32nd Annual American Institute of Architects Sandcastle Competition brings beach-filled fun to Galveston

GALVESTON, Texas (KTRK) -- This Saturday, more than 60 teams have their eyes and shovels set on winning the prestigious Golden Bucket Award in the 32nd Annual American Institute of Architects Sandcastle Competition.

The competition is a fundraising event for AIA Houston and ArCH Foundation as well as one of the top five revenue generating events for the City of Galveston.

Architecture firms begin months in advance generating ideas, developing designs, and assigning duties.

Following months of planning, teams stretch out along the beachfront and sculpt their piles of sand and work non-stop for five hours.

Scoring is based on originality of concept, artistic execution, technical difficulty, carving technique, and utilization of the site.

In addition to the Golden Bucket, other awards include Best Traditional Castle, Best Architectural Icon, Kidtastic (LEGO Edition), Best Science Fiction, Best Sports and Houston-centric as well as Best Team T-Shirt Design, Best Team Signage, Best Costume, and Public Favorite.

For more information, go to the AIA Houston website.