In one of the more niche quests you’ll read about, moustached swimmer Kenton Webb wants to swim in every public pool in the country – and he’s already halfway there.
Put simply, his goal is to “swim a kilometre, in 1,000 different pools”, taking in every public pool in Australia in the process.
“If I do 24 a year, that’s two a month, I’ll get there in another 20 years, so that’s eminently possible, inevitable almost.”
The man, the myth, the legend; Kenton Webb on the swimming road trip of a lifetime
Kenton’s quest began when, upon moving back to Sydney from the UK over 20 years ago, he decided to try and shave 3 seconds off his personal best in the pool – 3 seconds that saw him perpetually in 2nd place throughout his childhood at the hands of a rival.
“You have to go away to appreciate what you’ve got, and coming from a very cold winter, moving back to a harbourside Sydney suburb, was like paradise,” he told ABC.
“There’s nowhere else in the world that has what we have; it’s just extraordinary, the quality of our pools and the ubiquity as well.”
Swimming lengths in Coogee
According to his website 1000pools.com, Keaton’s quest has so far seen him plunge into waters in the likes of the ACT, regional NSW and even international destinations including New York City and Stockholm.
The best swimming spots in Sydney for queers
Included in the site are some entertaining tidbits about the inevitable horrors of different public pools (bandaids stuck to the face, anyone?)
“If you want to feel vulnerable, try easing yourself into septic-coloured water of indeterminate depth wearing nil but Speedos,” reads his testimony from the now-closed pool at Tambourine Bay.
According to the blog, Avalon Ocean Baths is home to the occasional shark
Kenton’s currently sitting on 516 pools, smashing out a kilometre in each of them (that’s some serious swimming mileage). Here’s to more inspiring people going to great lengths (heh) to achieve amazing things!
