Winterlude saw events held at Dow's Lake again this year. I missed the Bed Race this time out, but attended a more recent addition to the festival. The Ice Dragon Boat Festival took place this year for the third year in a row. An off-shoot of the summer races that take place each year at Mooney's Bay, this one is organized and held on Dow's Lake as part of Winterlude. Teams sign up and go through a series of races to determine finalists on a 200 metre course set up on the Canal skateway. I came up from the north end of the lake and found one such race being set up. The boats are mounted onto an apparatus with a double set of long skate blades, and the paddlers are given sticks with spikes to drive into the ice as opposed to the oars they're used to for summer races. Aside from the paddlers, each boat has someone manning the rudder, and someone at the front manning a drum and yelling at everyone once the race starts.
And so they were off. I have more from this tomorrow.
..the Ice Dragon Boat Festival had a GREAT sunny day. Dow's Lake looks so different than when I was there.
ReplyDeleteIce boat race, that's interesting :)
ReplyDeleteThat must have been spectacular to watch.
ReplyDeleteLooks like it is lots of fun!
ReplyDeleteCertainly a lot of fun !
ReplyDeleteThat must be very funny! :)
ReplyDeleteThis is such fun, clever to find a way do boat on ice.
ReplyDeleteInteressante, aproveito para desejar a continuação de uma boa semana.
ReplyDeleteAndarilhar
Dedais de Francisco e Idalisa
O prazer dos livros
Looks like a great way to enjoy winter. I talked to my daughter the other day and she said that a few days before that the cinditions on the Rideau Canal had been just about perfect and she and her husband skated the entire length.
ReplyDeleteHello, that looks hard but fun to watch. Wishing you a happy day!
ReplyDeleteThat city knows how to do winter!
ReplyDeleteIce Dragon Boats! Wow that looks like fun. But rather chilly out there on the ice.
ReplyDeleteMaking the best of winter, and there's been a lot of winter to make the best of this year. lol
ReplyDeletenow this is something that would be cool to see. or even test out. what fun!! or at least it looks cool fun?! ( ;
ReplyDelete@Tom: much colder at present!
ReplyDelete@Sami: it's quite something to see.
@Marleen: it was indeed.
@Italiafinlandia: emphasis on fun.
@Gattina: indeed!
@Ella: I thought so.
@Joan: that it is.
@Francisco: thanks!
@David: I haven't walked the full length in one go this year, but I believe it's still open.
@Eileen: thank you!
@Marie: that we do.
@Shammickite: yes, but well worth coming out to see.
@Anvilcloud: that's true!
@Beth: very much so!
Boats on ice. Could it be an Olympic sport?
ReplyDeleteJanis
GDP
This looks like great fun! the Olympics will probably get the idea and kill the fun in it.
ReplyDeleteNow that looks like fun.
ReplyDeleteOh my, I am trying to imagine the sounds...drums, the sticks hitting the ice, the crowds on the banks...what a great warming activity!
ReplyDeleteOh too bad you missed Bed Race (that looked fun!) but this one looks lot of fun, too! Great boat design :-)
ReplyDeleteFine adaptation, Winterlude!
ReplyDeleteAnd what a fine-looking day they had for it!
ReplyDeleteThat's a wonderful wintersport.
ReplyDeleteAs children we were 'prick sledding', going forward at our small ledge with sticks with a nail in it.
That looks like lots of fun.
ReplyDelete@Janis: the Olympics does seem to go for weird stuff.
ReplyDelete@Red: I suspect that you're correct.
@Sharon: it was.
@Barbara: there's a good deal of noise and cheering.
@Tamago: I can catch that one next year again.
@Cloudia: that it is.
@RedPat: they had good weather for it.
@Jan: these sticks wouldn't be that different.
@Bill: it was!
This looks like a good place for some (lots) of that Vikingfjord vodka!
ReplyDeleteWhat fun! I love the idea of ice boats like these. I look forward to seeing more tomorrow. :-)
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun!
ReplyDeleteA Bed Race? Sounds fun, as this, reminds me of the Heneley On Todd regatta! You gotta go with what you have!
ReplyDeleteOh! I've never seen that kind of race.
ReplyDeleteThis looks like fun. I wonder if those spikes chew up the ice and cause problems for skaters later.
ReplyDeleteGreat shots of the Dragon Boat activities ~ ^_^
ReplyDeleteHappy Day to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
I think that would be such fun to see!
ReplyDeleteLots of fun!
ReplyDeleteHere in the UK we have the Oxford v Cambridge boat race coming in April.
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boat_Race_2019
But your ice race looks amazing and such fun.
Lovely photographs William, enjoy this month of March.
All the best Jan
@Catalyst: hah!
ReplyDelete@DJan: it's quite an event.
@Diana: it is!
@Iris: indeed!
@Catarina: it's only been done here the last three years in Ottawa, first time in North America. It had been done in China during winter.
@Kay: they flood the ice regularly, so whatever damage is done to the surface is remedied quickly.
@Carol: thank you!
@Jeanie: I had a blast.
@Klara: definitely!
@Jan: thank you!