The dark horse of the dark side? Maybe in 2015.

Digging in deep and establishing a beachhead at 0830 hours in the 68 Mody Road underground parking lot, the Navy had come to establish dragon boat superiority. Unfortunately, we were out-gunned and out-technique'd by the local fisherman, services and association teams. However, we were not and never will be out-classed thanks to the stylish pre- and post- race outfits provided by LCDR Beat.

East Tsim Sha Tsui was a sea of brightly coloured shirts and egos, peppered with occasional shows of sportsmanship that culminated with a throaty rendition of the Liechtenstein Princely Anthem with the Firemen team.

0930 hours. The air was heavy with humidity and pungent with the foul smell of whatever was being pumped into the water. Lane 1, Firemen. Lane 2, Navy. Other lanes, teams. At the sound of the gun, the Navy got off to a strong start with a blistering 30 three-quarter strokes. The transition felt smooth, but we already had begun to slip behind the Firemen. The chug always will be the Navy's forte and with power up calls at 40 and 80 we kept a good pace against the others. But 500m is a lifetime. By the end, the tiredness had gotten the best of the rookies, and maybe even some of the seasoned Sailors, as form and power dwindled in the final 20 strokes. 2'09.966 for P4.

Comical side note: We completely obliterated the DBS Old Boys (2'27.600), who's steersman went Stephen King's Christine with their dragon boat at the Stanley Championships.

Envious side note: The Royal X-men came in second in their heat, earning a straight pass to the finals. They still remain the team to beat for the Navy. Also they got free pizza.

1245 hours. The dreaded R-word. RE-PE-CHAGE, where only P1 gets into the final. But at the HKIDBR, repechage is no joke. After what seemed to be an endless shoulder rotation workout, LCDR Barnaby gave a simple command - "Keep it clean, keep your composure and go all out." BANG! The start, while not as clean, kept us in contention for first. The transition, smoother than POFC Nayef's baby blue gator LV loafers positioned us well for the chug. 100m. 125m. 130m. Suddenly, a flashback to HKIDBR 2013 as our boat began to veer towards Overheat Dragon in lane 4. A lot of mumbling from last year's sailors as a crash looked imminent. Admiral Colani's mind filled with dread, recalling the hundreds of hate posts he manually deleted from the Liechtenstein Princely Facebook. Luckily, steersman Maurice was able to avert another debacle. A power up call at 80 couldn't make up for the precious few seconds we lost correcting course. 2'06.512 for P3.

Consolation Price: We beat the Buzz (2'09.392) by three seconds.

1300 hours. Singha time!

Next year we'll be back stronger, more able to cut bricks and to get that micro-pause at the start of our long strokes. And at least 20 pounds lighter for Sailor Ken.