Makeshift rafts race around Ipswich docks: memories from 1982

The waterfront has played host to a number of vessels and ships over the years, but here we look back to 1982 when makeshift rafts were put to the test and raced around the docks.

Rafts in all shapes and sizes took to the water made by an array of community groups and teams from across Ipswich and Suffolk, all of whom wanted to have built the best raft.

Some of the rafts stuck to the more basic design of barrels and canoes to keep the team afloat, while others had a little more creative flair including vessels designed to look like sail boats and another to look like a dragon surfing the water.

With a spectacle such as this taking place on the waterfront, plenty of Ipswich residents stood in anticipation at the dock’s edge to see who would be victorious in the race.

Do you remember this makeshift raft race taking place at the docks? Email our picture desk.