Get your ducks in a row before May 6

Rubber ducks decorated by individuals, students and businesses will be racing the Lamont Creek from Kinsmen Park in Stayner, competing for cash prizes during the sixth annual Stayner Kinsmen Duck Race on Saturday, May 6.

There will be a barbecue, live music and other activities at Kinsmen Park from 11 a.m. A corporate duck race is at 1 p.m. with the main event to follow. Kinsmen will serve hamburgers, hotdogs and sausages, drinks and ice cream sandwiches, all for $1.50 to celebrate Canada 150.

Duck tickets cost $5 and are available at The Creemore Echo and Stayner Home Hardware, Dairy Queen and Pharmasave in Stayner. One dollar from each of the tickets sold in Creemore goes to the Cybergnomes robotics team.

Prizes have increased this year: first place, $700; second place, $400; third place, $200; fourth place, $100; and $50 for fifth and sixth place.

The Stayner Lions Club will be hosting a pancake breakfast that morning from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Jubilee Presbyterian Church, where there is also a silent auction, with proceeds going to Clearview Youth Centre. The auction will move to Kinsmen Park for the afternoon. The three top prizes are a one-week timeshare, donated by Niki and Theo Schaap; an evening flight for two over the southern shore of Georgian Bay, donated by Kevin Elwood; and his and hers haircuts for a year gift certificates, donated by Frankie the Barber.

The Stayner Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring activities on the main street with stilt walkers performing between 10 a.m. and noon, and businesses are invited to participate in a scavenger hunt. People will be encouraged to hunt for ducks, record the locations on a form and submit it to Stayner Home Hardware to be entered in a draw for prizes. Forms will be available at the pancake breakfast on race day.

Downtown Stayner businesses will decorate their store windows with a Canada 150 duck day theme and corporate duck entries will be displayed in the window of Stayner Home Hardware before the race.

Corporate entries cost $25 and entries are due April 27. Drop them off at Stayner Home Hardware or contact Mark Ruttan for pick-up at 705-422-2400 or mark@markruttan.com.

The first 150 people to arrive at the park on race day will receive a duck button made by Stayner Collegiate Institute.

Money raised at the event will go to support community projects.