It’s a bright sunny day in April. The saws are buzzing, the kids are laughing, the drills are whining, the smell of sawdust is in the air. Pretty soon, boats will be carried to the water, the starter will sound, and the paddles will hit the water with gusto! It’s the April Tools Wooden Boat Challenge at Seafarer Millennium Park (at the government dock) in Madeira Park!
Each year, the Pender Harbour Living Heritage Society puts on this very special family-oriented event. Featuring boat building and racing for adults and teens, extra added water-fight component for the high school teams, mini-boat building for kids, displays of Coast-built wooden craft (such as cedar-strip canoes and kayaks), breakfast and snacks courtesy of the Community Club starting at 8:30 a.m. and a BBQ hosted by the Pender Harbour Rotary Club ensures there is fun for all ages. This year, Martin and aspiring stand-up comic Christopher Nichols will be narrating the play-by-play.
Boats are built by teams (maximum: 4 people) which must include both genders; teams of paddlers/rowers must also be mixed. Using only hand tools, builders have 3 hours to create a boat from materials provided. The finished boats are then raced around a course off Seafarer Park - with Coast Guard volunteers standing by to rescue capsizing or sinking participants.
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Cash prizes this year will be: $700 for the first place, $400 for the second and $250 for the third. As well, there will be the “Spiffy Skiffy” prize (People’s Choice award) for the best looking boat and/or best costumed team, and the Broken Paddle award for the team or individual showing the greatest perseverance in the face of adversity!
Entry fee is $160 per team (which gets you the boat building materials, T-shirts for all team members, and a one-year membership in the Pender Harbour Living Heritage Society).
Deadline for entries is April 22, 2005. For an entry form and more information, call Richard or Jackie at 604-883-0539.
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