Castaic Lake is a place where competition is common, with swimmers, boaters and jet skiers hoping to be the first at the dock.

On Saturday, the competitors will be a lot smaller, albeit more colorful, when thousands of bright yellow rubber ducks are dropped into the water at Paradise Cove for the 8th Annual Rubber Ducky Regatta, benefiting the Samuel Dixon Family Health Centers.

The little quackers will depend on the wind and the current to push them along (they traded paddling feet for cool sunglasses) towards the finish line and the possibility of earning their sponsors a seven-day voyage from Princess Cruises. More than a dozen prizes await the eager duckies who hustle their way to the front.

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While ducks are the center of attention, the day also includes a variety of family-friendly activities, such as games and face-painting for the kids, entertainment by West Coast Music Academy and the group Meridian.

Single ducks can be adopted for $5; a “quack pack” of 5 ducks (plus one free) is $25, a “quacker’s dozen” of 10 (plus two free) is $50 and you can sponsor a whole flock (20 ducks, plus four free) for $100.

All proceeds go directly to patient care at Samuel Dixon Family Health Centers’ three health centers in the Santa Clarita Valley. The event takes place from 10 a.m to 3 p.m.; race time is at 1. Call 661-257-2339 or visit: www.duckrace.com/scv.

SDFHC operates three health centers in the Santa Clarita Valley—Canyon Country Health Center, Val Verde Health Center and Newhall Health Center—as well as outreach sites at College of the Canyons and California Institute of the Arts. SDFHC offers a full range of health care services—physicals, immunizations and vaccines, screenings and diagnostic tests, well baby care, and family planning—to those who may not seek health care elsewhere. Patients pay based on their income. This past year, SDFHC provided service for 10,000 patient visits.