Barwon River will be a sea of yellow as thousands of rubber ducks get thrown off the Barwon Heads Bridge this Easter Saturday.
Rotary Club of Ocean Grove will host its Great Barwon River Duck Race on March 30, which will see yellow, blue and corporate ducks compete in three separate races from midday.
Event organiser Heather Willson said she looked forward to many ducks floating along the Barwon River, with every dollar raised being returned to the local community.
“The big race will see 2000 yellow ducks go off the bridge and it looks like a giant yellow waterfall coming off the bridge,” she said.
“Businesses and corporations buy a duck and advertise on that duck. So, the ducks are all dressed up, and we launch about 25 to 30 of them from a boat in the river at 1pm.
“The next race is called Kinder Kids, which are for under-fives, and there’s 300 blue ducks that will get tossed off the bridge. Some of them float upside down and the kids think it’s funny.”
Ms Willson said the group-style event started close to 25 years ago and that the club was “yet to lose a duck in the mangroves”.
“Throwing ducks off the bridge is the most fun you can have standing up… Most of them float happily long, but you get one or two radicals,” she said.
“It doesn’t always go to plan because we’re at the mercy of the wind and tide, and sometimes the ducks beach themselves before the end of the race. It really is the luck of the draw.”
Visit trybooking.com/CHRTZ to purchase a yellow adult’s duck for $10 or a corporate duck to race along the Barwon River during the event. Blue children’s ducks are sold out.
