Rainbows celebrates the year of the Dragon with the launch of the fourth Nottingham riverside festival Dragon boat challenge!

To celebrate Chinese New Year and the Year of the Dragon, Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People has joined with Gable Events to launch the fourth Nottingham Riverside Festival Dragon Boat Challenge. The 2012 Challenge takes place on Sunday 5th August as part of the annual Riverside Festival and is one of the largest and most eagerly anticipated team events in the region. Up to 50 crews representing companies, organisations, clubs and groups of friends from all over the East Midlands are expected to battle it out over the 200m race course on the River Trent at Victoria Embankment. They will all be seeking to knock Ilkeston Gym from Ilkeston, Derbyshire off their pedestal as reigning champions whilst raising much-needed funds for the Hospice.

Dragon boat racing has an ancient Chinese history and the Festival is a re-enactment of a tragic event that took place more than 2,000 years ago in the kingdom of Chu. Legend has it that falsely accused of treason and exiled by jealous rivals in the government, despairing warrior poet, Qu Yuan, threw himself into the Mi Lo River. Local fishermen rowed out to save the drowning poet and tried to rescue him from vicious fish by beating the water with their paddles. But their attempts failed and every year in Hong Kong a Tuen Ng (Dragon Boat) Festival is held as a mark of respect for the fishermen’s frantic efforts and to commemorate the tragic death of Qu Yuan. The dragon boat’s fierce looking dragon’s heads were added later to ward off evil spirits and in Hong Kong special dumplings are eaten to represent the dumplings that were thrown in to the river to stop the fish eating the mighty Qu’s body.

According to the Chinese calendar, 2012 is the Year of the Dragon which may result in some interesting races as the dragon is said to be all powerful but completely unpredictable! It also symbolises great success and happiness, so the winning teams should be even more excited than usual in their victories! No previous experience is required to take part in the dragon boat racing, just plenty of team spirit so why not take up the challenge? Thankfully, you don’t need the physical strength of a Steve Redgrave or the athleticism of a Jessica Ennis to be successful as teamwork and timing win the day.

The dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races. Teams and spectators also benefit from being part of one of the region’s largest family festivals with a bustling fair and vibrant mix of music, dance, crafts and food from around the world, staged by Nottingham City Council.
Rainbows is the only children's hospice in the East Midlands and cares for over 230 local children and their families every year. An incredible team helps to control symptoms, improve quality of life and provide end of life care. Rainbows gets less than 10% of its funding from the government and therefore relies almost solely on the generosity of members of the public, fundraising events and sponsorship. Katie Baxter, Events Manager at Rainbows Hospice, says, "The Dragon Boat Challenge is a fantastic opportunity for teams to have fun whilst raising essential money for an amazing charity. Everyone involved will really be helping to make a difference for children and families who are facing extraordinary challenges”.

Carol Lester, Director of Festival organisers, Gable Events, adds: “The Festival is a great chance for companies and organisations to try something completely different, promote themselves to a large local audience, network with local companies and potential clients and raise money for Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People. It is also a fantastic team building opportunity - what better way to get to know what makes your colleagues and competitors tick?! We expect the Festival to be as popular as ever this time around so we recommend teams get their entries in early to guarantee a place”.

For further information and an entry form please visit
www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/cambridge or call Gable Events on 01780 470 718.
To find out more about the services of Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People call 01509 638000 or visit www.rainbows.co.uk

Images: Courtesy of Satalight Photography