Welland Recreational Canal will be full of inflatables of all shapes, sizes and colours Sunday during the fourth annual Canadian Tire Welland Floatfest, said event president Lenna Villella.

Last year, there were more than 1,800 people who took part in Floatfest, which in its second year set a Guinness World Record for the longest line of water inflatables at 165.74 metres.

That record still stands.

Alhough 1,100 people are registered, she says its unknown how many people will show up Sunday at Lincoln Street Docks.

Those who do will need to get in line for wristbands that allow them on the water. People should show up to register at 10 a.m. — no earlier

Floatfest, for safety reasons, takes place between the train bridge to the south of the docks and Lincoln Street Bridge to the north.

Last year, winds pushed nearly all the inflatables north of Lincoln Street Bridge, almost to Division Street Bridge. Sea-Doos had to wrangle them back to the official float area.

"This year, we devised a rope and barrel system that will be tied across the canal … people won't be able to get past it. We'll have someone down on the water at 5:30 a.m. to check and see which way the wind is blowing and where we have to set up the barrier."

Three boats will be in the canal with lifeguards.

While people are on the water, vendors will be selling food and other items north of the launch point. There are Floatfest water bottles, waterproof lanyards to hold cellphones, T-shirts and more. Funds from some of the sales made by Floatfest itself will go back into the event and planning for next year.

A wide range of entertainment runs Sunday noon to 10 p.m. that can be found at wellandfloatfest.com/event-info/live-music/.

The idea for Floatfest came about in 2016 after Welland's Phil Gladman was inspired by community lazy river float event at the Kaljakellunta beer festival in Helsinki, Finland.

Gladman says he knew a similar-type event in Welland had the potential to be big, especially on the relatively unused waterway.

"I saw the popularity of people using inflatables to relax and events all over the world," he says.

Some of those events attracted between 120,000 and 200,000 people.

"I'm not sure we're ready for those kinds of numbers … but we have a beautiful area," says Gladman, of the event which draws people from across Ontario and the U.S.

He gets satisfaction from seeing families and everyone together on the water, smiling and having fun.

Another thing about Floatfest Gladman enjoys is seeing people bring non-perishable food items to help fill the shelves of local food banks.

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Asked whether he plans to be in the water, Gladman says, "Oh, heck yeah."

"When launch time is done and all of my duties are fulfilled, I'll make sure I spend quality time with my family."

He says Floatfest has a great team of volunteers and board members who allow him to get some time on the water.

"People have dedicated a lot of their time to this, from security and registration to filling the inflatables and groups like Faith Welland running the kids' zone area. We have between 40 and 60 volunteers," Villella says.

Floatfest is a free, family event. Alcohol is not permitted and it's a no-smoking area, which includes vaping and cannabis.

The only designated parking area is Welland Arena. People who park on the grassy area north of Lincoln Street and east of Denistoun Street risk being ticketed or towed.

The inflatable filling station will open at 10 a.m. The event starts at noon.

"We're going to go over instructions at 11:50 a.m. and need everyone to listen to that. We're asking everyone start to get off the water at 6 p.m. and they need to be off by 7 p.m.," Villella says.

A fireworks show is scheduled for 10 p.m.

Nathaniel.Johnson@niagaradailies.com

905-684-7251 | @DaveJTheTrib