2008 News « ’07 News     « ’06 News    « ’05 News July 26-27, 2008 : Long Beach Weekend The sun was bright, the sky was blue and the air smelled of... well, a sewage spill, but we didn't find that out until after we'd already been wading and splashing about in the water. And so began DF's 2-day Long Beach extravaganza, replete with overworked race directors wielding malfunctioning bullhorns who did not understand the laws of physics (the dock and the tail of a dragonboat cannot occupy the same space at the same time... but apparently we still needed to back-up more) and our intrepid Long Beach Race Coordinator Garland, who race-coordinated himself into an illness the likes of which has not been seen since the Black Death (thank you, Garland!). Our crew, combining one-half salty and one-half newbie crews who had never before raced together, led by first-time race stroke Colin, had no idea what to expect from the weekend. Our first several races were not unlike so many first dates; luckily, in the end, we all decided to stay together. In addition to racing with the DF mixed crew, the Hotties contributed their unique zing to the Dragon Warriors Women's crew to create the hybrid dreamteam known as Double D ("More than a handful!") which turned-in an impressive showing over the course of the festival and received rather uplifting support from the Meat in attendance. And through it all, the Fishies maintained our characteristic "Paddle to Eat!" spirit, bolstered by hot dog burritos (2 hot dogs, chili, cheese and pastrami), syrup shots and succulent breasts from Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles, Shackburgers, and of course, meat with a side of meat at Greenfield's. But not even the improvised pole dancing lessons could hold a candle to the glory of DF's final race of the weekend, where our half-salty, half-newbie crew gelled like never before, driving our drummer (Amy of Galileo) to speak in tongues while our steersperson (Jasper) screamed like a girl. It just felt good. Dani July 13, 2008 : Fremont Sprints The 5th Annual CDBA Sprints at Quarry Lakes, Fremont CA marked the half way point of 2008's US Dragon Boat season. DieselFish was able to enter two full boats with a mixture of salty and new Fishies — clocking up valuable competition experience in the lead up to the season finale at Treasure Island CA.   DieselFish competed in the Mixed (2 boats), Men's and Women's divisions. Whilst our racing results were mixed, much potential were shown and some Personal Best times achieved on this hot summer's day.  In addition to racing, a number of Fishies gave back to the dragon boating community through official duties, being 'steer/ drummer on loan' as well as maintaining their high school coaching roles.    Amongst the madness of a regatta, the Fishie spirit prevailed throughout the day with plenty of laughter, camaraderie and of course, food. We certainly had the healthiest picnic spread around, thanks to everyone's contribution. And our roving cameraman kept tabs on all that was happening, from racing footage to quotable quotes (inappropriate or otherwise!) that will be cut into the end of season reel.   Overall a great day out by all — big thank you to the organizing committee and our VIP Mad Canadian paddler.   DieselFish's next outing? Bring on Long Beach Regatta! Joyce May 10, 2008: CDBA Regional Regatta at Paragon Point WOW! We couldn't have asked for better weather for our Season 11 race opener! Leaving our homes at the crack of dawn and arriving to the still waters of Paragon Point, no one knew what the day would hold. Our team has undergone a lot of changes since last year with this year's crew comprised, predominantly, by un-salted fish. We were able to pull 2 great crews together of both Dieselfish and Google paddlers and, of course, the food spread was the envy of all! For many, this was their first race experience and it proved to be a challenging day for all. But in true Diesel style, we all banded together, paddled hard, and learned a lot about our new teammates Ð giving new shape to our newly developing team. And when Ellis' mom arrived with the now traditional pink bakery boxes, even the most tired of fishies had cause to smile. YummmmmmmmÉÉ After the long day of back-to-back races, we gathered at Oasis for pizza, burgers, and beer. Of course, talk of the day's events dominated. Pictures were shared, and yes, video too. I suspect with coach reviews of race footage (YIKES!!!!) we will all only improve with time and more race experience. Thank you fishies, both new and salty, for coming out and representing for the decade-old Dieselfish banner. Now that we've got this race under our belts, lets BRING IT for our future races!!!! -Tamara

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