Jacob Boat Racing

I recently asked my dragon boat racing captains if we could pack food and sleeping bags and embark on a dragon boat camping trip up the Yangtze River. They said absolutely not. Kaiyu and Terry, the captains, explained that the dragon boat is strictly designed for short-term races, unlike the kayak or canoe.

To spite them, I'll begin describing my current dragon boat racing experiences by comparing the dragon boat to a giant canoe. It is exactly like a canoe, but has room for about 20 people--two on each side, a drummer in the front and a steerer in the back. It's nearly impossible to tip over, so all you mischievous canoe-rockers are going to have to resort to splashing or paddle-whacking if you want to cause any trouble for your fellow shipmates while aboard.

The dragon boat racing happens in Fo Tan, Sha Tin on the Shing Mun River. Along the river (and in the picture above) is the Hong Kong Sports Institute, featuring one of the two racetracks where the 2008 Equestrian Olympics took place. Horse racing is the only legal form of gambling in Hong Kong, so I think it's always a full house at the racetrack. I digress.

The people in charge kept telling me this boat carried the Olympic torch. I wasn't sure if they meant this specific boat or not, so I thought I would seize me a photo-op in case it was. The good news is I got yelled at, leading me to believe it was the legitimate Olympic torch-lighting dragon boat.

The biggest letdown about dragon boat racing is that there aren't any menacing dragon heads on the boat. The dragon heads, which look like this: are only used during the actual competitions, which only take place in the springtime. In the meantime, decapitated dragon boat scrimmaging will have to suffice. If you'd like to catch a glimpse of the real deal, I wouldn't suggest watching this whole video unless you've got a hankering for good ol' Linkin Park.

Other big news: I might be changing my name to dragon because everyone thinks my name is Dragon when I tell them it is Jacob.

Win paddles on the left side.