Our inaugural Tassie trip at the end of March was as good and probably even better than anyone anticipated.  Thanks to the organisation and hard work of Lozza and the Tassie girls, our club flew to Hobart for a very eventful,  fun filled few days enjoying the company of our sister club in Hobart.  Special thanks to our hosts Chris and Lois, where we gathered on Thursday night for a spectacular night of food and drink and a little bit of music provided by Chris to welcome us to Hobart.  Friday included some sightseeing before we were welcomed by the Hobart girls to a dinner at their club.  Also a special night where we learnt to put our boatbuilding skills to the test.  I think we should stick to paddling.

Saturday saw us up bright and early on the water for a training session.  To travel up and down the Derwent was another highlight, viewing so many of the historical  features of Hobart. The rest of the day was spent browsing (and some buying) at the Salamanca Markets and having a look around this great city.

Sunday we travelled to the Huon River for our long paddle.  The weather was a bit on the chilly side, but we all rugged up and ventured down this magnificent river with wonderful scenery.  The half way point provided us with a chance to rest up, and enjoy a warm cuppa and delicious morning tea provided by the Tassie girls, before our return trip for lunch. I’m sure this memory will stay with all of us for a long time.

Heartfelt thanks to our sister club, and we hope to return the favour and show you the hospitality of the Gold Coast on your visit up here.

Photographed above are some of our hardworking committee members of both clubs, and the DAGC members 

The Queensland Dragonboat State Titles were held on the weekend at Lake Kawana, and this year our club competed in both B and C categories in the 10s and in the B category in the 500 mt race.  We also competed in the breast cancer race and earned ourselves a very creditable bronze medal.  Our club has many new members – a lot of these members have been paddling for less than 6 months and it was inspiring to see so many of them competing at this level with such enthusiasm and commitment.  A huge thank you to our coach Lozza who worked tirelessly to get our teams ready for this level of competition.  It can only can be onward and upward from here.  

What an amazing way to end 2018 for our club with our awards night and Christmas party.  Club members came together at Gecko House to celebrate a very successful (and busy) year.   

A special presentation was made to honour one of our valued life members Lorraine Montgomery who was presented with an album of This Is Your Life.  Many of her past and present friends joined us on the night to make it a memorable night for her.  Some great(and humorous)  stories were told, and gave our newbies an insight of where our clubs origins began.

Chef extraordinare Sue Ellen provided a sumptuous feast for us all, followed by our awards ceremony.  Some very worthy members were honoured for their commitment, dedication, hard work and many other qualities which combine to make our club what it is today.

Recipients of these awards were:  
Fayzy Hamilton, Debbie Clark, Lee Sorensen, Maggie Lee, Ann Burrows and Tricia ONeill

We look forward to a fantastic 2019 and a well earned rest.

A very special day for our club today as we saw the blessing of 2 of our boats – Nucon Lady and Ngarum on Currumbin Creek. Many of our club members were joined by Mr. and Mrs. Neumann as our special guests with Venerable Miao Xin invited to bless our boats.  A wonderful atmosphere was created as we were surrounded by locals enjoying life on the creek on a picture perfect day on the creek. The day was made even more special  by the dolphins which joined us on the water for our training session prior to the blessing – a symbol of good fortune.   
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We are most appreciative of the support we have received from Mr. and Mrs. Neumann and their families  enabling us to provide even more support for breast cancer survivors and supporters.

Last weekend saw our club combine with Burleigh Fire Dragons to compete at the 2018 Pan Pacific Masters games for 2018. We competed in B division as we had 3 Bs in our team , but the majority are Cs, so there was stiff competition. We made it to the finals of both the 200 mts and 500 mts and came a very creditable 4th in both of these events. But it was the distance race where we excelled. The Around The Island course is 4.8 kms, and was an open event which meant all ages qualified. We certainly shone through in this event to take out the Gold medal. As our coach Lozza stated – we’re stayers not sprinters.