BDA LRC 2011
Typical British weather...
(By Martin)
I'm sure you'll agree it was an amazing start to the new season for Rage at BDA London. The below might be little long, but that's
because it was such an eventful day, packed with neck-to-neck races, truly inspiring performances, and discovering our hidden potentials!
Okay before I go into the race report for the Raging Dragons I just want to quickly sum up the event...
It was a day where Dragons had much to lose and much to gain. We were on our home waters and pride was stake! With great spirit, discipline and teamwork we did not lose our pride when it mattered most and instead powered through winning both minor finals for the 200m and 500m. The major finals were dominated by the top teams Amathus, Kingston, Batchworth and Tao. Tao a recent collaboration of Bristol Empires and a local team of very strong outriggers. This was their first outing and they should everyone they meant business!
Our aim for 2010 is to infiltrate the top three spots and rock some boats! This is possible because this Saturday we learnt we had a lot of untapped potential, and the proof is in the pudding:
1. We won the 200m minorfinals and set the fastest time of the day at just over 47 seconds!
2. We won the 500m minor finals, and set a time of 2.04 which could have gotus into the major finals!
This shows we have what it takes to get into the major finals and challenge for the top spots! All we need to do is pull out those amazing performances time and time again. This consistent level of performance will come as the season progresses providing we stay together, train hard together, stay fit together, stay focused together and in tune as one crew. Remember those famous words - "One boat one heart".
As always we can only improve with each race so lets keep this momentum going, lets work hard for our coaches because they work extremely hard for us. They will provide us with all the advice and experience they have, all we have to do is turn up to training and take that advice. With time Rage will become stronger, faster, better and we will be real contenders for those top spots!
BDA London 2010 - Dragon's Race Report
Race 1 - 200m
First race of the new season, first race of the day, first race for this crew, nervous? Maybe a little. We arrived on the start line with plenty of time to spare, so had a quick warm up and practised our race starts. We arrived at the start line and carried out the usual backwards and forwards line up routine, it was almost like a Waltz. Then there was the age-old familiar call "Crews are you ready?"...."GO!" and we were off! Maybe it was nerves but we had a sluggish start, the first 3 strokes of our 7 start didn't make much impact, but we made up for it with the 12 fast strokes. The transition from start to normal race pace was also a little choppy, again we made up for it and powered through the middle stage of race. At the last 50m Richard (our helm) made the hammer call, which we turn on with maximum aggression but not enough control, nonetheless this propelled up over the finish line way ahead of the competition at just over 49.7 seconds. Good start to the first race but much to improve on.
Race 2 - 200m Semi Final
After a briefing from Coach Binh we now knew what we had to do to improve on our first race, stronger start, better middle and more controlled end. We lined up for the race and did the usual Waltz and before we knew it we were off! Again we had a sluggish start, choppy transition, and power in the middle was not consistent, we were still trying to get into tune with each other and understand the new strokes and new pace. We were on the tails of Kingston Royals and they were pulling away, so Richard called the hammer early. Again we unleashed the power, this time it was better but still not perfect. We started catching but it was too late, and we crossed the line 2nd about half a boat behind Kingston which is not too bad considering they are one of the top teams and have many GB members on their boat. We crossed the line at 49.91 seconds, more work needed!
Race 3 - 200m Minor Final
Now this is a race to remember, we were up against our neighbouring rivals on our home waters, Thames and Typhoon, and all the
pride in the world was stake, so we had to win this race at all costs! Coach Binh gave us more feedback on the previous race and told
us to slightly alter the our start, and then focus on controlled power rather than frantic
stroking, while Head Coach Eddy topped it off with a great speech firing us up for this momentous race. The start drill began,
"Crews are you ready?"...."GO!" Instantly our start was better and the transition into our race pace was also much better!We were
away and this time the boat was gliding to along the surface of the water like hoover craft - this is perfect and means the boat
carving through the water and the stroke rate is perfectly matched to the speed of the boat.
We were neck and neck with Thames towards the final 50m where Richard called for the hammer and there was an explosion of controlled power,
and we maintained it all the way to the end. We crossed the line at just over 47 seconds! We had won the minor finals, beating Thames and Typhoon,
and shaved 2 seconds off our previous race!
If only we had pulled this performance out of the bag earlier then we would have been in the major finals and possibly won it! But it was only the third competitive race of the new season and this shows the how much potential we really have! This consistency will come with more training and more racing.
Race 4 - 500m
With very little time after the 200m minor finals we were already getting ready for the first 500m race. We were up against Thames again and they have historically been very strong in the 500m, but we were not phased after just beating them in the 200m. Race line and we were off, and this time we had another good start, and transitioned into the race pace seamlessly. We were probably still recovering from the 200m and the power was coming on and off during the middle period, but we stayed side-by-side with Thames, who then started pulling away at the last 100m. At this point Richard ordered the hammer, we gave it all we had but it was too late and we crossed the line second with a time of 2.08 minutes. Not ideal but we held our heads high, and made it into the semi-finals!
Race 5 - 500m Semi Final
The top gun in this race was Batchworth (who went on to win the 500m). We did beat them once last season and we could do it again, it's just a matter of pulling out
another amazing performance. We lined up and again there was an air of focus and determination, and we were ready to race. Start lin drill and we're off! We have another amazing start,
another perfect transition and the boat starts to glide again! Yes! That feeling is back! The crew in is tune, we are racing as one!
Unknown to the paddlers Richard had adopted a new calming and reassuring approach throughout the race. He kept us informed throughout the race and
this helped us to focus on our timing. We were holding on to Batchworth who were slightly ahead as we crossed the halfway mark. We kept holding on,
but the gapped increased as we approached the end. Richard called for the hammer and again we hit it spot on and boat surged forward, we maintained
the power and kept accelerating towards the line. We crossed the line less than half a boat behind Batchworth at 2.04 minutes and shaved 4 seconds
off our previous time! That's a massive difference! How on earth did we do that? Simple, we stayed focused, didn't panic and worked as a team!
Race 6 - 500m Minor Final
This was it, the last race of the day, we had much to lose and much to gain and no need to hold back, it was time to empty the fuel tanks. Judging from the 200m races were Tao favourites to win this race, but we knew we could beat them! For the final time we warmed up, had a team talk, advice given from both coaches, and were off to the start line. The line up was surprisingly quick and we sent bolting down towards the finish line. We seem have got the starts to fine art, again we nailed the start which propelled us forward in front of everyone else. Our transition was perfect, the boat again was gliding along the surface of the water and we gave it one final push towards to finish line in first place at a very respectable 2.05 minutes.
The last two races show we have the potential to do great things if and when we pull together, and had we produced a 2.04 in both in both the heat and semi final we would have been in the major finals and challenging for a medal. But what we took away from these races is far more important that any silverware, we proved to ourselves that all the training leading up to the new season has certainly paid off. All we need now is more races, more experience and we will progress to become one of the top three in the country.
And to round it off - Richard told me that he was very impressed with the new found level of discipline within the team. We no longer faff about, no more individuals disappearing, no more forgetting which race is happening, and no more arriving late for races! I believe this new level of discipline is fuelled by a new found belief in ourselves and each other. This belief was forged over the winter thanks to the new training programme set out by our coaching team. With each well-planned circuit session, pool session, fitness test and dragon boat session we grew stronger as a team. These sessions are designed to improve each individual member and ultimately the team as a whole, but most importantly we do these sessions together as a team - "One Boat One Heart". When you see your team mates pushing themselves so hard you will naturally feel inspired to do the same, and this is how we become stronger, better and faster.
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