The first prize went to a team that carved a dragon from the wet sand, using the sea stars to the eyes of the dragon and dozens of sand dollars to form a castle wall behind the creature.
The theme of this year's competition was "Castles of the Sea." The judges scored each entry based on artistic ability, originality, design details, the use of space and special effects. Paintings were allowed but had to be soluble in water.
People from all over North America participated. Led a team from Ottawa, Canada, to participate in the contest, which required that each team has at least one child to develop with his sculpture.