The laws of physics were put into question yesterday evening as Fort Frances Crime Stoppers held its annual Great Rubber Duckie Race on the Rainy River near the Sorting Gap Marina.
“We went upstream,” said John Jordbro of the local Crime Stoppers chapter. “For the first time in history, the race ran uphill.”^Organizers dumped 600 ducks into the river and to the amazement of those gathered to watch, the ducks floated upstream—not down.
Shortly before the big dunk, an announcement was made that the race would head east rather than west this year so those downstream would have an opportunity to stake out a new vantage point.
Though just days after the release of the much-anticipated Harry Potter book, no magic was involved in challenging the laws of physics. To blame: low water levels and a strong westerly wind.
Due to the drought conditions, water is barely trickling through the gates of the dam here, causing a very week current. That—combined with a strong wind from the west—pushed the yellow rubber duckies the wrong way.
Despite floating “uphill,” and a slow drizzle, Jordbro declared the race a success.
“We showed a profit on the race,” he announced, adding that was after selling less tickets than usual. “That’s going to turn into an $800-$1,000 profit for Crime Stoppers.”^“[And despite] a little inclement weather, there were still quite a few people gathered to watch.”^Jordbro admitted duckie sales were down this year. “We were a little slow starting [this year], so that may be the reason for less ticket sales,” he noted.
The Great Rubber Duckie Race is in its second year back with Fun in the Sun activities. For a few years prior to that, it was run during the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship in July.
Jordbro said the bass tournament wouldn’t allow them to sell tickets on site.
“We decided to go back with Fun in the Sun,” he noted, adding the Thursday night was chosen because there aren’t many other things happening that day and it ties in well with “Mall Days” on Scott Street.
The actual race lasted about 20 minutes. The eventual winner— worth a cool $1,000—was duck #585, purchased by Clarke Allen.
Second- to fifth-place also were plucked from the water for $50 apiece as were six “specialty” ducks, including one in honour of the town’s centennial, for $50.
One of those ducks was for “Pick of the Pack.” It was won by Jordbro.
“No kidding, wow!” he said when he heard he won, adding he was surprised when, “I get to the dock and someone tells me I win $50.”^Rounding out the top five finishers were Gila Issacs (#73), Karen Chowan (#135), Gib Tucker Jr.
(#568), and Scott and Jill Howarth (#4).
The other “specialty” duck winners were Charlotte Lengyel for “Defector Duck” (#537), Rick Ronmark for “Back of the Pack Duck” (#392), Aiden Tullio for “Upside Down Duck” (#359), Allison Wilson for “Docked Duck” (#569), and Bev Steele for “Centennial Duck” (#126).
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
