|
Dubai: The dhow season culminates with the annual Sir Bu Naair race today.
This year, the 49 nautical mile long distance race will start from Sir Bu Naair Island and finish at Mina Seyahi. The 100 odd registered boats will hoist their sails at 07:30 am promptly at and are expected to finish by mid-late afternoon.
It has become a lucrative race with this season's event offering an overall purse of Dh10 million.
The first Sir Bu Naair race was organised in 1991 under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance and Industry, whose wish it was to revive the traditions of the obsolete pearl trade.
Traditions of the dhow
"It is a very important part of our heritage, and one which should not be forgotten," Shaikh Hamdan reiterates every year when visiting Sir Bu Naair for the race.
Sir Bu Naair is an island that represented a strategic point for the sailors as it was used as a stopover point for the pearl diving dhows when they were en route back to Dubai from their long trips at sea.
It is an expensive sport to compete in with each boat costing up to Dh 500,000 to construct. Specialist parts come from various parts of the world but the bulk of each dhow is constructed by local tradesman. However, it could become a sport that sees tradition meet commercialism as Shaikh Hamdan revealed, and even encouraged, sponsorship of boats recently.
"It costs a lot of money for these sailors to compete in these races so if they can get companies to help out in the form of sponsorship then I certainly would not stop it," he said. The dhows are all designed in exactly the same fashion as those used by the pearl sailors of yesteryear with the races divided into three classes of 22 ft, 43ft and 60ft.
Competitors have to abide by strict rules drawn up by race organisers, the Dubai International Marine Club (DIMC) who are responsible for organising all of the traditional races. At the moment, the sport has been competed by UAE as well as GCC nationals but that could change as Shaikh Hamdan hopes to bring it to a wider audience.
"It is not a closed door," he said.
"If teams from Oman, Bahrain or wherever want to compete in the races they are welcome too, providing their boats meet the conditions."
The upcoming race wraps up another exhaustive water sports season in the UAE and has attracted a record number of entries.
The Dubai International Marine Club is probably the best place for viewing as most races finish just off its shores.
|
