Wild Bill Swim Recap

I was so excited to be invited to be a vendor at the Wild Bill Swim because their event is a fundraiser for swim lessons. The swim is named after "Wild Bill" Yorzyk, who learned to swim when he was 16 years old. He went to the Olympics just 5 years later, and won a gold medal. He believed that every child should have the opportunity to learn how to swim.

Jen, the race director, has created such an incredible community event. There's a perfect mix of competition and fun. Non-swimming boaters from around the Quaboag Pond bring their boats and support the event each year. There are many distance/event options, with the course being a 1-mile loop, which makes it a little easier to keep an eye on everyone.

3 mile open water swim

2 mile open water swim

1 mile open water swim

1 mile paddle board challenge

1/2 mile swim

400 yard swim

After the safety meeting, a swimmer and her husband approached our table and explained that the swimmer was nervous to swim without a tow float, but that the tow float she had wasn't allowed due to its color (the course buoys were orange and yellow, and her buoy was orange; the race organizer mandated that any tow floats used couldn't be yellow or orange). I offered for her to borrow Mango the Flamingo for her 1-mile race, which is how she ended up competing.

The majority of swimmers didn't use a tow float, but there was plenty of boat coverage on the closed course to keep everyone safe. All of the 1, 2, and 3 mile competitors swam the course at the same time, and it was really cool to see some swimmers head toward the finishing chute and others turn to loop the course again.

After the swim, participants and spectators were encouraged to purchase raffle tickets, as the raffle and sponsorships are the main ways the swim fundraises for swim lesson costs. There were several dozen items donated, including an Island Hopper Quackpacker kit, and people were really excited for the prizes!

Side note: I really like the raffle idea, versus finisher prizes, since folks can put tickets into the prizes they're interested in. If the event is a fundraiser, the items donated can be more wide-ranging than trophies or medals.

If you're looking for a fantastic community-led fundraising swim, I would absolutely recommend signing up for the Wild Bill swim. The water and people are warm, and the mission is a great one.