The Raft Race is a must-see event! Come on down to the riverbank by Riverton Yacht Club to watch our intrepid sailors sink, swim, and occasionally paddle their way to victory! Returning this year is a kayak race!
Registration for both races begins at 5:00 PM, and the races kick off at 5:30 PM.
This year, Main Street will be blocked off from 2nd to Bank Avenue and will only be available for parking for those with rafts, kayaks, and cardboard boats.
Rules for All Races
All participants must wear U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets during the race.
All participants must wear shoes or sandals at all times before, during, and after the race.
Anyone acting without regard for the safety of others and themselves will be disqualified and required to leave the race. This includes all fireworks.
Raft Race
Contestants steering planks of polystyrene, plywood-topped inner tubes, PVC half-pipes with garden rakes, kitchen brooms, and Lego-like plastic paddles, because anything truly from the nautical realm is not allowed in this zany race. That’s right, if it’s from a real boat or raft, it’s not allowed!
Awards
Awards are presented for creativity, biggest spectacle, best-dressed and other honors. Be on the lookout for pirate attacks!
First Place: First raft to cross the finish line.
The Iron Pier Trophy: The highest honor, awarded to the craft with the best harmony of creativity & engineering. Chosen from the first fifteen rafts to finish.
The Glamour Award: Awarded to the best-dressed crew.
Rules and Construction of Rafts:
All rafts must be homemade without parts and materials commercially manufactured specifically for nautical purposes.
Each raft must carry two to six passengers. For every two crew members under 12, there must be one adult on the raft.
Rafts must be human-powered.
Competitors are required to remove their rafts and clean up their trash immediately after the race.
Cardboard Boat Regatta
Sailors will construct and race boats made entirely of cardboard in a course set in the Delaware River. Can they complete the course without sinking? The course will be approximately 600 feet long and will have at least one turn.
Awards
First place: the first boat to cross the finish line
Sinky award: the first boat to sink
The Flotsam & Jetsam Award: Awarded to the raft more likely to cause a spectacle than win the race.
Rules and Construction of Rafts
Each crew must have a minimum of 2 sailors and a maximum of 6 sailors. Must be 12 or older to participate.
Allowed materials: Corrugated cardboard, water-soluble caulk or silicone sealant, water-based wood glue, water-soluble outdoor latex paint.
NO foam, plastic or wood.
NO wrapping the hull with tape, plastic, shrink wrap, etc.
Building Tips: check YouTube for inspiration, build a test model, review these cardboard boat building tips, and get free cardboard from appliance stores, big box stores, furniture stores, and delivery companies.
Kayak Race
This athletic competition will bring kayakers from the area together for a competition of speed and agility. The course will be approximately 1200 feet long and will include two laps with the mystical obstacles of the Delaware River.
Awards
First, second, and third place will be awarded based on the finishing order.
Rules
Single, non-motorized kayaks only.
