by Jay Lawson
Suttons Bay, Michigan was the site of a September 5th attempt at wresting a Guinness world record from the Town of Inlet, which set the record in 2014 by assembling 3,150 canoes and kayaks in a single, free-floating-raft formation.
Suttons Bay had held the record at one time and last weekend’s Floatilla sought to regain their crown.
Inlet’s record was set on September 13, 2014 with an event called One Square Mile of Hope.
It was held on Fourth Lake’s northern end.
When all was said and done, though, the mightiness of Inlet’s feat became clear when last weekend’s Suttons Bay fell far short with a total of 1,123 vessels.
The event did double duty as a fund raiser, however, netting $50,000 for local causes, according to Floatilla organizers.
One Square Mile of Hope raised well over $100,000 for breast cancer research and treatment, according to event co-chair Connie Perry.