By Niamh Byrne
On August 29th last Dragons at the Docks happened once again at Dublin’s Capital Dock, Grand Canal. As before there was no shortage of celebration with people coming from all over Dublin to support the rowers. Eight different docking points were set up for the boats, with eight different teams constantly vying for their chance on the river. The event is supported by 53 different companies over Dublin, including Cairn Homes, Dalata Hotel Group, and Glenveagh.
Over the past five years Dragons at the Docks has donated over 1.1 million to Dublin Simon Community, Aware, Alone, ISPCC, Women’s Aid and other charities. It has helped Dublin’s Simon Community acquire 21 homes for 27 formerly homeless people over Ireland.
The Simon House is a charity dedicated to eradicating homelessness. The Simon communities of Ireland are a network of independent communities throughout the country that provide shelter, housing and treatment services to people facing homelessness. With a proud history of 50 years attending to the needs of locals, the Simon Community works to end long-term homelessness in Ireland.
A DJ was on site to keep everybody’s spirits up from start to finish, encouraging the competitors to partake in exercises such as jumping jacks and other kinds of warm-ups. For the remainder of the challenges he played music which kept the audience dancing and mingling amongst each other, ensuring a party atmosphere prevailed.
To locals’ delight (as well as mine!) an ice cream van came along offering ice creams and slush puppies free of charge for the event. This was guaranteed to put a big smile on everyone’s face!
Also on standby for the event was St John Ambulance. St John Ambulance began in Guinness’s brewery in 1903. The organisation, run almost entirely by volunteers, has been at the forefront of acute care and training throughout Ireland for over 100 years. They believe in the ideal that everyone should have immediate access to care no matter where they are or what they are doing at the onset of illness or injury.
In order to take part in the event next year all you have to do is register your team online. Then you can start gathering your crew! All teams must have 10 paddlers with one drummer in the boat, with at least four paddlers being female. On the day up to 84 teams will participate. Prizes will be awarded 1st place in each sector, and 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the Dragons at the Dock’s challenge.
Last but not least, a big cheer for the overall winners of the tournament, William Fry. The law firm located on Grand Canal Quay finished the race at a whopping time of 1.00.16. Second place honours went to O’Connor Sutton Cronin Engineers, and third place to Cairn Homes.The day finished successfully, with most people ending with a pint in the Brewdog. A big congrats to all involved. Roll on 2025!
