THE RIVER NITH DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL 2014
Despite fierce weather conditions 14 teams battled away for supremacy in this year’s River Nith Dragon Boat Race on Sunday.
The event, held at the Greensands Dumfries, was organised by the Rotary Club of Dumfries Devorgilla and Nithsdale Amateur Rowing Club and had been expanded from previous years by the inclusion of shore based activities for families including Laser Quest, bouncy castle, slide and MYPod. Approximately 270 competitors took part and it was estimated that there were 200 spectators at any one time with over a 1,000 people visiting the venue over the course of the day.
Racing to the theme music of Hawaii-five-O, teams raced down a course of just over 300 metres, finishing at the Rowing Club Bridge. Each team raced in 3 heats and the fastest three teams in the junior and senior categories went forward to a race-off in their respective finals. The weather was fair most of the day with the odd shower but the heavens opened with a squall and hailstorm at the end of the heats. Conditions were so bad that racing was delayed for 20 minutes or so.
Event Chair Charles Milroy, of the Rotary Club of Dumfries Devorgilla, commented “The weather conditions did little to dampen the spirits of the competitors who shrugged their shoulders and got into the event from the outset. They were fantastic and posted very quick times once they got to grips with conditions. Our boat contractors, Dragon Boat Events Limited, were brilliant, injecting humour when required and helming the boats with great skill and safely in challenging river conditions. The Rowing Club catering team were also on song, fuelling the teams throughout the day with home made soups, bacon rolls, burgers and tray bakes”
This year’s fancy dress theme was the Commonwealth in recognition of Scotland hosting the Commonwealth Games this year. Some of the team’s dress was amazing setting a difficult judging task for Michael Tough of Chefs In Scotland, one of the event sponsors. “Summerhill Bravehearts” took the day with the “Dirty Oars” of Ward 8 D&GRI and Emma and Eva’s “Kiwi Queens” giving them a run for their money. Special mention goes to Martin Mckeown not only for his Captain Hook attire but also for giving the pithiest interview on Border TV so far this year.
Organiser Charles Milroy’s final comments were “We could not have organised this event by ourselves and are grateful for the support from Nithsdale Amateur Rowing Club and the Council’s Community Learning & Development Service- Nithsdale. It should also be noted the event would not have happened without the support of our sponsors and suppliers, Dumfries and Galloway Council, Chefs In Scotland, Barfil Trust, Kingan Forestry, BSW Timber, David Hardie Engineering and Dumfries and Galloway Conservatives.”
1. Racing Results – Heats
Place Team Name Organisation Time (secs)
1 “Bee Frienders” Dumfries and Galloway Befriending Project 54.92
2 “Armstrong Anacondas“ Armstrong Waste Management 57.12
3 “Super Heroes” Nithsdale Amateur Rowing Club 57.16
4 “Rotating Paddles” The Rotary Club of Dumfries Devorgilla 57.73
5 “Golden Threads” Common Thread Group Limited 57.94
6= “Dumfries Saints” Dumfries Rugby Football Club 58.70
6= “Electric Silence” Electric Theatre Workshop 58.70
8 “Dragon Boats on Loch Ken” Dragon Boats on Loch Ken 58.81
9 “The Dambusters” 1153 Squadron Air Training Corps 59.21
10 “The Dirty Oars” Ward 8 D&GRI 60.47
11 “Summerhill Bravehearts” Summerhill Community Centre 61.09
12 “Dewey stand a chance” BDS Limited 61.24
13 “Kiwi Queens” Emma and Eva’s Ladies Team 62.84
14 “Oasis Legacy” Oasis Centre 64.09
2. Racing Results – Finals
Junior Section
Gold “Dumfries Saints” Dumfries Saints Rugby Football Club 54.57 secs
Silver “Superheroes” Nithsdale Amateur Rowing Club 55.45 secs
Bronze “The Dambusters” 1153 Squadron Air Training Corps 56.02 secs
Senior Section
Gold “Armstrong Anacondas” Armstrong Waste Management 53.79 secs
Silver “Bee-Frienders” Dumfries and Galloway Befriending Project 57.76 secs
Bronze “Rotating Paddles” The Rotary Club of Dumfries Devorgilla 59.09 secs
3. Winners-Fancy Dress Prize
“Summerhill Bravehearts” – Summerhill Community Centre Dumfries.
