Cardboard wrapped in cellophane and held together with duct tape hardly sounds like the components of a sturdy ship. But Akron’s young, makeshift mariners proved otherwise.
During the 2026 Cardboard Boat Races, more than 100 middle- and high-school-aged students from Akron Public Schools put their engineering skills and creativity to the test in a series of courses and challenges in Firestone Community Learning Center’s pool, including the five-person team behind the S.S. Ginch — Theo Martin, Miles Wimberly, Greyson McKeon, Henry Manahan and Daniel Tabuenca.
With aspirations of becoming back-to-back champions at the annual event, the Firestone CLC juniors touted having the largest crew in a single boat; everyone but McKeon crammed inside…