KUWAIT CITY, April 28: The 2010 Q8 Raft Race Competition will commence on Friday, April 30 at the Hilton Kuwait Resort and 25 teams comprised of health loving sport enthusiasts are expected to participate. The Raft Race is organized by Legends Corporation.
Participating teams have expressed tremendous excitement to the Arab Times saying that they are looking forward to the competition and most importantly to having plenty of fun.
John Leighton-Dyson, Captain of Gunner, said that his team is comprised of four men and three women - American, Kuwaiti and British friends; “It is our first time competing in this type of raft race. We are probably the oldest team in the race, our average age in near the 50s so our expectations are not very high but we will do what we can. We just want to have a good day and enjoy ourselves,” he said.
There will be three categories of competitions - men, women and mixed. According to the rules of the race, the number of men and women should be equal in mixed crew teams. Some of the teams are being sponsored by their companies and some are just a group of friends wishing to have a good time.
The rules further state that competitors must be above 14 years in any category. No special skills are required as the inflatable rafts can be powered by muscle force only using uniform paddles provided with the rafts. Crew members should remain the same between the heat and the final. Only one substitute per team is allowed in any category.
Csaba Elek, captain of one of the four teams are being sponsored by Fly Dubai said that a few of his team members have competed in this type of event previously and some of them have no experience at all.
“This is my fourth year competing in a raft race. But there are people more experienced than me. I’m looking forward to the race on Friday as the training sessions went well and the water was really nice at the Hilton Kuwait Resort. I’ve invited plenty of people so I expect it will be like a football match with people cheering the rafters on,” he said.
Elek stated that the team does not expect much, they hope to achieve good results but the main purpose for joining is to have fun.
On her part, Captain of one of the six Honda car brand teams, Lamya Al-Essa, said that she and her team have participated in raft racing competitions in Messila and Aqua Park and won a few awards. However, she said this race will be different and much more difficult.
“The rafts that we are competing on are inflatable not welded. They are easier to use because they are lighter but they need specific tactics to control. If the weather is severe, it will be like white water rafting,” she said.
Participants were able to register their teams from April 3 - 20. Participation at the daily training sessions and in the competition (in all categories) was subject to payment of a one time fee of KD 600 for team group (all events, maximum team number between 20 to 30); KD 450 for team group (all events, maximum team number between 10 to 20); and KD 300 for team group (all events, maximum team number up to 10) payable upon commencement of training by the different team groups.
Captain of Cool Britania, Nicholas Fenton, added that the team is not sponsored by anyone; they are just looking for a fun day out. “We were down at the Hilton this past Tuesday for a training session and it was fun. The rafts are of good quality but it takes a lot of hard work. We haven’t competed in this type of race before, the nine of us are all good friends who decided to come together and participate in what sounded like a fun and interesting day over the weekend,” he said.
Oil service company, Lambarjay is sponsoring two teams comprising of their employees, Team Penguin and The Blue Sharks, one team is only men and the other is mixed; “We are eight members on the team but I’m not sure if all of them will be participating. Our company is sponsoring us to increase employees’ team spirit. They only informed us about it last week and they are taking it very seriously so we have been training everyday,” said Captain of the Team Penguin, Naim Al-Jabari.
He added that not all employees talk to each other, “So it will be good to know each other. We will not win, that’s for sure but we will have fun. Synchronization is the issue, I have to synchronize eight people at the same time, so it is a bit difficult and we have to keep on our lane or we will be disqualified,” said Al-Jabari.
 He expressed excitement regarding the best T-Shirt competition which he said his team will definitely win.
Tickets were available for sale prior to the event, however they can also be purchased on the day of the event and the rates are: KD 12.000 for adults, KD 6.000 for children up to 12 years, and KD 2.000 for children up to age five. Entry fee includes cold and hot snacks, as well as unlimited consumption of refreshments.
Additional activities in the event will include children playground, beach volleyball, beach football, DJ-dancing, karaoke and costume show.