There will be more to this year’s bathtub race than the start and the finish.
The Loyal Nanaimo Bathtub Society and partners are adding some production value to this year’s Great International World Championship Bathtub Race, happening Sunday, July 27, at Maffeo Sutton Park.
Greg Peacock, the society’s commodore, said a large screen is being set up at the finish line this year that will show video clips, tub positions and information about the racers and sponsors.
“It’s an experiment for us of course, but our effort is so that throughout the race, you’re going to be able to see where everybody is in the course and there’ll be some video footage that augments that,” he said.
The idea came about thanks to a partnership with tub sponsor United Association Local 170, a plumbers, steam fitters, sprinkler fitters and welders’ union, which has two bathtubs entered in this year’s race. The union produces what Peacock called a well-polished podcast, and is sending over a team to assist with production at the bathtub race finish line. Longtime event partner Arrowsmith Media’s video footage, including drone footage, will also be incorporated.
Each tub will be fitted with a tracking device this year, which will allow for real-time updates about the tubbers’ position on the 58-kilometre course around Entrance Island, the Winchelsea Islands and Protection Island.
“One of the toughest things is to follow the race when they leave the harbour. We rely on them going by the checkpoints,” Peacock said.
The tracking devices also improve race safety, he pointed out, because if a call comes in over the radio that a certain tub is in trouble, exact coordinates will be helpful to rescuers.
“That’s a win-win for everybody from a safety perspective, from an entertainment perspective and for dedicated followers,” the commodore said. “You’re going to be able to tell where your buddy is on the course.”
As many as 50 bathtub racers could compete, racing their super-modified, modified and stock bathtub speedboats around the checkpoints in Nanaimo Harbour and the Strait of Georgia. The great race starts at 11 a.m. from Maffeo Sutton Park and will end anytime after noon, depending on ocean conditions. Visit www.bathtubbing.com for links to video.
Everybody loves a parade
One of Nanaimo's Bathtub Weekend traditions was in danger of cancellation, but it has been saved, and organizers say it's going to be one of the best yet.
The Sail Past on Wheels Fun Parade happens Saturday, July 26, through the city's downtown core.
The long-running parade encountered planning challenges this year when new festival safety regulations were put in place. The Loyal Nanaimo Bathtub Society found that it could no longer use volunteers for traffic control, and would need a traffic management plan to put on the event.
With two separate parade routes under consideration and two separate traffic management plans to create, costs were becoming unaffordable, said Greg Peacock, society commodore.
Sponsors and partners helped come to the rescue, however, as the Tom Harris Community Foundation upped its contribution and Universal Traffic gave the society a big discount. And the City of Nanaimo promised to open the top of Commercial Street so that only one parade route was needed – the traditional route all the way up Commercial Street.
Peacock said the society is honoured that it gets to be first to re-activate the top of Commercial Street, which has been under construction for months.
“On Saturday morning they’re going to take down those barriers and we have traffic control that’s going to make it so that the parade’s going to travel on its traditional route. That’s a huge win,” he said. “The reason why I pushed so hard for that was to try and reward those businesses and give them an opportunity to have a bunch of people come down there again.”
With the behind-the-scenes details taken care of, all that’s left is to have a terrific parade. A marching band from Victoria is coming, the parade’s first marching band in years, and organizers are excited about the volume of entries so far.
“This year’s salute is to the racers, so we’ve been encouraging as many tubbers as we can to enter the race,” the commodore said. “It’s going to be a big parade and I really want to pack the people downtown.”
The parade starts at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 26. The parade stages on Albert Street, crosses the highway, goes up Commercial Street, and ends at Maffeo Sutton Park, where there will be vendors, food trucks and a kids’ zone. Free concerts and a beer garden start at 2 p.m.
Splish splash
Bathtub Weekend will also be rockin’ the park in Nanaimo.
The Great International World Championship Bathtub Race on Sunday, July 27, is the weekend’s main event, but there’s a packed two days of entertainment in the lead-up on Friday and Saturday, July 25-26.
Friday night features ticketed concerts, with cover bands Eagle Eyes and the Doobie Brothers Experience taking the stage, and DJ All Good spinning. Admission is $25 and gates open at 5 p.m.
On Saturday from 2-8 p.m., there will be free concerts throughout the day at two locations. Michael Patrick’s Blues Explosion, the Chris Andres Band, Creatures of Habit and the Throat Poets perform on the main stage, while the waterfront stage will feature Kevin Saunders, the Lee Taylor Duo, Danielle and the Moonshine Mollys.
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