After more than three decades of dumping little toy yellow ducks in Fall River at Nicky’s Resort on the first Saturday in May and waiting to see them emerge downstream at Riverside Plaza – anywhere between 30 minutes to two hours later – it’s no secret that plans for this year’s annual community fundraiser have raised an eyebrow or two.
Now, in its 37th year, there will be a new starting line and a different finishing point.
Instead of one race, there will be four flights, plus races just for children. There will be musical entertainment all afternoon, and a jeep show is planned.
The event will be presided over by 2025 Grand Marshal Patrick Warburton, an actor and comedian who will perform at The Stanley Hotel on Friday, May 2, and Saturday, May 3.
As in past years, rubber ducks will be randomly matched by computer with the names of those who adopt a duck by purchasing a ticket.
Beginning at 1 p.m., the first flight of about 2,500 ducks will take off from the starting line at the Rockwell Street bridge next to the Riverside Plaza parking lot for their race down the river to the finish line, vying for prizes. The process will be repeated for the next two flights at 2 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The first 25 ducks to finish in each flight will be saved for the last flight of the day at 4 p.m. Those 75 ducks will compete for the grand prize of the day: $10,000 in cash.
“It is a big change from what it was last year, but it’s not unprecedented,” said Big Duck, aka the Duck Race Chairman Scott Thompson, as he recalled hearing about when the Rotary Club of Estes Park first began hosting what is now billed as the Great Estes Park Duck Race.
Early on, there was a parade down Elkhorn Avenue, a golf tournament, and a wine-tasting party. That was when the race was called the Ducky Derby. That was before a company in Arizona notified the Rotary Club that it already owned the name. The derby became the Duck Race, and with this year’s race modifications and longevity, the revision in the name is justified.
What has not changed, Thompson said, is the Rotary Club’s dedication to the event as a community service endeavor. Over the years, the race has returned more than $3 million to community organizations through duck “adoptions” provided by the public.
“Last year we had 63 organizations,” listed as potential participants, said Thompson. “This year, we have 74. That’s an 18% increase in the number of organizations that we can serve.”
A single adoption is available for $25, and the local charity selected to receive the proceeds from the adoption receives $23 for each adoption.
A Quack Pack allows the purchaser to adopt five ducks and get a sixth duck free. The Great Estes Park Duck Race uses the extra funds to help defray costs associated with the event.
Robbins credits others, like the Town of Estes Park, Visit Estes Park, and Exodus Moving and Storage, along with the many sponsors and businesses who donate prizes, with helping to minimize costs so community groups are the true winners.
The Town staff installs flags on flagpoles throughout the downtown area and provides space for two donated Exodus Moving and Storage moving pods where duck race supplies are stored each year.
This year, Visit Estes Park is partnering with the Rotary effort and providing area marketing to help promote the event, as Thompson and the club work to make the Duck Race a springtime weekend celebration for the community.
“We’re hoping that this year’s event is a steppingstone to even more success next year, and we can have a two-day event,” Thompson said.
“When we can do that, then we can draw more people into town. People will be spending the night here. We’ll be able to fill hotel rooms. It’ll give a lot more things for people to do downtown. So, we’re really hoping that it’ll expand, and then it’ll really meet the definition of a community event or a destination event,” he said.
“The Duck Race has such an incredible history of supporting our community’s charitable organizations, and the timing makes it the perfect cap to our extend the season efforts, so we were thrilled to get involved,” said Rachel Ward Opperman, marketing director for Visit Estes Park.
“We’ve been working with race organizers to work out the challenges that come with growing an event, things like expanded attendee communications and event development. And for the first time, we will include them in our paid media plan,” said Ward Opperman.
“Before, they were featured only in our owned media – our blogs, social media posts, and our consumer newsletter. Race organizers also teamed up with The Stanley Hotel to build out the weekend to give people a reason to spend the night. We are positioning it all as a festival weekend and listing the race, The Stanley’s events, and any related community events on one landing page, much like we do for Frozen Dead Guy Days,” Opperman said.