OCON TAKES A CRASH COURSE IN DRAGON RACING
Held to raise money for CRASH, the charity established by the property and construction industries to provide practical help to homeless people, the Dragon Boat Race has become one of the highlights of the construction industry calendar. The event began in London 13 years ago but is now well-established in Salford quays, attracting 40 crews to battle it out along the 200m course in front of hundreds of spectators.
This year marks Ocon’s fourth attempt to paddle to victory and, undeterred by the torrential rain on the day, the team gave it their best shot, coming in second in the first heat after a neck-and neck race to the finish line. Things took a turn for the worse in heat two however, when drummer, Nicola Aston, lost her balance, fell head first into the water and had to be rescued while the rest of the crew rowed on. Unsettled by the mishap, the team was somewhat more reticent during heat three and finished up 22nd out of 23 teams in the final line up.
The team’s 30ft boat was skippered by Ocon’s estimating manager, Ian Welford.
Comments Ian: “The Dragon Boat Challenge is not only great fun it’s a fantastic team-building exercise and a superb way to raise money for a worthy cause. Thanks to the willingness of construction companies to risk getting very wet over the years the Dragon Boat Challenge has raised more than £200,000 to help the homeless and Ocon is proud to be involved with that fantastic effort.”
