Gung Haggis dragon boat team at
Rio Tinto Alcan Festival – a mix of veteran and novice paddlers that
proudly made it to Rec B medal finals!
+ Chinese New Year food and culture
+ BC history with Scottish & Chinese pioneers
= Gung Haggis Fat Choy
2010
was a break through year for the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team. We
started paddling in January then took a break for the Olympics. We
celebrated with a big Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner at Floata where we
first met a Chinese lass born in Scotland, who came to join the dragon
boat team, starting the string of Irish, Yorkshire, French, Belgian and
Australian visitors to Canada who came to paddle and race with us.
Dragon boat races found us first time in A Division at
Lotus Races with the Community Spirit Award, in Rec B at Rio Tinto
Alcan Festival with a silver medal in Senior B Race, Silver medal and
2nd overall at Richmond with 1st prize of free entry for 2011 in the
challenge race. We partnered with Spirit of Vancouver and went to Banff
for a silver medal in C Division. In Ft. Langley both teams were in
the A Final. Wow!
As well, the Killarney Cougar Dragons Junior team benefitted from coaching of Todd Wong and Steven Wong, for the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival in June. Killarney won Bronze medals for a 3rd place finish in the Junior C Division. It was a sweet accomplishment, because the team has finished out of the medals in C Division for the past 2 years, after winning a silver medal in D division for their first year of racing.
2011 is year 10, of the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team, paddling
every year @ Alcan Races and beyond since 2002. It is also year 15 for a
team that started in 1997 under the name Celebration Team and for which
the Gung Haggis Fat Choy Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner event was
created as a fundraiser for in 1998. This is the only team that has
twice won the Hon. David Lam Award for the team that best exemplifies
the multicultural spirit of the dragon boat festival (2001 & 2005)
– the Ft. Langley Cranberry Festival Canoe Regatta.
We have unlimited team registration to join our “paddling and social club”
– but race events are limited to 24 paddlers + drummer + steers.
(20 paddlers in a boat + 4 spare paddlers) – we rotate everybody fairly, and nobody
sits more than one race (unless they choose, or special circumstances).
$110 Team registration includes practices, boat rental, coaching + equipment.
Each race event will have a varying price depending on the cost. From $40 to $20,
as the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival team entry
is $1800,
and Lotus Regatta in Burnaby is $500.
RTA is 2 day event with 2 races per day + special races,
one day regattas are usually only 3 races.
Looks like
we will have a strong team for 2011.
This is the 10th year of the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team,
which actually started in 2002 under then name Celebration.
We have really enjoyed meeting lots of new paddlers
and welcoming back our veteran paddlers. Everybody has such a great positive spirit.
We want 2011 to be lots of fun, filled with new friendships + race results to rival last year:
In 2010, we placed Rec B @ Rio Tinto Alcan DB Festival and won silver in Senior B.
We won silver 2nd overall at Richmond and won the steering challenge
We went to Banff and won silver in C division.
We placed 2 teams in the A Finals at Ft. Langley.
Our
teams over 10 years have raced in Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna,
Burnaby, Richmond, Steveston, Vernon, Harrison, Cultus Lake, Ft. Langley
+ Banff AB, Kent
WA, and Portland OR….
You don't have to paddle every race.
Pick and choose where and when you want to race.
We are now looking for race events to fill our
summer, and are currently looking at:
May 7 – Lotus Sports Club, Burnaby – Confirmed
May 29th – Dragon Zone regatta – Confirmed
June 11/12 – Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival – Confirmed
July 16th Saturday – Richmond BC (UBC Rowing Centre) – Confirmed
July 23 Saturday -Harrison BC @ Harrison Hot Springs
Aug 13 & 14 – Vernon or Victoria – RECOMMENDED
Aug 20 – Steveston Last Gasp
Aug 27 & 28 – Kelowna DBF
Sept 10 & 11 Penticton – RECOMMENDED
Oct 9 – Ft. Langley – RECOMMENDED
Gung Haggis Fat Choy paddlers bite their silver medals at Richmond Dragon Boat Festival – 2nd place overall, and 1st in the steering challenge race.