Past Members

The following individuals have at one point been members of Carlisle Masters and have since left for one reason or another.

Obituaries

Dick McBride

Tributes have been paid after a stalwart of Carlisle’s swimming scene passed away this week.

Dick McBride, 82, of Collingwood Street, Denton Holme, was the eldest member of the Carlisle Masters swimming team and a teacher to many of the city’s swimmers, young and old.

The intrepid pensioner was never far from the water, swimming a staggering 96 lengths as part of his training every morning, including breast stroke, back stroke and the butterfly.

“What he didn’t know about teaching swimming hadn’t been invented,” said Patricia Johnston, who has spent the past 25 years teaching swimming classes with Dick.

“He was a knowledgeable teacher, teaching everyone from tots to pensioners. Nervous learners were soon put at ease and his lessons were always gentle and calm.”

A successful swimmer in his own right, Mrs Johnston said she used to joke that Dick would need “to arrange for a security van” to escort him and his haul of gold medals back from competitions.

She said: “He was winning gold medals like they were going out of fashion. Even in his seventies he represented the county in inter-county competitions, often swimming against competitors up to 20 years younger than him.”

And it wasn’t just swimming that kept Dick active. He was also a keen rambler and cyclist, until recently taking parties of children out into Cumbria’s fells.

Mrs Johnston added: “There are some people who are always there, always reliable. If somebody couldn’t turn up, he would turn up and teach.

“He could take any age group, any ability class whether beginner or advanced. He was amazing and absolutely irreplaceable.

“He was quiet, modest and gentle.”

Another member of Carlisle Masters swimming club, Graeme Sutton, said: “It’s a very sad day for the club.

“He was a great ambassador for our club but more importantly he was one of life’s true gentlemen. He will be greatly missed by us all, but, more importantly, very fondly remembered.”

By Elizabeth Broughton (Cumberland News) 4 July 2009

Roy Simpson

Roy joined Carlisle Masters Swimming Club at its inauguration in 1996 and was a stalwart member of it becoming Chairperson in 2000.

He competed in most of the master’s competitions in the North of England and Scotland usually coming away with a fistful of medals for the freestyle and Backcrawl events! When Roy swam it looked effortless – the sign of a great swimmer. Roy also enjoyed the social side to Masters Events and took a keen interest in his fellow club members. In his youth he had competed locally in and for Cumberland and he carried on swimming throughout his life.

He left the club in 2003 after a long battle with cancer and died later that year.

• Home
• Squad
• Past Members
• Training Times
• Future Swim Meets
• Our Swim Meet
• Social Events
• Contact Details
• Constitution
• Useful Links
• Privacy Policy
• Terms & Condition
• Accessibility