Today's news.

[Cordy]

This article was in today's news....Melbourne, Au.

Yes I know it might conflict with the standard North American ideal that speedos are a sexual thing only....but here is a group of dedicated older males who swim daily in (at times very chilly) waters off Melbourne's bay beaches.
Note: men of other than young, fit bodies are happily wearing speedos to swim in.

A pic like this doesn't raise an eyebrow here. Phew...

Btw - We regularly get pics of footballers, rugby players etc training in speedos too in newspapers. Sorry can't post as isn't in online press.

http://www.theage.com.au/entertainme...827-2sod7.html

[Byron]

Interesting article and the activity familiar to me as a female cousin (herself of Iceberger age ) still takes her daily dip in St Phillip's Bay.
I didn't know ex footballer David Brooks of the Music Men but I do now (born
1953 in Bury Lancashire ):
http://www.goalweekly.com/index.php?...man&Itemid=141

Attitude to speedos quite ridiculous in some places - a Sydney rugby team trains regularly on the beach in speedos and a pic is long standing on Google Images - do you wish me to locate?
(also wish to retrace story of Leader of the Opposition out in speedos for a charity swim and derided for an electioneering publicity stunt I believe).

[Swimmboy]

I don't think it is fair to say that it is a 'standard' North American belief that Speedos are only a sexual thing - there are thousands of swimmers - from what we call "Polar Bear" clubs (similar to "Icebergers") to adult swim teams (such as Masters swimming) where Speedos are the norm, and nobody thinks anything of it. As I've posted before, I have worn Speedos from beaches along Lake Erie, the California coast, pools from New Hampshire to New Mexico, even the U.S. "Bible Belt" south, and nobody ever gave a rat's ass, never harassed me, attacked me, etc. I have received a few second glances, and once a little kid at my city pool asked his Mom why that man was in his underwear, lol, but she told him it was another kind of swimsuit! Speedos rule!

[louis]

Lots of polar bear clubs here in Canada, and no kidding they rteally swim in icy waters. brrrr......

[Byron]

How are the actual animals faring these days with the increased melting of the Polar Ice Cap ? (we were hearing stories of death by exhaustion because the ice floes they must have are so far apart now that they are beyond their usually achievable swimming distances and drowning results for many in the Arctic waters).

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Cordy, blanket bashing statements about any nation or region are just crap. There are plenty of events in North America where you see guys just like in the picture. And there are plenty of beaches where brief suits are relatively common. There are also plenty of beaches in Australia where you can look for hours and won't see a brief suit on a single guy and I have read plenty of blog posts from Europe and Australia that have nothing good to say about guys in "speedos." To think many of you call us arrogant Americans, but I really find the arrogance more often comes the other way. And certainly it does not belong on this board. Get over yourself.

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Blanket bashing statements about any nation or region are just crap. There are plenty of events in North America where you see guys just like in the picture. And there are plenty of beaches where brief suits are relatively common. There are also plenty of beaches in Australia where you can look for hours and won't see a brief suit on a single guy and I have read plenty of blog posts from Europe and Australia that have nothing good to say about guys in "speedos." To think many of you call us arrogant Americans, but I really find the arrogance more often comes the other way. And certainly it does not belong on this board. Get over yourself.

[Byron]

Why two posts two minutes apart and identical except for a couple of words?

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Clearly a computer error in the edit function... not hard to figure out.

[shaulis]

I agree with STS just as no two people are exactly the same, no two nations or regions are the same. I think it depends on the day you go to a beach as to what you see on people.