Ryan Soderlin/DN
LEFT: KURT WILLIAMS and John
g Spatz, both of Lincoln, chase after
| Spatz’s duck, which escaped from
§ him before the racing started.
Ryan Soderlin/DN
BELOW RIGHT: TOM KUHN, a senior
history major at UNL, urges his
duck, Shovelhead, toward the finish
line. Kuhn’s duck won its first three
races, but was beaten out in the
fourth round.
Ryan Soderlin/DN
I BELOW RIGHT (FROM LEFT): TIM
MERWALD of Bellevue and Eric
White of Omaha pick out their ducks
before the Avoca Quack oft.
0 0 S d
Ducks quack way into racers’ hearts
By Jason Hardy
Assignment Reporter
AVOCA - At first glance, it
seemed like any other small
Nebraska town.
There is one main street; it’s
paved but is more or less covered in
gravel. There’s a bar you can rent
videos at and a post office. The
view beyond the town is comprised
of large trees with grain bins and
garages scattered here and there.
Avoca's defining characteristic
stands proud at the head of main
street, overlooking the usually
sleepy village. It is a town hall with
a large sign that reads “Quackoff
Headquarters.”
The 18th annual Avoca
Quackoff. a yearly outdoor duck
racing festival, began Saturday with
duck rental and registration at iu
a m. in the Quackoff Headquarters.
The Avoca Schoolhouse Orchestra
supplied sounds of Pachebel's
Canon. Meanwhile, the crowd con
sumed ducky dogs and Bud Light as
they mingled about, hungry for the
day's races.
As i p.m. neared, most people
were found milling around the town
tennis courts, otherwise known as
the Webbed loot Raceway. Though
the air was chilly and the sky was
gloomy, not a sad face was seen.
The relatively balmy weather
made for a dry racewav. as opposed
;o the traditionally icy track, but
that didn't seem to matter Veteran
racers and newcomers alike were
iicidy with excitement and drunk
enness as the announcer called the
first heat of ducks over the loud
speaker.
Ducks with names like Quacker
Jack, Duck O’ War, Duck Force One
and Weeduckyduck took their spots
as racers took deep breaths. The
crowd cheered with deafening force
as the race official raised his hand.
The whistle blew and off they went.
A year's worth of anticipation
cumulated with the sound of that
whistle, and the energy of the crowd
skyrocketed to a frenzied level.
For many die-hard racers, most
of whom were wearing large, fuzzy
hats, these races symbolized what it
was to be an American.
As the day progressed, ducks
won and lost, but one thing
remained: the excited faces of both
the winners and losers. It didn't
matter whose rhirlc rrncserl the fin
ish line first, all that mattered was
ha\ mg a good time.
Tony Kemna, a Lincoln resident
who has been racing ducks for
years, said he couldn't get enough
of the festival.
"It's a bunch of fun." Kemna
said “1 never have won. but it does
n't make any difference at all "
Bob Ruffner. racing fanatic of
10 years, agreed with Kemna.
"It's just a ball." Ruffner said.
"After all. Nebraska football is over
so we gotta have something to do."
The races continued throughout
the afternoon, and ducks like
Shovelhead, George HI and Mufl'v
the Wonderduck were eliminated
despite valiant efforts, in the end.
there could be onlv one winner, and
Lincoln resident Bill Mver was the
lucky SI00 duck champ.
This year's races featured a
record-setting 130 ducks. Verne
Dettmer, one of the Quackoff’s
founding fathers, said he always
knew it had that kind of potential.
“1 figured it would get pretty
big,” Dettmer said.
He said the Quackoff hadn’t
always been as big as it was this
year. In fact, the first race only fea
tured three ducks. Each year the
Quackoff grows and raises more
money for the Avoca volunteer fire
department. Dettmer said it was
great to be a part of something so
successful.
“It makes me feel very proud,”
Dettmer said.
After the races, the party atmos
phere continued with a dance at the
Quackoff headquarters, where
Meatloaf and Chumbawamba
reiened sunreme.
People celebrated the coming
and going of another Quackoff by
singing, dancing and making beer
can pyramids. In the end. everybody
won.
Dav id Seay, public relations
officer for the Avoca volunteer fire
department, said he was already
thinking about the future.
"in the year 2000 it will be the
20lh Quackoff. so we're trying to
think of some way s to enhance it for
that." Seay said.
Roger Carroll has only been rac
ing ducks for the past three years.
But enhanced or not. he said, he'd
probablv be at the Quackoff in
2000
"1 don't know where i'll be or
what i ll be doing, but if the oppor
tunity presents itself. 1 plan to kick
off the 2D’ century racing ducks."
Lane Hickenbottom/DN
I0HN SPATZ, a UNL law graduate student, gets his hat returned to him after
lis duck lost during the semifinals of the 18th annual Avoca Quackoff.