59 Competitors Accepted The Challenge

Absolute Gratitude

“The first Ocean State Crossing truly exceeded our expectations. There is a full year’s worth of strategy, planning, and multi-agency safety coordination that goes into the day and to see it all come to life in such beautiful way for these dedicated watermen and waterwomen is incredibly rewarding. It takes so many people and we are truly grateful to all our competitors, fundraisers, sponsors, ops team and RIDEM for showcasing The Ocean State here in a very special way”, says Event Producer Brian Guadagno.

Over $75k Impact

The 2025 Summer Safe Ocean State fundraising efforts are still ongoing, but the organization is very grateful to share at the time of publishing the impact will top $75,000. Over $58,000 will be supporting The Partnership To Reduce Cancer In RI, $3,000 will be donated to legacy beneficiary The Janice Causey Memorial Scholarship & all additional funding will provide for at least 10 Outdoor Public AEDs to be deployed.

Local Floral Leis

The overall experience for each competitor was celebrated in a very special podium moment, surrounded by friends and family at Fort Adams Beach. Each competitor was graced with mindfully hand-crafted local floral leis from New England’s own Fresh Pickins Saltwater Farm. The perfect sensorial experience to recognize and celebrate each competitor’s achievement.

Jack Bark Headlines The Ocean State Crossing

California’s Jack Bark, the top paddler in The USA and the record-breaking champion of the 2024 Catalina Classic headlined The Inaugural Ocean State Crossing. “This was such an incredible race, and for a first time event, ran smooth and had a great turnout”,Jack Bark Says. “I was so nice to be welcomed into such a great paddle community, and I’ll definitely be putting it on the calendar for 2026!”