Date: Sun 26 January 2025
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm (Provisional)
Where: Falls Creek Resort, Rockey Valley Lake
Parking: Free on the resort and event site

Distances, categories and divisions:

1km : Tri-point Open 20's 
200m: Open, Women and Mixed 10's - Premier & Senior
200m: Mixed 20's - Premier & Senior
200m: Open 10's -  ACP
200m: Open 20's -  BCP

Boats used: 
6 Standard DVB Champion boats

Race Draw
TBA

Race Map
TBA

Site Map
View here

Toilets:
Public on-site plus hired unisex cubicles (Includes access all abilities)

Club Marquees: 
All club marquees must be weighted - sand bags, weights, or water weights. 

Newbies category:
"Newbie" paddlers must be six months or less in membership from sign-up.
Four experienced paddlers per boat required
L3 Sweep or above
Drummers can be of any gender, age or experience

Age Categories

Within the Seniors category, the DBV By-Laws specifically enable clubs to put together crews based on age. To provide some flexibility while maintaining fairness, the rules allow Senior A, B and C age crews to include up to two ‘out of age, i.e. younger paddlers in a Standard Boat and one in a Small Boat.  There is no need to apply for an exemption to do this. Clubs can also enter a specific age category by including up to 4 Junior members of their club Clubs in a Small Boat and up to 8 Juniors in a Standard boat, without this affecting their age category. 

It is important to be aware that there is no barrier to entering a crew with more than two ‘out of age’ paddlers – it is just that the crew entry would need to ‘drop’ to reflect the age grouping of the additional out of age paddlers. The following examples may assist understanding if there are more than 2 under-age paddlers:

Handicapping

The current understanding for DBV Regattas is that a category will not run unless at least three teams are in the category.  In order to provide races for all Senior categories (A, B and C), our Regattas combine the three senior age groups into one senior category.  In an attempt to ‘level the playing field’, we use a handicap system so that the older paddlers are not disadvantaged in any race against younger paddlers. The handicapping system works by providing rounds, not heats and finals. Usually, there are three rounds but sometimes only two, depending on how busy the program is. Times from rounds are added together, and then the handicap is applied. The handicapping system can also be applied where there is a single race, e.g. the 5.5km race at Geelong. The handicapping system does not apply where we have heats and finals.

Before introducing the handicapping system in Victoria, work was undertaken by Chris Alexandrou, Serghei Cucsa and Philippa McLean to examine the race results from Auschamps over a number of years and to look at the patterns in times. This advice was forwarded to DBV and accepted for use over a couple of seasons, then to be reviewed in the light of experience and Victorian results compared to the national trends. In Seniors’ events, where Senior A, B and C age crews might be competing against each other the following formula is used:

• Senior A = 1.00 i.e. the time recorded by a crew is assessed at the actual time recorded
• Senior B = 0.97 i.e. the time is multiplied by 0.97 to get a revised/handicapped time
• Senior C = 0.92 i.e. the time is multiplied by 0.92 to get a revised/handicapped time

DBV used the handicapping system in some regattas last season and will continue to trial implementation during this season. DBV is continually reviewing results to determine if the current formula is appropriate.

Trophies/awards

For categories of three crew: 1st and 2nd place awarded
For categories of four or more crew: 1st, 2nd and 3rd awarded

Which divisions and categories is the handicapped system used and other information:
TBA

Code of Conduct
Dragon Boat National Code of Conduct 

Victorian By-Laws and other relevant documents
View here

Volunteers or Officials
Register 

Chief Official
TBA

Weather
http://www.bom.gov.au/places/vic/falls-creek/forecast/

Cost:
Adults: $45, Juniors/Students: $22.50

Food and Beverage vendors available

• TBC

Crew and entry timelines
1 May 2024, 8am - crew entries open
19 January 2024, 11:59pm - crew entries close
26 January 2024, 8am - crew modifications close

Event approved Permit
TBA