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Dragon Boat Canada


IDBF


Canoe Kayak Canada

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[grifter]

willpower. you deserve every single comment on this thread.  'nuff said.

I really enjoyed all the festivals this year, with Kelowna being the best (felt the same last year too).

Alcan had a better layout, vendors and beer garden than last year, but the view of racing was a little lacking.  Race marshalling seemed a little disorganised, and no PA system sucked.  Overall B-

Richmond, being what it is, was well run, and a lot of fun.  Just wish they had a second set of porta-potties at the other end of the site.  Still, it was well worth the bump on the head    A-

Taiwanese Fest, although I didn't race (I just cheered on my half team), appeared to be quite a bit of fun with the flag catching and barrel racing.  Too bad no one appeared interested in the racing except for those paddling.  Everyone else there seemed more interested in entering airline ticket draws. C+

Kelowna was a superb festival.  Somehow there is a more laid back atmosphere, yet racing seems as, if not more intense than Alcan.  Water's Edge and all of the last minute volunteers deserve a lot of credit for keeping the racing close to schedule.  I like the fact that there is plenty of room to set up team tents anywhere.  Don't care much for the beer garden as everyone's in a hurry to skip town after the races anyway.  Best thing about it is the clean, fresh water that's perfect for throwing your steersman and drummer into. A

[StraightLine]

Overall, I though the 2004 Season was another excellent season of paddling (or steering in my case).  Most of my team liked the new Alcan layout although some improvements could be made in the paddlers village, mostly related to marshalling news.  Watching the boats come head on into the finish line was different, but I think you lose a bit when you can't see the side profile and watch the boats gain and lose the lead with each stoke.

Richmond was another well done event although I really didn't like being in lane 5 on the outside.  Made it really difficult to line the boat up at the start line when you couldn't see the other boats or hear the starter clearly.

We almost didn't make Victoria this year, but ended up putting in a joint team with TD Lightning and had a blast doing so.

The Tawainese festival was fun, especially with the flag catching boats.  My only gripe would be the change this year that had the flag catchers continuing on to the finish after grabbing the flag instead of the flag being the line.  Minor gripe.

Kelowna - who forgot to pay the SUN bill?!?! Come on, it's suppose to be 28+ degree weather up there at this time of year!  Not 8 degrees and everyone looking for the nearest propane heater or cup of coffee.  Even the lemonade stand had a sign out for hot drinks.  If those D2 boats are back next year, I'll be showing up with my cordless drill and a hole saw.

And last, but not least.... I was going to leave this alone, everyone else has roasted willpower over a hot flame over his rather short sighted comments regarding Paddle for Kids, but decided there were a few things I wanted to say.  Not everything we participate in as a community has to be about racing.  Once in a while it can be about helping the larger community out in some fashion.  In this case, it's about helping the kids who have been dealt a lousy hand by life and having some fun while doing so.  

The past couple of years my team has helped out with putting the event on; this year I was on the docks helping load and unload the boats, and I also steered for Team United.  I think I can safely say that willpower's views are not those of the rest of his team, nor that of anyone else at the event.

And willpower, if you don't like how the event was put on, feel free to volunteer to help organize it next year.  Maybe you'll be able to get some changes made.

[estrella]

I think Alcan is always the best...it has the most competition out of all the races.  I didn't really like the change of main venue, although I was surprised they pulled it off as well as they did.  

Taiwanese was a small and intimate race...great for the spectators!

Richmond...is alright...but I find not much to do...as well, I don't like the start of the races.  Teams weren't starting at the same area so some had a slight advantage.  

Kelowna...main complaint is the weather of course!  Disappointed!  But then it rained on the Sunday last year too  There was also a lot of waiting around...but I guess with good teammates the waiting isn't all that bad.

I know ppl are tired of hearing about it...but as a paddler on Team U...I personally was aware of the nature of Paddle for Kids...and we were told that it would be just for fun...to even invite family and friends to paddle...I believe some did.  I think it's the best thing about being involved with sports at any level...and with any sport.  You have the opportunity to do what you love for the benefit of others and make a difference.  While I did unfortunately miss it due to work...Others I had talked to said they had lots of fun.  I look forward to taking part in PK next year!

[Lethal Weapon]

It was a good year for DB Festivals
Recap as follows:
 
Alcan - Great weather, Excellent venue. Not the biggest fan of the Gemini's but having them and the 6-16's in separate heats made the playing field even (except for teams who did not adapt to the Gemini's)
Lotsa great teams, great racing and some suprises.

Nanaimo - Excellent race (for a second year race) with great comraderie and good racing (this race will grow!) A superb beer tent which did not run out of beer (BOOO Victoria)

Island Chamionships - heard Vancouver teams can come next year. Excellently organized event with great racing and another rock solid beer tent (Ok Ok I like beer tents!)

Victoria - Poorly set up race grid and terrible beer tent (No beer tent runs out of beer!) I heard it was was not run by the usual crew but hopefully they will get their act together next year.

Kelowna - Crummy weather, Good close racing, A BIG suprise in the finals and a well run event overall. Onlhy suggestion is give out the awards earlier and keep the beer tent open so the last races can have a drink.

San Fran - Gets better every year. Good racing, super close finsihes and their first ever beer tent! Venue is OK but the paddlers are great!

Looking forward to next yrear already and I don't even like dragon boat!

Bring it on!

[willpower]

Paddle for Kids: when the team opted to participate we actually thought there would be races going on... turned out to be a stupid sports day for adults... what a  ****ing waste of ****ing time and money... $400 of our hard-earned fundraised money going to a good cause... I left early cuz I actually wanted to get some yard work done... it was THAT bad. Oh well, now that we know better we'll probably go for Richmond Rip up the River?

edited for content - BigTallTree

wow... thanks for the feedback, everyone! Anyone who knows me knows I have a habit of not thinking before I speak, but that's definitely NO excuse here.

I should clear a couple of things up, and just to let you know, I'm NOT trying to redeem myself:

-It should be corrected that it was probably only ME, MYSELF, and I (not my team) who believed that Paddle For Kids would be an opportunity for regular race pieces, with the registration proceeds going towards BC Children's Hospital... yes, I did vote to participate in it, without fully knowing what it would be like... yes, that was stupid of me.

-I awoke Sept.12 with the vivid memory of something traumatic that had happened exactly one year prior. If it wasn't for this and everything else currently going on in my life, I probably would have been able to relax and enjoy the event for what it was... yes, that was selfish of me. That day I should have been thinking of the kids fighting for a chance to experience life... I should have put the past and my own worries behind me.



I know the following apologies will never undo the damage I've done, and their recipients are not obligated to accept them. But they're about all I can do now.

I apologize to all the patients at BC Children's Hospital for my selfishness. I should have reminded myself that all my problems are really blessings, for they are life experiences that many in the hospital would gladly trade for. I'm having trouble putting this guilt I'm feeling into words... I feel right now that if I had the power to trade places with any one of you, I'd do it in a heartbeat. My apologies also to all the parents, relatives and friends of the patients, as well as the staff at BC Children's Hospital, for trivializing the children's problems, as well as yours, so carelessly.

I apologize to all the organizers and volunteers of the Paddle For Kids event. It was not my intention to attack this event... what I said was a foolish rant fueled by the frustration that I wasn't able to relax and truly enjoy the event that day. The activities were the things I'd normally like to participate in (when I'm not in such a depressed state of mind) and the race format (yes, I raced the first one) was entertaining. I truly appreciate all the hard work you all put into organizing this event, and I regret not staying around and allowing myself to enjoy it. What I regret even more is lashing out at Paddle For Kids when my frustrations really came from anywhere but the event.

I apologize to the moderators, members and visitors to this forum that I have offended, and those I didn't. My remarks were immature and short-sighted, to say the least, and undeserving to be displayed on a message board meant for the healthy and intelligent discussion of our sport. My language and attitude were inappropriate, and I assure you it will not happen again. Guido, zephyrantes, meowzers, paddleboy, nakano, Rae, pbs, cole, StraightLine, estrella and BigTallTree: I sincerely thank you for ALL of your comments, whether hurtful or dismissive... without your comments I probably would have remained ignorant of the carelessness of my words. Thank you for removing my blinders.

I apologize to the entire Dragonboating community for my disgraceful attitude, not just in my comment, but also on the day of the event. My desire to vent frustration through competition might have potentially scared off some beginners that could have ended up contributing so much to our sport. I agree with Guido, that it would probably make everyone happy if I absolved from using a paddle for the rest of my life. But the problem is... I love this sport too much. I became infatuated as a child watching Vancouver's first races in 1986, and I fell in love 10 years later when I financed my own junior team and picked up a paddle for the first time. Unfortunately politics and competition have taken over and jaded me in recent years, but each year I somehow manage to capture a hint of what attracted me to this sport in the first place, and with that happy watering of my eyes, I vow to come back and enjoy it all over again.

I apologize to all of my teammates on Team United. It was evident to most of you that something wasn't right in me this year. My behaviour, comments and actions weren't always constructive. And now, I've let that demon out beyond the boat. I'm embarrassed to have brought my own shame to our team. I know this team stands for so much, and strives to give back to the sport and the larger community... and I apologize for tarnishing that reputation. I'll do my best to polish it out.

Finally, I apologize to anyone else that I have neglected to mention who has been affected by my comments.

[Paddle me, please!]

Bravo.  I think most of us can understand as we've all put our foot in our mouths at one time or another.  Welcome back to the community.

[zephyrantes]

good deal, willpower!

[kono_imo]

Its easy to get torn between the Kelowna Dragon boat festival and the Taiwanese festival in Vancouver. Both festivals were equally fun but on different levels however. Kelowna will always be fun because partying outside of your own stomping grounds just adds a little bit more excitement. The beer garden there is excellent for unique activities like mudwrestling and lubed-up twister thanks to Shaggin' Dragon and some Hex paddlers. A little beer does well for these stunts... Plus, Gotcha and Splashes are two wicked clubs to let loose and release the racing frustrations of the day. The taiwanese festival is fun for all the different specialty races. The regular races we took seriously. But on the specialty races, we just had a blast as a team. The flag races add a little bit of twist to racing. I saw some pretty unique ways to catch the flag, like how Mercedes Silver Arrows did. The ride on the teak boats is an adventure in itself. You never know when you'll tip over. I'd definitely recommend the Taiwanese festival to those who haven't tried it.