Great Times at FreshCo Richmond

We had a fantastic time in Steveston on August 24 at the FreshCo Richmond Regatta!

Last year we attended and never made it out on the water due to the crazy weather. This year we arrived to rain, but by the time of our first race, rain had lifted. The weather improved as the day progressed.

We were given a sweet team tent spot right by marshaling which was a rare treat.

View fullsize

Coach Denise gives a pre-race talk at the start of our day.

Both of our assistant captains were not able to attend this event, but Sandra (past captain and now our treasurer) stepped up to take on the lead with much enthusiasm. Steve P led some wonderful warmups to invigorate us for each upcoming race. Dave F and Bruce kept us true down the course with great race calls by our drummer, Trish.

Although we didn't medal, we put in some of our best race times in our first two races and made it into the C Finals racing against two very young teams!

View fullsize

Hangin’ out before our first race. Weather got better!

Our race results were:

• 2:12.28 (Race 15)

• 2:13.61 (Race 20 ABC Semi)

• 2:28.38 ( Race 43 C Final)

• View official race results

“Congratulations to the FreshCo Crew, finishing 15th overall in the Mixed Division (of 49 teams)!” said Coach Denise. “In 2018 we were 17th in the Mixed Division.”

View fullsize

Thank you Henrietta!

Thanks to our race stats manager, Henrietta Hamming we’re able to report that race times in this event, ranked among some of our best ever!

“This is a testament to the excellent coaching we receive,” said Nothin’ Dragon Paddling Society president, Robbin. “Our records show that our women did a 500m in 2:14.22 at Penticton in 2023. In 2013 at the Rio Tinto Alcon (Vancouver Dragon Boat Festival) our mixed team did 2:10.71; and in 2019 at Victoria our Nothin’ Dragon mixed team did a remarkable 2:07.265 in their first race, 2:10.86 in their second race, and 2:14.23 in the third race. It’s not about bringing in the bling, but about progress as a team, and race results are the best gauge to show that.”

Nothin’ Dragon only entered one mixed team this event, so this gave the opportunity for some of our teammates to help on other teams. Congrats to Marg and Marjorie who earned a silver medal for helping a mixed Dragon Hearts team get to the J Final; and to Lori, Kirsten and Linda for helping Butts in a Boat get a gold medal in the F Final; and to Coach Denise whose team took Gold in the Women's Division A.

View our Facebook photo album.

Our next race event is in Penticton on September 7 and 8... Back to training!

Celebrating Success: Paddling Society Awarded Rotary Club Community Grant!

We are thrilled to announce that the Nothin' Dragon Paddling Society has been selected as a recipient of the prestigious community grant from the Rotary Club of Port Moody. This exciting news arrived in July, marking a significant milestone for our organization and the community we serve.

Empowering Youth Through Water Sports

The grant will be instrumental in our efforts to introduce more youth to the exhilarating world of dragon boat paddling. These funds support transformative experiences that foster teamwork, resilience, and a deep appreciation for water sports.

Looking Ahead to 2025

As we look forward to 2025, the grant will specifically support initiatives geared towards local students. We aspire to create lasting impacts in the lives of young participants.

A Heartfelt Thanks

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Rotary Club of Port Moody for their generous support and belief in our mission. Their commitment to community development aligns perfectly with our vision of promoting health, wellness, and camaraderie through dragon boating.

Together, let's continue to make waves and inspire the next generation of paddlers!

About Nothin' Dragon Paddling Society

The Nothin' Dragon senior team is based in Port Moody, B.C., and operates under the Nothin’ Dragon Paddling Society. Paddling off the shores of Rocky Point Park, the team promotes participation, fitness, camaraderie and community spirit. Nothin’ Dragon has approximately 65 members and supports The Rapids dragon boat high school team made up of students from Riverside and Gleneagle Secondary.

Steveston Dragon Boat Festival Recap

The 2023 Steveston Regatta, now called the Freshco Richmond Dragon Boat Festival will go down in the books as an eventful day!

The day started with the women's division, but only got to race 6, and then the event was put on hold due to high winds and white caps.

A mandatory meeting was called for 12 noon, where a contingency plan was offered to the teams, reducing races from three 500m to two 200m. Event organizers also stated they would provide a steers for any teams needing one. Races were to resume at 2 p.m.

The team discussed the situation and all voted to not race due to safety concerns. Approximately eight other teams made the same decision. The weather did calm a bit by the 2 p.m. restart.

Due to the long wait, the vendors and beer garden did very well, and Nothin' Dragon enjoyed the music, shopping and team camaraderie.

Sandra was acting captain for the day and she was assisted by Linda.
Congrats to Coach Denise who came home with a gold medal with the FCRCC C-Horses with a 200m time of 1:04 in the Women’s Grand Final.

Waiting in the tent and trying to stay warm on a windy day!

Marjorie and Marg also raced with Dragon Hearts Motley Crew, and they took a Gold finish in the Mixed D final with a 200m time of 1:03.

Below is how the event explained what took place that day:

The first 6 races of the day were run on the 500M course. After consultation with the RCMSAR/public safety partners/race operations, a decision was made to pause races starting at race 7. A captain and manager meeting was announced on-site for 12pm, during which time, a revised race program including course shortening was announced to take into account advice from our safety partners and weather forecasts. As well, new information about additional safety precautions being deployed was shared, and an opportunity for teams to speak with event organizers and safety personnel publicly or privately was provided.

The course was shortened to 200M to avoid an area of water near the 500M start line that was deemed particularly challenging, and additional safety resources were put in place. The races were able to restart at 2pm, and ended approximately at the time the original program was scheduled to end. During the race restart period, our operations team monitored conditions on a regular basis alongside our public safety partners to ensure the event could operate safely, and determined on a regular basis that we could continue the races.

We are currently working through wrapping up the event, and will be reaching out to teams to provide additional support on this incident in the coming weeks after we close out the event. We thank you for your understanding as we worked to ensure the event could restart in a safe way.