Launching Community and Eccentricity
Hillary Harvey | April 30, 2015[Editor’s Note: This piece originally appeared on April 27 on Chronogram‘s Daily Dose and has been re-printed here with the author’s permission.]
When it comes to the New Paltz Regatta, maybe you’ve been like me lo these years and missed the boat. But it’s a tradition that dates back to 1955 when SUNY New Paltz students and fraternities stormed the streets with homemade rafts and launched them in the Wallkill River in a fabulous display of ingenuity. The event now encompasses all that we in the Hudson Valley hold dear: handcrafting, outdoor adventures, DIY events, and fun for fun’s sake.
It starts about noon on Main Street in downtown New Paltz, where people come to register their handmade, raft-style boats (no motors allowed). Around 1p, the hopefully seaworthy vessels parade down Water Street, displaying elaborate themes like the Wizard of Oz, the Titanic, and pirate ships, to the boat launch at Sojourner Truth Park on Plains Road.
First up is the rubber ducky race where people make bets as the bath toys wobble their way down the river. It’s a fundraiser for Family of New Paltz, the Regatta’s favorite charity.
Then at about 2pm, boats launch for a low-pressure race as spectators line the Carmine Liberta Bridge and riverbanks to watch. Prizes are gift certificates donated by local businesses, and there are multiple opportunities to win in prize categories like Most Creative, Fastest, Funniest, and Most Likely to Sink. For those that do sink, the New Paltz police and fire department rescue services are there to help.
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