Hot Racing in Kenya — Lamu New Year’s Dhow Race

Every January 1, crews of local watermen gather on Shela Beach on Lamu Island in Kenya for the most prestigious race of the year. The traditional Arab dhows, unchanged for centuries, are made by hand from local mangrove wood and fabric.

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8 Responses So Far to “Hot Racing in Kenya — Lamu New Year’s Dhow Race”

  • David Smithson says:

    Please keep your politics to yourself on this site.

  • Tom McFarling says:

    I was on that beach in 1972 on my way home from the Peace Corps. Sure is more upscale today. Love those lateen sails. They haven’t changed.

  • Vernon Powell says:

    As a kid, that’s where we had holidays. It always involved hiring a pirogue (lateen sail and twin outriggers). Thats where and how I learnt to sail ! What a great memory. Oh the sunburn !

  • Norman Palmer says:

    Rerninds me of the Bermuda Dingy races. In Egypt I chartered and sailed a Dhow on the Nile River.

    • Lawry Sager says:

      First thing I thought of was how much the it reminded me of Bermuda Dingies. Great fun!