The Isle of Man holds a series of ocean swims during its Queenie Festival, an annual event that celebrates one of the local seafood, the Queen Scallop, or as it’s more commonly known on the Isle of Man, the Queenie.
Scallop Shell Swims organizer Mark Gorry, an accomplished adventurer himself, explains about the 3 races between 0.5 – 1.6 km that can be swum with or without wetsuits:
“The idea behind the swims is to encourage people to have a go at swimming in our idyllic bays, from club swimmers and triathletes to anyone who has ever looked out across the sea on a sunny afternoon and thought it looked inviting, but just needs a little encouragement. The weekday events are set in the evening to allow people to come down after work, while the final event is on the Sunday afternoon of the Tynwald bank holiday weekend, with beach-based fun events as well. We’re also interested in encouraging those who fancy a new challenge, and are more than happy if people want to take part to raise funds for local charities.”
Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.