Dragon Boat Racing

Today was my third Dragon Boat Racing practice. Like I have mentioned in previous posts, the kiwis are very much into their outdoor activities. Our firm has two Dragon Boat teams. Basically, it is a lot like canoeing but in a big, long boat with about 20 people in it, one person steering, and supposedly for the competitions there will be someone banging the drums to keep us in rhythm. I did a quick bit of research and found out that dragon boat racing is originally a Chinese sport - not really sure how it made its way down here or why it seems to be so popular with my firm but it is a good excuse to get out on the water, meet some people, and to get a good workout. I'm actually not exactly sure why it is called a "dragon" boat because at least the ones we use do not look like dragons at all, just a big canoe. Although I did some searching and found some pictures that look more like dragon boats. I think maybe they add the dragon head on for the races.

We practice twice a week now right after work. Afterwards, my shoulders, back, and triceps are in agony. The worst is when we have to take turns having the front half of the boat row while the back half keeps the oars in the water as brakes or vice versa. This makes it almost impossible to move and is very tiring. Oh well, I wanted to try some new things while in NZ so this is certainly something I would never have done before. Hopefully I'll get some pictures of us up here at some point but I never bring my camera to practice. For now, I have included a picture I found on the web but I think it is from Auckland in the general area where we practice so it at least gives an idea of what it is like: