Over 400 participants built fabulous and whimsical sand creations on Saturday morning at Crown Beach for Alameda Recreation and Parks’ 55th Sand Castle and Sand Sculpture Contest. With perfectly overcast skies, just right for hours of playing on the beach, the two main divisions of competition had over 40 entrants each competing for ribbons. Wild sea creatures, everyday items, elaborate villages, visual puns, and other flights of fancy were constructed in plots along the beach for the judges to consider.
Sand Sculptures
In the Sand Sculpture division, a total of 42 entries were considered for awards. Yumine Dragons took first prize in the 12 & Under category with “A Dog and Its Bone.” Kaiden & Kaison’s entry came in second place, and the entry from the team of Asher, Gram, Aiden, Gaige, Lorelia, Simpson, Florentine, Annalis, and Orlie placed third. All three winners are from Alameda.
In the 13 & Over category, Concord residents Sandy and Fred were awarded top honors for their creation, “Guitar Amp.” Entries from The Islands and Hiro & Ellis, both of Alameda, won second and third place, respectively. And for the Family category, Alameda’s Monperchen families’ effort “Snailed It!” came out on top. Lisa, Tom, Henry, Grace, and Claire’s entry placed second, while Sam, Ursula, Mike, Kelly, and Jose rounded out the list of winners.
Sand Castles
1-2-3, an entry from Fremont, took top honors in the 12 & Under Sand Castle category, while Alameda’s own Cub Scout Troop 1015 took both second and third places. In the 13 & over category, Arjo Family and Friends from Alameda created the winning design, followed by the entry from Transform Alameda. The creative construction from Susan, Lesley, Steve, Dave, Kate, & Rose, a team made of Alameda and Oakland residents, placed third.
In the Family category, Richmond residents Niles, Leticia, Brendan, Jason, and Amy earned first place with their efforts, followed by the Gutierrez Family of Alameda. Storhoff, Teresa, Wes, and May brought third place to Walnut Creek with their entry.
Best of Show
The contest was judged by Alameda City Councilmember Tracy Jensen, Acting Director of ARPD Dave Leimsieder, Alameda Public Art Commission Vice Chair Liz Rush, Alameda Recreation and Park Commissioner Philly Jones, East Bay Regional Park District Board of Directors Member for Ward 4 Ellen Corbett, and Greg McFann, Retired Assistant Planning, Building & Transportation Director. The judging criteria was on a scale of 1–100, with up to 30 points awarded for originality of design, another 30 for originality in details, and up to 20 points each for neatness and technique.
Among the Sand Castles, in addition to winning the 13 & Over category, “Pyramid” by Arjo Family & Friends was named as best of show. For Sand Sculptures, the blue ribbon went to the winner of the Family category, the Monperchen Families and their entry, “Snailed It!”
Congratulations to all the winners and participants for another excellent year of creativity and hard work. We’ll be there next June for the 56th contest! See the winners of last year’s contest.
Updated June 13, 2:45 p.m. to list all judges.
