How to Set Up Registration for an Open-Water Swim Event: Safety, Waves and Wetsuits

The water looks flat and friendly from the shore. Out at the second buoy, a swimmer who trained only in a heated pool is discovering what a 2.5 km swim feels like without a wall to hold. That gap between “I can swim” and “I can swim this” is the biggest risk you manage. Water temperature, visibility, currents and the number of lifeguards and safety boats decide how many swimmers you can take, and registration is your first chance to find out who is ready. This guide shows how to set it up.

Choose your distances and categories

Swim events usually offer a choice of distances: for example 500 m or 1 km for newcomers, 2.5 km or 5 km for experienced swimmers, and sometimes a 10 km marathon swim. Many also split categories by wetsuit and no-wetsuit, because the two are very different efforts. Give each category its own price, capacity and start time.

Let safety cover set capacity per wave

Your lifeguards, kayakers and safety boats limit how many swimmers can be in the water at once. Set capacity per wave, not only per event. If each start time has its own ticket with its own limit, the system closes a wave when it is full, and swimmers choose among the remaining times.

Check swimming ability before entry

Ask for evidence of ability, not a promise. A good question is a recent swim time over a known distance, entered as a time (for example 28:40). Add a choose-one question on open-water experience. Use the answers to decide who needs a conversation, who belongs in a slower wave, and who should be advised to pick a shorter distance. A tick-box confirming that the swimmer has read your safety briefing and understands the cut-off times is also worth adding.

State your wetsuit rules clearly

Wetsuit rules usually depend on water temperature and on your sanctioning body, so you may only know them close to race day. Ask each swimmer to choose wetsuit or no wetsuit at entry, tell them how you will confirm the rule closer to the date, and email everyone entered once you know.

Waivers and medical information

Use a clear waiver, and keep the signed name, the time and the exact wording with each entry. Collect an emergency contact and blood group, and give your safety team one list they can open on race morning. Your safety team may be working on a beach or a boat with poor signal, so export the list before the event and keep a printed copy.

Waitlists, weather and water quality

Swim events lose places to illness and travel. A waitlist that offers freed places to the person who has waited longest keeps waves full. Weather and water quality can also force a cancellation, so publish your refund policy with dates before sales open and decide in advance how you will refund every swimmer if you have to call the event off.

In practice: an example setup

Example only. Consider a made-up event, the Lakeside Open Swim, with 1 km, 2.5 km and 5 km distances, each offered with and without a wetsuit. The 2.5 km has waves at 8:00 and 8:30, each its own ticket with its own cap set by the number of safety boats. Entrants answer a time question (a recent swim time, say 28:40), a choose-one on open-water experience, and tick the safety briefing box. A week before the event, you email the selected entrants to confirm the wetsuit rule, then export the emergency contact list for the safety team.

Common mistakes

• Capacity only for the event. Safety cover decides how many swimmers can be in the water at once.
• Taking ability on trust. Ask for a recent time and open-water experience.
• Wetsuit rules decided at the last minute. Collect the choice at entry and message everyone when you confirm.
• Medical list only on a screen. Export it so your safety team has a copy that works without signal.

Set it up on endurace.pro

• Several distances and wetsuit categories per event, each with its own price, capacity and distance in km or miles.
• A separate ticket per wave, each with its own capacity and a waitlist when it sells out.
• Your own questions per category: a time question for a recent swim, choose-one for experience and wetsuit, and a tick-box for safety briefing and cut-offs.
• Waivers kept per registration, plus date of birth, blood group and emergency contact in a CSV you can export for your safety team.
• Email to selected entrants, for example to confirm wetsuit rules, and a one-step full refund for everyone if you cancel the event.

Quick answers

How do I check that swimmers are ready?

Ask for a recent swim time as a time question and open-water experience as a choose-one, then act on the answers.

Can I set a limit per wave?

Yes. Give each wave its own ticket with its own capacity.

What if the wetsuit rule changes close to the date?

Email the selected entrants once you know.

What if bad weather forces a cancellation?

Cancelling the event refunds every swimmer in full automatically.

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