Dragons Abreast Geelong archives
Rocky Valley Foreshore at Falls Creek came alive for the 5th Annual Victorian Mile High Dragon Boat Championships on January 24th and 25th, 2009.
As the highest dragon boat event in Australia, possibly the world, approximately 1600m above sea level, the altitude will challenge your fitness, the locals will befriend you and win, lose or spectate, you will have a great weekend
What a great day for everyone involved in the 2009 Victorian Mile High Dragon Boat Championships!!
'Bangles’ running the Guard of Honour at The Mile High |
Ian Talbot “Ski Press” aptly summed up the atmosphere at the Mile High Dragon Boat event when he wrote:
Whilst Melbourne-based teams such as the Flames and the Chinese Youth Society of Melbourne team are the hardest to beat it is the friendly rivalry between the 'pink ladies' (Dragons Abreast teams) which is a crowd-pleaser.
They all wear attractive uniforms proudly stating they are recovering from one of our most potent diseases.
Deni Schimana the coordinator of the Geelong-based Dragons Abreast Geelong Juggernauts (who had an unplanned roll over in training) said:
'The paddling motion the women carry out in a dragon boat has been found by Canadian Dr Don McKenzie to be very beneficial, particularly for upper body strength and reducing the effects of lymphoedema.‘
The Dragons Abreast Geelong Juggernauts team also gained enormous spectator approval with their pre race warm up carried out to the appropriate Annie Lennox track “Sisters are doing it for themselves”.
It was just one a number of activities they and their Dragons Abreast counterparts from Melbourne, regional Victoria and the NSW city of Albury, carried out whilst they were competing in this year’s Mile High Victorian Dragon Boat Championships held each Australia Day weekend at Falls Creek.
The finale by all the 'pink ladies' on the 'beach' alongside Rocky Valley Dam, after the final of the Pink Ribbon Challenge was a hit with every participant and the large spectator crowd. Every Dragons Abreast team member took part in a dance routine that was once again done to apt Annie Lennox track “Sisters are doing it for themselves”.
In late 2003, a group of women expressed interest in establishing a Geelong group of Dragons Abreast. After travelling to Melbourne each week for training, these women finally competed with the Melbourne Dragons Abreast team in the International Dragon Boat Festival in 2004.We have now established a Geelong based Dragons Abreast team which enables people to participate in regular training on the Barwon River. We have formed a strong partnership with the Geelong Canoe Club, and use their facilities at Balyang Sanctuary.
The Geelong group successfully applied to Zonta Community Partnership Program for a $10,000 grant. Dragons Abreast Geelong are working in close partnership with the Zonta Group of Geelong Central to raise funds to purchase our own dragon boat.
April 2005 update 
Dragons Abreast Geelong has had a most exciting inaugural year!! In March 2004 we had 5 Geelong paddlers travel to the Yarra to train and compete with the Melbourne team in the International Dragon Boat Festival. Our dream was to establish a team in Geelong and twelve months later we competed in the event, in our own pink dragon boat and won the Dragons Abreast Cup to boot!
We have had a lot of support to achieve so much, so quickly and the Zonta Club of Geelong Central have been the powerhouse behind the team getting our own dragon boat. Zonta is an international professional womens organisation which operates within local communities for their benefit. We applied for a Working in Partnership Grant with Zonta over a twelve month period with a guarantee of $10,000 funding. We successfully applied for funding for a dragon boat. The funds were raised with a corporate event that utilised Zontas connections and expertise.
The boat was built by Brian Adams at The Wooden Boat Centre, and it looks stunning painted in the Breast Cancer Network Australia's signature hot pink colour. Our Ocky Oar paddles were kindly donated by Dragon Boats Australia. The Victorian Dragon Boats Australia (Inc.) with Neil Crosthwaite has been very helpful and obliging, allowing us to use our beautiful boat at the International Dragon Boat Festival in Melbourne.
The boat has been named Spirit of Zonta. The origin of the Zonta symbol is from the Sioux Indian language and means inspiration, loyalty and trust – surely these are fitting virtues for our vessel. Our pink boat makes a bold statement and we received a Best Presented Team trophy at the International Dragon Boat Festival. The Zonta women were a great bunch and we really enjoyed it, but most importantly it was so overwhelming to receive such a show of faith and a huge financial commitment, to a fledgling team. We will always be indebted to Zonta and their legacy is a well-loved boat by a team of grateful paddlers.
Our team formed an early alliance with the Geelong Canoe Club and their President, Paul Carnegie. He is our coach and provides us with unswerving support and encouragement. We enjoy their clubrooms and facilities, including boat storage, at an associate membership rate and have been welcomed warmly to their club. The Barwon River at Balyang Sanctuary is a wonderful backdrop for a paddling experience.
We have also received significant financial assistance from a private benefactor who shuns public acknowledgement. David, a kind elderly gentleman, has no family connections within the team yet he has given generously to see us grow. He has given money to purchase a set of life jackets, boat towing accessories and general funds. It is heart warming to see such generosity within a community.
We have also had support from DA up through the ranks; including the girls from Bendigo, Pru Menzies, the Victorian State Co-ordinator and Michelle Hanton at the National level. The Executive Committee of the Geelong team, Linda Cooke, Kathleen Ure, Lauren Vallance, Helen Wood and Tracie King have been a solid guiding force.
They have provided strong leadership and a firm direction for the team. Our President, Tracie King, has worked tirelessly for this team and her talents with a camera and design have gone a long way in promoting and publicising our cause. She is a well-loved driving force for the team with a multitude of wonderful ideas. The team is a tight unit.
The success of our team, as it is with all teams, is a coming together of wonderful women and their supporters. Each paddler brings a depth and strength to the team which we value, and we are all richer for the experience.
In late 2003, a group of women expressed interest in establishing a
Geelong group of Dragons Abreast. After travelling to Melbourne each
week for training, these women finally competed with the Melbourne Dragons
Abreast team in the International Dragon Boat Festival in 2004.
We have now established a Geelong based Dragons Abreast team which enables
people to participate in regular training on the Barwon River. We have
formed a strong partnership with the Geelong Canoe Club, and use their
facilities at Balyang Sanctuary. We plan to enter at least one Geelong
team in the Melbourne International Dragon Boat Festival 2005.
The Geelong group successfully applied to Zonta Community Partnership
Program for a $10,000 grant. Dragons Abreast Geelong are working in
close partnership with the Zonta Group of Geelong Central to raise funds
to purchase our own dragon boat.
Training
When: Every Sunday morning during Winter months. Just come when you
are able to.
Time: 10:00am – 11:30am.
Where: Geelong Canoe Club, Balyang Sanctuary.
What to bring:
- Wear warm, comfortable & loose fitting clothes. Thermals are great
& can be purchased at Ray’s Disposals.
- Change of clothes just in case you get wet (from splashing!!)
- A drink bottle with water.
It was fantastic to see such a great turnout of enthusiastic women attend our very first training session.(see photos above). Despite the unorganised start, we finally got onto the water (not in it!) and had a great paddle. Most of us even managed to stay reasonably dry! After months of planning by a dedicated and determined group of 5 women, to finally see it all coming together was such a thrill!
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Geelong girls toasting the beginning of Dragons Abreast Geelong with
Pru Menzies - Coordinator of
Dragons Abreast Victoria.
Linda, Michelle, Susan and Tracie (click on image to enlarge)
Michelle Hanton and Susan Tulley (from NT) were delighted to have the opportunity to meet with Tracie King and Linda Cooke from Dragons Abreast Geelong on their recent visit to Melbourne. The girls have enormous community support in Geelong and are working hard to have a dragon boat available for their regular use.
This page last updated October 20, 2009
