Just a heads up, if you happen to see a giant inflatable duck floating somewhere of the coast of Western Australia, then the good people of the Cockburn Masters Swimming Club would very much like her back. She’s large, yellow, has a beak and answers to Daphne, and that’s about all we have to go on at this point.
Speaking with ABC Radio, club president Peter Marr said he was setting up for the Coogee Jetty To Jetty Swim when the mascot took advantage of strong winds and made a move out into open water. Marr said he tried to swim after the giant inflatable duck, but his attempts to catch her were futile, and she was just too fast.
“I probably overestimated my ability and underestimated Daphne’s hunger for freedom and she just bolted,” he said.
Apparently Daphne, who set the small club back a cool $900 last year, is something of a controversial figure in local swimming circles. “I didn’t want the duck whatsoever,” Marr continued. “We’re a small organisation trying to run a swim that makes money for our club. I knew as I was swimming I’d be accused of doing it deliberately.”
There have been several Daphne sightings since she escaped last Sunday, with fisherman claiming to spot her just off Rottnest Island, and there are rumours that she may have made it as far north as Geraldton. The club is offering a reward of some swimming gear and free entry into next year’s Jetty To Jetty event for her safe return.
