Greetings

Welcome to the Newcastle Hunter Dragon Boat Club.

Founded in 2000, the Club has 3 squads consisting of energetic, enthusiastic people who come together from all walks of life and from the age of 16 years old upwards to take up the challenge and enjoy the dynamic sport, plus it’s a great way to get fit.

On the water we work hard but all work and no play is not ideal, hence we also enjoy each other’s company off the water. There are regular social activities and events in which members enjoy the company of each other and build everlasting friendships.

So what’s holding you back? Come on – give Dragon Boating a go and come paddling with us.

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What’s on the horizon?

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Paddling safely in a COVID19 environment.

Newcastle Dragon Boat Club has recently completed a COVIDsafe plan for undertaking club training and using club facilities. The plan meets Government and DBNSW requirements and sets out how the club will operate under social distancing and hygiene requirements to protect our members and the broader community. The plan is located here and members and prospective members are encouraged to view it.

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2020/2021 Membership Due.

A reminder that 2019/2020 Membership fees are now due. If you have not paid your membership fees by August 31, 2020 then you won’t be able to paddle until you do so.

All fees must be paid via the revolutioniseSPORT system. DBNSW have also advised that they will no longer be producing photo ID tags into the future, but will instead be using a digital ID system for events and regattas.

To read more about the 2020/2021 fees OR to make a payment, go to the Membership page.

No pay – no paddle.

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CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Congratulations to the Senior A Womens 20s crew who won silver in both the 200m & 500m finals at the 2019 Australian National Dragon Boat Championships in Canberra.

Well  done girls!!!

BUT WAIT ……. THERE’S MORE!!!

As a result of this great effort the crew has qualified to compete at the 12th IDBF Club Crew World Championships in 2020 to be held at Aix_les_Bains, Eastern France. Great work girls!!!

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Friday Frolic

Heard about our Friday morning paddle? It’s for all Club Members and is a great way to welcome in the new day and possibly see sites of Newcastle that have previously been inaccessible. Be there by 07:45am for 8:00am on the water.

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DID YOU KNOW ….

The most important and interesting aspect of racing in the Chinese New Year Regatta is the ‘dotting of the eyes’, but do you know why?

It is generally believed that the tradition of “eye-dotting” originated from two Chinese stories concerning printing pictures. During the Eastern Jin Dynasty [314-420 A.D.], a painter named Gu Kai Zhi was famous for painting portraits. However, he had a strange habit of leaving the eyeballs out for several years after the rest of the painting was finished. When he was asked why, he said, “The most life-like strokes of a subtle portrait come from the eyes.” He was actually implying that even a single stroke should not be done casually.

A little later, a painter called Zhang Seng You was asked to paint a mural for the An Le Monastery in Nanjing during the Southern Dynasty [420-589 A.D.], when he had finished it was noticed that all the dragons on the wall paintings lacked pupils in their eyes. Wen the Abbot invited him to add the pupils, Zhang said, “It must not be done, otherwise they will fly away from the wall into the sky.”

The Abbot was not convinced. Eventually the dragons with eyeballs painted on them emerged and flew away, while those without stayed on the wall – (This is the origin of the Chinese proverb “Draw the dragons, dot the eyes”.)

In fact, when we dot the eyes, we are dotting out the essence. When extended to literature, we may say that the most vivid words are “the stroke that dots the eyes.”

When we dot the eyes for dragon boats, lions or masks, the meaning is the same: We draw the eyes, we give them life! We are conveying our personal feelings!

[Chinese Text from Ming Pao Daily, date unknown, possibly around 1993/94, Translated by Edwin Hou]