COME BLOW YOUR BOAT

Rain Gutter Regatta this Saturday is part

of Ephraim Scandinavian Summer

By Robert Stevens 

Managing editor

6-18-2020

EPHRAIM—Competitors of all ages will be able to find out how much wind they have in their lungs at the Rain Gutter Regatta this Saturday at noon in the Subway parking lot at 290 N. Main in Ephraim.

Actually, the test will be how much air the competitors can transfer from their lungs to the sails of their 7-inch long by 6-inch high sailboats as they attempt to move the boats across an inflated tub full of water.

The regatta is part of Scandinavian Summer, a series of events Ephraim City has been staging to get people out and involved in activities due to the limitations of COVID-19. The subtitle for Scandinavian Summer is “Fun at a Distance.”

The Scandinavian Summer helps make up for cancellation of the Scandinavian Heritage Festival, normally the city’s biggest celebration.

To participate in the regatta, go the http://www.scandinaviansummer.org and sign up. Then you can pick up a sailboat kit at the Ephraim City Hall consisting of a 7-inch balsa wood hull, a 6-inch mast, a plastic sail and plastic rudder.

The deadline for signing up is tomorrow at midnight. But the sooner you sign up the better, because kits are limited.

Put your boat together, decorate it as you see fit, and show up at noon for sailing. “Our goal is to make these events nice and relaxing,” says Michael Patton, Ephraim recreation director. “We’ll set up competition brackets based on who shows up.”

The first prize is a barbecue grill. Second prize is free sandwiches from Subway, sponsor of the race. The Ephraim Lions Club is providing the inflated pools.

Other Scandinavian Summer events are a pickleball tournament June 27, an Esports tournament July 4 and a pinewood derby July 25.

For information, call Patton at 283-4631.