Swim Chats on InstagramHit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode. Thanks for listening! :-)
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About Swim Chats
Every swimmer has a story to tell. Writer and swimmer Shona Riddell chats to adventure swimmers, winter dippers, marathon swim coaches, marine conservationists and more to find out how they got started and the lessons they've learned along the way. Whether you’re a swimmer yourself, or just interested in stories about the sea and people expanding their comfort zones, you'll enjoy these swim chats.
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