The Liechtenstein juggernaut continues! Two days after claiming the best result yet at a short-course race in Stanley, the Liechtenstein Princely Navy demonstrated in amazing style that it is also a hugely competitive force over the more demanding – some may say athletic – 500 meter distance.

Like the Navy itself, the Deep Water Bay dragon boat race celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. And like the Navy, the event has gone from strength to strength over the years, attracting some of the most competitive local teams to fight for a highly coveted trophy (and medals!).

Unlike the Warm Up race the previous Friday, weather and sea conditions were perfect this Sunday morning as the Navy established its base in Deep Water Bay. Calm, flat waters beckoned as a warm sunshine heated up the beach.

This would also be the first event that the Navy could put its newly acquired carbon fiber paddles into competitive action – hopefully a crucial advantage in the faster and higher riding fiberglass boats used here.

Knowing that 500m races are won at the finish – and not necessarily at the start – the Admiral and Chief Racing Officer Charlie agreed to stick to the race strategy of the previous year: a deep, powerful LiechtenStart with a toned down “fast 10”, followed by a steady long chug to 40 where the drum comes in for twenty strokes. Counting in a 60, we take the drum out for another twenty and head to 80 for the sprint to the line.

Heat 1 at 0820hrs pitted the Navy against Royal X-Men, the Tai O Shrimp Boat Sports Association, HKUST Alumni Dragon Boat Club and HK & China Gas Co. Aside from a slightly missed start, the strategy was executed well and the Navy finished the heat in second place (2:14:00) behind HK & China Gas (2:12.10) but ahead of the Shrimp Boys (2:15.20). Crucially, a second place finish meant that for the first time since the Navy has been racing here in 2005 we avoided the dreaded Repechage and directly secured a space in the semi finals! Another milestone for the Navy and testament to the fitness level and technical ability of the crew!

In the Admiralty’s eyes, the semi final was the real test of the day, as the Navy (in lane 1) would square off against a very familiar field: Tai Tam Tigers in lane 2, HK & China Gas in lane 3, SMUGs in lane 4 and Freudenberg & Vilene (an old and familiar adversary) in lane 5. Tigers and SMUGs were obviously the main target in terms of bragging rights, so maximum focus had to be employed for the entire duration of the race.

As it turned out, it was close to perfection: a good, but slow start that according to witnesses on shore put us well behind in the first sector. No panic, just focus on each piece of the race. Make it to forty in a good chug. Bring in the drum – focus! Another twenty – beautifully painful. Three, two, one, ready and reach and let’s head for eighty! Drum again! Come on! Move it! Stay long! Out of breath! Out of brains! Out of everything! Cramp in the legs – f*** it! Give it all!

Across the line and wonders of all wonders – the Navy was a dragonhead in front! An amazing result: P1 to the Navy (2:12.19) ahead of SMUGs (2:12.91), Tigers (2:13.38), HK & China Gas (who had beaten us in the first heat; 2:14.45) and Freudenberg (2:18.88)! This meant, in yet another first for the greatest naval force of any landlocked country, we had qualified for the grand Cup Final!

The overwhelming sense of achievement in this victory was hard to describe. It also meant that we could really enjoy ourselves in the Cup Final, as there was little to lose. We were up against the HKIPC itself (determined to win their own event), the Fire Services (a regular cup finalist here every year), Sha Tin Sports Club (who won their semi final in just over two minutes, i.e. twelve seconds faster than the Navy!) and SMUGs. So realistically, this would simply be a race to avoid coming last!

It was late afternoon as we lined up for the final showdown. As the marshalling lady checked off the attending teams, possibly slightly surprised to find Liechtenstein on her list, she was heard as saying “you guys must be really good if you are here!” Yeah baby, you bet! Imagine the fear in the HKIPC team at the prospect of having their signature event stolen by a bunch of noisy Sailors from the Alps that seemed driven by nothing but Fosters fuel!

The Fire Services team was equally determined not to be burnt by a Liechtenstein torpedo and promptly jumped the start. As the race was restarted it didn’t take very long for Sha Tin and HKIPC on our right to pull away and leave us in their choppy wake. This meant our boat was more unsettled than in the earlier heats and contributed to a more messy performance. Glancing to the left, Chief Focus Officer Fred saw that we were ahead of SMUGs and tried to cruise to the finish. But the paddling remained on the messy side and SMUGs stayed in contention. At 70, the stroke quickened and we had to bring the pace back down (“stay long!”) as the finish line was still far away. Once across, it was hard to say whether we had beaten SMUGs, but eventually it was confirmed that we did and actually be a rather large margin (2:08.07 vs. 2:11.13). Sha Tin deservedly won the Cup in 1:56.87, followed by HKIPC (1:57.71) and Fire Services (1:58.82).

Needless to say, this was a very proud day for the Navy: making it into the Cup Final was an achievement in itself and beating the SMUGs by three seconds was the icing on the cake!

Long Live Liechtenstein!