Get ready for a drag race from the start… with Shaw and Partners putting $5000 on the Hot Shot to ensure our 500+ competitors in the Doctor are furiously fast and raring to race, from the get-go.

The first male and female paddler to the Hot Shot– the first turn east, a kilometre from the start off Rotto’s Thomsons Bay – will score $2500 for their fast-flying efforts.

“It’s sure to spice things up a bit, a quick sprint to get the field moving,” said Event Director, Dean Gardiner.    “With another $5000, our prize pool soars to a record $265 000.  That type of money is unheard of in our sport.   It’s unbelievable and all we can say is a big thank you to Shaw and Partners.

“There’s less than five weeks to race day, so this little carrot should be the motivation to step up your training and be prepped for a drag race to that turning marker.  Just remember when you make the turn, there’s still at least 26 km to go!” said Dean.

To be staged for the first time in three years on Saturday November 26, the Shaw and Partners Doctor, the 27 km downwind race from Rottnest Island to Perth’s Sorrento Beach, is revered by paddlers the world over and is the finale of the five-race Shaw and Partners WA Race Week.

Overwhelmed with entries from all corners of the globe, more than 500 paddlers will converge on Perth for Shaw and Partners Race Week, set to be the biggest, richest week in ocean paddling history.   It will be the 19th running of the iconic Doctor, with the race conceived by Gardiner in his years living and paddling in Perth, and first held in 2001.  

For further information go to https://oceanpaddler.com/its-a-drag-race