Dragon Boat West

Soooo does anyone have anything to say about who will finish where at ALCAN?  Looks like a tough field of teams competing.  Could make for a great final! :Cheers:

is the grid out?

Just by looking at the list of teams on the website this is my guess at the top 3 and then others after that

 FCRCC Mixed A
 Kai Ikaika Paddling Club
 Gorging Dragons

 FCRCC Mixed B
 Sudden Impact Black
 Masters of D'Zone
 Edgewater Casino - Without Warning
 Pemberton Bald Eagles
 Laoyam Eagles
 San Francisco Dragon Warriors1
 Los Angeles Racing Dragons Black
 Pacific Reach 2
 Superslim Phat Phish Racing
 Calgary Race Club
 Xtreme Reach
 Eye of the Dragon
 Bay Area Dragons
 Legacy
 
 
It's tough to know how well the out of town teams will do, there's always some surprises.

A Final

1. FCRCC A - clear winner
2. Gorging - clear 2nd place
3-5. Dogfight between, Pemberton, Portland (Kai), FCRCC B
6-7. Sudden Impact/San Fran
8. Edgewater Casino (bring down that rate and pull!)
8. Calgary Race Club
9. Layoam

"Who will reign supreme?" is not the question to ask. Not even IF. But how much will it rain. Environment Canada says:
Saturday: Periods of rain. Low 14. High 17.
Hope Sunday's better!  :roll: :roll: :roll: :lol:

The Weather Network says: http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/CABC0308

So maybe the Sunday will be the best out of the 2 days. One can only hope!

But my question is when did the topic of weather come into this thread?  :lol:

Watch out for Mauna Hale.  If I'm right this is Mountain Home in ninja mode.  This team should be strong as well and I would put them in the top 5.

Okay, now that throws a wrench into my predictions. Very interesting indeed...

A Final

1. FCRCC A - clear winner
2. Gorging - clear 2nd place
3-5. Dogfight between,Portland (Kai), FCRCC B, Muana Hale
6. San Fran
7. Pemberton (higher if Hugh catches a good wave)
8. Sudden Impact
9. Calgary or Edgewater Casino (bring down that rate and pull!)

I saw that Gorgin came close to FCRCC in a race within the last couple of months.  Did FCRCC have their best team on the water?  I know that Gorgin has up'ed their game because their upcoming races but I thought that they lost a couple of key people and a coach for this year?

     They lost a few strong paddlers but have picked up a few strong new comers who have picked up the slack. They also have a new coach who has totally changed their stroke. In my opinion they look quite a bit faster. Not sure what level of boat False Creek had at the Regatta but I know up to that point Gorging hadn't been in a dragonboat much. Should be an interesting weekend.

Interesting again,

" Not sure what level of boat False Creek had at the Regatta but I know up to that point Gorging hadn't been in a dragonboat much."

Check out this link posted this March on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjFX8ucx1dQ

Team members talk of paddling 12 times a week, including before and afterwork. I think that's more than your average paddler.

I saw that clip and it was impressive if they are paddling 10 to 12 times per week, plus getting on a single oc-1 and in the gym.  My initial thought was overtraining.  Hopefully, they will still peak at the world competition.  I know that I'm from the states but I always want the west coast (North America) to win on the international stage whenever possible.

I know that The Gorging Dragons are training hard, and I predict a close race with False Creek.

 I wish them all the best, when they represent the west in The World Club Crew Championships!

Kai will do what we can to push any and all teams ... this makes us all better!!

     When that clip was filmed the majority of their training was in the OC-6 and OC-1. From what I've seen at the club they are in the dragonboat alot more now. Either way it should be a great final between some very strong teams. Now if only we could get some sunshine...... :roll:

Also don't count out LARD Black.  They were strong in San Fran last year and I'm sure they'll be just as strong this year.  They may be contenders for one of the top five spots.

Thanks Viking :D

We're just there to have fun!  Top 5 would be amazing but there are tough teams out there.  We are training for US Nationals and this would be a good test to see how hard our training has paid off.

Watch out for San Fran Dragon Warriors, too.  They are back this year after coming 9th overall in Alcan 2006.  As I recall, they had a poor semi-final and ended up kicking butt in the Comp B final that year.
They took gold in Long Beach 2007 against some very good teams (including LARD), too.
It amazes me how many good teams show up at this event.  Obviously False Creek and Gorging are the teams to beat.  But after that, there are 20-25 teams who are all very, very close to each other.  It should make for some amazing heats this weekend with plenty of photo finishes...

I predict that this weekend will bring out the best in each team.

I predict that each team will push each other to it's limit. 

I predict that what ever happens ... we'll see you in the beer gardens  :Cheers:

SI BLACK