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Our perky Mako crew arrived bright, early and eager to Grevillea Park and were greeted by a beautifully fickle Canberran summer day. Wide blue skies hosting a refreshingly chill wind.
John won the prize for nailing race kit, as he lounged most comfortably in an arctic puffer jacket and the rest of us scrabbled to layer up on towels! Jackie was next best in uggies and her woolly Mexican throw. And after seeing Sally and Ron’s kit, note to self, windproof, windproof, windproof. Or wrestle one of them for the warm stuff next time ..
Anyhoo, while huddling briefly in the quite excellent coffee queue, the arrival of “not Kenny” with our port-a-loo rack does bear a mention. As deadpan and unhurried as “not Kenny” was, he was also master in selecting a subtly precarious angle for his generous stack. The ensuing wobble this created was impressive. Each nature’s call a dance with fate and the very real possibility of a topple face down to entrapment and we all know what that entails. That said, as ever, well done Canberra- lots of loos, little queues, good coffee (thank you Sally!) and seamless organisation. The makings of a great day!
And there was racing….
And what a great day! With our Bad News Bears/Little Train That Could racing Opens and Mixed it’s fair to say we absolutely roared up each stretch of the 500 metre choccy brown Burley Griffin raceway with hearts bigger than any of us imagined. There was nothing left in the tank each and every race. From the front to the back, we were looking eye-catchingly goooood! People were noticing and it landed us in both A finals! Yes! Both A finals!!
Just a few things that stand out from today ..
- Best wrangler and cheer squad leader, Sonja – proving you don’t have to be in the boat to make an impact.
- Cherry poppers, Carl, Anna, Ryan and Elizabeth – you can absolutely paddle like powerhouses at your first regatta! Thank you for your bravery. You smashed it!
- Wierdly joined twins and sticky sisters up front, Chicki and Ange, thank you for the laughs.
- Tracey and Silky, without whom we could not have filled the boat, paddled near as well or let Chicki play so happily with configs – did someone say powerhouse? Thank you!
- Fi! One arm is all you need to lead us to glory. Your inner animal is very rhythmic it seems.
- Bear, as ever threading the needle, nudging the line at just the right time and calling us to lift with passion.
- Shane, a celebratory beer tastes better with chips, thanks for your generosity.
- Engine room, sprint room, pacers. Wherever you sat today you starred. This really does feel like the start of something big. Be proud!
- Liza, it’s not goodbye, it’s until we next paddle with you again! See you on Zoom.
That was the day, peeps. Team. Racing! Heart full! We look forward to having you join us for the next one. It is fun!
