“Mama Duck” is seen on Mill Pond on Wednesday, Sept. 11. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

LAKE PLACID — Just picture 2,000 rubber ducks swimming over the falls of the Mill Pond Dam, down the Chubb River a short way until they are swooped up with nets behind Lisa G’s restaurant by members of the Lake Placid Rotary Club.

That will be the scene of the club’s 19th annual Dam Duck Race fundraiser on the evening of Saturday, Sept. 14. They call it the “Kentucky Derby of duck racing,” and the race features about 250 more ducks than last year. There are a number of prizes for the fastest ducks, with the he grand prize being $1,500.

Dam Duck Race headquarters is Lisa G’s at 6125 Sentinel Road in Lake Placid. The dam is behind the restaurant, and the river flows next to it.

Numbered ducks are $10 a ticket or three for $25. They can be purchased from a Rotarian, at Lisa G’s restaurant, the Gordon W. Pratt Agency at 2699 Main St. or at Terry Robard’s Wine and Spirits at 2047 Saranac Ave.

Festivities begin at 5 p.m. with an all-you-can-eat buffet at Lisa G’s, and there will be family-friendly games and activities, a hula hoop performance by Vestopia and music by Spring Street. The racing begins at 6:15 p.m. sharp.

Stephanie Pianka, Lake Placid Mayor Art Devlin and Deb McLean share a moment of satisfaction during the 2023 Dam Duck Race, organized by the Rotary Club of Lake Placid. (Provided photo )

All proceeds from the Dam Duck Race go back into the community. Some of the Rotary Club’s recent projects included the installation of three bus shelters in the village. Other organizations the Rotary Club has helped with its fundraising efforts include the Lake Placid Elementary School for a new playground, Mercy Care for the Adirondacks, Lake Placid Ecumenical Food Pantry, Lake Placid Community Beautification Association, North Elba Community Christmas Fund and Shipman Youth Center. Plus the club takes care of a few parks in town — Jewtraw Park bordering Mill Pond on Station Street and Rotary Park bordering Mill Pond on Dow Road (near the Lake Placid Volunteer Ambulance Service garage) — and recently helped with the rehabilitation of the McKinley Street park.

“We would like to take a moment to highlight the founders of the Dam Duck Race: Debbie McLean and Tina Leonard of Tina Leonard Real Estate, LLC,” the Rotary Club stated in a press release. “This power duo ran the race together for 16 years until Tina’s sudden passing in 2021.”

The Dam Duck Race began in 2004 with 200 ducks racing over the Mill Pond dam and into the Chubb River, raising about $3,000 to renovate the Jewtraw and Mill Pond (Rotary) parks. Those ducks sold out, so the original organizers — Leonard and McLean — increased the duck count to 600 for the following year. The race, which was traditionally held in June, was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and again in 2021 and was moved to September in 2022.

For more information about the event, visit online at damduckrace.com.