Photo By Eric Ritter | The cardboard boats prove to be sturdy vessels as contestants race from one end of the...... read more read more
Subscribe
By Eric D. Ritter, Joint Base Anacostia Bolling Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, D.C. - Joint Base Anacostia Youth Center held a cardboard boat regatta in the base pool as a way of having fun before the pool is closed for the year.
Armed with cardboard, duct tape and some good imagination, contestants took to the Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling (JBAB) pool to race their cardboard boat creations during the annual JBAB Youth Center Cardboard Boat Regatta Race, Labor Day.
The Youth Center hosted the race as a way for the base military, civilians and their families to come together and have a good time with each other before the end of summer and the pool’s closing.
“This is something we came up with several years ago, and it turned out to be very popular,” said JBAB Youth Center Director Joyce Sheridan. “It turned into an annual event we plan to keep doing.”
Sheridan said 24 boats entered the race with ages ranging from 5-7, 8-10, 11-13 and 14 and older.
She added the Youth Center provided the cardboard and duct tape. The rules were simple for the construction of the boats, she said. The participants could only use the material provided and only the seams of the cardboard could be duct taped.
There was no lack of creativity in some of the boat construction.
There was a Viking longship and even a pirate ship in the mix—along with their crews in era-replicated costumes.
Although some of the boats appeared sturdy and seaworthy while dry docked on the lawn, a few proved more worthy of a submarine as they quickly took on water, sinking to a chlorinated grave.
“That’s half the fun we have,” Sheridan added. “You never really know how the boats are going to do until we put them in the water. So it’s fun just to see how they do.”
Medals were awarded to the top three in each age group, but everyone received a participation medal as an added memento for the water-bound journey.
The event has become so popular that Sheridan said some kids begin planning next year’s regatta entry even before this year’s boat is out of the water.
“Everyone has so much fun with this event,” Sheridan said. “I love seeing all the smiles on their faces every time we do this. Of all the events we do all year, this is one of the ones I look most forward to doing.”
| Date Taken: | 09.02.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 09.05.2014 15:50 |
| Story ID: | 141301 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, DC, US |
| Web Views: | 65 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Joint Base Anacostia Youth Center cardboard boat regatta sails to a good time, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT