2 to 4 p.m. -- St. Marys Community Public Library -- Works by area artists, painters, photographers and sculptors -- Sponsored by Friends of the Library with suppport from GTE, Hunter Printing & Office Supply and Castle Gallery.

6 p.m. -- K.C. Geiger Park. Benefits St. Marys National Little League.

1 to 4 p.m. -- LIP SYNC AUDITIONS -- Memorial Park Gazebo.

2 to 4 p.m., Saturday, August 12 -- LIP SYNC CONTEST -- Memorial Park Gazebo. Sponsored by: Alltell Communications; Auglaize Equipment Rental; Celina Road Animal Clinic; Chivington Chiropractic; Con-Ag, Inc.; Delphos Tent and Awning; Fraternal Order of Eagles 767; Hirschfeld Excavating; Interim Personnel; Kellermeyer's Men's Clothing; Long and Folk Funeral Homes, Inc.; St. Marys Hardware; St. Marys Living Center; and T&P Auto Body Repair and Paint Center.

Pre-Register before August 10 - Click Here to register online.

Prizes for each age group. First Place: $100.00 ~ Second Place: $60.00 ~ Third Place: $30.00

Celebrity Time Trials

BUY TICKETS HERE

Duck Race

First Prize

5 p.m. -- DUCK RACE CELEBRITY TIME TRIALS -- St. Marys River. Sponsored by the K.C. Geiger Park Improvement Committee.

The Duck Race Celebrity Time Trials consists of two heats of six innertubers "racing" down the Duck Race course on the St. Marys River (see photo). The first three finishers in each heat qualify for the Finals.

All SummerFest weekend right up to the Time Trials start at 5:00 pm Sunday, wager tickets will be sold at the Duck Race Booth for $1.00 each. The purchaser will write his name, phone number and the name of one celebrity on each ticket, and place it in that celebrity's ticket bin. In this way, betting lines can be generated to provide "odds" on the participants.

After the Finals, one ticket will be drawn at random from the ticket bin of the winning celebrity, and that ticket's purchaser will win $100.00. The winning celebrity will be proclaimed "Anas Curriculum Deus" (Duck Race God) and crowned with whatever piece of trash the Duck Race Committee finds appropriate or handy.

The celebrities are volunteering their time and energies. They are only committed to show up, not necessarily to strive to win. For their trouble, they will receive a Duck Race tee shirt, a hearty handshake and, if requested, a thorough hosing-down when they come out of the river. Not to mention the fact that they will have a lot of fun.

Celebrities are chosen by invitation only. The Duck Race Committee looks for a mix of St. Marys folks who through their talents, occupations, or personalities are well known throughout the community, thus providing a "draw" for spectators and wagerers.

6 p.m. -- DUCK RACE -- South Street Bridge to Memorial Covered Bridge. Sponsored by the K. C. Geiger Park Improvement Committee.

Hundreds of thousands - well, hundreds, anyway (2,238 in 1999) - of numbered rubber ducks (one for each $5 ticket sold) are released on the St. Marys River as the nearby Memorial Park Clock Bell Tower strikes 6 o'clock. The unpredictable current carries the yellow rubber ducks 1/2 a furlong - about 120 yards - downstream at speeds measured in the tenths of a mile/hour.

Hundreds of thousands - well, thousands, anyway (no kidding) - of race fans come to the riverbank to watch the spectacle. Throwing stuff at the ducks or at the DUCK RACE officials in the water is considered bad form, and will draw stern rebukes from the knowledgeable fans (and especially from the DUCK RACE officials).

The ducks approach the finish line to qualify for prizes (107 prizes worth more than $10,000 in cash and merchandise in 1999). DUCK RACE officials in the yellow shirts and hats place the winners into the chute immediately. This year, the First Place Prize is a 1990 5.0 liter V-8 Mustang GT, sponsored by Larry Schaaf Auto Sales, Inc.

The Annual K.C. Geiger Park Improvement Committee St. Marys River SummerFest Duck Race is a fund-raising activity of (surprise!) the K.C. Geiger Park Improvement Committee, which is a non-profit organization. All proceeds from this event and other Committee functions are administered through the St. Marys Community Foundation. All donations, including the purchase of tickets, are tax-deductible.