8th Boracay International Dragonboat Festival: April 24-26, 2014
Many Gaelic Dragons have recently returned from what can most definitely be proclaimed as one of the best weekends on the Singapore dragon boating calendar – as participants in the 8th Boracay International Dragon Boating Festival in The Philippines.
Over a hundred Singapore Barbarians stormed the beaches of Boracay to take part in the one event that truly unites the various Singapore expat teams.
The weekend began innocently enough, as The Barbarians headed to the beach on Thursday, April 24, trying to squeeze as much practise as they could into the allotted hour of training. Many were to experience for the first time dragon boating in the open water. An understanding of the need for those life vests immediately apparent as the waves hit with capsizing (or even sinking) imminent. A lot would not have minded this occurrence, however, as the sparkling water of Boracay made a nice comparison to the usual dark, smelly water that is The Kallang!
Following this rude awakening was last minute preparations back at base camp, Boracay Holiday Resort, for the Barbarian dance, choreographed by Gaelic’s own Richard Magpantay. After a final run-through it was time for the parade as all paddlers proudly marched down main street, Boracay, to raucous cheers and applause from the masses lining the street.
Then into the tent for the opening ceremony and the moment all had been waiting for, the presentation of team dances. One by one, teams hit the stage. The Barbarians watched, scrutinizing every performance, waiting for that moment when they were called. Finally it arrived! The announcement for the Singapore Barbarians. Taking their positions on stage, the music began and as they say, the rest is history! Of course, the result was as expected – the Barbarians took out the coveted award for best dance!
Next it was party time! Not much sleep was had that night (nor any to follow) as all danced the night away! Even the threat of the necessity to be at the beach by 6.20am or else, would not ruin the night!
Most actually made the deadline on Friday morning (well, maybe a bit later!), albeit nursing sore heads and staggering down to the beach, to begin preparations for a full day of racing. Those sore heads quickly dissipated as the intense racing began. Barbarians competed in 500m race after race. Thank goodness for the speedboat to transfer some from the finish line back to the awaiting paddlers at the start line to go at it all over again. No rest for the wicked!
Friday night partying continued for some (if a much quieter affair), with another full day of racing on Saturday. At least each race was shorter – only 250m this time!
There was much excitement during the two days of racing, including crashes, capsizing, sinking and missing sweeps. Was that a Gaelic Dragon sweep who fell off the back of a boat in the middle of a race? And not just any sweep – our esteemed ex-captain?
Many semi-finals were reached and even a final for the Ladies A team, containing a number of Gaelics. There were high hopes to retain gold but, it was not to be. A great race none-the-less. The Mixed A team returned home as champions of the Plate 250m, again a boat including Gaelics.
The day ended with team debrief back at base camp, team shots and then the most anticipated event of the weekend – the presentation and farewell dinner. This is the moment everyone waits for – the chance to swap and claim the most desired race shirt from another team. This year it was the Marine, Navy or Air Force shirts that everyone wanted. People were prepared to do almost anything for one of those esteemed shirts, resulting in one Gaelic giving many a rude awakening as he dropped his pants in exchange for someone’s article of clothing.
Once all shirts were claimed, the partying started for real. After drinking the bar dry, most Barbarians hit the dance floor, or arm wrestling table, of Summer Place, partying into the wee small hours. While there were no towers to be had this year, there was more than enough drinking to go around!
A few people managed some sleep before their pickup the following morning to begin their journey back to Singapore, many collapsing into a deep sleep as soon as they boarded the plane. Others were able to continue their holiday for just a day or two more to soak up the sun and sea of Boracay, and enjoy some much needed r & r!
What does a few days in Boracay mean for us? For the Gaelic Dragons, it provides an opportunity to be reunited with some dearly departed friends who have moved on to distant shores but could not pass up the opportunity to join us once more in Boracay.
It also changes life as we know it as dragon boaters in Singapore. Those who attend move from passing familiar faces on the beach after training every Saturday to developing firm friendships with people from other teams. We can no longer depart training without stopping to chat with one or more of our new friends on the beach and sharing a beer with them. It also strengthens the moments when all teams come together for various events during the course of the year. Dragon boating is no longer just about getting fit and socialising with a small number of people from our team. It is about belonging to a community.
So, if you want to become part of this amazing group of people, join us at Kallang on Saturday afternoons, and who knows? Maybe next year, you will also become a member of the esteemed Boracay alumni as a member of the Singapore Barbarians.
We Are
Barbarians
We Are
Barbarians
We Are
Barbarians
From
Singapore!!
To see the spirit that is the Singapore Barbarians, watch these clips so expertly created by The Barbarians, Chuckie Lumanlan: “I wanna go back to the Island called Boracay” and Fabien Cottier: “It was last week” .
Feel free to browse our photos also. Thanks to our photographer extraordinaire, Samuel Kolehmainen, along with additions from other Gaelics: Twan Kersten, Richard Magpantay and Barbarians.