Just ducky

Jenny Marder

Four-year-old Johnny Siebel was greatly disappointed when Papa Duck

took off his hat to reveal a human head. He thought that the man, who

led the parade of end loaders filled to brim with thousands of ducks

down the Huntington Beach Pier Saturday, was a real duck.

Thousands of rubber ducks were launched off the pier and into the

ocean Saturday and Sunday and more than $100,000 was raised at the

11th annual Duck-a-thon, to benefit the Huntington Beach Community

Clinic, a medical center that provides care for low-income adults and

children.

“I don’t think that Papa Duck should have taken off the hat,” said

Barbara Keating, Johnny’s aunt. “It’s kind of like finding out that

Santa Claus isn’t Santa Claus.”

Indeed, the Duck-a-thon is a sort of Christmas to many Surf City

children who wait all year to adopt their ducks, name them and then

watch anxiously as they bob to shore with the tide.

Terri Proctor’s son Keeley had a duck in the contest named Quack

Quack.

“He’s really into ducks right now,” Proctor said. Like many, the

Proctors’ reason for attending the Duck-a-thon was twofold: to

compete and to help the clinic.

The Voter’s Choice event kicked off the festivities at 1:30 p.m.

Saturday when ducks sponsored by elected officials set out for the

shoreline. Thousands of ducks took the plunge at the main event at 3

p.m., but lingered for a while in a rip tide before being carried to

shore. For the Corporate Challenge, companies paid $100 to $125 per

duck to have their business logos etched on the ducks surfboard.

“We keep the corporate ducks at $100 so that small business can

participate,” said Pat Davis, organizer of the event. “We’re a town

of small businesses.”

With 2,900 ducks sold, the event was “bigger than ever,” she said.

The winning ducks raced to the shoreline in 30 to 40 minutes. Some,

however, took as long as two hours to complete the journey.

“The last ducks bounced around and had fun,” Davis said. “They

went to Duke’s and had a hamburger.”

The Duck-a-thon, the brainchild of Surf City resident Donna Cross,

has grown steadily over the years, from 12 to 62 volunteers.

“The kids love it, everybody loves it,” said city employee Tim

Turner, who participates every year as a volunteer.