DRAGON BOAT CHALLENGE
Exeter Quay,
August 2008
WITH flashing eyes to match her flashing paddle Isabel Warne and her chums sped along the River Exe right past fisherman Christopher Rideout and his 12ft rod armed with softened dog biscuits rubbed in curry powder.
Isabel was leading the way in the Gilbert Stephen & Cross & Crosse dragon boat, Chris was trying to catch bream.
Together they summed up the happy-go-lucky spirit that pervaded the quay yesterday when hundreds turned out to cheer and support Dream- A-Way's Dragon Boat Challenge.
Chris, from St Thomas, managed to catch some nice bream. "These old dragon boats don't worry me or the fish" he said half way through his 12-hour riverside vigil, while Isabel, soaked but happy, said: "It was great fun, we came second by about five seconds but it was wonderful — and we have raised over £600 for such a great cause."
That cause was Dream-A-Way, the Exeter-based charity that makes dreams come true for sick young children.
The day — which was sponsored by the Echo, SW Crane Hire, Timepiece, Strutt & Parker and Heavitree Brewery —got off to a great start at 4am in the morning.
That was when the wife of of one of the organisers, police Sergeant Adrian Robinson, went into labour, meaning Adrian had to quit plans for the quayside and head off to be beside his wife and new child.
That left Dream-A-Way chairman Jeff Merrett and Gill Freeman to skipper the event, which saw a record- breaking 12 teams manning the 40ft, gaily decorated boats that were taking part in the races from Exe Bridges to the quay.
The boats rowed over a straight course of 250m in head-to-head races. Each person has one oar and there were 16 rowing and one person keeping the beat on a drum to keep them in time.
Jeff said: "We knew when we started that it was almost bound to be today that Adrian's wife gave birth, and so it was.
"We made an appeal for extra crew in Saturday's Echo and the response was great. We also made an appeal to the Met Office team, rowing as the Wet Office, and they made the weather improve.
"We have raised more than £5,000 from the day, which is great."
As he said that the dragon boat team, manned by burly members of the Wessex Rugby Football Club — which meets at the Royal Oak in Okehampton Street and draws its membership from west of the river — capsized.
Happily all crew members were safe and there was a suggestion they had only done it to get their picture taken, a claim strongly denied by team captain Phil Bye.
Waiting their turn were a nervous squad of pirates, rowing under the name of Aye, Aye Captain and drawn from St Margaret's School, Exeter and King's School, Ottery St Mary.
Phillipa Barzey, Sophie Gough, Meg Dudding, Tessa Woolmer Charlotte Isaacs, Liz Freeman and Holly Painter, had all thought it was "a good idea" to join in the fundraising and were delighted to have raised several hundred pounds.
Back at Isabel's red and black striped team, Claire Elphick, Anita Elo and Nadia Stone, the Echo's health correspondent, who bravely answered the last-ditch appeal for rowers, were gearing up for their next race.
"We are bound to do better this time" declared a confident Nadia.
Meanwhile, fisherman Chris had pulled up another bream. "They seem to like dragon boats as much as they like curry-flavoured dog biscuits," he declared.
The winning team was the Wet Office; second was the Mitie Group; and third was a team from Timepiece nightclub.
Story courtesy of the Express & Echo