Pouring rain was no match for cardboard, duct tape and a little creativity at Milburn Creek on Sept. 13.
A few hundred spectators braved the wet weather for Baldwin’s annual Cardboard Boat Race, watching teams paddle homemade vessels across the creek in a community tradition that dates to 1998.
“It was pouring rain all day, and still everyone showed up,” said John Cools, a Sanitation District 2 commissioner and coordinator of the race. “We had a few hundred people here.”
Cools estimated that a sunny day could have drawn 400 to 500 spectators.
The rules are intentionally simple. Competitors supply their own materials and build their boats using cardboard, duct tape and string. Some designs take weeks to complete, Cools said, and inspiration often comes from boats that competitors have seen in previous years.
One racer modeled his creation after the orca from “Jaws,” Cools said.
But the event is about more than seeing whose cardboard creation can cross the finish line. Cools said families have returned year after year, bringing new generations into the competition.
“People just enjoy it,” he said. “They come for years, grandkids, and, you know, second and third generations come, and they just have a good time.”
The Irish Pub in Baldwin sponsors the trophies, allowing competitors to enter without paying a fee. This year, the pub’s own team — Brian Ankner, Shawn Sabel, Oscar Rivera and Joe Marcy — captured first place.
John Gorman, Eric Mathison, Elizabeth DiNatale and Pat Gorman finished second, while Joe Eberhart and Stella Eberhart took third.
The Baldwin Fire Department also had a safety boat and crew on the water, while Sanitation District 2 provided a garbage truck for cleanup.
By about an hour after the competition, Cools said, virtually every trace of the event was gone.
“It’s a fun event,” he said. “Just come out and make fun of everybody’s other boats and be creative and design your boat.”
Additional reporting by Tim Baker.
