Battle to make a big ‘splash’ this weekend

With a possible $1,000 up for grabs, this year’s annual Battle of the Paddles is sure to attract an overflow crowd of spectators and a vast field of paddlers. The competitors will take to the waters of the Monroe Canal in St. James City in their home-made plywood boats to race to the finish line in hopes of taking the top position.
The battle will take place Saturday, May 16, at Woody’s Waterside Restaurant in St. James City and all proceeds will benefit the Greater Pine Island Little League.
The grand prize cash award will be divided between the winning adult paddler and lucky spectators. Of the possible $1,000 cash award, one half will be presented to the person finishing first in the race and the other portion of the purse will be divided among those participating in a special chance to guess the outcome of the adult races. Prize money will be determined by the number of entries in the race. As of May 8, a dozen adult and children have entered to participate in the Battle of the Paddles.
“This is a great charity that benefits the kids here on the island and we are pleased to keep it going,” said Eric Zeisloft, owner of Woody’s Waterside. “It is our hope that this event will continue to grow and more kids and adults will get involved to support Little League.”
With a heavy focus on the children’s race challenge, this year, Woody’s is offering some special incentives for the kids. The youth challenge has no entry fee for children 17 and under and lunch and a commemorative Battle of the Paddles T-shirt will be presented to each of the young contestants. In addition, the children will compete for trophies and the participants will be honored with having his or her winning boat hung in a prominent location at Woody’s Waterside for all to admire. Any child who wishes to participate, but is not able to construct his or her own boat, can still enter this year’s competition as Woody’s will be allowing youngsters the opportunity to either reuse a boat that had been raced in a previous battle or borrow one of the adult boats used in this year’s completion. The children may also use a kid’s boat that has raced in previous year’s competitions or can seek their own sponsorship for help with building materials and construction of their crafts.
The races will begin at noon with the children to compete first.
In addition to the race, pulled pork sandwiches and beer specials will be sold in the back yard and Woody’s with all proceeds benefitting the Little League.
“We have been fortunate to get the food and beer that we will be selling outside, so all of the money from those sales will be donated to the Little League as well,” said Zeisloft.
Later in the afternoon, music will be provided by the Mango Boys beginning at 2 p.m. Another way spectators and participants can contribute will be offered in the form of several 50/50 raffle drawings. Here, too, all of the money raised from these raffles will go to Little League.
All participants in this year’s Battle of the Paddles must register no later than May 12. Registration forms are available at Woody’s as well as next door at the Monroe Canal Marina on Stringfellow Road in St. James City.
For more information, call Woody’s Waterside at 283-5555.