Boat Building Contest & Harbor Race

4th Annual Event

Join the on-water action of offshore racing during the 4th Annual Race World Offshore Key West Boat Building Contest and Race. Get ready to build a boat with materials that we provide, just minutes before the building begins! Bring your team of 4-12 participants and get in on the excitement as teams will have 1 hour to build a boat, before safety inspections and race start at 11AM!

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11TH

9:15am Sharp — MANDATORY Team meetings at Truman Waterfront Park at the RWO tent
9:30am — Building Contest on the waterfront by USCG Ingham
10:30am — Safety Inspections, life jackets and judging
11:00am — 1st of 4 heats starts at the Truman Waterfront Park Boat Ramp

TEAM ENTRY FEE

$20.00 per team (minimum 4 people)

Click image to view/download printable document

General Rules & Details

Open to ages 12-75. Under 18 must have legal guardian present
All participants will have to complete a team registration form and submit it to RWO by October 31st. It may be signed in person that morning.
Entrants are groups/teams of 4 people minimum, 12 people maximum.
All materials of construction will be provided, one set per registered team.
60 minutes time limit to build a ‘boat’ as directed by Referee
Teams may add up to 6 square feet of paper adhesive backed decals/labels, above the expected waterline.
A paddle and USCG approved life jacket will be provided by Race World Offshore.
One registered team member, the designated captain, shall don a properly secured life jacket.
The boat, the captain and up to 4 registered team members shall approach the edge of the water. Caution! The ramp is wet, mossy and slippery.
A clear signal shall be made approximately 1 minute prior to the start of the race.
At the start, the captain and the boat may be ‘launched’ with the assistance of their team; however, no team member may enter the water, not over their knees and further assist their boat unless an immediate rescue is required.
The boat with the captain in it, shall paddle, without the assistance of others or other devices, out into the waterway and around the red/orange marker which shall be placed approximately 50-60 feet away from the starting line and back to the starting line.
The winner of the boat race portion of the competition is determined by the order in which the boat or what is left of it and the captain cross the finish line.

Scoring Objectives

1st scored objective: Build a boat in an hour which can hold one team member with the materials and one paddle provided by RWO. Bring lots of friends and put it on your social media. One USCG approved life jacket will also be provided by RWO or a sponsor. Teams may and are encouraged to bring not more than a total of 6 square feet of paper adhesive backed decals which they can apply to any portion of the boat, above the expected waterline to represent their group, cause or organization.
2nd scored objective: Win the race. The boat they make will have to carry that individual in the water from the boat ramp to and around the RWO race marker in the harbor and back to the starting line. (estimated total of 100’ round trip lap) Every participant who goes in the boat shall wear a USCG approved life jacket.

Scoring Points

POSSIBLE POINTS	CRITERIA	Note 1	Note 2
10	Creative use of the provided materials	Shape, configuration
10	Seaworthiness	Did it make it?
10	Team Members Appearance	Uniforms, tees or creative costume	Colorful, creative
10	Boat bling, including paper decals	Must be above the waterline	Nothing sharp or damaging to our ecosystem
10	Prerace media postings	Requires advanced registration on line	Be prepared to show a judge at race finish
10	Race Coverage, live on Social Media	Requires advanced registration on line	Be prepared to show a judge at race finish
10	Brought the most number of people to the event	Scored by loud cheering at start of the race	Your team will be announced!
20	1st place in Race	Cross Finish line with person in/with the boat
15	2nd place in Race	Cross Finish line with person in/with the boat
10	3rd place in Race	Cross Finish line with person in/with the boat

Anticipated Awards include ‘Trophies’ awarded on the famous RWO Podium of Champions immediately after the race. Remember, the materials of construction provided are secret until the event begins.

This is a community event and although it is a competition, sportsmanship is highly valued at Race World Offshore. Persons will be disqualified for rude or abusive behavior. Bonus points could be awarded for assisting other teams.

LIMITED ENTRIES
The online sign up form will be provided and monitored by RWO. Sign up below!
There will be a limit of 24 teams running 4 heats of six teams each. This may be adjusted depending on the number of teams.

WEATHER
There is no rain date. We fully intend to run this event even if the weather does not look good. The website will post an update, if needed, the night before. If no update; the race is on!

CONTACT
You can email [email protected] until 9PM daily and expect a return answer that day.

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Team Registration

Complete the form to secure your entry

Register your team today to compete in this 1st annual event! Once you complete the form on this page, you will be redirected to submit your payment. Your registration is not confirmed until payment has been completed. Registration is limited to 24 entries.

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Build your team… Build your boat…… Sign up now!

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Team Information