It's coming September 20. A boat race like no other... Because, the boats are homemade, and the main ingredient used to make each boat is cardboard. Yeah, it's going to be great.

A&M Youth Cardboard
Boat Race Night

It's the 6th annual and always awesome

Here are the big details:

Who: All 7th-12th grade students and their families.

When: Sunday evening, September 20
Hamburgers served around 6:30
Race begins around 7:15

Where: Lake Bryan park
   Supper will be at the Pavilion (we have it reserved)
   The race will be in the water
If you don't want to get wet, don't get in the water

Cost: $5 per person. This covers your entrance fee to the park. You will pay as you exit the park. Supper will be at no cost.

What: A boat race. Yep. Boats, made by students, racing against other boats made by students. See boat guidelines below.

Why: Because racing real boats is too easy. And making a boat out of cardboard just makes for a good story. All students and families are invited to come and join the fun.

RSVP: https://amchurch.ccbchurch.com/goto/forms/1199/responses/new

Volunteer to help:  https://amchurch.ccbchurch.com/goto/groups/383/needs/1027

...well, we can't imagine how bad it would be. Horrific. Appalling. Nightmarish. But you can help the boat race night to not be bad.

How can you help, you say? Make a boat. Simple enough, right? Yep. Take some cardboard, go online and search for some ideas/plans or come up with your own, and make a boat or a something that can be raced. We're counting on you. We're cheering for you. And we're excited to see what you come up with.

A boat race night without boats is like...

The Boats:
- Boats should be constructed by students. Adults can provide guidance and ideas and a little help, but students have to do most of the building of boats.
- Boats must be constructed of cardboard.
- Glue and duct tape can be used to hold them together.
- No water sealer paint. No flex-tape.
- Duct tape, paint, or markers can be used for decorating the boat - as long as the paint doesn't also double as water sealer in a significant way. The duct tape is a pretty good way to waterproof your cardboard if you are needing to do that.
- It must be a boat...which means you sit on or in...and it has at least sides which come above the bottom of the boat at least a few inches. Paddleboard-type boats (flat, float on top of the water, and you would lay on them) are not allowed.
There aren't too many rules about the boat as long as the main ingredient is cardboard

The Paddles:
- Students can paddle with their hands or with homemade cardboard and duct tape paddles. Regular paddles are not allowed to be used. However, ping pong paddles are allowed. We know, that's kind of weird...but they are easy to get and we try to bring some extras for the night of the race.
- Homemade paddles (of cardboard and duct tape) can be no longer than 2 ft in length and 1 foot in width.
- Paddles must be flat, not scooped.

The Boat's Name:
- Each boat needs to be named, and the name should appear somewhere on the boat. Markers and paint can be used for this.

The Captains and Crew:
- Captains will be given a few minutes to get into their boat once the boats are put into the water. They can be assisted by their crew.
- The Captain is the only one who can paddle the boat. Crew may not help. And captains must use hands and arms to paddle the boat. You can not walk and push the boat.

The Boat Post-Race:
Be prepared to take your boat back with you after the race...or we can put it in the youth trailer and throw it away. In past years we have had to pick up some boats from the shore after everyone leaves. So, please make sure your boat gets to the trash or the youth trailer.

There is quite a bit of cardboard in the Refinery for students to use. Grab what you need. Also, if you go out on the bulk trash night in your neighborhood, you'll likely find cardboard you can use.

If you need help transporting your boat to Lake Bryan, we might can help. We're taking the youth trailer so we can take the grill to grill burgers. If you can transport your boat in your family's vehicle, great. If not, let us know and we'll try to help.

Some construction tips:

1) You can use multiple layers of cardboard, alternating the direction of the corrugations for more strength.

2) Score your cardboard along the line of folds for the straightest bends.

3) Seal the edges of your cardboard with duct tape to prevent water from getting in.

4) Don't make the sides of your boat too tall for the crew to be able to reach over and paddle.

5) Look at youtube or other websites for info on how to make a cardboard boat.

6) Make it fun. Paint it up. Have a theme or something funny or goofy.

A few additional bits of info:

1) Bring a towel. Whether you have a boat or not, bring a towel. A lot of students (and parents) have gotten in the water in years past, but not all of them had a towel to dry off with before they got in their car to go home.

2) The entrance fee for Lake Bryan is $5 per person. They have also changed when you pay - you now pay upon exiting the park.

3) Transportation is on your own...so get to Lake Bryan the same way you get to other places you go to. If you can not get to the lake, talk to us and we'll see what we can do to help.

4) For info on Lake Bryan or how to get there (or where to go once you're there) go to lakebryan.com

5) We are planning to grill burgers for everyone. Dinner served around 6:30. Boat race around 7:15.

The meal is free.

6) If you want to come early or stay late and hang out at the lake, you're more than welcome to do so. There are plenty of places to swim. It might be a fun night for families to get to hang out together. Or just a fun night for your family to have some lake time before the hot weather goes away. If you want to bring floats, boats, canoes, kayaks, etc., that's great. In the past there have been stand-up paddleboards and kayaks available for rent at the lake. The Lake Bryan webpage usually has info on this. In the past the paddleboards and kayaks rentals were $18 per hour each and are on a self-service basis.

7) And...if you have not already done so, you can RSVP for supper by clicking here:

https://amchurch.ccbchurch.com/goto/forms/1199/responses/new