Operation White Beach 2007 was the follow-up expedition to the typhoon-ravaged mission to Boracay a year earlier. The objective was to demonstrate Liechtenstein naval supremacy at the Boracay International Dragon Boat Festival and to engage in a rigorous fuel testing program for the duration of the event.

A Navy contingent of 12 paddlers and numerous supporters departed Hong Kong on Wednesday evening for an overnight reconnaissance mission in Manila under the leadership of Lt. Streun. The good Lieutenant organized ground transportation and accommodation at the Royal Bellagio Hotel in the heart of Manila’s nightlife district, where Admiral Colani and Commander Mei stayed in the appropriately-themed ‘Galleon Room’! After having established base the reconnaissance team proceeded with a thorough investigation of the neighborhood’s nocturnal activities. We infiltrated numerous establishments of dubious nature including ‘Ringside’, a venue featuring ‘Lady Boxing’ and the very entertaining but entirely politically incorrect ‘Midget Boxing’.

Thursday morning required an 0800hrs hotel departure for our domestic flight to Caticlan. The strain of the previous night’s urban survival training was already visible on many faces as the sun bore down in 30-plus degree heat from a cloudless sky. This was going to be a long, hard operation likely to push many Sailors to the limit!

We arrived in Boracay around noon where we proceeded to our base at ARTISTA Boracay on Diniwid (pronounced “Dini-Weed”) Beach. After a short lunch – which you are advised to order well in advance all over the island – the Navy made its way to the race venue for a training session at 1500hrs. We also met up with our remaining crew members for the event: three powerful paddlers from Team Italia for the engine room in mid-ship and three light and fast-paced Filipinos to push the back of the boat. We used the following hour to familiarize ourselves with the equipment (fast and slippery fiberglass boats) and the race course – 300m and 500m along Boracay’s famously white White Beach.

Thereafter Admiral Colani and Lt. Streun attended a lengthy team manager’s meeting which took forever to explain the rules (“You must have the same number of paddlers on the boat at the finish line as you had at the start!”) and drawing lanes for the 500m races next day. We picked Heat 4 in Lane 3 (the ‘fast lane’) against local favorites Bugsay Boracay and De La Salle University.

After the welcome ceremony and cocktail we called it an early night and retired to our base to regain some of the strength lost the previous night.

Friday was an 0615hrs wake-up call followed by 0630hrs breakfast and 0700hrs departure on foot (30-45 mins) along the beach to the race course. Today was solely dedicated to the 500m races, which is not normally the Navy’s strongest distance. However, we saw it as an important training ground for various 500m races to come later this season. Clearly an underdog among the strong local competition, we focused on keeping our own pace and rhythm intact, irrespective of the race position. And indeed, our first 500m heat turned out to be an excellent ‘chug piece’ with the Navy trailing the second placed team only by half a boat length for a third place finish.

In the Repechage we were lined up against 1925 APO Paddlers Club, Manila Dragons and Hong Kong rivals Seagods. With only a slim chance to advance to the semifinals our objective was clear: to beat the Seagods! Which we did in style by coming third again and relegating our rivals to fourth and last. It was an impeccable paddling performance with the entire boat staying in synch and not falling apart under pressure. We promptly celebrated our victory with a case of San Miguel (cost: HK$100 for 24 bottles!!)

Later that night we headed to Cocomangas in order to improve Liechtenstein’s score on the “15 and still standing” shooters list from 20 to 23 by coercing our two reserve paddlers and an attending Liechtensteinian to down the obligatory 15 shooters. It brought our proud nation a step closer to Malaysia and Singapore

Saturday morning was another early wake-up call at 0615hrs, proof again that Operation White Beach is NOT a holiday but a serious naval mission. Thankfully our reserve paddlers were not required for duty as they did not look their freshest!

For the first heat over 300m we were drawn against familiar – and formidable – competition: Bugsay Boracay (again!) and 1925 Paddlers. The currents were considerably stronger today and we made a technical blunder of heading to the starting line somewhat late. We struggled to get the boat lined up straight and there was a clear lack of focus and concentration in the boat. As the starter’s gun went off our boat pointed too far right and every starboard paddler hit the starting buoy during the crucial first ten strokes. We immediately fell behind and didn’t manage to regain the necessary composure to close the gap, finishing third yet again.

It was an unsatisfactory performance but realistically we would have most likely finished third anyway. Strategically it didn’t matter and it was probably good to have that one out of the way. We were now doubly determined to do well in the Repechage where we ended up in Lane 1 against Aqua Fortis, Manila Dragons and the Hong Kong Island Paddler Club. HKIPC are of course a formidable local rival and beating them would not be as easy as the Seagods – even over our preferred distance of 300m. HKIPC was of course equally determined not to lose out against the noisy boys from Liechtenstein so the stage was set for an excellent showdown.

But this time we got it all right: we were early at the starting line, all heads were in the boat and every single Sailor was committed to fight to the finish. Our start was flawless and our pace furious. We paddled so hard there was not a second to catch a glimpse of our race position. In the end, it wasn’t enough to beat HKIPC who finished 2nd. But we gave them a hell of a run for their money, finishing a close third and beating Aqua Fortis in the process. It was a fantastic finish to a terrific weekend of hard racing.

We invested countless pesos into many cases of San Miguel (no Foster’s was available on the island) and spent the rest of the afternoon watching the rest of the competition from the warm shallow waters off the beach. In the end, Camarines Sur won both the Men’s 300m and 500m races while Bugsay Boracay dominated most of the Women’s and Mixed races. HKIPC won the 500m Mixed.

In terms of setting for a dragon boat race, nothing beats Boracay – especially when you’re not faced with a direct hit by a typhoon! But the organizer also did a fantastic job of running a smooth and entertaining event. The HKDBA could certainly learn a lot from the five local ladies who organized the race!

Above all, every Sailor was now of course looking forward to the post race party which in 2006 had left some unforgettable memories with our crew, despite – or maybe because of – the typhoon-wrecked mayhem outside. While this year’s party at Summer Place was not entirely as wild as last year’s it was nevertheless a taxing affair on limbs and livers. While some alcohol-induced casualties were reported in other teams, all our battled hardened seamen survived the night unharmed.

The remaining days were spent recuperating in the sun and playing vigorous games of volleyball that left many a Sailor bruised and battered!