Choppy water gives teams a swell time

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Celebrating their win in the inaugural dragon boat festival, Dunedin City Council team members Mike Kendrick and Eric Deleeuw dive into the Dunedin Steamer Basin. Photo be Jane Dawber.

"I think we ate too many sausages," said Naomi Ma, after her Pacific Islands dragon boat team won the prize for most spectacular capsize at the inaugural Emperor's Dragon Boat festival yesterday.

See the slideshow [2]

Six teams took part in the festival on Otago Harbour at Steamer Basin yesterday, but the contest was cut short before the last round and final races, due to rising swells.

Miss Ma, a human nutrition student, said her team of 22 Pacific Islanders competing for the University of Otago enjoyed their first dragon boat festival, especially as the boat began taking on water: "We all just started laughing."

Festival spokesman, Cathryn Edwards, of Otago Museum, said despite the cancellation of the last round and final, the crowd of more than 1000 people enjoyed three rounds.

"The teams are inexperienced, so at 1.30pm with the swells getting up we decided to cancel the racing and go straight to the awards."

The festival, held to promote the museum's Emperor's Dragons exhibition, may be turned into an annual Waitangi Day event, she said.

"I think people really enjoyed themselves."

Aoraki Dragon Boat chairwoman Meri Gibson, of Christchurch, said while the conditions were some of the roughest she had experienced, "it was a great festival".

The Christchurch-based club, which supplied the dragon boats, would leave one in Dunedin so the sport could become established in the city.

"It is a great location, good atmosphere; it has the potential to hold an international event here," she said.

Ms Gibson, a breast cancer survivor, said she took up the sport to aid her recovery and it had been "invaluable".

Results: DCC Dragons 1, OSCA (Otago Southland Chinese Association) 2, Otago Museum Exhibitionists 3.