Dragon Boat West

Hello Dragon Boaters of the West,

This message is intended for young paddlers who have just moved to Toronto for school.  I know this doesn't apply to many of you, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway, since the West coast is well-known for producing excellent paddlers.

Every year, the University of Toronto New College New Dragons seek to recruit talented paddlers and athletes. This year is no different as we prepare for the 2011 season.

As the coach, I had the privilege of training a very dedicated group of individuals. We had a very successful season, which finished off with a bang at the Club Crew World Championships in Macau:
- 3 golds in U23 mixed division
- 3 silvers in U23 open division (with seven women on the boat)
- A club record of 2:00.964 in the 500m.

We also had success locally, winning the University Cup at Centre Island for the fifth straight year.

From all my years of paddling on the team, I can tell you that the New Dragons are a tight-knit group that trains, studies, and parties together. The team holds night club events, spring retreats, potlucks, holiday parties, etc., and has travelled to Disney World and Hong Kong together.

All U of T students are encouraged to try out. We also have spots available for non-U of T paddlers who are under 23 years of age for some of our non-university races.

If you would like to find out how to join the team, send us an email at [email protected] or visit www.newdragons.ca for more information.

Ben

Congrats Wei and Cpt.Derrick and ND.
too bad i live here.. if i get in to UofT pharmacy id def try out. :)

You guys sound like an awesome bunch, Good luck with recruitment!  :D

Thanks for the support, you too.

Taeccool, good luck in applying to pharmacy.

NFW, you Magnum peeps are legendary.  Hope to race you someday!

*you two

thanks!!! Magnum and ND. 2 amazing teams. I'd pay to watch that race.=)

LOL, stop it you two..before the ego gets super inflated.  :rofl:

I've seen you new dragons boys and girls from last year's nationals pics. I like your white jerseys (white's my fav color), its the same nike dri-fit shirts as magnum's black jersey, except you guys fill it out better coz you guys are a buff lot haha

You guys should come down to Alcan next year, plenty of competition guaranteed!

Maybe you guys could race at Nationals next year. July 1-3 in Welland Ontario. Club Crew spots are available to go to Hong Kong.  

Haha.  You've got an attention to detail.  I think Nike Pro makes the nicest jerseys, but they're too expensive to trade to other teams.

I've heard great things about Alcan, and the chance to race Magnum and FCRCC would definitely make the trip worth while.  Unfortunately, as a student team, we can only afford one big trip every other year.  But believe me, racing at Alcan has been on the minds of the team's leaders for a while and it may just happen one day.

And to add to Rob's post, yes, we are racing in Welland.  Let me know if you plan to race there.  We can help you plan out your transportation and accommodations arrangements (and hopefully get good prices).

As great as it would be to see Magnum vs New Dragons, it unfortunately won't be happening next season barring a very specific circumstance. Maybe in the future...

Since the recruiting is happening here, for those that want to try for a position on the U23 Canada Crew this is your chance.  Many from Magnum and other teams are serious about bringing home the gold from Tampa next year.  If you are between the age of 18 and 22 on January 1st, 2011 you are eligible for this team.  The U23 coaches are working together to create the premier U23 team at the 2011 Worlds.

Come and join, there are coaches in all regions of the country waiting to make the team the best.

For more information, see dragonboat.ca or PM me and I can forward more information.

I agree, Nike Pro is pretty damn nice! They cost abt 30 bucks, is that not the norm for jersey costs there?

Yeah, it's about the same here, maybe just a bit more expensive.  But what I mean is that, at $30 per jersey, one would be reluctant to buy too many extra jerseys to trade.

The kids from the Nanyang Technological University knew what they were doing.  Their uniform was relatively inexpensive and each paddler had at least 5 of them to trade.

But I shouldn't complain.  I got jerseys from the superfast Windsor Arch premier open team and from New Dragon's toughest competitor, the Singapore Armed Forces team. :)

haha yeah, most of those asian teams uses sleeveless style shirts as their jersey that probably cost like 5-10 bucks