How many here remember the UF Aqua Gators & Swim Fins?

secgator

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While looking through the video/photo files at Florida Memory Archives of retro Florida, I found this video from circa 1950's/60's(?) which has a segment on a UF athletic team--the Aqua Gators & Swim Fins. Didn't know if anyone here can remember this...uh, team?

https://floridamemory.com/items/show/232456

It's actually a pretty cool site to find a lot of videos of old Florida, and a lot of subject matter covered from all across the state.

https://floridamemory.com/
 

TLB

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Brings back memories of Silver Springs in general. The Aqua Gators & Swim Fins was before my time, however.
 

secgator

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Just how old do you think we are?
I think many of 'US' are old enough to remember some of "old Florida"...especially Silver Springs like TLB said. Heck, I'm 62 and Silver Springs trip was an annual vacation trip for me growing up in the 60's.

And like TLB, the Aqua Gators was waaaaayyyyy before my time too, just didn't know if anyone in here had ever even heard of them. This video was the very first time for me. No idea there was a UF Aquatics 'team' per se....even if just for exhibition performances only. I just loved seeing some of the sights on the video I recall as a boy. And for kicks and giggles---the UF bus with whatever that Gator logo was---was intriguing to say the least.
 

Okeechobee Joe

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The Florida Memory site is a great resource.

Don't remember the Aqua Gators and Swim Fins. Do remember when resorts like Silver Springs, Weeki Wachee, and Cypress Gardens ruled in Florida before Disney and the Mouse. Do remember when Bill Harlan's Florida Gator Swimming Team used to have some epic battles with Ray Bussard's Tennessee Volunteers for swimming supremacy in the SEC.
 
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PeachyM

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While looking through the video/photo files at Florida Memory Archives of retro Florida, I found this video from circa 1950's/60's(?) which has a segment on a UF athletic team--the Aqua Gators & Swim Fins. Didn't know if anyone here can remember this...uh, team?

https://floridamemory.com/items/show/232456

It's actually a pretty cool site to find a lot of videos of old Florida, and a lot of subject matter covered from all across the state.

https://floridamemory.com/
Yes! ca. 1960. Me in the middle in back, Linda 3rd from L in front.
 

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NVGator

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I vaguely remember Silver Springs as a kid. We went a few times but had family who had a lake house in Keystone Heights so we went there more often. Also Stricklands was big for us.
 

secgator

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Those remembering Silver Springs…. did you ever visit Six Gun Territory?
Did the whole gambit....Silver Springs, Six Gun Territory, and Tommy Bartlett's Deer Ranch where you feed the deer as they group up on you and run you around in circles with about a dozen deer trying to get their snack.




 

bradgator2

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I vaguely remember Silver Springs as a kid. We went a few times but had family who had a lake house in Keystone Heights so we went there more often. Also Stricklands was big for us.

Striklands was amazing. I touched my first real boob under those docks.
 

bradgator2

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I was born and raised on the Westside of Jax. So Silver Springs, Wild Waters, Six Gun, Stricklands, Rodman Dam was just about all the hanging out or “vacation” I knew as a kid.

When I moved back to Jax with my wife, who is not from Florida, we went to Sticklands our first weekend available. Closed. I couldn’t believe it. Then after a few years, we moved to Ocala. Six Guns was long gone, which I knew. We went to Silver Springs and I just couldn’t wrap my head around what it is now vs what it was then. Then we went to Wild Waters and I honestly couldn’t believe these structures were still standing. I absolutely remember the Silver Bullet having an hour wait as a kid. Every end of year baseball party was there and it was beyond packed. Now, there was like 20 people in the whole place. And they were not 20 people you want to share a pool with. I really couldn’t believe it was allowed to be open in the condition it was in.

Anywho…. State if Fl bought it all probably 10 years ago. Wild Waters was bulldozed. Nearly every structure inside Silver Springs was bulldozed, all animals removed, and put back to its original state. It’s ran as a State Park and it’s really top notch for raw natural beauty. They still run the glass bottom boats. We love to launch kayaks into it.
 

MJMGator

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I was born and raised on the Westside of Jax. So Silver Springs, Wild Waters, Six Gun, Stricklands, Rodman Dam was just about all the hanging out or “vacation” I knew as a kid.

When I moved back to Jax with my wife, who is not from Florida, we went to Sticklands our first weekend available. Closed. I couldn’t believe it. Then after a few years, we moved to Ocala. Six Guns was long gone, which I knew. We went to Silver Springs and I just couldn’t wrap my head around what it is now vs what it was then. Then we went to Wild Waters and I honestly couldn’t believe these structures were still standing. I absolutely remember the Silver Bullet having an hour wait as a kid. Every end of year baseball party was there and it was beyond packed. Now, there was like 20 people in the whole place. And they were not 20 people you want to share a pool with. I really couldn’t believe it was allowed to be open in the condition it was in.

Anywho…. State if Fl bought it all probably 10 years ago. Wild Waters was bulldozed. Nearly every structure inside Silver Springs was bulldozed, all animals removed, and put back to its original state. It’s ran as a State Park and it’s really top notch for raw natural beauty. They still run the glass bottom boats. We love to launch kayaks into it.
Still got monkeys all over?
 

bradgator2

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Still got monkeys all over?

yeah, those rhesus monkeys officially live in the national forest that borders all that. We rarely see them, but they are there.

I actually had one jump on the front of my kayak once. I absolutely crushed that sucker with my oar. When my kids were little, I’d get them to tell the story and always made sure they would say that I spanked the monkey. People never knew how to react. :lol:
 

NVGator

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I was born and raised on the Westside of Jax. So Silver Springs, Wild Waters, Six Gun, Stricklands, Rodman Dam was just about all the hanging out or “vacation” I knew as a kid.

When I moved back to Jax with my wife, who is not from Florida, we went to Sticklands our first weekend available. Closed. I couldn’t believe it. Then after a few years, we moved to Ocala. Six Guns was long gone, which I knew. We went to Silver Springs and I just couldn’t wrap my head around what it is now vs what it was then. Then we went to Wild Waters and I honestly couldn’t believe these structures were still standing. I absolutely remember the Silver Bullet having an hour wait as a kid. Every end of year baseball party was there and it was beyond packed. Now, there was like 20 people in the whole place. And they were not 20 people you want to share a pool with. I really couldn’t believe it was allowed to be open in the condition it was in.

Anywho…. State if Fl bought it all probably 10 years ago. Wild Waters was bulldozed. Nearly every structure inside Silver Springs was bulldozed, all animals removed, and put back to its original state. It’s ran as a State Park and it’s really top notch for raw natural beauty. They still run the glass bottom boats. We love to launch kayaks into it.
That’s a shame. A real shame that all that didn’t thrive and make it to today (although Wuhan Flu for sure would have killed it).
 

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