On The Day
There was plenty to see and do at the 2011 British Gas Great East Swim. The following information is offered as a guide only - full details of the 2012 activities will appear on this page as soon as they are confirmed.
As well as getting in the water or supporting friends, family and some of the world's best swimmers, visitors in 2011 were able to try their hand at different sports and find out more about cultural projects and activities within Suffolk.
Sport and culture
Sport
There were a number of FREE have-a-go sports on the day such as;
- climbing wall
- bouldering wall
- trampolining
- cycle around Alton Water
- Watt Bike challenge
and visitors were also able to find out about different aspects of sport in Suffolk:
- Suffolk's Olympic legacy
- Sportivate
- Sport-Makers
- Top-Coach
- Fit Villages
- Cycle Suffolk
- Suffolk Youth Games
- Suffolk Sports Awards
Cultural activities
Numerous entertainers were also on site, roaming around the cultural event area. They included:
- Fool Hardy Circus - highly skilled circus performers www.foolhardycircus.org
- Circo Rum Ba Ba - highly experienced women’s circus theatre company fusing spectacular theatre with circus skills and disguise www.circorumbaba.com
- Chuckerbutty Ocarina Quartet - A novel range of instruments playing classic tunes – be prepared to be surprised!
Other attractions in 2011:
- Danegeld Morris Dancing
- Jo Mondy – Hula Hooper teacher and demonstrator with performances and workshops throughout the day
- Art of the Ordinary - Fun and creative art workshops for everyonewww.artoftheordinary.org.uk
- Home Grown in Suffolk - a scheme that supports communities to develop and promote arts activities - was also represented on the day.
Food and drink
One of the real highlights of the day was the excellent Farmers’ Market that featured over 20 local traders offering some of the region’s highest quality produce.
Stalls included:
- home baked cakes and pies
- Suffolk apple juice
- delicious freshly made pesto
- smoked cheeses and pates
- gorgeous cupcakes
- freshly baked bread
- jams and preserves
- burgers from the award winning Suffolk Food Hall BBQ
- bowls of tasty, homemade stew from Stewed & Baked
- Alder Tree ice cream
- freshly picked Suffolk strawberries
- cup of delicious Paddy & Scott’s Suffolk coffee
- To find out more about the fantastic farmers markets visit www.lavenhamfarmersmarket.co.uk and www.assingtonfarmersmarket.co.uk