Photo gallery: American Sand Sculpture Championship returns to Fort Myers Beach
Dolphins, a lion, two monkeys, sand castles, a sea monster and images from a far-away world of imagination grew out of the sand behind the DiamondHead Beach Resort like works of magic from their sculptors this weekend on Fort Myers Beach.
The American Sand Sculpting Championship reignited works of wonder that left friends and families in awe as they examined more than two dozen sand sculptures at the 35th rendition of the celebrated event.
Todd was runner-up last year at the American Sand Sculpting Championship on Fort Myers Beach with his eye-popping sand sculpture “Prevailing Winds.”
This year, the upstate New York native topped an ultra-competitive, international field of sculptors to capture first prize from a panel of voters with his AI-inspired “Introspect.”
Pangborn said the sculpture was about meeting definition of introspective, he said, “to look inward for answers, for your inner strength.”
One of his first competitive events as a sand sculptor was here on Fort Myers Beach 11 years ago, not long after picking up the hobby after witnessing sand sculptures on Virginia Beach with his family.
Pangborn said taking the top prize on Fort Myers Beach at the American Sand Sculpting Championship was “a long-time coming.”
A mechanical engineer, he uses masonry tools and knives to carve the sculptures, adding water and then ultimately glue to keep it in place to hold up for days.
“It was tedious,” Pangborn said.
“Time to Swim” by Ferenc Monostori won the sculptor’s choice award at the American Sand Sculpture Championship on Fort Myers Beach, Photo by Nathan Mayberg
The international flavor of the event included Remy Hoggard, who won last year’s Sculptor’s Choice Award, along with husband Paul Hoggard.
Remy, of the Netherlands and Bulgaria, put together a much fawned-over sculpture of a woman with her kitten.
Paul, of England, is working on a sculpture of a group of bottlenose dolphins. Hoggard, who has taken part in sand sculpting events in front of the late Queen Elizabeth II, said he was inspired by a scene of dolphins while visiting Siesta Key. Asked about what it was like meeting the late Queen, Hoggard said “she was lovely.” Hoggard sculpted at the Royal Cornwall Show
This sculpture of bottlenose dolphins by Paul Hoggard was a favorite of many attendees at the American Sand Sculpture Championship on Fort Myers Beach. Photo by Nathan Mayberg
Alison Godfrey, of England, is coincidentally from the same county as Hoggard just north of England. Godfrey said this was her first time attending the event. “It’s just amazing and the skill level of the sculptors is amazing. A lot of them seem to be architects and professional sculptors.”
She and her husband Jim visit Fort Myers Beach nearly every year to see Alison’s parents but never have arrived at this time of year.
The temperature where they live in Yorkshire County is -3 degrees celsius (just below freezing for fahrenheit). “They had snow yesterday which is unusual for England this time of year,” Mrs. Godfrey said. “So we are feeling pretty smug.”
Godfrey’s parents have had a condo on the south of Fort Myers Beach for more than 20 years and they typically visit for Easter. The building took some damage from Hurricane Ian. This is the first year where the place was in good enough shape for them to visit. They have been hearing about the sand castle championships for years and finally made it over the pond to see it. “We don’t have anything like it in England,” she said. Godfrey said they go to the south coast to enjoy the beach in England. They prefer the beach here and the sand, which is less grainy, she said. “The weather is amazing.”
The Godfreys enjoy visiting Fort Myers Beach to see the wildlife. “Guaranteed dolphins,” Mr. Godfrey said. “We have a passion for the wildlife. We are fanatical about it,” he said.
“We love to walk the beach and see all the birds. We love the sunsets,” Mrs. Godfrey said.
Tim and Charlotte Turner of Cape Coral brought their young daughter Veronica to see the sand sculptures.
They liked the dolphin sculpture best.
“We love the dolphins and we think it’s just amazing to see how they work,” Mrs. Turner said. “Now we know how it’s done,” Mr. Turner said.
They both said they liked the dolphin sculpture best as well. “It’s awesome. We love it,” Mr. Wilf said of the event. The sculptures “get better every year,” Mrs. Wilf said.
Haley and Ray Wilf, of Fort Myers, brought their daughter Everly to the DiamondHead Beach Resort for the American Sand Sculpting Championship. Photo by Nathan Mayberg
This year’s championship had double the space thanks in part to the use of the Estero Island Beach Club property next to the DiamondHead Beach Resort
The American Sand Sculpting Championship was presented by the Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with The Sand Lovers, LLC, and DiamondHead Beach Resort.
The American Sand Sculpting Championship brought a sense of revelry back to Fort Myers Beach as a new season approaches the island. The event was a longtime annual tradition on Fort Myers Beach before taking a hiatus during the covid pandemic and then again after Hurricane Ian. Last year’s championship at the DiamondHead Beach Resort was the first renewal on the island since it was held in 2019 at the former Wyndham Garden Inn.
Elyse Tinker and Alice Kapler of Ohio attended the American Sand Sculpture Championship on Fort Myers Beach. Photo by Nathan Mayberg
As the band High Voltage performed a cover of the country song “Tennessee Whiskey” on Sunday night after the awards ceremony, last year’s perceptive sand sculpting champion Bruce Waugh noticed that the song was also being covered by another band at the same exact time just a couple doors down at the Beach Bar.
Waugh’s music ear was second in sharpness to his sculpting skills, which he deftly repeated in one of the most ambitious and eye-catching sculptures of the weekend. His “Rising from the Deep” sea monster was almost as tantalizing as last year’s event-winning “Fish out of Sea” which captured the attention of thousands last year.
“It’s a water monster, a water creature. I always like to do beach scenes if I can like the fish from last year,” Waugh said.
Despite not picking up an award this year, the defending champion and British Columbia native said he was glad to be back on Fort Myers Beach again.
“It’s been a good year,” Waugh said. “The weather here is just amazing.”
Waugh has been sculpting for more than 30 years. “You take that knowledge into account,” he said. Waugh partakes in several sculpting competitions a year. His main trade is as a contractor running “Alterior Designs” where he works on kitchens and bathrooms, and painting in the Vancouver area.
“Nobody’s letting me retire,” the 64-year-old said. “This is my hobby blown out of proportion.”
The American Sand Sculpture Championship runs through Monday at the DiamondHead Beach Resort on Fort Myers Beach.
Photos by Nathan Mayberg