Under the Cone of Silence, sotto-voce conversations are taking place around the lake. What are people saying? 

Conceiving the creative idea and planning the engineering for Raft-O-Rama 2018. 

The theme this year is “countries.”  Since there are 195 of them–the choices for entries seem endless.  This event represents the pinnacle of summer activity at the lake.  While it also is massive fun, there is no question that it is also a competition, and thus, the secrecy about what teams want to reveal before the event.  The desire to win creates an excellent show for spectators who watch from their docks or boats all over Clark Lake for this 58th annual Raft-O-Rama on Sunday, August 5th. 

Registration takes place on Friday evening, August 3rd, at the Beach Bar, and again on Saturday evening, August 4th, at the Shipwreck Party Store on Eagle Point.  There is no charge for registration and each raft will receive an event flag.  Cardboard will be available at no charge.  In the next couple of weeks, you can find the Raft-O-Rama safety guide on this website.  Included will be the pickup point for cardboard as well as other information about the event itself. 

How did things go last year?  Take a look.

Skies were cloudy, but the rafts, and people on them, radiated pure sunshine.  Along with that sunshine shone lots of creativity as contestants met the challenge of the theme–TV shows.  It’s amazing how much staying power certain shows retain.  Represented in the parade were three Gilligan Island’s, two Flintstones’, and two Mash’s.  Both the Addams Family and Lawrence Welk were on Clark Lake’s TV screen today as well.  All of these shows went into reruns long ago, but today is living proof of their lasting impact. 

Raft-O-Rama puts on display the creativity, artistry, and engineering capabilities of Clark Lake.  Turning an idea into something that will float successfully on two pontoons and survive a lake breeze is an accomplishment.

The People’s Choice is voted upon by those who visit the R-O-R table starting at noon.  People’s Choice Award – #12 Baywatch

Best Overall, Adults 18+ – #12 Baywatch

Best Overall, Kids 17 and under, R. Tucker Boyers Award – #2 Flintstones

Categories

Most Enthusiastic – #11 Mash 4077

Most Original – #16 Addams Family

Funniest – #8 Cops

Closest to the Theme – #1 Lawrence Welk

Most Colorful – #18 Sesame Street

Best Special Effects – #7 Mash

Furthest from the Theme – #25 College Game Day

Rookie Award – #5 Gilligan’s Island

Best Costumes – #4 Gilligan’s Island

Best Attention to Details – #15 Baywatch

Other rafts added to the sights and sounds of the day.

As you leave the story for the moment, take a look at what the Raft-O-Rama parade looks like from above.  The drone takes you around Eagle Point through the cove.  It makes a curiosity stop at the Baywatch raft, then resumes it flight.  Notice the line up of spectators on their rafts watching from the lake side of the parade as people on the shore watch from the other direction.

Thanks to BJ Lyons for the drone photos and videos.

Below are some of the Raft-O-Rama team members who put this awesome show together each year.