Brown used the Mud Pond waterway across Brandreth land despite the landowner's no-trespassing sign and cable across the stream.

WSJ: Judge: NY paddlers can use stream on private land

Tuesday's ruling said paddlers also had the right to make a 500-foot portage on the private land along the Mud Pond waterway to get around a stretch of rapids.

WSJ: Judge: NY paddlers can use stream on private land

The event is held every Memorial Day weekend in Ferndale, California, as artists race their bizarre wares across a 42-mile course over three days, including sections on land, sand, mud and water.

BBC: Kinetic sculptures race land and sea