Memorial for man who drank 297 free beers in a week

He had just one eye, ruled Bondi Icebergs weekly races with an iron fist, and once took a week off work to drink 297 free beers. Put simply, Bondi Iceberg local ‘Lofty’ was a legend.

He had just one eye, ruled Bondi Icebergs weekly races with an iron fist, and once took a week off work to drink 297 free beers. Put simply, Bondi Iceberg local “Lofty” was a legend.

The 86-year-old lifelong swimming member will be remembered this Friday at Bondi Icebergs’ annual Reunion Day, renamed “Lofty Day” this year, to pay tribute to the man who wasn’t afraid to give you a piece of his mind.

The lifelong bachelor, whose real name was Ronald Petrie, (but don’t you dare call him that) died on the 15th of October, leaving behind a legacy that best friend Tim Smith says will never be forgotten.

Ron "Lofty" Petrie, a life member of the Bondi Icebergs club.

“You had to report to Lofty. If you missed a race, you had to report to Lofty. If you didn’t and your excuse wasn’t very good, he would give you the benefit of his wisdom,” said Tim Smith, Lofty’s closest mate.

“He ruled the race recording the way it should be run - with an iron fist. You had to respect the rules, follow the rules, and therefore you respect the club and can become a full member,” Mr Smith said.

“He was the judge, jury and executioner,” said Iceberg’s manager Bob Tate.

“It would be fair to say he had a navy background and implemented all the discipline of a naval person to everyone in the club. There were no shades of grey. It was Lofty’s rules, and they were the rules. If you played up, you would get into trouble and get a couple weeks off [from the club],” said Mr Tate.

He sounds like a pretty scary guy until you get to know him. And boy, did everyone know him.

Ron "Lofty" Petrue was a Bondi Icebergs legend.

For all his might and muscle, Lofty was a softie inside. He knew how to doll out the rules, and he knew how to take them. He was a man known to ban himself from the club from time to time.

“He played up a number of times and got a couple of weeks off himself,” said Mr Tate.

“Even though he had that Aussie scallywag irreverence, underneath all that he was good mentor,” Mr Tate said.

“He would have a tonne of fun but also stand up when a lady entered the room. He had old school values,” said the manager.

There was no Lofty moment more iconic than a fateful week in 1972. Lofty had just won the handicapped race; the prize was a week of free beer. Never one to shy from a challenge (or a free beer), Lofty took the entire week off work to smash down at least 40 beers a day.

By the end of the week he had consumed 297 beers.

“He had the constitution of an ox,” said Mr Smith.

Originally published as Memorial for man who drank 297 free beers in a week