Master Sandcastles Live And Die By Water

Without plenty of water, the U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition would be a total wash. Photo credit: Brett Alan Photography.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 0:19 GMT

The 30th annual U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition hits Imperial Beach, California, on August 7-8, where amateur and professional teams will battle to build elaborate sand structures.

Event chairperson Debbie Longley says teams will have five hours to build a sandcastle on a 30-by-30 plot using molds, gardening tools, and tons of ocean water.

Every year, she says the best strategy for a sharp sculpture is to constantly wet down the sand inside molds so the shapes come out tight and uniform.

Although teams can only have maximum of 10 builders, Longley says they can have “unlimited water carriers” bringing buckets back and forth from the sea.

But while water gives the masterpieces life, it’s also their ultimate demise.

Longley says the tide rolls in around 4 PM and washes away all the hard work, but participants know it comes with the territory.