Ducks for the 23rd Great Olympic Peninsula Duck Derby are on sale now, along with the opportunity to win a 2012 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck or a Toyota Corolla provided by Wilder Toyota.  

Forty-two total prizes worth more than $25,000 will be up for grabs this year. Proceeds benefit the Olympic Medical Center Foundation and the Sequim (Noon) Rotary Club’s charitable projects.

The event sponsor is the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe.

Duck tickets can be purchased from members of the OMC Foundation, Olympic Medical Center employees, Sequim Rotary Club members and the Forks Soroptimist International of the Olympic Rainforest, as well as volunteers who pitch in.

The race will be held at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 13, at Lincoln Park in Port Angeles, where all “adoptive parents” will have a chance to win prizes.

“The time, effort, labor and equipment that various groups put into the Duck Derby, to make this event successful year after year, shows how each of us contributes to make this area such a great place to live,” said Bob Lovell, Duck Derby co-chairman along with Rick Smith.

“So many individuals and organizations are tireless with their donations and work in this community to help make it what it is,” Lovell said.

“It’s a pretty awesome sight to see more than 30,000 ducks race,” he said. “It’s not really about expecting to win, it’s just knowing that you’re donating to worthy causes that matters. Winning is secondary.”

Each duck ticket will cost $5. For $25, adopters receive an extra duck (six chances to win) in the race.

Just prior to the main race, at 2 p.m., The Bub and Alice Olsen Very Important Duck Race will be held, which is an opportunity for businesses and individuals, including those from outside the peninsula who do business with local companies, to purchase special VID ducks emblazoned with their logo, for $250 and $500 each.

Race day sees the Kids’ Pavilion, KONP’s live radio broadcast and refreshments add to the annual event. For more information, call the Olympic Medical Center Foundation at 417-7144.