Australian shucking champions ready for Narooma Oyster Festival

Her title as 'Australia's fastest female oyster shucker' will be on the line this weekend at the Narooma Oyster Festival.

The three-peat champion said her career saw her opening up to 300 dozen a day at Jim Wild's Oysters farm gate shack, even consuming about 36 oysters herself.

While she's not always on the bench opening, she said it was great practice, which helped last year when she opened 30 oysters in 2 minutes and 54 seconds, beating her 2022 record by 10 seconds.

Her technique involved going through the fringe of the oyster, hinging it open with a twist of the blade, severing the adductor muscle, before flipping it over and cutting the adductor muscle on the other side.

However, she said if you're a virgin shucker, it's best to wear a glove, go slow and take your time, because if you're opening for yourself it's best to savour the moment.

"I'm heading back to defend the title, as they may call it, but I'm really looking forward to getting to see all the other oyster openers and hanging out on Oyster Alley, shucking a few and telling a few yarns," Sally said.

The Australian fastest male oyster shucker champion, Gerard 'Doody' Dennis said he too would be ready for the festival on May 3 and 4.

He began shucking approximately 15 years ago when he worked in quality assurance, opening oysters before harvest up near Batemans Bay, he was then asked to work at a shop because of his ability to present a good oyster.

Since then he's become a factory foreman and manager, and even travelled to Galway in Ireland for the World's Oyster Opening Championships.

"Not many people can brag that they're 11th in the world as something, so I take it as it comes," Doody said.

"This Narooma Oyster festival is up there, it's one of my favourites and not just for the shucking, just because of the environment, the people that are there, and the experiences.

"It's just called 'the oyster' festival, it could have been called Narooma's food and wine or seafood festival, and there's a spot for everyone there, enjoy the local foods, the local wines and beers and the local musicians.

"There's more to it than just oysters."