Lamma Outrigger Canoe Club

Monday, November 26, 2007

Round Hong Kong Island Race 2007!

We came, we saw, we certainly conquered our greatest fears:

The Lamma Men and Women participated in the Round Hong Kong Island Race 2007. Day one was sprint races around Middle Island, and we SUCKED! The men got pushed off course in the home stretch (after tailing the Hawaiians, valiantly, for the greater part of the race).

The women got pinned off the first turn and never recovered, though the bronchial barking in the canoe leads us to believe that a boat with 5 sick women and 1 healthy woman does NOT a power team make.

Next year, we're coming back with power....

Great Photos from Elo at this link: LINK TO ELO

Monday, December 11, 2006

outta order - in typical lamma time

On December 2, the Lamma folks had to return to the scene of the crime from the Round Island Race and retrieve our darling Tai Nui.

These are images from the day, which was low in paddler numbers, but high in great weather, good water and some wonderful photo ops.

No paddlers were damaged in the makings of this website. Yet.

We do so know what we are doing.It was this big and I hit it with my paddle...
the photographer: Supah-Kev.
Yung Shue Wan, looking a little bit blah for no good reason.
You! Get your ass OFF the junk and INTO this boat.
And they listened!
Happy to be resting.
Dudes fishing for local fish monsters in the traffic lanes.
"Ha ha! You think I'm paddling back here?"
And yet we all survived. That is a turbo-jet.
It makes pate of paddlers
Good reach!
Married people with good timing. How odd.
The Western cargo yards. (freelance cargo yards...)
Calm waters outside Sulphur Channel.

Trade and Convention Centre and US!
The IFC2 and new Star Ferry Terminals
ditto
Star Ferry!
We tried, but we just couldn't catch them, and
then they started throwing crap at us...

So we got Tai Nui home where she is happy and contented with her forest bower. We might by her a new wax-job for Christmas. She already has lovely new lashings and such.

Lamma Fun Day

On October 22, the Lamma outrigger-ers decided to participate in fundraising on Lamma Fun Day.

Now lest you think that we were raising funds to have fun, I should explain that it is the other way around. We have fun to raise funds (tough life, no?).

So, along with many other denizens of Lamma, we got together and "sold seats" in the outriggers for the bargain price of $20HK for 10-15 minutes of paddling (most people could only really take about 10 minutes before they got tired or bored or both).

All monies went towards the Child Welfare Scheme, to improve the health, education and opportunities of disadvantaged children and youth. See their site here.

Yeah - so that was our MO for the day (that is, uhm, modus operandi, for them folks who dun't like de latinz).

This is Jon B prepping to steer a boat of charity-supporting folk (and a few regular paddlers). That is Gina, sitting on the ama and explaining the best way not to tip the boat over.
This is Anna - looking glam, as ever.

Katie decides to support the Child welfare scheme by drowning her own child R... A sudden change of heart? No - it's cause there were witnesses. Namely, her other child, Miss Cutey Pants J.
The Lamma Outrigger-er-er-ers: A bunch of clowns.

Gina-meana; the mad French juggler (collected from the beach) and Christina P.

There were two jugglers. A shark ate the other one.

Lamma Fun day raised $158,000HKD for the charity. Any kids had fun. Fairly well-named event.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

You paddled right round, baby, right round

Start of the Loro Piana Around the Island Race 2006

Lamma on the move

On Sunday, November 21, the Lamma Outrigger Canoe Club participated in the Second Annual Round Hong Kong Island Race.

It was a helluva day: with a 4:30am start for the poor souls on Lamma who had to catch sampans (wee little stinky boats run on the foulest diesel on the planet - cough, cough), to the starter's gun/horn that blew at 8:16am on the water of Causeway Bay.

And hurrah for all! Lamma made it through the astoundingly smooth waters of South Hong Kong, and the foul, brackish, stinking waters of Victoria Harbour with nary a huli (thank the gods - and I mean ALL of the gods), and only a few ripped up hands and bums to show for it. Well, some people had chaffing in awkward places, and armpit rashes, but that's really just a badge of honour. Right Adie?).

All the Lamma paddlers (many of whom had never set foot inside an outrigger canoe 5 months ago) worked like dogs, steaming across the water and leaping in and out of boats like demented seals.

A crew couldn't ask for better spirits or attitudes: 46 kilometers of hell generally takes the shine off cheery behaviour, yet nobody thumped anyone with their paddle (on purpose) and everyone hung together; cheering each other on and doing their best to give the group as much as they possibly could.

A very special thanks on the day goes to Oliver and Claudia for captaining the escort boat with our surprise guest driver - none other than a Lamma Ferryman! (Lady luck was smiling that day!). Also thanks to Claire - for her massage genius, kind words and encouragement, First Mate Greg - the master of the GPS and communications director (Greg discovered none of the "gates" had been set by the yacht club, as the outriggers apparently were shockingly fast! Roughly translated, I think this means, they forgot about us.). Thanks to Mabel for her supergirl translation powers, and thanks to Jessica, Laura and Christina P for their care, massages, tea-making and boat arranging on the day.

As for the paddlers, we had:

Iron-woman Katie
CK - the mighty
Dolphin David
"Ouch!" Adie (great reach!)
Jumpin' Jasper, bail captain
Simon the powerful
Mel the magnificent (did her own 'bailing' in the last few sets!)
Mysterious Michelle (we have no idea where she gets her strength)
Screamin' Gina (always working on reach exceeding grasp)
Super-Hugh the patch master (fantastic effort all around)

All in all, it was a brilliant day of paddling, though the Hong Kong Air was absolutely disgusting! The sailing vessels had a distinctly less pleasant time of it (no wind - ouch). Two of our international guest teams: Hawaii and Poksai from Guam, did marvellously. It took team Hawaii just over 3 hours to complete the race (and they likely lapped us for giggles). Also, the IPC women made a spectacularly strong showing.

But Lamma enjoyed a fantastic first. Our first international race. Our first international marathon race, and our first international sea-change race... and what else? Ah: our first mixed team!

Looking forward to much more to come. Congratulations Lamma OCC!

Everybody paddles! Some paddlers' reach is longer than others.... not to name names!

Finished! Alive! Not eaten by sharks or ferries!
Front, keft to right: Jasper, Hugh, CK, David, Michelle, Gina, Mel, Adie and Katie. Back, Left to right: Mabel, Laura, Oliver, Simon, Jessica, Christina P, Greg, Claudia. Missing: Claire, who was off becoming even more terrifyingly glamorous.