Cardboard Boat Race Trophies and Awards

Short answer

A cardboard boat race needs more awards than a normal race, because half the fun is in the boats that do not win. Most regattas give a fastest boat award in each class, such as youth, adult and corporate or team, plus design awards, a team spirit or best costume award, a people’s choice vote and an award for the most spectacular sinking, often called the Titanic award. We design the set around your event logo, cut and printed in acrylic and wood, so a trophy can be shaped like a boat, a wave or a sinking ship. There is no minimum order, and you approve a design proof before anything is produced.

Half race, half show

Cardboard boat regattas are community events: a fundraiser for a school, a summer festival at the lake, a team-building day for local businesses. Teams build boats from cardboard and tape, paddle a short course, and the crowd comes as much for the sinkings as for the finish line.

That changes the award list. The fastest boat in each class still gets a trophy, but the awards people remember are the ones for the best-looking boat, the team in the best costumes and the boat that went down in the most dramatic way. Those are the trophies that end up on a shelf at the office or in a classroom.

Our funny trophies page covers awards built around a joke, and team awards covers trophies a whole team shares. For other boating events, see boating event awards.

The awards a cardboard regatta gives

Fastest boat by class

First, second and third in each class: youth, adult, family and corporate or team are common. Classes keep a school crew from racing a business team.

Best design

The most creative or best-built boat, judged before the race. Often the most coveted award of the day.

Titanic award

For the most spectacular sinking. Shaped like a sinking ship, it is the trophy everyone photographs.

Team spirit and costumes

For the team that brought the most energy, the best theme or the best costumes to the water.

People’s choice

Voted by the crowd, by ballot or by donation jar. A good way to raise money for the event’s cause.

Sponsor team awards

Awards a sponsor presents, such as top corporate team or best use of a theme, plus medals for every crew member.

An award list you can copy

Trim this to the classes and categories you actually run. Announce the categories with registration, so teams build for them.

Typical cardboard boat race awards
Award	How many	How it is decided
Fastest boat	1 to 3 per class	Course time or heat finishes
Best design	1, or 1 per class	Judges, before the race
Titanic award	1	Judges or the crowd, on the water
Team spirit or best costumes	1	Judges
People’s choice	1	Crowd ballot or donation vote
Top fundraising team	1	Totals at the close of registration
Crew medals	1 per paddler on placing boats	Count from team lists

If the event supports a cause, the fundraising and people’s choice awards are natural places for a sponsor. Sponsor-presented awards explains how to set that up.

Shapes and wording that fit the day

Acrylic can be cut to almost any outline, which suits an event this playful: a paper boat, a ship going down by the bow, a cardboard box with oars. A full-color print carries the event logo and the award name.

Lakeside Cardboard Regatta
2026
Titanic Award

Lakeside Cardboard Regatta
2026
Fastest Boat, Corporate Class

Keep the joke in the award name and the design, and keep the team name and year straight. A trophy that is funny on the day still needs to make sense on the shelf next year.

Recurring regattas

Most cardboard regattas come back every summer. A perpetual for the overall fastest boat or the Titanic award, which the winning team holds for a year, gives returning teams something to defend. Perpetual trophies covers plate layouts. Once the first design is approved, the next year’s set can be reordered with only the year changed.

What to send us

The event logo and any sponsor logos.
Your classes and how many places you award in each.
Your design, spirit and sinking categories.
Expected team count and crew sizes, if you want crew medals.
The date of the race.

We send a design proof before anything is produced. For timing, work back from the race date and contact us for the current lead time; how far in advance to order explains how to plan it.

Cardboard Boat Race Trophies FAQs

What awards does a cardboard boat race give?

Fastest boat in each class, best design, team spirit or costumes, people’s choice and an award for the best sinking. Many events add a fundraising award and crew medals.

What is the Titanic award?

A common name for the award given to the boat that sinks most spectacularly. It is often the most popular trophy of the day.

What classes should a cardboard regatta have?

Youth, adult, family and corporate or team are common. Classes keep very different crews from racing each other.

Can a trophy be shaped like a sinking ship?

Yes. Acrylic can be cut to the outline of a sinking ship, a paper boat or your event logo and printed in full color.

Can we reuse the design next year?

Yes. Once a design is approved it can be reordered with only the year and winners changed.

Is there a minimum order?

No. A single Titanic award is as normal an order as a full set for every class.

Racer in a helmet raising both arms as gold confetti falls under stage lights

REGATTA ON THE CALENDAR?

Send your classes and award list

Send your event logo, the classes and the fun categories you want to award. We design the set and send a proof before anything is produced.

There is no minimum order. Tell us the date of your race when you ask for a quote.

Request a Quote

Cardboard Boat Race Trophies