Paddling teams are being sought for the Bay of Plenty Dragon Boat Club's super 12 dragon boat challenge at the end of this month with a week to go before practice on November 21.

There's room for more paddlers at the super 12 dragon boat regatta.

Regatta organiser and captain of one of the teams, Julie Sach says they have room for another eight or nine teams for the fund raiser.

'It's our main fund raiser for our club,” says Julie. 'It's an annual event up at the lakes, and it's a corporate regatta, we try and get businesses involved locally.”

The have about 22 teams registered for the super 12 event and have room for 30 teams, says Julie.

The super 12 regatta is for crews of 12 in dragon boats designed for 20 paddlers.

'We have got four dragon boats, we can only run so many races in the time allowed,” says Julie.

The club owns two dragon boats and they have borrowed two from the Auckland Dragon Boat Club for the regatta.

'It's quite a logistical exercise.

'For corporate teams it's mixed crews. There's got to be a maximum of six men and you can have as many women as you like. But obviously men are stronger so you can't load your team up with men.”

The boats are the traditional Chinese made fibreglass canoes, hard chine, about 14m long and about 1.2m wide in the middle and tapering towards the ends.

'For the corporate regattas we make it a team building fun event, and try and get a festival atmosphere going,” says Julie. 'So we give each team an hour's training the week before the competition.”

Training is on Saturday November 21.

'They have an appointed time to rock up with as many of their team as they can get together on a Saturday morning and have a go,” says Julie. 'We coach them and teach them how to do it properly, hopefully. And then it's up to them on the day.”

Some crews have entered over a number of years and are becoming competitive as they gain experience, says Julie. There are prizes for the best dressed team. And they come up with some cool names, says Julie. Dirty Oars, Rough Justice, from corrections… Team entry is $300 or $25 per paddler.

'We've had two teams for a number of years and they are both women's teams and we are working really hard at the moment to generate a mixed team of men and women,” says Julie.

'One team is all women, one team is breast cancer survivors and we are building up a mixed team which we are going to be entering into the regatta as a chance for those people to have their first experience of a regatta.

'So we are looking to recruit men to join the club. We have over 50 members at the moment but we want to grow it.”

Dragon boating started in Tauranga just over a decade ago through the breast cancer link with the successful team Boob ops.

'Dragon boating has been researched as the best sport for breast cancer survivors to build up their upper body strength again after surgery,” says Julie.

'So we have the Boob Ops, Bay Dragons, and new mixed team that is yet to be named.

Julie can be contacted by prospective paddlers at 0274 886063.

'It's a good cause, team building. Take a picnic, it's an awesome day.”