Dragon boating teams across the country are gearing up for their biggest test yet – the Club Crew World Championships.
But for the southernmost crew, the Ōtepoti Dragons, they’ll be competing with an even greater mettle – after all, their build-up has had them training in the brutal Dunedin winter.
"Yeah, it's definitely character-building," said Donna Burkett, a paddler from the Ōtepoti crew.
Another paddler, Rochelle Cooper, said there hands are left "throbbing" after every session out on the water.
"We were all crying in the boat on Sunday 'cause our hands were so cold," she said.
Some sessions for the city's women's premier dragon boat team have meant training in -2C.
But no matter the conditions, the Ōtepoti Dragons have been digging deep in preparation for the Club Crew World Championships in Ravenna, Italy, this week.
"Normally in the season we train about three times a week but as we have been on this campaign, we're up to six times a week," paddler Gwen Slote said.
"We're going to make a final, definitely! We're so determined!" Cooper added with a laugh.
The determination within the whole team has been spearheaded by coach Ray Cooper.
"He believes in his soul that we could all be Olympians – best in the world!" teammate Madi Gyde said.
But due to Otago’s sometimes challenging climate, there's been days they couldn't make it out on the harbour.
However, thanks to some Kiwi ingenuity, the coach has made it work – by building an indoor tank in his basement.
The monster creation allows the team to train rain, hail, or shine.
"For me, it was just thinking outside the square and I have seen different flumes like that," he explained.
"It was more a thing of 'we don't have the money and the funding to build a flash facility' and I just tried to do it on the cheap!"
In true Kiwi no. 8 number wire fashion, the flume is built out of pallets and polythene, the coach said – and "a good bit of labour".
New Zealand has multiple crews set to race on the waters in Ravenna this week, all of them are self-funded to get there.
"There's no second chances, there's no second attempts," Ray Cooper said.
"I need these ladies to realise they have to leave it out there on the racecourse."
SHARE ME