Oneida Lake Chicken Wing Run

The 2026 Oneida Lake Chicken Wing Run is set to return to Oneida Lake on Saturday, September 19, 2026, bringing another major weekend of offshore performance boats, waterfront parties, poker run action, and Upstate New York boating culture to Sylvan Beach. 

The event combines a high-energy poker run atmosphere with social gatherings, dockside parties, waterfront dining, and charitable fundraising benefiting local organizations throughout the region, including continued support for the Sylvan Beach Fire Department.

The main poker run takes place Saturday and features an approximately 50-mile round-trip course across Oneida Lake. Offshore catamarans, V-bottoms, center consoles, cruisers, and custom-built performance boats from across the Northeast are expected to participate once again.

The run officially departs at 11:00 AM EDT following the morning driver’s meeting and registration activities. Along the route, participants will collect poker hands while stopping at waterfront destinations and social gathering points around the lake. One of the most popular traditions of the event is the large raft-up gathering at 3 Mile Bay, where participants tie together, socialize, and spend time on the water before continuing the run.

The weekend is headquartered around The Crazy Clam, which hosts the final dinner buffet and poker awards ceremony Saturday evening. Additional event activities include lunch buffet stops, dockside gatherings, sponsor displays, raffles, and the popular “Chicken Crawl” social events throughout Sylvan Beach.

Registration for the 2026 event begins at $250 for the VIP A package, which includes entry for the captain and navigator along with lunches, dinners, official event shirts or tanks, swag bags, koozies, and event decals.

The event weekend traditionally begins Friday with participant registration, a downtown block party, and the Chicken Crawl, which has become one of the signature nightlife attractions surrounding the run. Organizers expect a similar schedule format for 2026, including Friday night festivities leading into Saturday’s main poker run activities.

Unlike larger national poker runs focused heavily on competition, the Oneida Lake Chicken Wing Run maintains a more relaxed and community-driven atmosphere while still attracting an impressive fleet of performance boats and large spectator crowds around Sylvan Beach.

With a combination of offshore boating, waterfront nightlife, raft-ups, poker hands, and local charity support, the 2026 Oneida Lake Chicken Wing Run is once again shaping up to become one of the Northeast’s premier late-season boating weekends.