About

RSD (Redlands Sea Dragons) began its paddling journey by leasing a wooden boat from the Gold Coast Chinese Dragon Boat Club. The boat was stored at the Redland Bay Amateur Fishing Club and we had to carry it a fair way to an improvised ramp by the coast.

We had some great times, especially when the tide was out, trying to get the boat to the water which could be 50-100m from the shoreline. Whilst the lifting and carrying wasn't much fun we had some fun times getting stuck in the mud and losing the odd shoe! Through this we realised that dragon boating is not only a great outdoor activity but a great team spirit developed and created the foundations of the friendly and co-operative group of people we are today. Since then we have purchased a number of boats and have a new club-house. 

Our club is committed to participating in all Dragonboat Queensland (DBQ) calendar activities. These include team regattas, corporate regattas, long distance competitions, state championships and occasionally Australian National championships. There is also a strong social side and several members paddle with us purely for fun and go for coffee after each weekend paddling session.

This is our club!

What is dragon boating?

A dragon boat is a long (approx 12 metres) and narrow canoe style boat used in the team paddling sport.

For racing events, dragon boats are always rigged with decorative Chinese dragon heads and tails and are required to carry a large drum aboard.

The crew

The standard crew 22, comprising 20 paddlers in pairs facing toward the bow of the boat, one drummer at the bow facing toward the paddlers and one sweep at the rear of the boat

The drummer and drumming

The drummer or a caller leads the crew throughout a race with the rhythmic beating of a drum to indicate the timing and frequency of paddling strokes (that is, the cadence, picking up the pace, slowing the rate, etc.)

The drummer may work with the sweep to call out commands during a race. A drummer is mandatory during racing events, but if he or she is not present during training, it is typical for the steerer to direct the crew.

The paddlers

The paddlers sit facing forwards, and use a specific type of paddle. The leading pair of paddlers, called  "strokes,"  set the pace for the team.

It is critical that all paddlers are synchronized. Each paddler should synchronize with the paddler diagonally in front of them. This ensures that the paddling pace is balanced and all energy is spent on moving the boat forward. The direction of the dragon boat is set by the helm, not the paddlers. The lead paddlers are responsible for synchronizing themselves.

The sweep

The sweep, known also as the steerer, coxswain, helm, steersman, steersperson, or tiller, controls the dragon boat with a steering oar similar in function to a tiller, which is mounted at the rear of the boat.

The sweep may issue commands to the crew, and generally exhorts the crew to perform at their peak. The responses of the oar are opposite to the direction they take - if the sweep pulls the oar right, or into the boat, the boat will turn left, and if they push out, or left, the boat turns right.

During a race, an experienced sweep will be able to steer the dragon boat effectively according to the wind, the wake of other boats, and other factors to achieve optimum speed.

The sweep must constantly be aware of the boat's surroundings. The sweep has the power to override all calls at any time during the race (or the coach during practice) if the safety of the crew is threatened in any way.