OneLife Suffolk take to the water at the East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival Posted on 22nd July 201922nd July 2019 by Gable Events OneLife Suffolk take to the water at the East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival in Lowestoft on Saturday 31st August! With just six weeks to go until Oulton Broad in Lowestoft reverberates to the sound of beating drums and splashing paddles, there is still time to get your team together and join in the annual East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival. More than 20 teams are expected to battle it out in the spectacular races on Saturday 31st August and OneLife Suffolk are amongst the businesses and groups from across the region who have already booked their place on the start line. The team at OneLife are committed to improving local people’s health and wellbeing and are looking forward to the positive health benefits their participation will bring. Adult Weight Management Practitioner, Ann Cottingham has been the driving force behind their entry and the event is a walk in the park for Ann these days after successfully losing 4 stone 7lbs. Ann tells us, “After have my two children, I went up to a size 20/22 then decided to make a change, so I began calorie counting and increasing activity. Since losing weight, I have done a skydive, completed the Yorkshire three peaks, walked a marathon and I am now working towards a four-day trek through Italy and the national three peaks. My confidence has grown so much and now I work with OneLife Suffolk to help others to be the best person they can be, improve their self-confidence and achieve their goals. I am so passionate about what I do, we only get one life, and we have to make the most of it!” As well as participating in the races, the NHS Health Check team from OneLife Suffolk will be offering free screenings throughout the day designed to help prevent heart attacks and strokes. The dragon boat race is open to people of all shapes, sizes and levels of fitness and no previous experience is needed to take part, just plenty of team spirit and enthusiasm. The 30’ dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided by race organisers, Gable Events and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races. Many of the teams will be raising money for their favourite charity and a whole host of good causes are set to benefit. The Festival, sponsored by Warner Leisure Hotels and supported by Lowestoft Journal, promises a fantastic day for competitors and spectators alike with children’s rides and plenty of food and drink for all the family on the bankside. Entry is free to spectators and there is ample ‘pay and display’ parking available in Nicholas Everitt Park. For further information and an entry form, visit www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/eastanglia or call Festival organisers Gable Events on 01780 470 718. To find out more about the services of OneLife Suffolk visit www.onelifesuffolk.co.uk and call 01473 718193 to book your NHS Health check appointment.
Last chance to enter! Posted on 22nd July 2019 by Gable Events Last chance to enter a team in the Nottingham Riverside Festival Dragon Boat Challenge on Sunday 4th August! With just a couple of weeks to go until the annual Dragon Boat Challenge takes place on the River Trent as part of the Nottingham Riverside Festival, there’s still time to enter your team and join over 20 companies and organisations on the start line. The Dragon Boat Challenge on Sunday 4th August is always one of the highlights of the Riverside Festival and no previous experience is needed to take part, just plenty of team spirit and enthusiasm. The colourful 30’ dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided by race organisers, Gable Events, and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races. Don’t worry if you think winning is out of the question as medals and trophies are awarded for the top three crews, top mixed crew and the ‘best dressed’ crew (as fancy as possible!) and there’s a superb incentive to top the fundraising leader board as the crew raising the most money for official charity Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People will receive the special prize of a premiere escape room experience at Escapologic. Last year’s Dragon Boat Challenge raised over £10,000 for Rainbows which is the only hospice in the East Midlands that provides vital care and support to babies, children and young adults with life-limiting illnesses from across the region. By taking part and raising money for Rainbows, the teams will be helping over 400 families to make the most of the short time they have together, making precious, happy memories they can treasure forever. Matt Winn, Corporate Partnership Fundraiser at Rainbows, says, “With so many companies competing for a number of prizes the day has a great atmosphere. More amazing than the event however is what Rainbows are able to do with the fundraising support we receive from the crews taking part. The hospice only receives a small amount of guaranteed funding, so support at events like this make it possible for us to continue to provide our vital care for those families who need it the most.” Teams and spectators also benefit from being part of the Nottingham Riverside Festival, one of the region’s largest family festivals with a bustling fair and vibrant mix of music, dance, crafts and food from around the world, staged by Nottingham City Council. Media partners to the Dragon Boat Challenge are Notts TV and Business Link East Midlands. For further information and an entry form please visit: www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/nottingham or call Gable Events on 01780 470718. For information about the services of Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People call Matt Winn on 01509 638028 or visit www.rainbows.co.uk
Dragons get ready to roar! Posted on 4th July 2019 by Gable Events Dragons get ready to roar at the Nottingham Riverside Festival Dragon Boat Challenge on Sunday 4th August With just a month to go until the River Trent reverberates to the sound of beating drums and splashing paddles, there is still time to get your team together and join in the annual Nottingham Riverside Festival Dragon Boat Challenge. The warmer weather inevitably turns our thoughts to activities on water and what better way to keep cool than with a day of competitive fun racing a dragon boat alongside your colleagues and friends? The Dragon Boat Challenge, which raises funds for Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People, is one of the highlights of the annual Riverside Festival and up to 40 teams will battle it out in spectacular races on Sunday 4th August cheered on by hundreds of spectators. Businesses and groups across the region are invited to test their mettle against the new and returning crews who have already booked their places on the start line, all whilst raising money for a brilliant cause. Last year’s Dragon Boat Challenge was won by the team from DHL Nottingham with ‘The Interceptors’ crew representing Nottinghamshire Police taking the mixed prize and Blueprint Interiors crowned the charity champions. To take part in the dragon boat racing and help raise money for Rainbows, no previous experience is required, just plenty of team spirit and enthusiasm! The dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races over the 200m race course at Victoria Embankment. Teams and spectators also benefit from being part of one of the region’s largest family festivals with a bustling fair and vibrant mix of music, dance, crafts and food from around the world, staged by Nottingham City Council. Challenge media partners are Business Link East Midlands and Notts TV. The Challenge last year raised over £10,000 for Rainbows which supports over 400 children and their families across the East Midlands. Tom Stanyard, Corporate Partnership Fundraiser at Rainbows, said, “The Dragon Boat Challenge is an amazing event. With up to 40 companies competing for a number of prizes the day has a great atmosphere. More amazing than the event however is the generosity of the crews who take part. It is only through your support at events like this that we are able to help and care for those families who need it most.” The top fundraisers for Rainbows will win the charity trophy plus a special prize of a premiere escape room experience at Escapologic. For more information and an entry form please call Gable Events on 01780 470718 or visit www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/nottingham. For information about the services of Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People call Tom Stanyard on 01509 283919 or visit www.rainbows.co.uk
Still time to enter a team! Posted on 4th July 20194th July 2019 by Gable Events Still time to enter a team into the Cambridge Dragon Boat Festival on Saturday 7th September With just two months to go until the River Cam reverberates to the sound of beating drums and splashing paddles, there is still time to get your team together and join in the annual Cambridge Dragon Boat Festival. The warmer weather inevitably turns our thoughts to activities on water and what better way to keep cool than with a day of competitive fun racing a dragon boat alongside your colleagues and friends? The Dragon Boat Festival, which raises funds for Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust (ACT), is one of the highlights of the year in Cambridgeshire and up to 40 teams will battle it out in spectacular races on Saturday 7th September, cheered on by hundreds of spectators. Businesses and groups across the region are invited to test their mettle against the new and returning crews who have already booked their places on the start line, all whilst raising money for a brilliant cause. Last year’s Dragon Boat Challenge was won by the ‘Row-Bots’ team from CMR Surgical with ‘Puff’ representing Team Consulting taking the mixed prize and Cambridge Commodities crowned the charity champions. The 2018 Festival raised an incredible £30,000 for official charity ACT which is the only charity dedicated to making a difference for patients at Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie Hospitals. The 30’ dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided by race organisers, Gable Events, and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races over the 200m course in Fen Ditton. No previous experience is needed to take part, just plenty of team spirit and enthusiasm. The Festival, supported by Cambridge Independent, Cambridge Edition and Star Radio promises a fantastic day for competitors and spectators alike with Chinese themed entertainment, children’s rides, inflatable activities and plenty of food and drink for all the family on the bankside. And there’s a superb incentive to top the fundraising leader board as the crew raising the most money for Addenbrooke’s will receive a fabulous group experience at Cambridge Escape Rooms voted the number one rated fun thing to do in Cambridge! Emily Willdigg, ACT’s Events Lead is looking forward to building on the success of the event last year, “We hope that businesses will support our much-loved hospitals by getting a team together. With the help of many generous supporters, we can provide funds so that our local hospitals can offer the very best care day after day, year after year.” For further information and to book your place on the start line this September please visit www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/cambridge or call Gable Events on 01780 470718. For information about the services of Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust, call Emily Willdigg on 01223 217757 or visit http://www.act4addenbrookes.org.uk/
Hotels go ‘head-to-head’! Posted on 3rd July 2019 by Gable Events Hotels go ‘head-to-head’ at the East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival this August! The eagerly anticipated East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival, supported by Lowestoft Journal, is a great opportunity for local companies, organisations and clubs to enter a team and do battle on the waters of Oulton Broad, Lowestoft, whilst raising money for the charity of their choice. For the last few years, there has been particularly heightened friendly rivalry between two of the entered teams, Gunton Hall and Corton Coastal Village. With owners Warner Leisure Hotels as race sponsor, and the addition of two new crews representing their holiday resorts in Newark and North Wales, the competition is set to be hotter than ever when the teams take to the waters of Oulton Broad on Saturday 31st August. Whilst all four Warner crews are looking forward to a superb day out, a fantastic team building event and the chance to raise important funds for their nominated charity, Macmillan Cancer Support, the crew managers from each team admit that beating the other will make the day that little bit more special. This will be Gunton Hall’s fifth year at the event and Corton’s fourth with the teams sharing the honours so far in the ‘head to heads’. Corton’s General Manager, Fern Chapman, is ready for the challenge; “Our team is gearing up for what I’m sure will be another fantastic event. We narrowly pipped Gunton to the post in the third heat last year, and we’re looking forward to taking on the two new Warner teams from Thoresby Hall and Bodelwyddan Castle this time around. The event really brings the community together and it’s a great opportunity for us to raise much needed funds for our chosen charity, Macmillan.” Gunton’s new General Manager Mina Fattahi agrees, “The Dragon Boat Festival is one that the Gunton Hall team has come to look forward to each year, and we can’t wait to reignite the friendly rivalry between our friends over at Corton. It was a very close race last year and we’re expecting the same level of anticipation in this year’s race.” This battle of the hotels is sure to add some extra spice to what promises to be a fantastic day’s racing and it also gives other hotels and resorts an opportunity to put their name forward and enter a team to try and become the best in the region. To take part in the dragon boat racing, no previous experience is required, just plenty of team spirit and enthusiasm! The dragon boats, qualified helms and all racing equipment are provided and each crew is guaranteed a minimum of three races. The Festival is an open charity event with entrants invited to raise money for the charity of their choosing. Teams opting for the popular gold and silver entry packages, which include a charity donation as well as marketing benefits, can also nominate their favourite charity to benefit from their donation. Gunton Hall and Corton Coastal Villages, both in Lowestoft, are in a portfolio of 14 country and coastal properties around the UK owned by Warner Leisure Hotels which specialises in activity breaks for adults. Warner Leisure Hotels is the proud sponsor of the 2019 East Anglian Dragon Boat Festival and they are working together with partner charity, Macmillan Cancer Support to fund a range of help and advice for people affected by cancer. For further information and an entry form please visit: www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/eastanglia or call Gable Events on 01780 470 718. For information about Warner Leisure Hotels, visit www.warnerleisurehotels.co.uk or call 01442 863245