Every year as summer transitions into fall, the fountain at The Rockwall Harbor transforms into a gigantic bathtub full of rubber ducks. What brings on this puzzling transformation? A fundraiser and a high stakes duck race: The Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta.
I grew up in Rockwall and still lived there until pretty recently, but by sheer chance I had never been able to attend one of my town’s most popular and unique local festivals until this year. To kick off fall festival season in 2019, I tagged along while Austin covered the regatta for the local newspaper. It was full of whimsical fun!
Here’s what to expect at the annual Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta.
Getting Your Ducks in a Row
Before the event, participants purchase rubber duckies on the Rubber Duck Regatta website. The proceeds support the Boys & Girls Club of Rockwall. The ducks serve as raffle tickets as they charge towards the finish line in a watery race.
The event normally lasts for two days: Friday and Saturday of the third weekend in September. This year the weather canceled some of the Friday festivities, but Saturday did not disappoint.
The event kicked off with the “Shake Your Tail Feathers 5k” in the morning, followed by stage performances, inflatables, a petting zoo and the Corporate Duck Pageant display throughout the day.
Strut Your Duck
In addition to the $5 ducks visitors can purchase for the race, local businesses participate by entering to win a Corporate Duck Beauty Pageant for $100. These much larger duckies are decorated to represent each business and displayed throughout the whole festival.
A panel of judges chooses the winner, and visitors can vote for their favorite corporate duck to win the People’s Choice Award. This year the People’s Choice Award went to Young Chef’s Academy of Rockwall, which was my personal favorite display.
Sitting Ducks
At 4:00 p.m. all of the ducks purchased before the regatta were dumped into the first tier of the Harbor fountain to await the race. Volunteers then stepped into the fountain in their swim trunks and pushed the ducks over the edge to begin.
Ducking and Diving
The little guys tumbled down each section of the fountain towards the finish line. I managed to snag a spot really close to the edge of the middle fountain where I could get some awesome close up shots of the ducks as they made their descent.
Lucky Duckies
When the ducks reached the bottom tier of the fountain, they were guided towards a tube manned by another volunteer. The owners of the ducks who “crossed the finish line” first were awarded prizes. This year the grand prize was a seven-night stay in a Florida condo and one-day tickets to Disney World for four people. Second place received a $500 Visa giftcard, and third place received a $250 Visa giftcard.
Since Austin was covering this event as a journalist, he got to step inside the fountain and film the regatta live as the winners were announced.
The Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta was so much fun!
I can’t believe it took me so long to attend this festival. It was the perfect start to a busy season of exciting local events. To participate in the regatta next year and help raise money for an important cause, purchase a duck for $5 at the Rockwall Rubber Duck Regatta website.
If you missed this fun festival, don’t worry! There are so many things to do in DFW this fall. Check out our ultimate guide to fall fun in DFW with 25+ local events and pumpkin patches.
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