By Patricia Hall, FairfaxFamilyFun.com
One of the most unique community competitions is coming up soon: the cardboard boat regatta! This fun boat race is part of the annual Springfield Days festival featuring a car show, pet fest, and more. Each year on the second day of the festival, this year on Sunday, June 3, 2018, dozens of community groups gather to see which team will stay afloat — literally.
At the Cardboard Boat Regatta, spectators can watch as determined captains and their crews try to win the race before springing a leak, sinking or sinking! The Cardboard Boat Regatta is exactly what the name describes: a competition to see who can make the best boat out of cardboard and who can keep it afloat the longest! The boats really are made out of cardboard, as the rules allow only limited materials (such as glue and duct tape) as part of the construction. The event is at Lake Accotink Park in Springfield, Virginia.
Community groups including scout troops, clubs, non-profit organizations, students from Fairfax County School Age Child Care after-school programs, and businesses compete in various heats. The boats must make their way around a course on the water and return to land, carried across the sand. Whichever team returns first, without sinking or springing a leak, wins that heat. Cardboard Boat Regatta teams decorate their boats according to various themes, and before the races compete for prizes including Best Costume, Most Spirit, and Best Buoyant Beginning. Judging of the boats and crews begins at noon, with the races themselves starting at 11 am. The regatta is now in its 28th year.
See more details on the Springfield Days site.
2014 Cardboard Boat Regatta photos (c) P. Hall
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