http://www.suntimes.com/business/23596818-420/chess-rubber-duck-inducted-into-toy-hall-of-fame.html
It’s an honor to beat out Magic 8-Ball and little green soldiers.
But, the stick made it into the US Toy Hall of Fame before chess. Now we have an answer to the question of whether chess is a science, sport, or art. Nope, it’s a toy!
At the Parkersburg Homecoming held every year in August, besides the concerts, rides, beauty pageants, 10K runs, fireworks, and even a chess tournament, they also have a Rubber Ducky race for charity. It is therefore appropriate that both chess and rubber duckies have made it together into the Hall of Fame. 
I’ve always thought it a game. And I think that we should be honored to follow so closely on the heels of the stick. Rubber Ducky? Equally legendary. Barbie? Not so much.
The hollow plastic pieces with the red and black folding board do indeed belong in the Toy Hall of Fame!
At least we are not seeing pictures of 28,000 chess pieces floating after being spilled from a shipping container; I think that image wouldn’t be as cheerful as the picture of the thousands of rubber ducks that is making the rounds.
How do rubber duckies race?
“How do rubber duckies race?” Quite simple. People “buy” a numbered rubber ducky for charity, usually $5 per duck. You get a T-Shirt and a chance to win a prize. Several thousand of the numbered duckies are dumped in a watercourse like the Kanawha River or the Ohio River. As they float down the river they are caught in a funneling device. The duckies picked first through whatever are prize winners. The race takes about a half hour to run to get all of the duckies. One year the wind was strong and blew the duckies upriver. The fire department used hoses to force them in the right direction; that race took several hours to run and determine the winners. Prizes included mortgage payments for a year on a house, other cash prizes, and various merchandise prizes. One year a Cadillac from a local car dealer was a prize. IIRC from the Parkersburg Homecoming brochure the money raised from the race goes to the local charities and the schools. Similar races are held at other venues along the Ohio River during the summer. There is one at the Pittsburgh Regatta held in July or August every year.
Usually the players at the chess tournament at Parkersburg buy the duck and the T-shirt and wear the latter during the competition to show support for the town’s efforts. I have worn my rubber ducky shirt to other West Virginia tournaments and to other events. It is fun.
I think the following is a forced reply. youtube.com/watch?v=Mh85R-S-dh8