ACT Regatta 7 will be forever remembered for its epic mixed 2km race. Not since Kelly (what a legend) punched on with our Kiwi friends over the ditch has there been so much action and excitement. The clearly stronger and more powerful mixed Komodo blue boat were robbed of certain victory, becoming the unfortunate victims of a demolition derby in the last turn. Major props to legendary sweep Ads for dodging the carnage and steering the Komodo white boat to victory in what could only be described as a Komodo homage to the legendary Steven Bradbury. Well done to el presidente Millsy for not going ballistic when forced to back paddle in the middle of the race. And well done to the entire Komodo blue boat for maintaining composure and executing a big 10 and a consistent power home for an epic last 500m.
KELLY’S ACTUAL NZ PADDLE PUNCHING STYLE (DRAMATIC RECONSTRUCTION)
In other news, Komodo welcomed Sophia, Zoe and Adrian to their first regatta as Komodos and welcomed back Coach Coops and his blue toenails from the bench. No one was more ecstatic to see Coops back in the boat than Millsy. The bromance is strong with these two. Regatta 7 also saw the return of Typhoon 8 and Merlin, with lots of Komodo’s flashing the cash and getting serious about their paddle gear. Unfortunately, the cute pink paddles were a no-go, with Millsy banning Tiff from buying one. The weather was hot but unfortunately the eye candy was not. But this turned out to be a good thing because if Kez found you with candy, she would smack you on the bot-bot. In addition to the traditional regatta sausages and egg and bacon rolls (I’m looking at you Sarah), DBACT turned up the heat in Regatta 7 with traditional Peruvian food and ay ay ay it was spicy! Muy Bien!
KOMODO PINK PADDLE (MILLSY SAYS “NO GO”)
After the excitement of the 2km races, Komodo turned their attention to the 200m and the twist and thump (not to be confused with the bend and snap). Komodo had blue and white crews in the women’s and the opens and a massive four crews in the mix; blue, white, grey and violet -violent according to Coops. All the crews implemented the start line visualisation that we have been practising at training and this really showed in our focus and discipline. We raced smart, we raced hard and we did Coach Kim proud. Booyah!
KOMODO DOING WHAT THEY DO BEST!
Special shout out to some of the club’s quiet achievers; Oscar, Viktor, Aditya and Rob A for the boys and Robyn, Lulu, Little Boss and Yvette for the girls. Our quiet achievers are the backbone of our club. Their humble, consistent and extraordinary contribution inspires the tone, values and behaviours of the entire club. Stand out performances for Regatta 7 went to Martin (and his foot) and our newest drummer Sophia!
Boo(b) was noticeably absent for Regatta 7, along with a few other beloved team members. Massive shout out to Aitch (and her shoes), Punchy (and Violet), Rachel (and Cashew) Nick (and Ryan) and to all the other family members and pets who came to cheer us on. For those who couldn’t join us, we missed every single one of you and hope to see you back in the boat soon. Special moist shout out to super sweep Jules, wishing her all the best on her journey back to the UK.
KOMODO’S UNDER COVER
The allure of Lake Burley Griffin’s pristine waters brought many interstate and regional clubs to DBACT’s Regatta 7. Jokes! Clearly, the chance to race against the coolest paddle club in the world that attracts the interstate clubs to our regattas. It was great to see so many different clubs make the trip to the nation’s capital, we hope more clubs to come back again next season. We say next season because Regatta 7 was the last of the DBACT regattas before the ACT Championships next month.
There’s a lot to do before now and then. Coops is busy trying to steal his daughter’s blue nail polish (he swears it’s warpaint) and Millsy is busy designing his presidential banner, organising Anna Meares helmets for the sweeps and blue zinc for our paddlers (yep, more warpaint). Meanwhile the committee is working overtime to get us to our interstate races. Kim, Thea and Lexi (and maybe Coops too) are working hard on taking us through the final stages of our training in the lead up to the ACT Championships and our interstate races in Albury/Wodonga and Kawana Waters. Komodo is such an awesome community because there are so many wonderful people willing to volunteer their time and effort. A massive thanks to our coaches and committee and to all our regatta volunteers (especially Pixie and Tug, Alix, Cindy and Margot, Robyn and Woolley). We simply could not get over the finish line without you and your dedication and commitment to the club means that we not only get over the finish line, but we smash it.
HEAVY DUTY BLUE ZINC WAR PAINT