Dragon Boat Racing

There are three important holidays in Taiwan - Chinese New Year, Tomb Sweeping Day, and Dragon Boat Festival. For three years I got to be part of the AIT women's Dragon Boat team. I think it's been my favorite activity that I've participated in during my international travels. It's one thing to be in a country and stand at the edge watching a local parade or festival. It's quite another thing to be a participant and to spend months in preparation. It's a feeling of belonging - of home. 

Start

The first two years Elena and I woke up every Saturday morning and rode our bikes along the river to the practice site. For an hour we were on the water learning to bend, twist, and stroke together as a team. It looks easy from the shore, but even with three months of practice, we couldn't come close to the beauty that a year-around team has. It had been 25 years since I'd participated in a team sport. I'd forgotten the fun of working together, laughing and cheering one another on. I loved the dynamics we had in our boat - singing (thank you coach!), chatting and team mates yelling "Come on ladies, push harder!" There were stretches of peace when we just paddled to the beat of the drum. All the stress of work, lists of groceries that needed to be bought, emails that needed to be written all faded to the background as I bent and dipped my paddle into the water in rhythm with the drum. Just the team, the boat, and the river.

Racing

This year I was on my own for many of the practices. It was one of the unexpected dynamics of the empty nest. Not only do the kids have to learn to do things on their own, but I did too. It added so much to my Saturday mornings when both Maddie and Elena were able to join the team after they arrived home from school. 

Leaving the boat as a team after the race.

 Race day is always a lot of fun. Friends come out to cheer us on. Nerves are high until we get into the boat, then you can feel a quiet focus come over the team. We paddle to the starting area, get in position and wait for the gun. Three hard strokes and 10 fast strokes get the heavy boat moving. Our drummer yells out when to paddle harder or faster. Every year we seemed to go a bit faster on race day until this year where it turned a bit frantic. The flag catcher leans over the dragon's head and grabs a flag as we cross the finish line. We gave it all we had and placed third in our heat by just a smidgen. The first two places go on to the next round. 

I'm going to miss getting on the river every Saturday morning next year. I'll be cheering my team on through Facebook with warm memories of past races.  Good luck ladies!