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Great Chesapeake Bay 4.4 Mile Swim & 1 Mile Bay Challenge

Sun June 14, 2026
Stevensville Libby's Coastal Kitchen, MD 21666 US

Events

Great Chesapeake 4.4 Mile Bay Swim

Price: $375.23
incl. $25.23 Fee
Time: 6:30AM EDT
Registration ends December 31, 2025 at 11:59pm EST
Open to ages 13 - 99.
Opens Jan 1, 2026

Great Chesapeake 1 Mile Bay Challenge

Price: $81.66
incl. $6.66 Fee
Time: 7:30AM EDT
Registration Opens January 1, 2026 at 12:00am EST

Place

Libby's Coastal Kitchen (Formerly Hemingways)
357 Pier One Road-
Stevensville Libby's Coastal Kitchen, MD US 21666

Round 1 Selections

If your name is on this list, then congratulations on being selected in Round 1 of the lottery. You will receive an email tonight (already went out) with a Google Form link to complete by Dec 15th, 2025 at noon. This Google Form gives you the ability to:
1) Accept your entry
2) Decline your entry from Round 1 but be put in for later rounds
3) Decline your entry from Round 1 and remove yourself from the lottery.
IF you are holding out, waiting to see if one of your friends gets in (or a family member) please go ahead and accept your entry, and hopefully they can join you
If we don't hear from you by December 15th at noon, via that Google Form, then we will put you back in for another round.
That listing of lucky swimmers is:
Christopher Adams
Michael Amberman
Lisa Anderson
Lauren Baguley
Joe Bakel
Erin Barket
Jeffrey Boteler
Paul Breza
Colleen Bruce
Grant Burgess
Andrew Campbell
Debbie Campbell
Katie Campbell
Catie Caywood
Peter Clerkin
Joanna Crosby
Kevin Dai
William Davis
Maree Dieterich
Gregory Diven
Thomas Dolan
Patrick Donahue
Jon Ericson
Grace Evans
Julianna Falzon
Erik Franklin
Meghan Fugate
David Gassert
Jim Gorske
David Graumann
Brian Guarraci
Kerensa Hadley
Josiah Halasz
Andrew Hamer
Mark Hannan
David Hawkes
JP Hechter
Erik Hendrickson
Maggie Hendrickson
Angela Herb
Churchill Hooff
Lainey Hooff
Katie Horvath
Boyang Huang
Bowen Hunt
Elizabeth Karn
Rose Kehoe
Adam Klinger
Jonathan Lang
Aliyah Majeed-Hall
John Malloy
Katherine McComas
Rob McGuckin
Daniele Merlis
Olivia Miller
Travis Mohr
James Moore
Duilio Morichi
Paul Morrissey
Hope Mao Oehler
Katie O'Hara
Molly ORourke
Jay Owen
Katie Palavecino
Woody Parsons
Jane Paul
Courtney Paulk
Christena Pazos
Donna Pierce
Rachel Pumphrey
Gabi Redford
Kevin Reed
Peter Reifenrath
Patrick Retallack
Ellie Ridgeway
Sarah Rogstad
Holly Sackett
Lorelei Schmidt
Kevin Scott
Chip Shand
Peter Shauger
Bill Shipp
Amy Shopkorn
Troy Slider
Cassie Steppe
Jonathan Stone
Matthew Strom
Vanessa Teitelbaum
Sara Trohaugh
Ray Visconti III
Steven Volkers
Adam Walker
Gretchen Weinbach
John R Widtfeldt
Paris Wilson
Bert Winchester
Elizabeth Wood
Raza Zaidi
Jeff Zifrony
Martin Zoltick

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This list, below, includes longevity swimmers (if you swim more than 15 crossings you bypass the lottery) AND those poor souls who were left on the beach in 2024 and didn't get to join us in 2025. These folks are IN and don't need to do anything else.


If YOU have crossed more than 15 times and/or you are from our 2024 class (and didn't swim in 2025) then please reach out to us at info@bayswim.com


List of swimmers (again, you don't need to do anything)
Alan Arnold
Alexander Koff
Andrew Cubbison
Andrew Kramer
Andy Cosgarea
Angie Melton
Anna Leonard
Anthony Johnson
Antonio Piraino
Ben Dolan
Beth Schlegel
Bruce Gianniny
Catherine Doud
Cathy Gainor
Christian Locke
Christine Kelly
Craig Condon
Dana Gianniny
David Brown
David Chadwick
David Wenhold
Denise Priddy
Dennis Hagan
Doug Frohock
Elizabeth Mesora
Ellis Merschoff
Emily Watts
Emily Weigel
Evia Nelson
Fiona McClure
Gary Ott Jr.
Glenn Gwilliam
Heather Colleran
Holly Donnelly
James Feeney
James Horwitz
James Sullivan
Jay Kennedy
Jeff Rommel
Jeffrey Hirsch
Jim Stafford
Joe Petrochko
John Aiello
John Guinee
John Murphy
John Post
John Smirnow
Joseph Kilfoyle
Joseph Schmitz
Kaitlin Bulavinetz
Karen Knee
Kevin Broderick
Kevin Sayers
KIRSTEN KEMPE
Kris Rutford
Kyle McAvoy
Laurie Wei
Lynn Knothe
Mark Levy
Maureen Rohrs
Michael Clark
Michael Graban
Michael Hart
Michael Keene
Michael Lee
Michael Lee
Michael MacDonald
Michael Parry
Mollie Schmitz
Morgan Oehler
Nick Cochran
Paul Brabson
Paul Doremus
Paul Timmons
Peter Garver
Ray Suziedelis
Rick Calder
Robert Benson
Robert Lynch
Robert Veigle
Robert Weigel
Robyn Wyman
Sam Wallace
Sarah Letos
Scott Breza
Scott McDonald
Shannon Maguire
Spencer Naake
Steve Hocking
Steven Smith
Susan Kasimer
Tara Flynn
Thomas McComas
Tiffany Collins
Tyler Randles
William Caywood
Yvonne Brach

 

Description

This event benefits the March of Dimes, the Chesapeake Bay Trust, the US Coast guard, and other local charities. 

 

The 2026 Great Chesapeake Bay Swim is doing a Sunrise Swim in 2026! 

Race Day is June 14th, 2026, with a 6:30am start time for the 4.4 Mile Swim. We are currently planning on having the 1 Mile Swim begin at 7:30am.The 1 Mile Start time is subject to final approval. 

 

Two emails have gone out. One to the 2025 4.4 Mile Swimmers with information about the Early Bird program (complete the 4.4 mile swim with us and receive a special offer for the following year). 

The other email has gone out to our 2024 4.4 Mile Swimmers who were unable to join us in 2025. 

If you fall in to either of these categories and didn't receive an email from us on Sept 30th, 2025, please reach out ASAP at info@bayswim.com

 

Don't forget, our newly designed site (www.BaySwim.com) and our email of info@bayswim.com are your sources for all of your up to date information!!!

 

CURRENT WATER TEMPERATURE READINGS     https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=44063

 

Don't forget to follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/greatchesapeakebayswim !!

 

 

 

 

Race Contact Info

If you have any questions about this race, click the button below.

RJA Perseverance Award

RJA Perseverance Award
The third annual Perseverance Award, sponsored by the Robert J. Astheimer Memorial Foundation, will be presented at this year's GCBS.

The Award will recognize one or more individuals who have overcome a physical, mental or emotional challenge to enable a personal achievement and/or to make significant contributions to family, community, or country.

The award is open to swimmers and their family members, GCBS organizers and supporters. Nominations of no more than two pages should be sent to the Foundation Director, JoAnn Milliken, at joann.milliken@gmail.com, by April 30, 2024. Nominations will be reviewed by the Foundation's Board of Directors. The Perseverance Award comes with an honorarium of $1000. For more information about Bob Astheimer and the foundation, please visit https://rjafoundation.com

2025 Ask The Race Director Video

Race Day Splits

Thank you to our friends over at Crossing Currents Aquatics for putting together this amazing infographic

Pay attention to the 100 yard times. These will help you to judge where to seed yourself for the swim start this year!

 

Geek out on distances

For the 1 Mile swim.... 

All buoys remain on your RIGHT hand side. Clockwise swim

Leg 1 of the swim -750 yards

Leg 2 of the swim - 440 yards

Leg 3 of the swim - 580 yards

 

4.4 Mile Swim  (approximate locations of Mile locations) 

From the Beach to the Bridge - @430 yards

Right after the curve in the bridge - 1 Mile Mark

Near the end of the 1st Shipping Channel (2nd large concrete support structure) - Mile 2

Right around the center of the 2nd Shipping channel opening - Mile 3

Right after you cross from under the Bridge (Almost Done!!!) - Mile 4

The last stretch is ROUGHLY 700 yards to the finish, and you will find it gets shallow as you get near closer to the end. 

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