Red Bend Catholic College teacher Stephanie Cleary was a Dragon Boating paddler from 2002 to 2009 while Forbes Learning Ladder director Libby Noble paddled with a Sydney club for two years.

Ms Cleary’s association with Dragon Boating started in 2002 when she joined the ‘Sloths’ who were based in Black Wattle Bay in Glebe.

The ‘Sloths’ won their first gold medals for the first time in Adelaide in 2002, building their performances over 2003 and 2004.

“At Perth [Nationals in 2004] we were the best performing club which earned us the right to represent Australia at the World Club Crew Championships at Cape Town, South Africa,” Ms Cleary said.

“After 2005 I tried out for and got into the Australian crew and competed at the World Championships at Berlin in Germany.”

Having represented Australia and NSW in Dragon Boating Ms Cleary admits she was surprised Forbes was looking to start a club.

“It’s amazing that Dragon Boating is coming here,” she said.

As a former Dragon Boat paddler, Ms Noble is also excited at the prospect of having another chance to get on the water since being a member of the Pacific Dragons for two years in the early ‘noughties’.

“We were just the best team – no thanks to me. I just got dragged along,” she laughed.

Although the Noble family will be leaving Forbes before the end of the year, Ms Noble is hoping to help out during Open Day.

While she was with the Pacific Dragons Ms Noble trained twice a week on Sydney Harbour under the Pyrmont Bridge and was even part of the Dragon Boat display in the Sydney Olympics opening ceremony.

“It’s just such fun. It’s really good for social development. You can be a really ordinary paddler but still be a useful paddler.

“It’s a really inclusive sport,” she said.

Ms Cleary said it will be interesting to see how Forbes’ teams start out, and admits her first experience with the Dragon Boats almost stopped her from returning.

“[My sister and I] were sore where we’d never been sore and started getting little blisters on our hands,” she said.

“Then we started to get the real rhythm.”

Ms Cleary said those participating in the Open Day can expect their experience to be “very different at first” but said if participants stick with the sport, they will come to love it.

“It’s a sport people get quite passionate about,” she said.

Full story in last Saturday's Advocate.