Monica Wilcox
The Rainbow Region Dragon Boat Club women’s team has returned jubilant from the Grafton Jacaranda Regatta with a third place, then the combined team including cancer survivors brought home two gold at the Pan Pacific Masters.
The Rainbow Region men’s team also brought home one silver and three bronze from the Pan Pacs held on the Gold Coast.
The Grafton Jacaranda was a large northern NSW regatta that attracted 11 clubs from Tweed to Port Macquarie. The Rainbow Dragons went up against full teams (20 members) with only 18 paddlers, so third was a very credible result.
The Pan Pacs featured three aged-based divisions as well as cancer survivor teams. A strong Rainbow Region contingent of 28 rowers joined with the Gold Coast Pinks, Maroochy Sea Serpents and some extras to make a team of 61.
The team’s moniker was ‘All-Comers’ and nicknamed BAP (Bad Ass Paddlers) and included an intermingling of world champion paddlers.
This set the tone for a team of quality synchronism, camaraderie and a good dash of paddlers’ humour.
The humour was much needed when both days of racing were interrupted by storms and some finals could not be raced. Placings had to calculated on best heat times.
The second day was reduced to 1,005 paddlers, held-up under a massive marquee belting out bad-pun rain songs, during a torrential downpour.
Still, Rainbow Dragons came home with a highly respectable cache of medals for its members.
Results
Grafton: Women 3rd.
Pan Pacs (500m): Cancer survivors 1st, 50+ Open/Men 2nd, 60+ Open/Men 3rd.
Pan Pacs (200m): Cancer survivors 1st, 50+ Open/Men 3rd, 60+ Open/Men 3rd.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
