| US Dragonboat Team- U23 division |
Jul 8th, 2009 8:18:27 pm - Subscribe |
| Here is some more encouragement for anyone on the fence about it from Will Lin, a LARD paddler and UCLA alum. I strongly recommend anyone who can go to go. Some of my friends and UCLA Dboat alumni were on the US team several years ago and they have said it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Some of you have traveled abroad to race as well so maybe you can share your experiences. It would be a shame if they have to cancel this team b/c of not enough commitment. Contact willlin82@gmail.com if you're interested. : "I'm not sure how well the word was spread, but this year the IDBF is introducing a new category of racing along with Junior (under 1  , Premier (all ages), Senior (40+), Grandmaster (60+). The category will be called U23 (18-23), for paddlers coming out of Junior, but not quite strong enough to contend for a Premier spot. The US is trying to send a team. Right now there are roughly 15 confirmed paddlers.Here's my take on all this: I've been paddling long enough to realize it gets boring beating up and getting beaten on by the same teams year after year. We all live in a very small paddling world. Only a handful of you and the people you know get the opportunity to paddle beyond the borders of California, fewer out of the US and even fewer to world championship level competitions. But there's a whole world of dragonboat out there and it's a shame that people who want to experience it cant. So this U23 team, it might not be the fastest team, but it is a legit opportunity to see competition at it's finest, meet and mesh with paddlers from different backgrounds, and paddle in the last place you thought you ever thought you'd find yourself. I never took dboat seriously until i went to one of these world races. I'd kill to get on the premier boat just to be part of the race. You guys are the future of dragonboat and this is a golden chance to see it in all it's glory. If any of you or anyone you know are interested. Please let me know. You can email me (willlin82@gmail.com) or just facebook msg me. we'll probably need 5 more to go. have capacity for maybe 9. I'm having Les, one of the team USA coaches, check to make sure it's not too late. We'll probably need to know full commitment in a week. We're going to need a few stars to align, but it's worth a shot. Costs: flight ~ $1000 Jerseys Fees ~ $300 Stay ~ $50/nt ~ $300 food/entertainment ~ $400? roughly 2K total ...checking to see if we can get a little bit of sponsorship for this. wont be much, but I'm sure anything would help. Dates: Practice Aug 23rd - 25th Race Aug 26th - 30th Jersey trading and Partying when you're done" Derrick W. Chan |
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| mood: pensive |
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