Sink or swim, the show is key at Glen Ellyn race

The annual Lake Ellyn Cardboard Regatta was held Saturday, launching Glen Ellyn's annual Fourth of July celebration.

"You will get old-timers who have put in over 300 hours preparing their boat, collecting cardboard and planning their decorations throughout the year, and then others who have put in just three hours," said Mary DeFiglia, assistant superintendent of special facilities for the Glen Ellyn Park District, which hosts the boat race.

At its core, the regatta is simply a race of boats built to fit teams of up to eight people, made of 20 sheets of corrugated cardboard supplied by the park district. Boats must complete a 200-yard loop around Lake Ellyn with the boat intact and all crew members aboard at the finish line.

And while building a sturdy boat is always key, in the more than 20 years since the regatta began, style and wow-factor have also become an important part of the fun. Teams typically deck out their boats in elaborate themes, often patriotic in an ode to Independence Day.