2005 Year in Review

To the paddlers that were able to make it out to Tempe – congratulations on a very fine performance. It was mentioned before about the adversity we faced, whether it was fatigue from the late night drive, first race jitters, hot/cold flash weather, water conditions, or March Madness...we came together very well and were able to paddle as a single boat/team. This tournament was just a taste of what’s to come. The team management, coaching staff, and captains will work hard to make sure our momentum doesn’t fade. Thanks for committing to the race, and we hope to see you all in the coming months to help our boats(s)/team continue to improve. I have your LARDware – 3rd place “out of town division” and travel mugs (2nd place 250m sprint). Sorry, we donated that box of brownies to the nice front desk staff at the Courtyard Marriott

For everyone else, you’ve heard some of the reports on our Tempe race. I don’t recall all of the numbers, but our finals placed us 4 seconds behind BAD and 8 seconds behind Taipei, I think. Our start sequence has once again proved us to be one of the best 250m teams around, placing us second behind Taipei in the Fairytale Brownie Bowl. The atmosphere was very relaxed, and our paddlers were still able to keep focus.

I want to invite everyone out to practice again. Our team will only get better if each and every one of you get better. To do that, the coaching staff and captains will be working with individual paddlers when they can. Video cameras and feedback will start immediately to give you time to work on it. After that, we all have to be able to paddle as a boat. This means training together, consistently. It’s hard to be a team if your seat partner or the person in front/ behind you keeps changing.

I believe there will be a team meeting next week (April 2 or 3). Stay tuned for details. We have a lot to take care of. Uniforms for this year need to be ordered. You have to come out to practice to size yourself with the samples.

We have also received the first order of Hats/Visors/Tshirts. Those of you who “pre-ordered” with me can pay me and pick up your order. For the rest of you, we now have samples for you to check out. They look great. We have to place a 50 piece order to get the same pricing, so come check it out and get your order in now!

As a team, we have set a very fine bar for the 2005 season at the Tempe Race. It wasn’t perfect, but it’s a great place to start and improve. By the end of the season, each and every one of you should feel proud to have participated in 2005. We are who we are on the boat and off the boat, in private, or out in public. I am proud to be a part of the Los Angeles Racing Dragons Foundation, and hope to make it so every one of you will be too. That is one of my goals as co-captain. (Though...I don’t think I’ll be getting any tattoo’s any time soon...). At this rate, we CAN expect great things by Vancouver, and just steam roll on through July/August’s tournaments. But we can’t do it without YOU!

Most of you are probably saying “damn, I don’t think I’ve ever heard Steve say so many words at one time before!” Oh well. Get used to it! You always gotta watch out for those “quiet” ones....

Steven Chow
Team co-Captain, 2005 Race Season