Practice Swims

We are hosting swims on Monday and Thursday this summer from May 26th to August 28th. Tickets are limited due to lifeguard shortages.

These rules apply:

• Pre-registration only
• Pre-payment only
• No drop-ins
• No on-beach payments
• No transfers to other people or dates

New for this year: registrations for practice swims will be using TeamUp.  You will need a TeamUp account to register for swims.  You can create one now here:

Sign up for a TeamUp Account

This year we are offering the option to pre-purchase a punchcard “membership” to get 6 swims for the price of 5.  You can purchase this on TeamUp, under the membership header, or using the link below and use this to register for swims (you still need to register explicitly for each swim).  Note: punchcards are only valid for the current season.

Purchase a punchcard membership

You will need to sign up for each swim you wish to attend individually on Team Up, registrations will open at 9AM 2 days before the swim and close 2 hours before the swim, so Saturday at 9AM for Monday swims and Tuesday at 9AM for Thursday swims, we suggest configuring reminders in your calendar so you don’t miss out!

NEW CANCELLATION POLICY: Due to tighter restrictions on the number of swimmers, in order to give as many the chance to swim as possible, cancellation is now accepted with a full credit up to 4 hrs before the event (2pm day of).  Please cancel if you cannot attend the swim to free the spot for another swimmer. The credit can be used for any purchase in the Team Up system including other events and merchandise.

For technical problems with registration please contact website@vowsa.bc.ca.

If VOWSA cancels a swim due to poor water quality, we will announce it ahead of time by sending an email to all the people registered for the swim. We will refund all the registration fees. You can find the water quality reports on the Vancouver Coastal Health website.

At each practice swim, you must sign-in at the registration table prior to the safety briefing. Equally as important: you must SIGN OUT immediately upon finishing your swim.

This is for your safety. We must be able to confirm that all swimmers going into the water made it out safely. If you forget to sign out, we will contact you and you will have to come back to the beach to sign out in person. Refusing to return or ignoring this safety rule results in being banned from our practice swims and race events.

The swim course circles Kits Bay inside of the powerboat exclusion zone and averages 1.5 km for the full circuit. Movement of buoys due to tides and snags will alter the course over the season.

• Sign in starts around 6 pm.
• Swimmers must be signed-in by the 6:15 pm safety briefing.
• A first-timers briefing is given after the 6:15 safety briefing where you can ask questions and learn about the course.
• After the safety briefing we move down to the beach and put our stuff near the lifeguard tower.
• Swimming start once the lifeguards are in the water. This is normally at 6:30 and lifeguards must be in the water to swim.
• VOWSA lifeguard supervision until 8:00 pm.
• You must finish swimming by 8pm.
• Sign-in can be found by the Kits tower, and the Boathouse restaurant, by the BIG tree.

To register, you must accept the practice swim waiver. This will be done online, during the registration process.

• A parent or coach if you are under 19 with your assumption of risk document
• Brightly coloured swim cap (not white)
• Swim suit
• Wetsuit (not mandatory but a really good idea)
• Whistle (not mandatory but a really good idea)
• A warm change of clothing for post swim

You should be comfortable swimming 1000 metres (40 laps in a 25m pool) and have all the recommended safety items.

Water temperature in English Bay varies over the season from about 14 C at the start of June up to a high of 20 C near the end of August. Upwellings of colder water around the course can be refreshing on a hot day, but we do advise wearing a wetsuit both for warmth and flotation.

Wetsuits are not mandatory for practice swims (though most people wear one). You MUST inform the VOWSA practice supervisors that you plan to swim without a wetsuit when you sign in for practice.

Change rooms, washrooms, cold outdoor showers, concession stand, pay parking lot (very limited free on-street parking).

While swimmers may pile their belongings near our sign-out spot, VOWSA admits no liability for anything that may happen to your belongings.

Don’t have a wetsuit? Talk to Team Aquatic Supplies.

Visit our page for preparing for your first practice swim.