Boards In The Stores Auction Ends Saturday

ORLEANS – There’s still time to bid on custom surfboards up for auction as part of this summer’s Boards in the Stores event – but not much time.

Now in its second year, the event pairs each participating business with a local artist who custom designs a four-foot surfboard for that business. The boards are displayed at their respective businesses through the summer, while residents and visitors have the opportunity to bid on the boards. Proceeds from the auction will be split between participating artists and the Orleans Chamber of Commerce, which organizes the event.

But the online auction closes Saturday at 3 p.m., and Judy Lindahl, the chamber’s executive director, said this week she’s hopeful that last-minute bids will come in.

“I’m really just looking forward to seeing how far we can go this week,” she said.

Boards in the Stores started last year as an event to encourage residents and visitors to shop local and support the town’s small businesses. Last year, approximately $22,000 was raised through the event.

This year, 60 businesses have custom boards up for bid. As of Tuesday, just under $16,000 had been raised through the online auction.

Alongside the auction, the chamber is hosting an online scavenger hunt that leads participants to each of this year’s participating local businesses. Through the mobile app Goosechase, people can document their stops at each store. Those who complete the hunt will be eligible for a gift basket of goods from local merchants.

“You pick a store, you go into that store, find the surfboard and take a picture of it,” Lindahl said. “You upload it and your mission is done for the day. It’s really kind of neat.”

After the close of the auction, winning bidders will be contacted by email, and they’ll be able to pick up their boards next week.

“Then we distribute the checks to the artists, obviously with a huge ‘thank you,’” Lindahl said.

From there, Lindahl and the chamber’s board of directors will evaluate this year’s event and see how it can be improved upon for the following year. While there’s always room for fine tuning, Lindahl said she’s happy with how the event is tracking in the community.

“The idea of this whole thing from the get-go….was get bodies into the stores so people can see what Orleans has to offer, right? If we can do that, we did a pretty good job.”

To place your bid, visit www.orleanscapecod.org

Email Ryan Bray at ryan@capecodchronicle.com