Dragon boat racing not about the gold
IT IS one of the few competitive team sports with opportunities for state, national and international titles, which could double as a meditative and, in some cases, cultural experience.
Dragon boating began as a modern international sport in the 1970s, but its roots date back some 2000 years – in ancient China.
Crews of as many as 22 people, which includes 20 paddlers, a drummer and a steerer, compete over long distances, while 10-person crews will take on the sprint distance races.
Paddlers have travelled to Cairns this week to compete at the Great Barrier Reef Masters Games.
Launching at Portsmith, competitors will today tackle a 13km distance before tomorrow’s 200m sprints on Chinaman Creek.
Lorraine Stewart has been the Cairns Dragon Boat Club president for the past three years, and watched as numbers swelled from 20 regular paddlers to more than 50.
For Stewart, dragon boating is a meditative experience, along with the obvious fitness and social benefits.
“Being out there on the water, surrounded by the hills, it’s meditative,” she told the Cairns Post.
While GBR Masters Games medals will certainly be up for grabs today and tomorrow, the event promises to be the most immersive on the schedule.
A traditional opening ceremony will kick off the dragon boat portion of the GBR Masters Games program at 7am, followed by three teams of 20strong crews taking on the 13km race.
If you don’t see them on the river, you could almost certainly hear them coming.
While 20 paddlers power the vessel and a lone hand is responsible for steering, the drummer could be the most important member of the crew.
They are responsible for the cadence, which the paddlers use to time every stroke. If one paddle is out of time, it can severely impact the speed.
There will, of course, be an eye to the sky, but with only showers forecast, there shouldn’t be any interruption.
“Heavy rain, lightning and thunder,” Stewart said when asked what could stop the races. “If the rain’s too heavy, the boats fill up.”
Tomorrow’s program is all about the 200m sprints, in which paddlers from Cairns and a few who have travelled from Adelaide, Ballina and other parts of the country, will take on members of Townsville’s Spitfires and Phoenix.
After the Games, Stewart said the club would continue its regular training regimen, and welcomed more members to join them on the river.
They train every Tuesday and Thursday evening, but Stewart said Sunday morning’s social paddle was likely the best option for beginners.
“We’ve gone well in the past few years (with numbers), and I think that’s down to a change of direction,” Stewart said.
“We also try to do overseas trips each year – we’ve been to Shanghai and Bali, and we’re looking at Lake Merrit in San Francisco later this year.”
That will be for the 24th annual Northern California International Dragon Boat Festival in September, which attracts paddlers from across the world for an immersive cultural and competitive experience.
You can find Cairns Dragon Boat Club at the public boat ramp at the end of Tingira St.