Rubber duck race helps Special Olympics pay the bills

More than 90,000 rubber ducks raced/floated/bobbed haphazardly toward the finish line near the Columbus Drive Bridge Thursday morning as thousands of spectators lined the Riverwalk to cheer them on.

It was all part of what has become an annual tradition to raise money for Special Olympics Illinois.

Since 2005, the Chicago Ducky Derby has invited people to adopt rubber ducks starting at $10 each, with bigger sponsor packs available. The ducks are dumped into the Chicago River and head toward the finish line. The money raised helps provide year-round sports programming, adaptive equipment and other resources for athletes with intellectual disabilities.

By noon, the riverfront near the Columbus Drive Bridge was packed with spectators holding up their phones, waiting for the dump truck to release more than 90,000 yellow rubber duckies into the water.

This year’s event raised more than $700,000 for Special Olympics Illinois. The sponsor of the first-place duck won a new Chevrolet Trax. The second-place duck’s sponsor won $2,500 in cash, and third place got four club seats to a Chicago Cubs game.