Waterman Eco-Challenge | Rhode Island State Parks

The Waterman Eco-Challenge, an annual event launched in 2011 that draws hundreds of open water swimmers and paddlers to Narragansett each year to promote ocean recreational safety, is hosting the Summer Safe Ocean State event at Roger Wheeler State Beach on Saturday, July 20, with a rain date of Sunday, July 21. The event will feature a 5K road race, ocean swim races, paddles races, challenges, and a public education experience area to promote safe summer recreational pillars including drowning prevention, cardiac health, skin cancer prevention, and coastal environment protection.

During the event, regular parking at Roger Wheeler State Beach will not be impacted. Staff from DEM’s Division of Parks and Recreation and parking vendor LAZ Parking will be directing beachgoers and event participants alike. As always, DEM encourages beachgoers to check the near real-time beach capacity status before heading to the beach and to be patient and courteous to others as they enter beach parking lots. During the event, a small portion of the beachfront will be reserved for the event and the swimming area will be slightly reduced for the event’s swim and paddle races.

Registration is required to participate in the racing portions of the event, but the event’s education area promoting safe summer recreation is open to the public. Event sponsors that will be present at the education area include University Orthopedics, Raw Elements USA, South County Dermatology, Partnership To Reduce Cancer In RI, The American Heart Association of RI, Pods Swimming, DEM’s Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Aquatic Resource Education Program, the Rhode Island Seafood Marketing Collaborative, Surfrider RI, and more. Event sponsors will be hosting complimentary activities including hands only CPR instruction, public automated external defibrillator (AED) use tutorials, water safety and rip current awareness, skin cancer check screenings, health and wellness activities, coastal wildlife education, and local seafood sustainability. Funds raised from the event will support The Partnership to Reduce Cancer In RI, The American Heart Association of RI, and the Janice Causey Memorial Art Scholarship at Narragansett High School. For more information about the event, please visit www.watermanecochallenge.com.