Wilmington, NC – Dragon Boat racing belongs in this city!
Today the 16 teams paddling on race day got a practice session. As with all venues, it’s fun to introduce people to the sport and enjoy the experience of watching them get their first rush of adrenaline. Almost always before new festival teams get in a boat, they have a certain perception of what it might be like, and then after practice, many say it’s totally different than what they expected. The sport is more rigorous than they anticipate, but they love it!
We coached from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. today. Our feet and legs were done at the end of the evening.
I will write more tomorrow, after the race. It’s going to be a great one!
The Dragon’s Alive blog is back! The first race of the season (Children’s Hospital Dragon Boat Festival in Chattanooga) is over and now it’s on to the second one, the Cape Fear Dragon Boat Festival in Wilmington, NC. I’m providing boats and race management services for the race organizer, Arnie Cullipher. Check out the Web site for more info.
This is the first dragon boat race in Wilmington. There are 16 very excited teams What a great place for a great sport. I have a feeling everyone will love it!
My husband, Chris, and I have been on the road most of the day. Now, we are at a very nice hotel and relaxing before a 6 a.m. day tomorrow.
I’ve gotten used to hotel living alone, so this is a little new for me. I’m used to doing what I want, when I want while traveling and lodging. Who am I kidding? I’ll continue to do what I want, when I want!
I’m looking forward to seeing some old friends soon – paddlers I’ve coached many times the last four years or so. Practices here for all the teams are tomorrow. It’s time to convert people to dragon boat fanatics!
I haven’t slowed down enough after returning home to recap much about Chattanooga. I’m working on other dragon boat events and running the business, etc. I’ve also been working on some things for the Southeastern Regional Dragon Boat Association. Please check out the Web site about dragon boating in our region!
The days seem to evaporate faster every moment…
My memories from Chattanooga are still fresh in my mind. I can’t express how much fun I had during practices and on race day last Saturday. The people made all the difference – the paddlers who obviously enjoyed themselves and those contributing to help children treated at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger. Many – entirely too many to name – have become like family to me. I love Chattanooga! Mostly, I love the people!
Before anyone arrived at the venue on race day and when I was alone around 5:30 a.m., I took a chance to look around the expansive lake and enjoy the silence, save for the few vehicles crossing the bridge over the Chickamauga Dam. Later in the day when scores of tractor trailers honked at all the boats and spectators gathered, I thought back on that moment when I was alone before any of them arrived. Again I was alone in that moment, before the sun rose and just before Kathy, my Project Management Consultant who keeps my head on straight, arrived (with Starbucks in hand, btw!). At that moment, alone, before Kathy’s smiling face with a coffee in hand, I remembered one of my favorite passages I found thanks to an English Lit class I took in college:
What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder, because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.
I love the last sentence: “but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude;” it is a hard one to achieve, if you think about it in every context of the paragraph leading into that line, and what we all know about the experiences of life. This paragraph is one of many in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Self-Reliance from 1841 that I have come to cherish since reading it.
I got way off the subject of dragon boating here, but the point all along was that we all bring something to our experiences – whether it be what I visualized to focus and take it all in on race day, or how any of us felt when we accelerated in a dragon boat, or how good we felt inside for giving back to help children treated at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger.
It was fun!
We will do it again next May and re-live all the feelings of each moment, and create new memories. We will also give back. It’s a legacy we leave for those who look back on us centuries later.
Race results are updated. Due to an error at marshaling, the Pallbearers raced with seven women, which resulted in a time penalty of 3 seconds in Rounds 1 and 2. The Pallbearers advanced to the finals, where the mistake was caught and the team paddled with the required 8 female paddlers, making for a fair finals and close race, resulting in a Gold finish. It was a close race, though.
More videos have been uploaded from race day, including the following:
Team TVA:
The Pallbearers pulling team member Philip Grymes:
The Pallbearers pulling me (first time on water skis as you can see – it was worth it!):
It’s hard to believe, but it’s true – the race is done, clean up is over and I’m back home in Knoxville.
We’re still finishing up the final race results, more pics and video will be uploaded and shared soon on the Dynamic Dragon Boat Racing Facebook page.
I’m still amazed at the amount of money raised for the Children’s Hospital – more than $106,000 and counting.
So many have shared their great experiences, which I’ll be sharing this week.
I haven’t had time to blog much these last few days, because of race day and clean up, plus I’ve had a great time spending some quality moments with friends I’ve met thanks to dragon boat racing. I’m going to rest and start recapping in the next few blogs.
In the meantime, I found a great race day video on youtube. Enjoy!
The 5th Annual Children’s Hospital Dragon Boat Festuival was a resounding success! A whopping $106,000 has been raised so far to benefit the hospital. The Pallbearers took Gold for a third straight year, but the Chattanooga Ski Club gave them a run for their money. The Pallbearers did pay money to get me as a steerer, with donations going to the Children’s Hospital! What a ride. Then, they took me for another ride – they pulled me up on water skis. We rigged up water skis to a dragon boat and they launched me the floating dock. I dropped too soon, but I had never been on water skis – although I’ve been on a wakeboard. Philip Grymes of Outdoor Chattanooga took a ride as well and they pulled him for 30 seconds. Photos and video will be posted ASAP.
For now, I’m off to dinner with the staff.
Much, much more about today and the festival in tomorrow’s blog.
Every day it feels like the fundraising total increases by $5,000 – today pledge total shot up to $85,000. Wow. What a legacy – to help other children. This year’s pledges will fund bright new rooms for children who have to stay at Children’s Hospital. Instead of plain white walls and a very basic room, they’ll have a colorful, modern room. Their mental health will brighten thanks to our efforts! It’s a team sport. Good teamwork makes for good fundraising.
I’ve had an incredible and amazing week with the teams, coaches, my friends – my family. Some pics from practice are posted on the Dynamic Dragon Boat Racing Facebook page.
Tomorrow is set up day. Every thing goes up and we prep for the big day.
I drove home to Knoxville Tuesday night after coaching a few teams. It was odd being there, since I’m getting very accustomed to hotel living in general, but it was good to see my husband and dogs.
I didn’t have much time, because I was the guest at a luncheon, where I received the SCORE Business Client of the Year for the Knoxville Chapter. It was a really nice honor. My husband, Chris, who will be steering on race btw, came with me. That was sweet!
We had lunch, then I had to hurry to Dick’s Sporting Goods, pulling my jon boat and trailer. I left my water shoes at home, so I had to grab a new pair and a few other things I needed. Then, I drove back to Chattanooga and coached three teams. I hate to rub it in and not that I am in any way competitive, but all the teams I coached won in the practice races when we challenged, or got challenged to a race. This might bode well for race day when I’m up for bid. The team that ponies up the most money gets me as their steerer in the final race for Gold, Silver and Bronze. I’ve coached about a quarter of the teams (out of 46) and many of the teams have had me for a coach one year or another. So, the biggest donor to Children’s Hospital at Erlanger has me driving them in that last hurrah!
