Location

National Water Sports Centre - River End Road, Bangholme

Race Draw

https://www.dragonboatvictoria.com.au/regattas/

Parking:

Free within the National Water Sports Centre

Toilets:

Public on-site plus hired unisex cubicles 

Club Marquees: 

All club marquees must be weighted - sand bags, weights, or water weights. No pegs are allowed due to irrigation. 

Boat sizes used:

Standard boats (DBV)

Schedule: (Provisional)

Saturday 9 March

8am - Briefings for Sweeps, Team Managers and key personnel

9am races commence

12:30pm (provisional) - Break for Volunteers and Officials

4pm (provisional) completion

Sunday 10 March

8:30am races commence

12:30/1pm - Break for Volunteers and Officials

2:30pm races completion

2:45pm (provisional) presentations

Food and Beverage options on-site

• Coffee and drinks via Carrum Rowing club rooms
• Grillz On Wheelz
• Thai on the Move
• Simpy K8tering

Victorian By-Laws and other relevant documents

View here

Chief Officials

TBA

Entry timelines

• Entries open 1 February 9am
• Crew entries close: Sunday 3 March 11:59
• Crew/paddler modifications close: Saturday 9 March 8am

Entry Rules

For the 2024 Vic Champs regatta, we aim to maximise the number of races that can be held during the day and ensure fairness in the number of races for participants. In order to achieve this, the following category entry rules will apply. Please review them before entering your teams and ensure you only enter races in which the club is confident about competing in – withdrawing from races on the day of the regatta is extremely disruptive. It is important to note that the Regatta Committee (ROPAG) can only fully determine the race program once they have received all final entries from clubs. Once final entries have been received, categories will be confirmed. Final entries will close on Thursday 28 Feb 2024, at 5 pm.

1. Categories to be offered will include Mixed, Womens and Open 20’s in Premier and Seniors.
2. Distances for the event are 200m, 500m and 2km (over two days commencing 11 am Saturday and concluding approx. 4:30 pm)
3. To encourage the participation of small clubs, a 10’s category is also offered for Mixed, Womens and Open events for Premier and Seniors
4. Clubs that enter a Womens or Open 20's crew can also enter only one Womens or Open 10’s crew irrespective of how many Opens or Womens 20’s crew they enter.
5. Double rostering will not be allowed in all categories, paddles must have two races inbetween
6. Depending on race entries, handicapping may be applied in Senior categories.
7. BCS clubs will be provided with their own category with two races (in 200m &500m events). In addition, these clubs can also enter one additional Premier or Seniors 200m and 500m category as well as the 2km event.
8. In some 10’s and 20's categories, Premiers and Seniors may race together. Results for the Seniors will be handicapped against the following age groups - Senior A, B and C. Due to RevSport constraints, you need to enter in your age group. Please follow age groups by-laws when entering your team on Rev sport.
9. Smaller regional clubs can consider combining in 20’s boats for either Premier or Seniors 20’s. However, they must seek DBV approvals as per by-law CR 2.3.2.

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.

Entry cost: (two day regatta)

$66 for Adults

$43.50 for students and Juniors

$0 for active Dragon Pass holders

Event Permits

Boating Activity Exemption (BAE). View here

Parks Victoria, view here