Duck Races

What is it?

The charity duck race is one of the most enjoyable and inclusive fundraising formats in the Rotary calendar. Several hundred, sometimes several thousand, numbered plastic ducks are released into a stretch of flowing water, and the first few across the finish line win prizes for whoever holds the matching tickets.

Clubs across our district run duck races on local rivers, canals and waterways. The race itself rarely lasts more than a few minutes; getting everyone down to the water’s edge, watching the ducks drift and bunch, and the occasional nudge from a Rotarian with a long pole or a pair of wellies, is most of the entertainment.

Who benefits?

As with all Rotary fundraising, proceeds go to charities chosen by the host club, usually a mix of local and Rotary-supported causes. Recent duck races have funded defibrillators, food banks, hospices, lifeboat stations, youth groups and disability charities, as well as Rotary’s own international causes, including The Rotary Foundation and polio eradication.

How it works

• Tickets are sold in advance. Each ticket matches a numbered duck and costs a small fixed amount, with discounts for buying in quantity: at markets and supermarkets, and increasingly online.
• Local businesses sponsor corporate ducks at a higher price, with named entries and acknowledgement on the day. This is often where the fundraising really takes off.
• Prizes are local. Clubs ask local retailers, restaurants, hotels and service providers for donated prizes.
• Race day brings the community out. The ducks are released upstream from a bridge, wall or quay, the crowd gathers along the bank, and volunteers in waders shepherd the stragglers and net the finish.
• Online races are an option where weather, river conditions or health and safety make a live race impractical: the race runs as an animated draw broadcast online.