Race Winners!

Aussies dominate! Shannon Eckstein in only his third long distance ski race, won the 2009 Dragon Run, beating compatriots Jeremy Cotter and Tim Jacobs, with South Africans Clint Pretorius and Dawid Mocke coming in 4 & 5. Michele Eray won the women's race in a tight tussle with Aussie Ruth Highman (2nd) and Katie Pocock (NZ) (3rd).

http://www.surfski.info/index.php?option=com_content
http://www.surfski.info/content/view/1159/147/
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http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2009/11/24/161801_sport.html

The third edition of ‘The Dragon Run’ will take place in Hong Kong on Saturday November 21, 2009

Like last year, the race will start in Clearwater Bay, but will then proceed SE to the beautiful and rugged Ninepins Islands, then SW past the spectacular Cape D’Aguilar (home of the HK Marine Reserve) and then to the finish line at the world-renowned tourist destination of Stanley, the home of the famous Stanley Market. The course will cover approximately 24km and, with the seasonal NE monsoon winds blowing, should see 10-20 knot winds and great downwind conditions for the majority of the race. A race map is attached. Given that Hong Kong has a tropical climate, water temperatures at that time of year will be around 23 degrees Celsius, with air-temperature between 18 and 27 degrees.

Hong Kong is famous for its tourist attractions, it shops and its restaurants but it also offers a range of great Eastern and Western cultural experiences. Also, as many of the guys who visited us last year will tell you, it is a truly world class party destination.

Short Course:

This year, running alongside ‘The Dragon Run’, we will also be holding a ‘short course’ which will cover approx 8km’s to be held in the Stanley/Tai Tam Bay which offers more protected conditions. We hope this race will attract as many of those local paddlers as possible who are not competing in the main event, but would like to participate in the day.

In addition, and keeping with the water sports theme of the event, we will also be holding a stand up paddle board race in the Bay.

The exact courses will be confirmed shortly.

Prize Money:

The Dragon Run 2009 - UPDATE - 22 October

We haven’t finalized the main event prize money breakdown yet, but the total purse on offer for ‘The Dragon Run’ will be US$12,600. The total amount of cash prizes will be offered based on the level of (international) competition and the number of competitors in each division and will be at the discretion of the race organizers. The prize money break down will be announced soon.

‘Local’ paddlers - please note that this year we will be presenting prizes for the first ‘local’ paddlers in each division. Details to follow.

Ski and OC rental:

There will be a limited number of Epic and Fenn surf skis, as well as OC1’s, available for rent. If you are interested in participating in the race and need to hire a surf ski please drop an e-mail to roughwaterhongkong@gmail.com (for Epic hire) or kaikane@netvigator.com (for Fenn surf ski and OC1 hire).

For race enquiries, please contact Jon Dingley (dingley@ttg.com.hk) or Andy Orr (aorr@imgworld.com).

Safety Requirements:

This year, the use of life jackets/PFDs and leg leashes will be compulsory.