Like a well-oiled machine, the 2014 Geauga County Maple Festival bathtub race rolled off without a hitch Sunday, said race director Jim McCaskey.
“From start to finish, the race took only about 45 minutes,” he said. “That’s got to be a record.”
McCaskey estimates he has been involved in the event for about 20 years. He said he started out as a participant and stayed on to help run it after his racing days were over.
This year, 16 teams, split into three divisions, vied for an award plaque, bragging rights and up to $150 in prize money.
But, mostly everyone was there for some good clean fun, especially the Maple Marauders team, who donned bathrobes, shower caps and had a soap bubble dispensing machine mounted on their tub, along with a rubber ducky attached to the front end.
The Maple Marauders won Best of Show for their efforts.
In a role reversal, the Smile Team, representing a dentist office, was proud to take home a plaque, specifically a plaque awarding them second place in the Over 30 division and third place in the men’s division.
One of the runners, dressed as the Tooth Fairy, said his wings slowed him down a little.
“I wished they had provided me some lift and let me fly,” he quipped.
Taking first place with the fastest tub in the Over 30 division was Roediger Chiropractics. The Maple Marauders squeaked in with a third place finish.
In the men’s division, the Remax team listed first place with Congin’s Pizza delivering second.
In the women’s division, the 4-H Breeders and Feeders team won first place by inches in a photo finish, verified by a photographer at the finish line, over Congin’s Pizza, which took the second place trophy. Remax won third place.
The Chardon girls baseball team dressed up as pirates, complete with beards and were a crowd favorite. But, argh, they did not leave with any prize booty.
“This is my favorite event of the whole festival,” Geauga County Juvenile and Probate Court Judge Tim Grendell said.
Grendell was one of the race sponsors and also served as the presiding judge over a coin toss to determine which lane one team would use during a contested race.
“I think this is my 14th year at this event,” Grendell explained. “One year, my son and another man pushed while I sat in the tub. That turned out to be a big mistake. You should always put the smallest person in the driver’s seat.”
