It's that time again - Dragon Boat!!!

Training at Comslie - would have been better with a telescopic lens.

Of the many exciting things we are involved in as a Business Council, dragon boating has become a particular favourite. Although not focused on business, it is an invaluable team building exercise for our members, not to mention morale boosting.  It also gives us another platform to promote the Business Council and build new networks. We've always had a great time with dragon boat and it has become an integral part of the AMBCQ.

So we have very much been looking forward to this year's Parkinson Ward Dragon Boat Festival, this Sunday the 3rd June at Forest Lake.  This event introduced us to dragon boat and last year we came second in the amateur finals.  Since then we have entered two more amateur events, and our team has been regularly training for the last 2 months.  Unfortunately not everyone could make it to training, as some work on Saturdays, but nevertheless, the majority of our team has made several training sessions.

Our new logo - looking forward to our brand new uniforms!

The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is held around the 5th day of the 5th month of the Chinese lunar calendar to mark the death of Qu Yuan, a poet, writer and court official during the time of the Warring States. Qu Yuan was exiled from his home state of  Chu due to his outspoken ways and his stand against corruption.  Eventually, the Chu State fell to the stronger Qin, and in despair, Qu Yuan threw himself in the river and drowned. The local fishermen raced in their boats to recover his body, and they also threw chang (in Teochew and Hokkien) or choong (in Cantonese) (sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves) into the river to stop the fish from eating his corpse. Throwing the chang in the river has since been a way of feeding the spirit of Qu Yuan, although that won't happen at the Lake.  And that is roughly the legend behind the dragon boat festival.  


The Parkinson Ward event isn't just about dragon boat racing. The main organisers, Cr Angela Owen-Taylor, Councillor for Parkinson Ward and the Hakka Association, have created the festival based on the Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, but there is something for everyone in the community. There will be performances, food and drink, a citizenship ceremony, and lots of fun. The event will start around 9am with the official opening around 9:30 am with Cr Angela Owen Taylor and Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, and the dragon boat racing starting at 10:30 am.  The ceremony for the end of the event will happen at around 1:30 pm. 

The following weekend, we are also putting our hands up for the Te Waka Dragon Boat Challenge on Saturday the 9th June at Hamilton.  This is a different format, with teams of just 10, (rather than the usual 20), and a requirement of at least 5 women paddlers.  It starts quite early - 8am (brrrrrrr in June!) and is due to finish at 2pm. Yes, we really like dragon boat!