Author Archives: Todd

Gung Haggis paddlers featured in cover photo of Langley Advance for Cranberry Festival!

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7530_1212791673264_1032953280_30654273_2054761_n by you.Logout

Cranberry Festival is a big fun and important event in Ft. Langley.  Every year the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team attends.

In the above picture our Gung Haggis Hot Chili team is caught in a boat jam, as a team pushes our stern forward, preventing us from turn the boat to go left. 

I am in the front seat, trying to steer our boat left.  Our left side paddlers are paddling at a 45 degree angle to help pull our boat left.  Our right side paddlers are paddling hard to get us away from the boat colliding on our right side.

This is what happens when 3 teams enter a wide turn all at the same time.  We got the inside edge going into the turn, and pulled away from the boat beside us… but they kept their bow against our stern, preventing us from turning… meanwhile a third boat caught up on the outside and tried to paddle around us… but got stuck in the middle.  It sure looks like fun from this angle.

Gung Haggis paddlers compete at Ft. Langley Cranberry Festival Canoe Regatta: 1st in B Final 5th in A Final

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AMAZING paddling Stories from today's races. 
Challenges and big leads…
Missed Opportunities and lots of boat collisions.

2009_Oct_Ft_Langley_cranberry_canoe_race 111 by you.
Our team's favorite photo from the weekend. Sheer determination of our paddlers as they paddle along the beach. Our lead stroke Tzhe really leans out to help pull the boat forward away from the beach. – photo Todd Wong

Our paddlers on the Gung Haggis Bacon Explosion and Gung Haggis Hot
Chili teams proved their competitiveness, team spirit and sportsmanship.

Ft. Langley Cranberry Festival Canoe Regatta
October 10th, 2009

In the weeks prior, our 2 rosters had filled to 11 paddlers per team,
so we had to recommend to paddler friends Remus Wong and Tricia Pang
(Gung Haggis Friends at UBC Long Boat), to paddle for Team Naluwan,
home team of Richard & Karen Mah and Oliver Wu who paddled with us
at Richmond races.

Then in the final week, we had 4 paddlers unexpectedly drop out or be
sick.  We are thankful to Marciel and Michael, and Johannes for filling
in for us at the last minute.  We are also happy that friends Lisa
Venables, Maggie and Harvey (Richmond) and Carolyn (former GH paddler)
could join us for Ft. Langley races.

Final Rosters

Gung Haggis Bacon Explosion
Raphael – Captain
Tzhe
Jim
Carolyn
Ernest
Jim
Tony
Marciel
Michael
Dave Samis (steer final)
Adam (steer first race)



Gung Haggis Hot Chili
Debbie Poon (captain)
Todd
Lisa
Nicole
Keng
Devon
Maggie
Walter
Katie
Johannes
Harvey

2009_Oct_Ft_Langley_cranberry_canoe_race 008 by you.

 Gung Haggis Fat Chili leads the race in boat #2.  Todd is lead stroke, while Harvey steers. – photo Deb Martin



First Race (Right turn oval X ) 5 boats

GH Fat Chili

Good start… and we were 2nd going down the first stretch.
We caught up to the team on the 1st turn… taking the inside edge.
We raced neck and neck down the stretch.  Steersperson Harvey got us
the inside track and we entered the 2nd turn.  Coming around the 2nd
turn, the other team tried to hold us back… their lead stroke stuck
their paddle in front of our boat, trying to push us back…
But we stayed ahead of them.  As we cleared the last pylon, our front
paddlers tried to turn the boat… left… but the back of the boat was
blocked by that other darn boat… and a third boat, came into the
logjam.  We were pushed off towards shore and had to hold the boat,
while two other boats, turned behind us and down the 3rd stretch.  We
righted our boat, and headed into the 3rd turn trailing fast behind the
Pirates team.  We came down the final stretch hot on their heels and
and catching up… We placed 3rd.


Gung Haggis Bacon Explosion – (2X left ovals)
GREAT start… and BacEx is in the lead down the first stretch.  Other
teams get hung up in collisions.  BacEx makes the 1st turn with nobody
near them.  The final team has just finished the 1st turn, when BacEx
is making the 2nd turn.  They are 10 boat lengths in first place.  But
why is Tzhe drawing on the right side, when they are turning left? 
BacEx is on the wrong side of the buoy.  They paddle backwards, as the
2nd place team passes them.  They start paddling forward when the 3rd
place team passes them… they jockey for 2nd place along the turn…
boats colliding.  Finally they start to pull away out of the 2nd turn
and down the 3rd stretch.  At the 3rd turn they are 2 boat lengths
behind the 1st place team.  Down the 4th and final stretch they paddle
hard… creeping up to the tail.  They make their move in the final 1/4
stretch… gaining seat by seat… 4 seats behind… closer… 3 seats
behind…  almost there… one seat behind… will they make it?  So
close! 


INTERMISSION

We eat our Chilis…  Deb has made a cranberry/craisin chili.  Raphael
makes a bacon explosian chili.  Everybody is happy.  We mingle and chat
with our cheerleading squad led by Deb Martin, Jonas & Wendy,
Alissa & Ryan, Debbie's dad KK, Lisa's mom Peg, sister and nephew,
Remus' daughters Rebecca and Sarah, Brooke, Brooke's mother, and
niece.  We have enough cheerleaders to fill a boat.


The 1st race of the 2nd round of reverse ovals…
A team takes the first turn too sharply… people lean the wrong way…
people fall into the water.  The other teams are all racing down the
2nd stretch along the South Shore.  The small rescue boat goes to their
aid.  Race organizers are trying to tell the competing teams to stop
the race, but they can't hear.  They call the teams in, and boats are
sent out half empty to try to help rescue the wet paddlers.  But the
rescue boat has managed to take 4 people at a time to the South Shore,
while 2 paddlers remain helping to bail the capsized boat.

A meeting is held, and the races are post-poned because of the high
winds.  One woman is sent to the hospital to be treated for
hypo-thermia, but she is later reported to be okay.
Teams are told to reconvene at 1:30, and a decision will be made.  We go off to eat more chili,

At 1:30 16 teams remain to paddle.  4 teams have quit, gone home or to the beer garden.


FINAL PUMPKIN FINAL B
Gung Haggis Hot Chili

Gung Haggis is racing against the other lower 7 finishers, including
Naluwan which contains friends Richard & Karen Mah, Oliver, Remus
and Tricia.

We go over the tactics needed to do good turns, and a good beach run. 
We change the start from a 6-6-6 to a 6-8-8.  We are lined up near the
North Shore at the start.  We tell our races to watch the red flag,
along with the air horn.  We think we hear an air horn… We feel a few
paddles take a stroke… but we don't start… yet… The flag goes
down/ hear the air horn… We paddle… hard… Eastwards… toward the
bridge…  I can see somebody on the bridge holding up a pumpkin… Our
boat steers a bit to the right where three pumpkins are thrown into the
water.  Steersperson Harvey wants to go where we have the best chance
of finding a pumpkin – not like last year's Gung Haggis teams – who
both missed pumpkins in the A final.

We are paddling hard towards the pumpkin.  There is another boat in
front to the right.  I am lead stroke… I keep paddling because it is
hard to pick up a pumpkin because of the raised bow in seat one.  Lisa
shouts “I've getting it!”  She is in seat two left.  While everybody
else is still paddling… she bravely bends down with her body to get
the pumpking bringing it to her chest.  I will ask her later
“Were you bobbing for pumpkins?”

She brings the pumpkin into the boat, and shakes the water from her
head, grabs her paddle and takes good hard strokes.  Our boat is the
first to emerge on the East side of the bridge because the 1st place
team missed their pumpkin and had to back up.  We are first all the way
to the 1st turn.  As we turn left, I call out “Take it easy”, I spike
my paddle to help facilitate the turn around the 1st buoy.  We have a
good sharp turn, we call a power series and race back under the bridge
towards the 2nd buoy. Another good turn, and we head North towards the
beach.  As we approach the beach, we feel our paddles hit the bottom of
the river, as Harvey turns the boat right.  Devon jumps out of the boat
to do the cranberry juice walk.  He has to balance a glass of juice on
his paddle and walk up the beach.  We try to push the boat forward, but
we are beached. 

“Back up!” I shout.  A few pushes, and we are free.  “Paddle forward!”
and our paddles scrape against the shallow shore.  Our boat moves to
deeper water and we move up the river.  Devon has finished his juice
walk, and he runs to our boat.  We draw left to bring the boat closer
to shore to pick him up.  He scrambles in, as we paddle forward, turn
right and cross the river.  The other boats have all finished turning
at 2nd buoy… Thankfully, because we now have to go around the same
buoy – but in the opposite direction.  It's a tight turn… So I spike
it hard, by turning backwards in my seat – pointing the paddle towards
the left front of the boat, to help facilitate the turn, as Harvey
completes the steering arc at the back of the boat.  We call a power
series and head Eastwards again towards the bridge and the finish line
beyond.  We can hear people chanting “Go Gung Haggis!”  We emerge on
the other side… and call another power series… heading to the
finish line buoys.  2, 4, 6, 8, 10… We call a finish and paddle
hard.  “More, More, More! 10 more strokes… we count them down 9, 8,
7, 6, 5… as we cross the finish line… 4, 3, 2, 1… We rest and
look back to see Naluwan battling it our with another team…. paddling
hard to the finish line.  Our friends finish 2nd.  We cheer on the
finishing teams.

Our friends and team mates congratulate us… and we exchange race
information.  Tony compliments us on a beautiful race…. the most
beautiful he has seen!  Our turns were tight, and we avoided any
collisions.  He is pumped up, and he tells the GH BacEx team to make
sure they grab the pumpkins (avoiding last year's fate)!

A Final 

Gung Haggis Bacon Explosion

BacEx had a good start.  They pulled away from the two team on their
left side.  But somehow they veered left and cut them off causing a
collision.  BacEx corrected and led the way to the closest pumpkin. 
Marciel grabbed the pumpkin, but lost his paddle at the same moment. 
Luckily, Raphael, sitting behind him, grabbed it with his left hand,
and a moment later Marciel was able to grab it back.   BacEx emerged
from under the bridge with four teams to their right.  The centre most
team was in the lead.  All the teams had to do a left turn around a
buoy.  BacEx made their turn behind the lead team,  they paddled hard
to go back under the bridge.  But they were still on the North side of
the bridge.  They had to race to the South side of the river and make a
right turn at the 2nd buoy.  Teams further south were closer to the
buoy.  They were in 5th place by the time they made their turn.

As BacEx approached the beach,  there were 4 boats already there… 
Raphael jumped out of the beach and held out his paddle for the juice. 
We walked quickly up the beach.  We had done this walk the previous two
years as well.  Two years ago, he had tripped climbing out of the
boat.  No tripping this year.  BacEx boat moved up the beach to pick up
Raphael, cutting off another runner from his boat.  BacEx paddled hard
towards the finish line going under the bridge.

Collision as they emerged under the bridge.  Oops, BacEx veers left. 
Another boat emerges colliding with the other boat.  Gung Haggis Bacon
Explosion turns tries to take the outside line, but the 2 boats are
pushing Northward off course.  BacEx slows down, waits for the boats to
pass, cuts right, and heads for the finish line…  Wheewww what a
finish.  One of the boats back paddles, then turns right to cross the
finish line.  The other boat does not finish.  Gung Haggis BacEx
finishes 4th or 5th in A Final for our highest ever finish in A Final.

Good races all around for everybody!  People on both our teams had big
smiles on their faces. Lots of compliments to our steers people Harvey,
Adam and Dave… and to our team captains Raphael and Debbie.  Thank
you to all paddlers for joining us.  It was the first Cranberry regatta
for many paddlers, and they thoroughly enjoyed it.  WARNING: Some are
even planning for next year already.

More pictures here on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/53803790@N00/sets/72157622564648224/

Cheers, Todd


PS

Here is a message from race organizer Cheryl McIntosh ( who paddled with Gung Haggis in Vernon 07)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What an exciting day – We never get wind like that in Fort Langley. 
But thank you all for being understanding and flexible in our day.  I
want to thank everyone for being to helpful when we had paddlers in the
water and let you know that the one that went to the hospital for
observation is fine and at home.  She phoned to thank all for your
help. Better safe than sorry. 

In case you did not hear the announcement at the midday meeting the
winner of the chili contest were
Best Meat – Cran-vores
Best Cranberries (and Veggies) – Canoe Yahoo

Here's the results from the final races

Final B
GH Hot chili 8:33.21
Naulwan 9:22.72
PP Apple blueberries 9:34.43
KS Chickens 10:03.87
Canoe Yahoo 10:17.18
DF Cranberry Kickers 10:31.76
Saints Preserve Us 10:45.15

Final A
FLCC Flatwater 7:00.49
Misfits 7:55.09
Cran-ivores 8:05.75
SOAR 8:38.81
GH Bacon Explosion 9:24.81
Sturgeon Bashers 9:25.79 DNF – outside of finish buoys
Crusaders 9:51.25

Great racing everyone and congratulations to Flatwater for placing
first overall. 
I am so glad we were able to have our last races and everything was
fine.
I ask each of your teams if they have any comments or suggestions for
next year please email me.
And of course thanks for helping put the equipment away after the last
race.

I hope everyone had fun, enjoyed the festival and races, and that we'll
see you next year.
Cheryl

Orchid Ensemble creates East meets Middle East featuring Jewish and Chinese music!

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Orchid Ensemble is one of Vancouver's bravest culturally exploring musical ensembles.
Jewish and Chinese musical influences combine for Oct 3 show at Vancouver Community College

Here is the latest from my friend Lan Tung and Orchid Ensemble:

2009 Orchid Ensemble Concert
East meets Middle East in the Orchid Ensemble’s New Show
The Orchid Ensemble & Vancouver Community College present
Ten Thousand Miles to Kai-Feng

A musical exploration of the cultural exchange between the Jews and the Chinese

featuring Mike Braverman (clarinet & saxophone) of Olam, Boris Sichon (percussion), and The Madrigal Singers
October 3rd, 8pm, at the Vancouver Community College auditorium
VCC Broadway and King Edward Campus
Tickets $15 / $12 / $10 for VCC students with ID
Available at www.ticketweb.ca /
1-888-222-6608                                                                                                               
China_Jew_concert_poster_web
When it comes to Chinese Western musical fusions, Vancouver is the
undisputed leader.  Artists from these parts have at varying times
merged Chinese folk and classical music with Celtic, Brazilian, Spanish
and Aboriginal music to name a few, not to mention North American folk,
jazz, blues and classical sounds.

Now Vancouver’s Orchid
Ensemble, already one of the pioneering acts of the cross-cultural
fusion scene, is preparing a concert that will showcase its members’
most personal repertoire yet: a concert that pays tribute to the
centuries-old links between Chinese and Jewish culture.  It’s called
Ten Thousand Miles to Kai-Feng.

The project began about 11 years
ago as a labour of love for the ensemble’s founders, the husband and
wife duo of Lan Tung and Jonathan Bernard.  Tung was an award-winning
erhu player in Taiwan before settling in Canada with her family at age
20.  Bernard is a Canadian percussionist of Jewish ancestry who is a
regular with the Vancouver Symphony.

What
they discovered together is fascinating: tangible evidence of a Jewish
presence in China can be dated to the seventh century when Sephardic
Jews arrived from Persia along the several Silk Roads, settling in
China’s capital city, Xi'an. By the Northern Sung dynasty (960-1127
CE), a thriving Jewish community had been established in the new
capital Kaifeng, and it remained active for the next 1200 years. More
recently Russian Jews settled in Harbin and Ashkenazi Jewish refugees
settled in Shanghai.  There is also a long-ago-established Jewish
community in Hong Kong.

What has not survived, however, is any sense of what the music
made by the Jewish settlers and their Chinese neighbours might have
sounded like, or to what extent their respective musical traditions
were merged.  Thus, Tung and Bernard used their imaginations to create
the music that might have been – compositions that find common ground
between Jewish and Chinese styles.  They also turned to Moshe Denberg,
the composer behind B.C.’s well-known Jewish music ensemble, Tzimmes.
The resulting concert promises a fascinating array of
work.  Among the pieces to be performed is a Denberg composition called
“El Ginat Egoz,” which will feature the VCC Madrigal Singers, and a
unique arrangement of a traditional Chinese piece called “Hundred Birds
Honouring the Pheonix,” which has been transformed for soprano sax by
Mike Braverman, the lightening-fast reed player behind Olam. The show
will also mark the world premier of “El Adon,” a Denberg composition
based on a sacred Jewish melody, and “Ba Ban Variations,” a new
composition by Tung. In addition, there will be some Jewish-influenced
pieces from the group’s 2005 Juno-nominated CD The Road to Kashgar,
which explored Chinese interaction with cultures all along the Silk
Road.

Lan Tung

Orchid Ensemble
Chinese Music and Beyond…
http://www.orchidensemble.com
http://myspace.com/orchidensemble
http://youtube.com/TheOrchidEnsemble

Dalai Lama in Calgary: meets my cousin Johnee Wong Smedley

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Dalai Lama in Calgary: meets great-great grandson of Rev. Chan Yu Tan m

My cousin's son Johnee Wong Smedley lives in Calgary.  He has studied martial arts and Asian philosophy, as ways to connect with his Asian heritage.  We reconnected this summer at my grandmother's 99th birthday.  Johnnee was last in Vancouver in 2000 when we held a Rev. Chan family reunion.  Today he met the Dalai Lama.

Here is a story from my cousin Johnee Wong Smedley in Calgary:

Today is a milestone for me in my life as of late; I volunteered on my
day off to work a special event. I just signed up for the extra hours
and was in for a great surprise! I mean something I was not ever
expecting.

Here is the heart of the day.

His Holiness
the Dalai Lama is the wisest of the wise; his heart is so pure I had
tears in my eyes. When he spoke his compassion was with out words. He
is humble and sincere. I cried when he gave me some advice.

He
simply said, “No matter how hard ife becomes or how dark you may feel
always remember two things. Love unconditionally yourself and all of
humanity. The second is to breathe. Breathe love into yourself when you
breathe in; when you breathe out breathe out love unto the world.”

He
put his warm, strong, yet gentle hands onto my heart and said, “YES,
Just like that.” He smiled again a big smile and said “Thank you for
being here with me today.” I replied, “Your Holiness it is my deepest
honor to serve you.” and thanked him for his wisdom and heart felt
words.

He hugged me then went on stage to greet his audience,
his speech and his words to me made me weep. At lunch he said “You have
great love in your heart, the world needs more men with such love to
give.” I bowed deeply and said “I serve humanity.”

Other then
those personal moments with him the remainder of the day was small talk
of events through out the day with his advisors, RCMP officers, K-9
handlers, security officers, audio/video production staff, and event
staff.

The experience was so deep and powerful for me, not a single word can describe my day with his Holiness.

It
is moments like these that make you take a long hard look within and
see who and what you truly are. Honestly, I have not liked myself in a
very long time. My life fell to pieces, I could not accept where my
life ended up in the last year. I’ve been unhappy and dissatisfied and
became extremely bitter to myself and to those I have loved and cared
for.

After today, I can now look upon myself with hope and
inspiration. It is amazing how the words of one man can have such a
significant impact on me on every level. I wish love upon the world and
will try my best to be the inspiration he shared with me today. I
commit myself to loving everyone with respect and dignity. Finally I
can be at peace with myself.

Todd Wong nominates The Fraser River for Great Canadian Song Quest

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The Great Canadian Song Quest deserves the Fraser River

2009_July_HellsGate_FraserCanyon 038 by you.
I visited Hell's Gate on the Fraser River this year in July – with my friends Dave Samis and Debbie Poon.

CBC Radio 2 has launched The Great Canadian Song Quest.  13 landmarks will be immortalized in song – one from each province and territory.

Todd Wong will
be heard at 3:30pm PST on CBC Radio 2 Drive with Rich Terfry.

I am
nominating the mighty Fraser River for the Great Canadian Song Quest,
to recognize the river's history to First Nations, Scottish and Chinese
pioneers… This is for the Chinese
railroad builders who died 3 at a time for each mile of track in the
Fraser Canyon, and never rated a word in Gordon Lightfoot's Canadian
Railroad Trilogy.

I talked with Rich this morning at 11:20am Pacific Standard Time.  4 hours ahead of the broadcast for Atlantic time, even though he was in a Toronto studio.

“Without the Fraser River there wouldn't be a British Columbia,” I told Rich.  “It was the gold rush that opened up the province.  It was at Ft. Langley that James Douglas pronounced the Colony of BC, 150 years ago.”

“It was in 1867, at Confederation that they decided to build a railroad across Canada.  They brought in Chinese workers to build the toughest part.  Blood, sweat and death went into building the railroad, as 3 workers died per mile.”

There are many things we can say about the Fraser River… that it was navigated 201 years ago by Hudson Bay Company explorer Simon Fraser in 1808.  The river has been used for 8000 years by many First Nations peoples for trade and food and travel.

The largest fishing fleet in the west coast existed until Canadians of Japanese ancestry were sent to internment camps in 1942, during WWII. 

My cousin Rhonda Larrabee's maternal family lived beside the Fraser River as the Qayqayt First Nations, until their reservation land was taken away from them at New Westminster – the first capital city of BC, which was founded 150 years ago.

“Where the Fraser River Flows” is a song written by Joe Hill.  It was written to “aid construction workers laying track for the Canadian
Northern Railroad Company in British Columbia who were striking because
of low pay, unsanitary living conditions, bad food, and hazardous
working conditions.”

2009_July_HellsGate_FraserCanyon 001 by you.

The tram way view down to Hell's Gate…. s-c-a-r-y…..

Check out more of my pictures of Hell's Gate, Fraser and Thompson Canyons at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53803790@N00/sets/72157621894438194/

This past July, my friends Debbie Poon, Dave Samis and I decided to take the scenic Fraser
Canyon route to Vernon instead of the Coquihalla Hwy.  I hadn't driven up the Fraser since August 82, when my friend Sonny Wong and I drove all the way to the Rocky Mountains and Calgary.  

2009_July_HellsGate_FraserCanyon 034

It was gold mining that drove thousands of gold seekers to the Fraser Canyon, mostly Americans, following the California Gold Rush.  But people came from all around the world.  The first reported Chinese immigrant came to BC, from California in 1858… so say the statistics.

I can also remember
scary driving in a snow storm in the 70's on our way to go skiing in
Vernon. This 2009 trip was wonderful and beautiful. Debbie had never
been to Hell's Gate, so we went. I liked how they integrated lots of
historical elements.  The power of the Fraser is incredible.  About the same equivalent of water passing through Hell's Gate – the narrowest section of the Fraser River – as  goes over Niagra Falls… something like that.

I have paddled canoe, kayak and dragon boat in the Fraser River.  In the 90's my friend Rod and I dropped a canoe into the Coquitlam River, and paddled to New Westminster Quay.  With my friend Wendy, we paddled mini-kayaks from my home on Burnaby Lake, down the Brunette River, into the Fraser River, and out at the Quay.

Every Thanksgiving Saturday, we take the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team to the Ft. Langley Cranberry Festival Canoe Regatta.

2008_Oct 081 by you.

Two Gung Haggis canee teams wait for their runners to finish carrying cranberry juice on their paddle, then jump back into the canoe, and complete the race.

2009_July_Richmond_Dragon 007 by you.

Todd and the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team attended the Richmond Dragon Boat Festival on July 18th.  Todd is sitting right side, seat 9, 2nd from left.  The races were held at the UBC Rowing Centre on the middle arm of the Fraser River, near the new Olympic Skating Oval.

Gung Haggis paddlers compete in 2009 UBC Day of the Long Boat race – 2nd in Mixed and Mens Community races.

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CONGRATULATIONS to the GUNG HAGGIS FAT CHOY long boat team.

Gung Haggis paddlers came 2nd in both Mixed and Mens Community races.

2009_Sept_UBC_Longboat 002 by you.
Tzhe, Christine, Hillary, Brandi, Karen, Debbie, Walter and Joe of the Gung Haggis Fat Choy Community Mixed long boat team – photo Alex Kwok/T. Wong

UBC Long Boat race is a tough challenging race.  Lots of strategy is
important.  Steering plays a big role.  Experience makes a big
difference.

SPECIAL BIG THANKS to TZHE
for organizing and captaining the team for today!

BIG THANKS to our long boat team.
Tzhe in seat 1 – the runner and lead stroke
Hillary and Christine in seat 2
Debbie and Brandi in seat 3
Walter and Karen in seat 4
Joe and Ernest in seat 5
Todd for steering.

Additionally…

Tony had wanted to create a strong mens team to give the visiting
Philippine paddlers a chance to race while they were still in Canada. 
I said let's do it!  UBC Long Boats was the opportunity. After Tony had
also potentially recruited 3 women paddlers, I felt it would be easier
to recruit 2 additional women and create an additional MIXED TEAM, that
I named Gung Haggis FRIENDS.  This allowed paddling friends such as
Carly & Steve – the father daughter duo from Metro Van 44 Cheeks
and Flight Centre to paddle with us. Lisa and Dominic from How Wet Can
You Get and who paddled with us in Richmond, as did Oliver from PCL. 
Carolyn Jeffries from CC Riders joined us, as did her coach Alex Kwok –
paddler for Booze Cruise.  Remus from Dragon Hearts has paddled in
Vernon and Ft. Langley with us – He brought Tricia with him from Dragon
Hearts.  Alison and Wade (on Mens Team) from Sudden Impact joined us. 
They paddled with Dan Seto (loyal Gung Haggis alumni) at the Nationals
in Montreal this year.  Along with Michael Chavez, Philippine paddler
who joined us for Last Gasp – this was the GH FRIENDS team. Almost
nobody had done UBC Long Boat race before… except Tony, Alison,
Tricia and Dan.

GUNG HAGGIS team philosophy has always been to be inclusive, give paddlers opportunities, emphasize friendship and fun. 
I think we all accomplished this today.

There were lots of challenges… many unexpected… some preventable….
I apologize for any mistakes in steering….  I know we could have done better.
Given the circumstances we did our best… and we were competitive.  If
not for us, Scaly Bytes FC didn't have any close competition.

We tried to beat Scaly Bytes FC team in Mixed and Mens categories. 
These are experienced outrigger paddlers used to long distances.  Scaly
Bytes recently competed in the 51km Santa Catalina crossing race in
California.  I have known team organizers Ron Chin, Stuart Higginson
and Sarah Glazzard for many years.  The first time they raced UBC Long
Boat was with a Gung Haggis team back around 2006.

EVERYBODY RACED HARD TODAY…
I SALUTE YOU!

Here's my blog draft about:

RACES TODAY

Strong paddling from everybody today – at points in both races Gung
Haggis Chop Suey MENS team and Gung Haggis FRIENDS were in the lead.

We had strong men in the boat today.  I first met Tony in 2006 when he
paddled on the PYROS team from the Philippines.  He had recruited
former fellow teammate Achilles who had paddled on the Philippine
National team, as had Abu.  Marshall and Michael Chavez had come to
Canada recently as paddlers on the Phillipine Police team for the World
Police and Fire Games.  Remaining paddlers were Wade, Allison and Dan
who had paddled together on the Sudden Impact Team that went to
Montreal Nationals race. Alex Kwok from the Booze Cruise team rounded
out the team.

MENS team had a great start and were leading the 2 team division…. as
well as leading the 2 womens teams.   We had a fast start and reached
the 1st buoy with a great line, maximizing speed.  Scaly Bytes FC Mens
got trapped by the 2 womens teams on either side of them.

Going past the 1st buoy and the Jericho wharf, we were leading by about
5 boat lengths in front of Scaly Bytes FC…. until we got hung up on
the sand bar – forcing Marshall to run from the sandbar, through deep
water, grab the baton and jump back into the boat.

We tried to back off the sand bar, and move left to go pick up
Marshall… but the Scaly Bytes FC Women's team then hit into us, as we
moved left… hitting us into the sand bar again.  Marshall ran hard
through the water to jump back into our boat…

We were able to push away and get going hot on the tail of the Scaly
Bytes FC Mens team, cutting off time with a tighter turn on the 2nd
yellow buoy.  Maybe they were about 3 boat lengths in front of us…   

“We're gaining on them” yelled Tony. We had a chance.

In the long stretch FC Scaly Bytes pulled farther ahead… Both boats
bounced on the waters of English Bay… left… then right…

“Anything can happen!” I yelled… “They could flip… keep paddling” 
I said these words to give our team some hope… knowing that races
could still be won or lost on corners, and in the finish…

Scaly Bytes FC made their tun…. going wide.  We kept paddling… I
took us for a wider turn to keep our speed up… and cut the 3rd and
final buoy sharp.  We practically clipped the buoy.  We had lots of
speed, that took us a bit wide.. but steering corrections brought us
back on track to the finish line. 

Scaly Bytes FC ran their boat onto the beach… and their runner jumped
out of the boat… ran up the beach to bang the gong.   We kept
paddling… our  runner Marshall jumped out and ran up the beach…
banging the gong.  What a race…  We had been in the lead, we didn't
go far enough around the corner into the bay.  We hit the sand bar.  We
were behind.  We tried to catch up.  We struggled. We lost.  We had
done our best… but it hadn't been good enough.  We gave high fives to
each other in recognition of our shared experience… of thanks…  but
it did not ring with the joy of exhileration of winning.

IN BETWEEN RACES

To help give more preparation for our Gung Haggis FRIENDS MIXED team,
Michael Chavez and I walked over to watch the next race to see how best
teams can make the turns, follow the course, avoid the sand bar, make
the beach landing… then return around the 2nd buoy, paddle the long
length back to the 3rd buoy, then race to the finish to drop off the
runner and bang the gong.

MIXED TEAM RACE

2009_Sept_UBC_Longboat 015 by you.
Gung Haggis Friends teams pushes off from the start – photo Alex Kwok/T.Wong

At the start… The Gung Haggis Fat Choy Mixed team was on the far
left… and the Gung Haggis FRIENDS MIXED team was on the far right.  I
was to steer Gung Haggis Fat Choy with Scaly Bytes FC on our right. 
The horn sounded… and All the steers people ran to the boats… 
“Go.. Go…” I yelled, as I go to the boat… and the paddlers…
paddled… forward taking off as I tried find my seat and grab my
paddle.  The boat lurched forward, with nobody steering.  I found my
paddle and paddled forward, looking around me to see where I should
steer the boat.  We were ahead of Scaly Bytes FC.  There was open water
to our right.  Surprise!  The left most lane is the hardest because you
have to some how cross every other lane to the right.  With nobody
blocking our way, I turned to the right… cutting off the teams to our
right…. as they had to avoid collisions…

Scaly Bytes FC, had backed off to “avoid the canage” (I talked with
their steersperson after the race), they came around the outside to our
left… but they were behind us. 

A team bumped into us hard from our right. 

Surprise, it was the Gung Haggis FRIENDS team.  They had been in the
inside lane closest to the 1st buoy.  This is a good lane if you are a
fast team.  But it is a tough lane if the other boats force you to the
right, missing the 1st buoy.  They had been in danger of other teams
pushing them over… but Gung Haggis FRIENDS paddled hard, staying on
the outside of the buoy. 

Not backing down to make a sharp turn, Gung Haggis FRIENDS paddled
hard… coming up hard beside Gung Haggis FAT CHOY team.  With two
boats so close beside each other, there was no room for the inside
paddlers to paddle.  This effectively slows both boats down
significantly.  Behind us, Scaly Bytes FC was catching up, avoiding
collisions.  Gung Haggis FAT CHOY and Gung Haggis FRIENDS struggled to
push off from each other… but too late.  Scaly Bytes FC was catching
up.

Gung Haggis FRIENDS took the inside path… I steered Gung Haggis FAT
CHOY to a wider path to the bay where we had to pic up the baton… I
really had to avoid the sandbar that I had steered us into during the
mens race.   Behind us, Scaly Bytes FC tried to pass, but had to steer
further to the outside, trying to avoid colliding with us.

All three teams paddled hard to the beach.  Scaly Bytes FC took a
further line, still paddling when Gung Haggis FRIENDS hit the beach. 
To the left or to the right of them, I had to make a decision.  I
expected the boat to drop off their runner, then keep moving to the
left.  We came in fast, and I kept the boat moving.  But GH FRIENDS had
come into the beach to hard, and beached the front of their boat.  We
hit them hard.

“You rammed us” later said the GH FRIENDS paddlers during our debriefings. 

The GH Friends boat tipped over to the left, from the impact.  Water
started filling into the boat.  They tried to right it fast. 

“Back up!”  I shouted to the GH team.  But we too were now a bit
beached.  Tzhe had already jumped out of the boat, and was running to
grab the baton from the tent.  GH paddlers push backwards against the
sand, backing away from the GH FRIENDS team, who were climbing back
into their boat, now partially filled with water.  They looked
frantically for bailers…

Tzhe jumped into the boat, and we were still backing up.  Remus was the
runner for the GH FRIENDS team, and he too had jumped back into the
boat.  GH Friends was backing up, as we were backing up… we had to
back up even more.

Scaly Bytes FC were now paddling away from further down the beach, having regained their runner.

“Draw Left!” I shouted… as we were finally clear of the GH FRIENDS team.  We struggled to turn the boat away from the beach.

“Paddle Forward!”  we shouted, as we tried to gain some speed to catch up to the rapidly escaping Scaly Bytes FC team.


They turned left at the second buoy, and there were less than boat
lengths between us.  Behind us, another team was behind us by 2 boat
lengths.  We paddled past the 2nd buoy.  There were OC-6 outrigger
canoes stopped to watch the race.  I think they had False Creek Racing
Canoe Club written on their hulls.

“Power Now!” shouted Ernest from the 5th seat left.  Ernest has done
this race many times.  A few years ago, he had been a runner.  He knew
that the race wasn't over yet.  Anything could happen… at anytime
during a race.  “Power Now… 2, 4, 6, 8, 10” Ernest called, paddling
hard with each stroke in an effort to will the team to catch up.

GH Friends was paddling hard.  Water was still in the boat, surrounding
their feet.  As they paddled, water sloshed in the boat.  As the boat
tipped this way or that, the water in the boat reacted, forcing the
boat to lurch.  But these are all experienced paddlers.  Many of them
paddled now or in the past on competitive teams.  Michael was an
experienced canoe paddler and steers, and has paddled on Phillipine
National teams.

As Scaly Bytes FC turned the last buoy to head to the finish line, we
were now about 5 to 6 boat lengths behind.  The boat behind us was 3
boat lengths behind.

We turned the corner, with the other boat hot on our heels.  Each boat
trying to make the corner tight.  Each boat trying to keep their speed
fast. 

Scaly Bytes FC hit the beach.  Their runner ran up the beach to bang the gong.

We came up to the beach the right of them.  Tzhe jumped out and ran up the beach.

The next team came up close to our boat to the right.  Their runner ran up the beach to hit the gong.

As we started unloading the boat, the 4th place team had rounded the
final buoy and was paddling to the beach.  It was GH FRIENDS paddling
hard.  They came to the left of us.  Remus jumped out as the boat hit
the beach.  He ran up to hit the gong.  We helped each other out of the
boat.  And went to congratulate each other for finishing the race.

High fives… for all paddlers.  It had been an exhilerating finish for all teams. 

Gung Haggis had paddled hard to come 2nd to a much more experienced
team.  We had 3 rookies in the boat.  Karen and Christine had paddled
with us since April, training for the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat
race.  Walter had joined us in May.  We had experienced paddlers Tzhe,
Joe, Ernest, Hillary, Debbie and Brandi.


Gung Haggis FRIENDS was a team who had never ever paddled together
before.  Allison had the most experience, and had paddled the UBC Long
Boat with a Ft. Langley team.  Tricia had paddled Long Boat races 4
times before, but this was her first time as a dragon boater.  Michael
steered the boat, after only having his first Long Boat race as a
paddler 90 minutes earlier while racing with the mens team.  For 7
other paddlers, it was there first time in the UBC Long Boat Race. 
Only Remus, Oliver and Allison had paddled before voyageur canoes
before at the Ft. Langley Cranberry regatta.  For Lisa, Carolyn, Carly,
Steve, Dominic it had been their first time in the 10 person voyageur
canoe.  They had paddled valiantly with maybe and extra 300 pounds of
water in their boat.

Cheers, Everybody…  Todd

New York Times Frugal Traveler comes to Vancouver in search of Asian fusion cuisine and talks with Todd Wong of Gung Haggis Fat Choy

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New York Times Frugal Traveler comes to Vancouver in search of Asian fusion cuisine and talks with Todd Wong of Gung Haggis Fat Choy

RL101 by you.

Todd Wong is getting known “the whole world o'er” for creating crazy Asian/Scottish cultural and culinary fusion.Philip
Riddle.  The CEO of VisitScotland, Phillip Riddell had heard about “Toddish McWong's Gung Haggis Fat Choy Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner” and tried some of the Haggis Wonton during a visit by the
Scottish Tourism Organisation to Vancouver, B.C., to promote the Year
of Homecoming Scotland 2009, on Tuesday, January 20, 2009.

Matt Gross writes his column/blog The Frugal Traveler for The New York Times.  He came through Vancouver back in August 2009, and we connected through email and cell phone, as we found ourselves moving in different directions in the city and across Georgia Straight.

His newest blog/article is about Asian fusion cuisine, titled:
Asian Cuisine As Diverse as Vancouver.
http://frugaltraveler.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/23/asian-cuisine-as-diverse-as-vancouver/#more-1441

Matt found me through my blog www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com, for which I try to focus on my “Asian Canadian adventure in intercultural Vancouver.”  I even have a category called Food & Restaurants.

Matt quotes me:

“Mixing things just becomes part of everyday life,” said Todd Wong,
a Vancouver arts advocate who during Chinese New Year hosts the annual
Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner, where Scottish haggis finds its way into
dim sum dumplings. “It’s not ‘Why are they doing this?’ It’s ‘Why not?’ ”

It’s an admirable attitude, and one that is producing some delicious
and affordable cuisines. Over four days, I pursued this accidental
(incidental?) fusion style around Vancouver, and the quest led me down
some strange and tasty paths.

This is from my original email to Matt:

How I wish that McDonald's would serve McRamen like they did in
Hawaii during the days of my youth.

Not really a lot of well-known Odd Asian fusion food – but you know… it happens when you least expect it.  Vancouver has so many restaurants and ethnic groups.  Things just end up mixing by accident
like peanut butter and choclate eg. Reese's peanut butter cups.

Check out the sushi restaurants…
You've
heard of the BC Roll?  Lots of smoked salmon rolls – sometimes called
Alaska Roll.  But somewhere in Vancouver there is a Maple Leaf roll…
and in the Davie St. Village – homebase to our large Gay population –
there is a Queen's Roll…. and a Princess Roll…. a Snow White
Roll, Rainbow Roll, Canada Roll, Stanley Park Roll, Panda Roll, Flamingo Roll + lots more!
Check out Kadoya on Davie St.

I LOVE HAPA IZAKAYA
–
while the Robson location is one of Vancouver's hippest restaurants. 
It is still a Japanese style bistro – so you can order a few dishes.  We
feel like we are going out to a hip restaurant, but can keep the bill
small.  We usually go to the Kitsilano location.  Okay – so it's not
odd… but incredibly delicious.  This is the restaurant we take our
out of town friends to. Try the Kabocha – $5.90  Japanese pumpkin, whipped into a light, sweet dip, served with cracker

A lot of traditional Chinese food in North America is really fusion cuisine.  Chop Suey, is supposedly a “made up” dish for “White Americans” from table scraps….

Go to the Foo's Ho Ho restaurant for one of my favorite dishes.  Curried potatoes with beef slices. 
We always had it in the 1960's.  But now Foo's Ho Ho is the only place
serving authentic “old style” cantonese cuisine in Vancouver.  Think –
Where would you find potatoes in China?  It's very North American!

Similar to Japa Dog – there is a Thai/Malaysian Hot Dog
stand on Broadway – East of Burrard. on the South side, in front of
Future Shop.  The owners have some crazy Malaysian Thai garnishes as
well as the usual.

How about Congee with Ostrich meat? 
Go to Kwong Chow on 3163 Main St.
or go to Congee House , 141 East Broadway
– Both are after-practice hang-outs for the Gung Haggis Fat Choy dragon boat team (that I founded and coach)

But the Chinese bakeries have these weird combinations.  Almost everybody sells a chinese bun with a hot dog weiner –
only $1.45 to $1.95.  It's gotta be the cheapest “hot dog” in town. 
Try the one stuffed with mayonaise.  For some reason Mayonaise is a
“sauce” in Hong Kong.

But… what about
Irish Natchos at Doolin's Irish Pub?
We go to Doolin's every 1st Thursday of each month for Kilts Night.
Wear a kilt – receive a FREE pint of GUINNESS

Go to The Irish Heather.
Famous for their curried potatoe fries
– okay great fries served with a curry sauce.  Lots of other fusion
foods there too.  And the batter-fruied squid rings with chorizo and
sunflower sprouts was VERY COOL and DELICIOUS! http://www.gunghaggisfatchoy.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/22/4264001.html

Dessert Time!!!
Lots of Asians in this city… so green tea or mango ice cream is great.
But how about Durian gelato?
Try out Casa Gelato
Try the black sesame gelato, and a host of other Asian
inspired flavours.
But the Durian gelato still stinks (is smelly).

Deep-Fried Mars Bars…..
at Mr. Pickwick's Fish & Chips
8620 Granville Street
http://ourfaves.com/f/150181/vancouver-deep-fried-mars-bar

Read Matt's blog about Galiano Island
An Island Frozen in Time and Price:
http://frugaltraveler.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/21/an-island-frozen-in-time-and-price/

Kelowna Dragon Boat Festival – Day One

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I am paddling in Kelowna with “How Wet Can You Get”
– formerly known as Scotia Dragons for the past decade, they changed their name this year.

I last raced in Kelowna in 2001 with GM Team (also known as Canadian, and later Roli), and in 2002 we raced a Gung Haggis Fat Choy team supplemented by paddlers from the 39th Brigade Army team.

The race site is on Okanagan Lake, just north of the new Bill Bennett Bridge and beside the Grand Hotel.  There is a small beach that is used for the loading and unloading of dragon boats.

There are many people I know and have paddled with over the years o this team.  I was invited by my paddling friend Lisa Venables, who joined the team this year after paddling the previous 8 years with O2P.  Steers William Cheng and I last raced together in 2001 when I coached the Civil Serpents and we brought him on as steers.  Back in 2000, Manley was on Dragon Hearts novice team, when I drummed and coached the Dragon Hearts Rec team.  Cal Kelly joined the Gung Haggis team for the Taiwanese Race 4 years ago.  And Connie Pan works at the Vancouver Public Library with me.

On the first day of this Kelowna Festival, we raced two times, and came 2nd in each race.  Our morning race time was 2:20 – losing by 4 seconds to RGL United

In our afternoon race, with increasing winds and rough water, we raced
2:26 – losing by 10 seconds to Without Warning – where Dan Seto is
paddling.

But… we made it into Diamond Division – the second highest tier – so
we are in the top 20 teams of about 80-100 teams (I don;t know what the
final total is).  We are in lane 1 – so we probably had the slowest
combined time,  (they always seed the fastest team in the middle eg. 3
for 5 teams).

But we have 5 or 6 “borrowed paddlers” – so with each race the entire
team improves as we learn the race calls, adjust to the stroke and
pace, and help bond as a team.  But the other teams have borrowed
paddlers, and are adjusting too.  Also in Diamond Division are SFU
Scaly Justice Bytes with Stuart Higginson and Ron Chin + Booze Cruise
with mercenary paddlers Manfred Preuss + Carolyn Jeffries & Alex
Kwok from CC Riders.

The weather started off raining this morning… but cleared up for our
first race.  Sunshine actually happened.   But winds blew up after our
2nd race – causing a boat collision – but they kept going.  Sun and
heat arrived in time for beer garden time after the races.

I chatted with lots of dragon boat friends. 
Manfred Preuss is here with his wife Kathy, paddling on Booze Cruise, 
Manfred paddled with Gung Haggis at Rio Tinto Alcan this year.

Carolyn Jeffries from CC Riders and the CC Riders Coach Alex Kwok are also on Booze Cruise.

Maggie and Harvey are racing with Dragon Hearts Beat, as is James Yu (coach of Metro Van 44 Cheeks)

Allison Adachi and Wade who came out to practice with us on Tuesday are here with a mixed Chilliwack team.

Guen from Shaggin' Dragons is wearing her bunny ears on the drummer's seat.

Lee who paddled with us at Taiwanese last year is here with her Sudden Impact team

Lots of paddlers from Kelowna, including the Blazing Paddles who insisted on buying me a beer for steering for them in Vernon.

The Alley Health Fair

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You’ve likely seen someone lugging around a gallon of water at the gym, school or work before. And sure, you understand the importance of staying hydrated, but is drinking a gallon of water a day really necessary?

Dietitian Beth Czerwony, MS, RD, CSOWM, LD, discusses what to know about this trend, how much water you should really be drinking and what factors influence your hydration levels. Plus, she offers practical advice about how to drink more water throughout the day. Check out the latest Java burn reviews.

Is drinking a gallon of water a day recommended?

“Drinking a gallon of water a day is not really necessary, but it’s not going to hurt you either,” says Czerwony. “Everybody’s hydration levels are different, but most people don’t need a daily gallon.”

Your body is incredibly efficient and will let you know when it is thirsty. People have different water needs based on their weight, activity level, how much they sweat, how hot it is, what medications they’re on and what they eat.

Obviously, everyone wants to avoid being dehydrated, but that doesn’t mean you have to fill up on 128-ounces of water every single day to avoid it. A good rule of thumb is to take a peek at the color of your pee. If you’re hydrated, it should be a light lemonade color, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be clear. If your pee is darker, that might be an indicator to up your water intake, but keep in mind that some medications (and even food) can affect the color too.

How much water should you be drinking in general?

Everybody’s hydration levels vary, but the standard number to aim for is 64-ounces a day.

Your activity level, your location, your metabolism and your size should all be considered into this number as well. Some people naturally require more water than that, while others a bit less. These are the best exipure real reviews.

Terry Fox Run in Richmond BC – Great weather and community fun!

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Terry Fox Run in Richmond BC always has a great community support
2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 050 by you.

Miss
BC and McNair High School cheerleaders encourage Terry Fox Run
participants and give high-5's as they cross the finish line at the
Richmond run site at Garry Point Park on September 13th, Sunday.

2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 004

Volunteer Lindsay Pagnucco holds up one of the many Terry Fox Run t-shirts on sale near the registration tent.

2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 025
Bagpipe Noel Chalmers, Dr. Andrew Wang and Terry's Team member Todd Wong

2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 011

Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie walks with the crowd to the start line.

2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 035 by you.

Platform party for the 2009 Terry Fox Run in Richmond
BC: Terry's Team member Todd Wong, warm-up leader, Mayor Malcolm
Brodie, John Yap MLA, Dr. Andrew Wang (Terry Fox Lab), Councilor
McNulty, Miss BC Sandra Gin, Noel Chalmers (bagpiper).

2009_Terry_Fox_Run_Richmond 038

Dr.
Andrew Wang of the Terry Fox Lab in Vancouver gave a brief but
excellent talk about how the monies raised are used at the Terry Fox
Lab for cancer research – describing some of the important research
that they do.