PLATTSBURGH — With so many activities planned for this year’s Plattsburgh Mayor’s Cup Festival and Regatta, why not make a T-shirt depicting some of those fun events?
That’s exactly what 17-year-old Emily Whalen did as her design was chosen for the annual Mayor’ Cup T-shirt celebrating this year’s 47th version of the largest regatta on Lake Champlain.
“People were talking about all of the activities that were going on and I wanted to incorporate them into the design,” Whalen said.
Her design featured a kite flying high with drawings of sailing, dancing, sun and volleyball inside the kite against the red backdrop.
Whalen’s design was chosen among 10 finalists that were whittled down from 34 initial entries from students in the digital production and multimedia communications class at CV-TEC.
CV-TEC teachers Lisa Tallman and Melanie Faville explained that the T-shirt contest is a great collaboration of workplace learning and their curriculum where students learn crucial skills together with best practices and getting feedback from peers.
Jeff Prescott, past president of the Sunrise Rotary Club, the main organizer of the Mayor’s Cup, said they were once again thrilled to be working with the students on the T-shirt design.
“These designs are all amazing and it was very difficult to pick this year,” Prescott said.
Whalen’s design was unveiled as the winner at a news conference Monday morning at CV-TEC. The other finalists and their designs were also displayed.
The Mayor’s Cup event will be held on Saturday, July 6 on the heels of the City of Plattsburgh’s Fourth of July celebration.
A whole host of events are scheduled for the day, with the flagship event being the annual sailboat regatta, which attracts some of the best sailors from New York, Vermont, Quebec and beyond.
New this year will be the first Mayor’s Cup Regatta Poker Run/Walk to show off the downtown area and incorporate it into the festivities. The run will begin and end at the city’s marina at the end of Dock Street, and will wind through downtown with featured stops strategically placed at various downtown establishments.
The route is also expected to include parts of the Saranac River Trail. A scavenger hunt and hydration stations will be added long the way, and the theme of the run is Margaritaville, a tribute to legendary singer Jimmy Buffet.
“We think the poker run/walk is a super fun way for our community to enjoy both Plattsburgh’s historic downtown and the city’s breathtaking waterfront,” Sunrise Rotary President and co-chair of the event, James Snook said.
“Sunrise Rotary has been looking for ways to integrate the local downtown businesses into the Mayor’s Cup festivities and the poker run/walk has really seemed to resonate with them.”
The Mayor’s Cup has attracted thousands of visitors to the City Beach in recent years where a wide range of events are held and great viewing of the sailing competition is offered.
Traditionally, events have been held at both the beach and the downtown area, but last year, downtown events were limited due to the major re-construction of Margaret Street.
This year, more effort is being made to incorporate the downtown area, which Mayor Chris Rosenquest said is a great plan.
“Just like any other opportunity we get to highlight business and highlight our downtown and those special areas of our city is welcome, so whatever we can do as a municipality to support this and help facilitate this, we love it,” Rosenquest said.
The Mayor’s Cup event ends with the awards ceremony down at marina.
“The Mayor’s Cup is a celebration of summer in the North Country and we are the Lake City,” Sunrise Rotary past president and head of the Marketing Committee Joanne Dahlen said.
“We have these wonderful events at the City Beach and then we end up the marina for the awards. But let’s bring in the Lake City, let’s try to encompass and bring the whole bay in and that’s what we are trying to do… we think it really brings home the point that we are the Lake City.”
Also new this year is the Paddle Power Palooza.
This event is similar to the Boat Parade of Lights that was held in previous years.
Boaters are encouraged to decorate their non-motorized boats (kayaks, canoes etc.) with creative designs for the one-mile slow sail that starts and ends at the small boat launch near the city’s marina.
Prizes will be handed out to the best decorated vessels.
For a full list of Mayor’s Cup events and schedules visit www.mayorscup.com.