June saw the annual return of the Lincoln Dragon Boat Race! This year’s event organised by Ringrose Law in aid of LIVES was a booming success with 16 teams entering.
Bayford Waterfront was littered with food stands, drinks stalls, passers-by, spectators and of course the teams participating in the exhilarating dragon boat race! The day began and teams came down to the boat marshalling area, got kitted out with their buoyancy aids, grabbed their paddles and spent their last few moments on dry land attempting to think of some last minute tactics before their first dragon boat race of the day.
First up in the dragon boat race were Siemens Energy vs Shock n Oars vs Ringrose Rowers ready to try and show the crowds just how it’s done for the first heat of the day. Ringrose Rowers pulled through winning that first heat with a time of 69.39 seconds. With Ringrose Law sponsoring that first heat, that was a brilliant win from them!
Round 1 continued into the early afternoon when the heavens started to open and rain came pouring down!!! Believe us however, it did not stop the fun, competitiveness and camaraderie of the teams and the helms involved in the dragon boat race! Hoods were up and game faces were on as everyone paddled through the rain into an exciting Round 2.
As Round 2 started, the current leaders of the day were the Thomson Tornados with a first race time of 64.38 seconds. Thomson Tornados were the team to beat but the question was who was going to stay strong through the great British weather to move up the leaderboard…
Round 2 timings soared way above the timings in Round 1! 11 out of the 16 teams secured sub-70 second times in Round 2 with Thomson Tornados being knocked off that top stop and Stroke Masters storming ahead with a time of 64.07 seconds – the quickest time of the day so far.
“The atmosphere was electric as participants left no paddle stroke unturned in their quest for victory” says Alex Bennett the event organiser from Ringrose Law – https://www.ringroselaw.co.uk/2024/06/18/thrilling-success-at-lincoln-dragon-boat-festival-this-weekend/
An incredible photo finish from both semi-final races! Timings had to be reviewed in the finish tent before any results were announced, building the excitement and tension for all involved! Lucy, the event manager, built suspense on the microphone before finally revealing the top 3 crews advancing through to the grand final as Gelder Load of this, Thomson Tornados and Shock n Oars.
After more thrilling yet soggy races, the teams advancing through to the semi-finals, achieving the highest total times of the day were Gelder Load of this, Thomson Tornados, Shock n Oars, Dragon Boat Z, Brown & Co and Stroke Masters. It was all to play for in these two semi-finals.
With lots of chanting and banter between the teams leading up to the start line for the final time in the dragon boat race, everyone’s spirits were high but focus was strong! All teams shot off the start line and tried their best to stay in paddling time with each other, helms worked hard on keeping their race lines poker straight and all teams crossed the finish line within just over a second of each other. The finish judge reviewed the times and finish line video to reveal the Lincoln Dragon Boat Race Champions as….GELDER LOAD OF THIS! Fantastic win!
“Given the poor weather all day and the conditions the team had to endure I was overwhelmed they stayed so positive and focused.” said Steve Gelder, CEO of Gelder Group. “Participating in this event has not only been a fantastic team-building experience but also an opportunity to support worthy local Charity LIVES.” – https://gelder.co.uk/2024/06/19/gelder-group-vikings-are-dragon-boat-race-winners-2024/
