Just out of curiosity, has anyone here ever organized an open water race?
Was it a lot of work? Difficult to find volunteers? Where did you find things like marker buoys?
Parents
Former Member
My swim coach does race direction if your looking for some one to organize an event. We hold the Diamond lake open water swim in MI ever year. I have worked close with him on this race. Buoys we found from a friend that runs a Tri every year. You can get blow up ones thats what we used and there less costly. You have to tie them to cinder blocks though so they don't move. having a well buoyed off area is good as it allows for less problems for swimmer and there safety. You have to get some permits to close the lake off to boats to keep it safe and to have a sheriff on the lake to let people know they cant cross into the swim area.Getting people in kayaks and jet skis and boat is good for safety. If you have a long swim like 10k feeding station is a must. We used a a big boat as the feeding station with a bright orange buoy on it so people knew were to go. Large buoys to mark the end are good. There is a lot but it can be done. Knowing how to do it or helping with a race is key before doing it because at the end of the day your responsible for the swimmers. You can take a race directors class and that helps to know all the paper work and rules, plus you get certification and you and do other races for people. Good luck!
My swim coach does race direction if your looking for some one to organize an event. We hold the Diamond lake open water swim in MI ever year. I have worked close with him on this race. Buoys we found from a friend that runs a Tri every year. You can get blow up ones thats what we used and there less costly. You have to tie them to cinder blocks though so they don't move. having a well buoyed off area is good as it allows for less problems for swimmer and there safety. You have to get some permits to close the lake off to boats to keep it safe and to have a sheriff on the lake to let people know they cant cross into the swim area.Getting people in kayaks and jet skis and boat is good for safety. If you have a long swim like 10k feeding station is a must. We used a a big boat as the feeding station with a bright orange buoy on it so people knew were to go. Large buoys to mark the end are good. There is a lot but it can be done. Knowing how to do it or helping with a race is key before doing it because at the end of the day your responsible for the swimmers. You can take a race directors class and that helps to know all the paper work and rules, plus you get certification and you and do other races for people. Good luck!
