To be good takes effort, while to be the best, the finest there is; takes real commitment and dedication at another level altogether. Given the turnout for the Annual Awards last weekend, where a handful of people put in a lot of effort, it’s sad to report that the vast majority of the Dabs (over 90%) made no effort at all. It felt like most thought it better or easier just to stay home and watch Netflix. The same can be said of the support we got for the Vaal and our last marathon etc etc – sadly the interest and effort in supporting our club stuff is dwindling. Yes, we all have family, friend, work and other commitments, and yes most of us have financial pressures too; so yes it’s impossible to do it all; and yes not everything is for everyone; but if more of us don’t start to make a little more effort in getting behind our club stuff (instead of almost none at all), then we’ll have to stop calling ourselves ‘The Finest Canoe Club in the Whole Dam Universe.’ And slowly but surely Dabs will die….
The workers behind the scenes’ will stop trying, the fun club events and races will cease to happen, and the comradery that was once so magnificent will fade away into obscurity. Like JCC, RAC, WITS canoeing and our neighbor’s at the sailing club. What club? Just a dilapidated club house and a few odd sailors. The dam will become like a gym, where people arrive, say hello to, and train with a few others, before going off to their own insular lives, while our clubhouse will likely become a restaurant with a fine view. From where people will have long lunches while watching the 96 year-old Tony Frotfoot take 3 hours to do 3 laps, before coming in for refreshment.
Or if we want, we can take a bit more interest in Dabs club stuff – and keep our clubhouse – and enjoy a drink or two – while watching the 106 year-old Tony Frotfoot take 3 hours to do 1 dam lap. We just need to make a little more effort. And the good news is that there’s still lots of Dabs events to consider supporting this year:
• 16 Aug: Dabs Vaal trip
• 21 Aug: Inaugural Dabs Backwater Ultra (24 & 12 Instead of 4-hour enduro)
• 12&13 Sep: LBV SA K3 – Dabs’ River Race
• 2&3 Oct: Fish (Not our race but our Dabblers are playing, Brad managing)
• Mid Oct: 10in1
• 25 Oct: Dabs hosting sprint schools league race 2
• 21&22 Nov: Vaal (Inherited from the dying JCC)
• Early Dec: 2026 Awards and Dabs Dinner
• Plus there’s all the other stuff from Lowveld to Pete Marlin etc etc
This piece will likely draw some shots from the sidelines, so for the record, it was written at the request of management, just as management asked for a scribbler to do the Dabs News; and putting this together raised the question: ‘to scribble or not to scribble’. Three and a half years, 182 weeks, 127 articles. Two lovely tributes from management that are truly treasured, but sadly far, far, far more negativity than anything else from the readers; many being from mates:
• ‘You posted pics of every other Dabs member that did the race apart from me’
• ‘PSG???? I’m not sure. Let’s give our sponsors the milage they deserve’
• ‘I was third in short course mixed doubles and you didn’t mention me’
• ‘Who writes this – the chirps are not appreciated’
• ‘What about my son – why didn’t you name him’
• ‘Why do you only write about your river races’
• ‘Maybe you should try using spellcheck’
• ‘Publish that and you’re dead’
• ‘My name was spelt wrong’
• ‘Blah Blah Blah Blah’
Newsflash – reports can’t all be rosy, they can’t cover everything or everyone; the intent is simply to share stuff about our club and our sport, to hopefully garner a bit more interest and build a bit of gees. The scribbler is an amateur, pulling any newsletter together takes time; and it’s done without pay or perk, so the complaints are noted but mostly laughed off, and because he has a thick skin, it’s all good; until management decides otherwise. But with all this there are thoughts that news letters are old school; so he’s hoping that some youngster will take over with cool video content – if we still have interest in being the finest club in the whole dam universe. So the scribbler will keep on doing what he enjoys doing for now, most especially a summer Time Trial followed by beers with friends while taking in an amazing sunset.
Till next time
Go Dabs