Two boatloads of paddlers travelled to Stratford last weekend to compete in the races at the annual Stratford Dragon Boat Festival.
Forty members of the Collingwood Paddling Club's Sidelaunchers group, which includes 20 people on the community team and 20 people on the sport team, paddled in numerous races throughout the day on Sept. 16 under the watchful eye and help of coach Kirsty Fowler.
The Collingwood Sidelaunchers community team finished fourth in the D-division 500-metre championship race with a final time of 2 min 37 seconds. The Collingwood Sidelaunchers sport team won first in the A-division 500-metre consolation race with a final time of 2 min 32 seconds. The sport team also earned a fourth-place finish in the 2,000 metre championship race with a time of 10 minutes 53 seconds.
There were 50 boats registered for the Stratford regatta, and each race would typically have four boats racing at the same time.
The Collingwood Sidelaunchers teams are made up of paddlers of all ages, and they train out of Collingwood harbour during the summer.
For more, visit the Collingwood Paddling Club website here.
