Kayakers are being invited to dash for Mackerel this year in a unique event taking place at the Sure Beach Party as part of this year’s Isle of Man Queenie Festival.

The Sure Mackerel Dash involves Kayakers having to launch from the beach in Port Erin, out into the bay where they will fish for Mackerel. The winner will be the first person to return back to the beach with a rod caught Mackerel in excess of 30cm.

Tim Croft, Queenie Festival organiser commented, “Kayak fishing has seen the convergence of the two disciplines of fishing and Kayaking merge into a sport in its own right, which is one of the fastest growing in the UK. Kayak fishing is especially eco-friendly with very low impact on the environment. Mackerel is also a sustainable fish that is often overlooked by the consumer so we will be cooking up the caught Mackerel on the evening for the public to taste and sample.”

The eventual winner will receive prize money of £100 plus the Sure Mobile Trophy and there will be additional prizes available on the evening.

Entries are open to anyone over the age of 18, registration takes place at 6pm on the evening of 29 June at the bottom of the slipway on Port Erin beach and the cost to enter will be £10. Rules of entry will be posted on the Queenie Festival website.

This year’s Isle of Man Queenie Festival takes place between 29th June and 1st July. For more information on the festival visit: www.queeniefestival.com.