OCEAN CITY – The annual T. John Carey Masters Swim is going back to an evening swim and moving from the 34th Street beach to downtown beaches.
The swim had been in the evenings earlier in its history, but switched to mornings years ago. This year, it switches back on Saturday, July 6. Registration is now open for this year’s swim.
The Masters Swim has been one of the premier open-water swimming events on the Jersey Shore since 1979. The one-mile ocean race follows a point-to-point course that runs parallel to the beach. Race directors determine the direction of the swim on the day of the race to take advantage of the most favorable conditions.
Competitors will enjoy views of shops and rides as they swim along the boardwalk, passing the Music Pier, during a race with a start time of 6:15 p.m. The new setting and ambience of the 2024 swim will make it a must for every swimmer’s 2024 race calendar. For information and registration, visit ocnj.us/race-events.
Race, Course
• Start Time: 6:15 p.m. Saturday, July 6, 2024
• Parking: Free parking will be available only to swimmers at the Ocean City Tabernacle, 550 Wesley Ave.
• Location: Check-in will be at the start of the race (Sixth Street or 14th Street, depending on conditions). Transportation will be provided to the start of the race. Competitors’ bags will be transported to the finish of the race.
• Course Direction: To be determined on the day of the race based on favorable wind and tide conditions.
• Course (North to South): Starting line will be on Sixth Street Beach. Swimmers will swim straight out past a turn buoy (right turn on the ocean side of the buoy). Swimmers will then head south on the seaward side of all marker buoys until they reach the finish-turn double-buoy, where they will turn to the beach (right turn to land), and proceed through the finish chute at 14th Street.
• Course (South to North): Starting line will be on 14th Street Beach. Swimmers will swim straight out past a turn buoy (left turn on the ocean side of the buoy). Swimmers will then head south on the seaward side of all marker buoys until they reach the finish-turn double-buoy, where they will turn to the beach (left turn to land) and proceed through the finish chute at Sixth Street.
• Post-Race Awards: The awards ceremony will be at the Ocean City Music Pier loggia on the Boardwalk at Moorlyn Terrace.
Registration
• Online registration: https://www.raceforum.com/johncarey
• Race-day registration: All entries online only, even on race day. Enter before you leave home. It’s easier, but it can be done on your phone on-site.
• Registration Fees: $35 (plus processing) through July 5. $40 (plus processing) on day of race.
Awards
T-shirts will be issued to all competitors entered by June 15. T-shirts will be given out to additional entries as available. Wetsuits will be permitted for all award categories if the ocean temperature is under 65 degrees. Award categories include the following:
• Top three overall finishers: male and female
• Oldest competitor
• Youngest competitor
• First-place age-group winners: 15-and-under, 16-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-64, 65-and-over
• First-place wetsuit (if ocean temperature is above 65 degrees) or first-place no-wetsuit (if ocean temperature is below 65 degrees)
History
T. John Carey was an Ocean City Beach patrol lifeguard as well as a member of the Ocean City High School swim team. The 1930 Ocean City High School swim team won the South Jersey championship by a wide margin. In 1934, he won the Individual National Lifeguard Championship. Carey was an honors graduate of the University of Delaware and a lieutenant commander in the Navy during World War II, teaching survival tactics to pilots and air crews. He taught physical education and coached football, basketball, and track at Ocean City High School before leaving to take over the family’s real estate business in 1947. In 1966, he received the city’s Community Service Award for his efforts in establishing surfing as an organized sport.
