2024 swim results
124 swimmers crossed Galway Bay, (43 solo swimmers, 26 relay teams – 81 relay team swimmers).
- Weather: One would have to go back to 2012 to find a swim with such challenging wind conditions on the Bay. The wind veered from Southerly to Westerly to North Westerly from approx. 10.00 am onwards which meant that swimmers were swimming almost directly into the wind for most of the swim. This along with the wave height in the bay made for very challenging conditions. The wave height would have eased a little as swimmers got closer to Salthill due to the wind shadow provided by the land. Conditions for the relay team swimmers and crew on the boats were also challenging due to the colder than usual NW wind, the swell and the rain which did not ease up until the afternoon. Any spectators and family members arriving at Blackrock after 1.00 pm to greet the swimmers would have only seen blue skies, sunshine and a calm sea around Blackrock tower which is sheltered from the NW wind. The sea state further out in the bay was very different. A huge congrats to all swimmers and a big thank you to the boat captains, crew and the event safety team for keeping everyone safe.
- Swim Date: July 20th, 2024
- Swim Start Time: 7.30 am (Wave 1), 8.00 am (Wave 2), 08.30 am (Wave 3), 09.00 am (Wave 4)
- Wind Direction: Southerly, then veered Westerly and quickly North Westerly from approx. 10.00 am.
- Wind Speed: Force 4 – 5
- Wave Height: 0.5 – 1.5 Metres
- Air Temperature: 15 C
- Sea Temperature: 16 C
- Low Tide: 11:20 am (1.4 m)
- High Tide: 05.30 pm (4.8 m)
- Tidal Range: 3.4 m (In 2023, the tidal range was 1.4 m)
- Wind and Wave Height, Air and Sea Water Temperature from Irish Lights Spiddal wave buoy (https://www.digitalocean.ie/Dashboard/Galway)