Peter posted on September 22, 2009
SEPTEMBER 17 - The 2009 NAAAP Atlanta Dragon Boat team placed 5th in our division and narrowly missed 3rd place by only 2.15 seconds on the combined score. Going into the final race, the team was ranked in their division and had to beat 3rd and 4th by 2.5 seconds to clinch 3rd place. However, in the final race, the unthinkable happened: another boat crossed from two lanes away and collided with the NAAAP Atlanta team’s boat in the final race, slowing them down. By this point, the NAAAP Atlanta team was only about 2 boat lengths behind two other boats! However, we pulled together mid-race and crossed the finish line FIRST in that final heat!
VP of Member Relations and 2009 Dragon Boat Captain Chong Luo continues the narrative:
"We were still faster than 3rd (Zaga) and 4th (Healing Dragons)'s final time but unfortunately, we were not fast enough to overtake them with our combined overall time. It was a very intense day. I looked at the final times for everyone and it looks like we came in 17th out of 60 official entries. In fact, many of the top 16 are semi-pro teams or collegiate teams. LCKC and DCH Racing both race nationally and internationally. The Laotian teams have put together the same, consistent teams year after year for the last decade.
The UGA and GaTech crews race competitively for their schools in national and collegiate competitions. In my humble opinion, 1st and 2nd place in our division should have raced in the Open Division. In fact, Gene Hanratty, the festival director, said that they are bumping the 1st place team to the Open Div next year since they always win the Recreational Division by such a huge margin year after year. Additionally, 4th place in our division is a cancer survivor team and should have been in the BCS division also. Of the top 20 teams this weekend, we were one of the few TRULY Amateur teams and we came together with a few limited practices and were able to keep up with the best!
I want to thank each and every one of you for making this such a great experience. We all made HUGE sacrifices away from friends, family, and other tasks every Saturday morning for the last month and a half to train and compete on NAAAP's team. Many of you will agree that there is a HUGE difference in fitness levels from just the first practice to yesterday's final race and I am proud of you for making the commitment to the team. It has been such an honor for Coach Greene and I to row with such respectable people and we sincerely hope that you will join us again next year.