BEI LOON DRAGON BOAT CLUB

FROM THE PRESIDENT AND COMMITTEE NEWS

We seem to have moved quickly from the festive season into the pointy end of the dragon boat season with only three Regattas remaining until the Australian Championships in April on the Sunshine Coast. One of those Regattas being our own 8km race, which thanks to George’s planning efforts is progressing well and already full with 24 crews entered. With more crews wishing to enter we are looking at ways to allow more entries.

It’s been good to see the attendance levels at training recently with 3 boats on the water a regular occurrence. To save carrying the third boat the Committee has decided for the Club to purchase a third trolley. We think monies well spent to save our backs and shoulders.

Also, thanks to the efforts of our Social Committee we have some fun yearly social events coming up as outlined below. The men have even been getting out and about and attending their own social events. Busy times ahead for the Club with plenty of hard training coming up for the remaining Regattas and hopefully Bei Loon continuing “to bring home the Bling.”

REGATTAS

As you are all aware, our last Regatta (Round 4, 18^th January, 2026) was cancelled due to the weather. Disappointing for everyone but take a thought for our Coaches and the amount of time they commit to putting teams and seating together. Thank you Coaching Team.

Our next Regatta is the Sydney Lunar New Year Festival so please ensure your intention is noted on Team App. The deadline for this event is 13^th February, 2026.

Upcoming Regattas are:

• Bei Loon 8km Race 7^th March, 2026
• State Championships 28^th/29^th March, 2026 and Aus Championships 20^th April – 24^th April, 2026 (Please note both these regattas are selection based)
• Pan Pacs 12^th-14^th November, 2026

Our Regatta held on 14^th December at Penrith was very successful with 6 out of our 7 teams gaining medals. A big thank you to our volunteers Di Alford and DiMilgate who enduredthe heat all day as well – Amazing effort. It was a very Christmassy atmosphere and Bei Loon certainly got into the festive spirit.

Our Awesome Men’s Team

50m SWIM

Recently the club held a capsize drill and 50 metre swim. Some paddlers were not there to do the swim.

Wynette and myself will be supervising another 50metre swim for paddlers who have not yet done it. This will be held at Narrabeen Ocean Pool on Wednesday 4^th January from 4.30pm and again after training on Saturday 7^th January from 8.30am.

This event will be put on Team App so we know how many people to expect at each session.

Please note this is a requirement to be done by all paddlers

STATE TEAM

Congratulations to our Bei Loon paddlers who have been selected for the State Team.

Senior C – Steve McKeogh (Coach) Kerrie Lewis Jones, Di Maher, Gordon Hirsch, David Rissick, Rod Power

Senior B – Nigel Farquhar

Developmental Squad Heather Pryor and Suzanne Brown.

Fantastic representation from Bei Loon

SOCIAL EVENTS

Sunday 25^th January: OZ Day BBQ, after paddling.  Start honing your thong throwing skills.

Saturday 21^st  February: 4.00pm BAREFOOT BOWLS at Mona Vale Bowing Club. We are limited to 42 people for this event so don't miss out and get your RSVP in ASAP.  

Bei Loon Pinks are holding a Fundraiser Dinner. Please see flyer below. Looks like a great evening.

Xmas get together Newport Arms

Start practising your thong throwing skills

BEI LOON PINKS

The Pinks are holding a Fundraiser Dinner. Please see flyer below. Looks like a great evening.

BOOKING FOR AN ERG AT ROBYN CLARKE’S HOME

When booking an erg time (via team app) for the erg at Robyn Clarke’s home could you all please remember to also text Robyn and let her know when you are attending.

ERG TRAINING – SUGGESTED PROGRAMME – Steve McKeogh

The first drill can be used as a warmup. Rest between drills.

1. 2x 2minute, 60% effort. Warming up. Stroke rate 40-45. Experiment with seating/feet/hand positions. Focus on moving the paddle efficiently through full stroke length (smooth pressure on the cord). Watch the screen – try and maintain a steady speed and stroke rate throughout the 2 minutes.
2.  2x 4minute. 3min 60%, 1min 80%. First 3 min as above. Start ot at a speed that is reasonably comfortable to maintain for 4 minutes, and try and keep it steady. Last minute – maintain stroke rate, try and increase power on the stroke. See if (and how much) you can increase speed without changing stroke rate. Note the speed that you are able to maintain in this last minute, and use that as your “reference speed” for the next drill.
3.  2x 2minute.90sec 80%, 30sec 100%. Start at your “reference speed” from drill 2 (no faster!) and still working at 40-45 strokes per minute. Last 30 seconds increase stroke rate as feels appropriate and aim for maximum speed. Note the speed that you can maintain in this last 30 seconds, and use that as your “target speed” your 2 minute erg test.
4.  2x 15 seconds – Race start. Test the maximum speed and stroke rate that you can achieve for up to 15 seconds.
5.  2 minute erg trial. Short race start – 10 to 15 seconds. Goal is to get faster than your “target speed”, but not too much. After about 10 seconds transition to your “target speed”. The stroke rate should be as low as you can go while achieving that speed. After one minute, increase speed and stroke rate as much as possible for your best trial result. Take a photo of the 2-minute trial result (use the log card or memory function if possible to show averages over each minute).

Good luck everyone!