2009 Great Olympic Peninsula Duck Derby!

The 20th Annual Great Olympic Peninsula Duck Derby was held on Sunday, May 17th with the VID Race (Very Important Ducks!) kicking off the festivities. The winning VID Duck, taking home a grand prize of $1000, was 1st Security Bank of Port Angeles. The Main Duck Race began at 12:00, and the Gilchrist Family of Port Angeles was the Grand Prize Winner, taking home a 2009 Toyota Tacoma truck donated by Wilder Toyota of Port Angeles.

30,448 ducks were sold this year by our dedicated duck sellers. Congratulations to Edie Beck, recipient of the Bub & Alice Olsen Top Duck Award, in recognition of her outstanding contribution, volunteering hundreds of hours selling ducks.

Our Kid’s Pavilion was a favorite, along with great food provided by Toga’s International Cuisine, The Dog Cart, and Just Jump! Inflatable Rentals. The weather was gorgeous, the race was well attended and everyone had a great time – from the dumping of the ducks by Doug Parrish Excavating to the ducks coming into the home stretch.

Thank you to all the volunteers and duck sellers that make this event such a hit! Thanks also to Scooter Chapman, Dan Kari and Todd Ortloff of KONP, broadcasting the race to Port Angeles, Forks and Sequim listeners.

The generous people and businesses of our community join in making the GOPDD memorable for everyone involved. It is also an event in which thousands of people participate: The Duck Tab in the PDN and Sequim Gazette reaches 40,000 people; more than 30,000 people buy ducks; hundreds of people watch and listen to the duck race, over 250 people sell ducks; 150 people produce the event; 45 people win prizes and 1 family won a new Toyota Truck! No matter what level of involvement, everyone has fun, everyone remembers the race, and everyone will recognize your support of this great event.

In 2009:

• 30,448 ducks were adopted in a market of 70,000 people in the Sequim-Port Angeles-Forks area. Our race is the most successful per capita duck race in the world. Every year, over 200 are staged nationally and internationally. Great American Duck Races of Phoenix, AZ awarded OMCF “Racer Of The Year” for the 1998 and 2000 races.
• Over $1,700,000 raised over 20 years for charities including the Olympic Medical Center Foundation, the Sequim Radiation Oncology Center, the Forks Soroptimists, the Lions Club, Kiwanis, the Sequim Boys & Girls Club and other Sequim Rotary projects.