Who says the age of heroes is over? At the construction industry鈥檚 annual charity boat race, Alex Smith watched wannabe dragonslayers vie to see who was the strongest, fastest (and silliest)

A mix of dragons, demons and slaves descended on north London last week for the annual construction Dragon Boat Challenge.

Thirty-six teams from across the industry competed in the event at the West Reservoir in Stoke Newington and raised at least 拢11,000 for homeless charity Crash.

There was an imaginative mix of team names and costumes on the entry list. The Imperial Slaves, representing Kiley, Riley and Parkeray once again pulled out all the stops with their meticulously detailed Thunderbird outfits.

The more eye-catching team names included the Jolly Rogerers (Andrews and Dickens), Skiving for Charity (Construction Products Association) and Hydra and the Vaughanauts (Interserve Projects Harmondsworth).

The overall winner, Mulalley & Hackney Homes Dragons, overcame the Breyer Barracudas and the Jolly Rogerers in a tight final that saw all three teams cross the line together.

Mulalley had the benefit of home advantage as it is currently working on the transformation of the Woodberry Down estate which overlooks the reservoir.

This year鈥檚 mixed champion was Blazing Paddles, aka Rolfe Judd, while Bam, fresh from winning the recent Manchester race, raised the most money.

See the race highlights at

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