The Facinating Competetion of Dragon Boat Racing

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Are you longing for the adrenaline rush of speed, are you daring to test your stamina, do you want scream at the top of your lungs—all these while participating in a team sport? Then boat racing is a fascinating competition with many unique aspects and dimensions. It is a battle against man, man against the element of wind and water, and most of all; it’s your internal battle against your self-will and dedication. You can be part of all these, no matter what experience level you have, what physical limitations you think you have, you can get out there in the water and start stroking its surface and move! This is the not-so-popular sport of dragon boat racing, not college crew, well just think of college crew but bigger, grander, louder, and more intense…also add a dragon head at the front of the boat, then now it’s blazingly better.

Since you all know college crew, let us compare and contrast these two closely related but not as cool sports together. The main difference between dragon boating and crew rowing is the number of participants. Crew rowing teams usually have eight rowers, and dragon boating can double that number to 20 in a standard competition but the numbers can reach up to 80 or more.

Can you imagine a team of 20 screaming and shouting at the top of their lungs, while paddling as hard as they could, while encouraging each other to reach that finish line? All these are happening while under the rhythm of the drummer and being in sync with everybody else. It’s an amazing sight to see, and even more experience.

Now let’s go back a little about some history of the two sports. It is believed that dragon boating originated along the Yangtze River of the southern region of China 2,500 years ago. There are various account...

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...US, many schools open a rowing program only to women to financially neutralize the prevalence of men’s sports. Women’s Rowing is an NCAA sports, while Men’s Rowing is still governed by its own regulatory body. In dragon boating, any gender, and age can join the sports. For example, during the yearly San Diego Dragon Boat Festival, dozens of local corporate teams participate regarding of age, physical fitness, and what not. One of my favorite teams that compete is the Breast Cancer survivor team who beat our asses in several occasion. Also there is the UC San Diego dragon boat team, a recognized sports club on campus that holds a 3-year championship legacy for the entire California collegiate teams. So if you love being challenged, if you want your determination tested, while being active and participating in a team sport, dragon boating is the right sports for you!

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