Mount Ripinsky runners climbed into the clouds and youths scrambled in wet grass at Tlingit Park during Tuesday’s Fourth of July festivities in Haines. A morning drizzle gave way to afternoon showers, but events went on as scheduled.

The Deuling family and friends, 17 Canadians who have visited here for 20 years, made a big splash. They represented eight of 26 racers in the annual Mount Ripinsky Run and navigated four of seven rafts in the Mad Raft Race.

“They’re all athletic,” said Paul Deuling, 67, a former collegiate javelin thrower who owns a house on Lutak Road.

Daughter-in-law Amanda Deuling, 47, a marathoner, grandson Marcus Deuling, a collegiate cross-country skier, and son Jarrett Deuling, a former NHL hockey player, were among family members in the mountain run. “We love it,” Paul Deuling said.

Amanda, fresh off a marathon in Whitehorse, Y.T. on Saturday, also competed in the Mad Raft Race.

Hometown runner Chandler Kemp protected his Mount Ripinsky crown, finishing the 1,200-foot round-trip in 24:42, 40 seconds off the course record he set in 2013. Kemp said he didn’t notice half the course was shrouded in clouds, but said a light rain made the course tricky. “It was pretty slippery.”

Kemp had time to spare. Marcus Deuling finished second in the men’s division in 27:10. Hannah Deuling won the women’s division in 33:47, shy of J.J. Lende’s course record of 32:34, set in 2012. Chip Lende won the race’s master’s division 38:52.

No official time records are kept in the raft race, but observers said the four-man team of Jackson Velzy, Marty Fowler, Mori Hays and Ketch Jacobson may have set a new speed mark in the handmade boat classic between Chilkoot Lake and Lutak Bridge.

They got off to an early lead in the race, stayed in the current on the river’s far side and avoided catching their foam vessel on rocks or other hazards. Jacobson said the formula for winning the event isn’t complicated: “Get as many people as you can on your raft. It’s all about horsepower. Don’t hit any rocks, and it helps to know the river.”

Also: Portage around the salmon weir on the river’s far side. Race newcomer Hannah Deuling, on a solo raft, paid for an attempt to portage by the road. Her raft became pinned against the weir, which she eventually freed.

In the spike-driving contest, perennial men’s winner Jason Verhamme successfully defended his crown, driving a railroad spike in seven seconds. Verhamme said his best finish was under two seconds, or three solid hits by a railroad sledge.

The key, Verhamme said, is hitting the stake dead-on with the first swing, setting the spike and making subsequent hits easier. Resident Josie Allen won the women’s division.

The Fourth of July parade attracted 27 entries. Winners included: Best Music/Dance Group – Chilkat Dancers; Best Theme Interpretation – The Marching Horns Clown Band; Best Decorated Dog – Olive Ross Hirsh; Judge’s Choice – Brian Staurseth and his Model T.