The boat races of Tapia de Casariego is a nice snapshot of summer on the west of Asturias…..
The boat races has been held since 1965 to pay homage to the time before the arrival of the outboard engine when the fishermen of Tapia de Casariego would race each other back to port to get to the fish market first.
These heavy wooden boats are not easy to maneuver as you can see on the oarsman’s faces.
Beat that Oxford and Cambridge!! 🙂
You’ll find a lot of races like this in many of the fishing ports of west of Asturias. The race is held around the middle of August during the Interceltic Festival.
«A trainera is a traditional boat of the Cantabrian sea coast at the southern end of theBay of Biscay, propelled by oars, and formerly sailing. It is a boat of fine lines, raised prow and rounded stern, that very well resist the waves of the Cantabrian sea. Traineras were formerly dedicated to bring in the day’s catch of anchovies and sardines from sea to market, usually competing to sell their caught fish before. Today, this historical tradition have become a major sport of racing.
Today they are manned by a crew of 13 oarsmen sitting in pairs of two (except for the thirteenth, who sits alone in the bows) and a cox standing up facing them in the stern. The bowman or bow-woman also has a 15th oar which is used for helping with the steering in tight turns. As is common in other such events, the cox is responsible for steering the boat and keeping up the morale of the team. Each boat flies a particular flag and wears a team strip and often the boat is painted in the team’s colours as well.
More recently, female teams have also begun to take plains in the trainera regattas proper» Wikipedia.
More info: Tourism Office of Tapia de Casariego
If you want more information contact Where is Asturias at info@whereisasturias.com