BOAT GUIDELINES

Boats must be made from materials that would normally be tossed in the trash or recycled. Electric motors, pre-made boat parts, or any other form of propulsion besides the sail (and straw) is not allowed.

The following materials work well:

• Hulls: juice boxes, slabs of foam insulation, 8-ounce water bottles, 20-ounce soda bottles, Capri Sun pouches
• Masts: straws, skewers, small dowels, pencils
• Sails: construction paper, index cards, cut-up cereal boxes, small chip bags, Capri Sun pouches

MAX HULL WIDTH: 3.5 INCHES

MAX HULL LENGTH: 7 INCHES

MAX BOAT HEIGHT (WITH MAST): 7 INCHES

MAX DEPTH (IN WATER): 1.5 INCHES

Please do a test float of the boat!

Flatter bottoms are recommended, to maximize stability. A streamlined looking boat is almost always top heavy and capsizes.

The bottom edge of the sail needs to be about 1/2 inch above the deck of the boat. If the sail is too low, the corners of the sail rub against the gutter or dip in the water. If the sail is too high the boat is top heavy and tends to tip over.

This is much more casual than the Pinewood Derby, meant to have fun and keep some garbage out of the landfill! Scouts will be racing their watercraft down an inflatable "raingutter" by blowing from one end to the other with a drinking straw.