Cheering on their ducks are, from the left, Mason Miles, Megan Ody, James Narroway, Emily Kellett and Alex Narroway Picture Ref: 77685-239SWINDON CANCER APPEAL: DUCK racers have raised £10,000 for the Swindon Cancer Appeal.

More than 5,400 plastic ducks turned the River Ray into a vision of yellow for the Rotary Club of Old Town's annual duck race.

Organisers are pleased that the event, on Bank Holiday Monday, managed to bring in about the same amount of money as last year's.

Attractions on the day included bouncy castles and a demonstration of radio-controlled cars.

Hundreds of onlookers turned out to pay a £1 and watch their duck float down stream, under bridges, between weeds and over rocky outcrops.

Tony Wall, the duck master, said he was delighted with the success of the event.

"The weather was great, the entertainment was superb, and overall it was a good day for everyone. The radio-controlled cars kept lots of people enthralled," he said.

"This year it was very competitive, said Mr Wall. "One duck in particular made a fantastic start, moving ahead of the crowd and at one point he was quite a few yards ahead, but it slowed down and all the others quickly caught up."

A lot of people had paid their £1 in advance but visitors on the day also purchased more than 700 last-minute entrants.

Helping to bump up the total raised was the drake race, featuring 300 larger ducks sponsored by local companies. The Kings Arms in Wood Street, Old Town took the crown.

A team of 30 volunteer Rotarians ensured that all the ducks had a good chance of winning with boards places at the stream sides to stop ducks getting stuck while others marshalled traffic allowing excited youngsters to follow their ducks as they passed under the road.

The club is now trying to make contact with the five winners.

Money from the race has pushed the Adver-backed Swindon Cancer Appeal well past the £100,000 mark in just two months.

The total now stands at over £700,000 in our quest to the £1m mark.

The appeal is also hoping to provide a training post for a Macmillan specialist breast care cancer nurse and a training post for another nurse specialising in gastrointestinal cancer. Money raised is also going to provide a Macmillan clinical psychologist who will specialise in cancer and palliative care, as well as patient grants to help those whose income has suffered as a result of cancer.

For more information about the Swindon Cancer Appeal then call the appeal office on 01793 432252 or 01793 432253.

Anthony Osborne