Finding My Way Back to the Sea with the Worthing Bluetits
I’ve always loved the sea.
Growing up, I spent countless hours surfing with family, sailing with the Scouts, and generally being silly on the beach. But as I began navigating adulthood, the sea slowly drifted out of reach—though my love for it never did.
In 2024, the itch to get back in the water became impossible to ignore. My wife, however, wasn’t keen on the idea of me swimming alone. So she found the Worthing Bluetits and encouraged me to reach out.
I did—albeit with a fair bit of trepidation. From the Facebook page, I could see the group was mostly made up of women, and I worried I might be intruding.
How wrong I was!
In September 2024, I met the most wonderfully kind and welcoming group of people who accepted me into the Worthing flock without hesitation. That marked the beginning of my first winter of sea swimming—and the completion of 50 swims in the 2024/25 Arctic Flappers challenge.
I’ve always loved adventurous activities and challenges. But after a bike accident in 2012 left me with both arms in slings, I fell into bad habits and steadily gained weight. I made several attempts to turn things around, but nothing stuck—until earlier this year.
I began swimming further with Pamela and tina from our flock, Pamela—amazingly—swam across the Arctic Circle as part of her 70th birthday celebrations. Inspired, I took on the ‘I Swam The Distance’ challenge, aiming to complete 20km of sea swims in 30 days. Despite a fair few days out of the water due to weather and other commitments, I hit my goal and have now swum 25km with four days still to go.
The Bluetits have genuinely changed my life, I am well on my way towards my health goals because of lifestyle changes that my flock have helped me achieve.
The sea has an immense power to clear the mind and heal the body. I’ve met the most wonderful people, and I can’t wait to dive into the 2025/26 Arctic Flappers challenge. This year, I’m aiming for 75 winter swims.
- Jason Brown - Worthing Bluetit