Maryland Freedom Swim will let participants compete across the Choptank River

Dorchester County is hosting a race that has never been done before. 

It's an event that's happening on the Choptank River and now you have the opportunity to jump in head first. 

Participants are invited to swim 1.7 miles for the Maryland Freedom Swim.

The course will be between the bridges from the Bill Burton State Park on the Talbot County side to the Sailwinds Park on the Dorchester County side. 

But this race isn't just for anyone. You to have to be able to swim one mile within an hour or have open water experience.  

The event coordinator, Jason Chance says, "We're going to give you a very safe way with no boat traffic to be able to go. We've actually been able to go through the bridges and we've caught off any middle or anything that can possibly hurt you. So we're trying to make it as safe and fun as possible."

The idea came about to promote clean and healthy waterways.

For $85, you can sign up to race on May 20th and registration will stay open until the day of. The race will start at 7:45 AM.

Half of the proceeds will go to the Shore Rivers organization as well as the Water Safety program for Dorchester's YMCA.