All of them in SE QLD / Nth NSW are flat water except for Mooloolaba and Byron Bay and, depending on conditions they are never too bad to be honest. Noosa, Redcliffe, Wivenhoe, Hervey Bay, Kingscliff are all smooth water swims.
Thanks again for the heads up on the events. It's a shame the one event I am looking at aiming to do is an ocean swim. ByronHave you done this? What is the swim leg like? Cheers Mark
Byron Bay is certainly more open and exposed than Mooloolaba for example. That being said. It won't be too bad and if it borders on dangerous they will probably cancel the swim. Last year Byron had a decent amount of swell but there was next to no wind so there was no wind slop. It was a bit tough getting out through the breaking swell and once through that it was a slight rolling swell but nothing too dramatic. That being said I really enjoy the Byron swim but if your not a strong swimmer it might be cause for some concern and it depends on the weather/swell conditions. Like I said in your other post, Kingscliff might be a better idea, swim is guaranteed to be dead flat and smooth with clear water and it will be current/tide assisted. Last year there was such a strong run out tide that you could have probably floated down the river and still posted a swim time around 45min.