Kiyah-Splashh!

This year, the Singapore Dragon Boat Festival 2009 was held at the Marina Barrage, over the weekend of 27-28th June. And we are proud to announce that Team Kiyah-Splashh! has broken new records by earning ourselves 2nd place (minor finals) for the Inter Business Houses and Clubs 10 crew category!

Tremendous effort, everyone!

We haven’t won anything for the 800 meters leg in the past 5 years. What could have added to our determination to outlast our competitors this time around? We’d like to say it all goes down with team camaraderie, personal sacrifices, time commitment, elaborate strategy and 110% effort. I think we also held on (endearingly) to our little dream of getting our President, Pei Chuan, up on the podium stand to represent us by June 2009. And we did it, guys! *high five with our paddles*

This year, our team also saw an increase of sponsors too, and we are convinced that their support has helped us in many ways we never thought possible.

It transpired that Team Kiyah-Splashh! is definitely charging ahead with speed, even through economically-challenged times. Yet, we still emphasize that dragon boating remains a sport so enjoyable that anybody, and we mean ANYbody, can revel in. Maybe we made it more fun with our collegial harmony, or made it more baffling when it comes to race crunch. But all in all, every Kiyah-Splashhie has a role to play in our current 80 member (and growing!) team. Everyone owns a stake in the team’s future.     

So the moment we all have been waiting for is here. Gaze upon our latest addition to our trophy stash…

Hello, beautiful…

With our hard-earned trophy and tears of joy, we would like to THANK our kind Sponsors:

… and our love ones for cheering us on at the race site! We appreciate your presence and hold you all dearly in our hearts.

To our competitors, I’m afraid this race will not be our last. Uh-oh. Hang around for more updates on our participation for the rest of 2009, will ya? :)

Kiyah-Splashh Whhhhoosssssshhhhhh!

Pictures by: [Source] [Source]

Ever thought about how long can you sustain the rigors of dragon boating? Well we can all confirm that the average age hovers around 65 now, kudos to ”The DogWood Nothin” dragon boat team in Vancouver, Canada! Huzzah!

Recreational dragon boating saw a growing population of seniors joining the sport, even though the physical severity of the sport leaves many with backaches, sore muscles and bubbly hand blisters.  But that doesn’t stop the 57 crew of Nothin Dragon team which saw 14 newcomers and a waiting list of seven!

So what urges our overseas elders to dig in deep when the going gets tough? Through close bonds. They organize pot lucks, barbecues, and pub nights together! But above all that merrymaking, they train hard to win other teams that are younger, and eager to snatch the winning titles under their noses.

There are eight other senior teams that are registered for the 21st Alcan Dragon Boat festival (happening this weekend), and they are all set to whip their younger counterparts.  Who’s going to win? What do the seniors think? Do they stand a chance?

“We like to say we have a little more wisdom and experience although they may have more muscle and testosterone,” says David Harrison, captain of the Eh team, which practises in False Creek.

Another senior quips: “These young kids, they are paddling their brains out and all they are doing is spinning their wheels, where we have a nice deep, maybe slower, but more powerful stroke and we go sailing by them. So there is some brains involved in the exercise,” Dan Strain, Captain of Nothin Dragon Team.

Such positive energy! We hope that they’ll win something from the trophy stand this weekend! All the best, seniors!

Article & Photo via The Vancouver Sun.

In our last debrief, our coach suprise us all with his simple yet effective visual analogy on paddlers who do not drop their shoulders to the gunwale, and plunge their paddle-blades fully in to the water…

Well said Coach! We will remember your words when we tinker our cups of tea (teh) and coffee (kopi) this week.

Let’s plunge it in and dig in deep! Kiyah Kiyah Kiyah, Splashh Splash SPLASHH!

Image [Source]

We have waited too long for this. Your favorite candid shots are ready for voting now! *phew!* 

And YOUR Nominees are…

#1 I Like Spongebob Squarepants

Nominated by Caron, Photo by Ivan.

#2 Nice Thongs

Nominated by Pei Chuan, Photo by Desmond.

#3 Coxswain Sleeping and Smiling

Nominated by Eugene, Photo by Ivan.

#4 President laughing at the gals who have not got up the boat

Nominated by Maurice, Photo by Ivan.

#5 Fangs looked like a puppy

Nominated by Yining, Photo by Ivan.

#6 Race Queen Wannabe

Nominated by Tick Hoong, Photo by Eugene.

There you have it folks! To vote, please leave a comment in this entry with your name and the photo of your choice! Everybody is entitled to vote only once, so think carefully before you make your final decision! There is simply no room for errors now! Here is a sample for you:

Name: XXXXXXXXX

Vote: #2 (Please indicate the number only, do not copy the whole title!)

Please cast your votes before 26th June 2009! There will be a mini prize-presentation for the nominator and photographer during the June Race at the Marina Barrage!

Every vote counts, so VOTE NOW!

After much anticipation, Kiyah-Splashhies set off from Coach HY’s place on 4th June with stomachs full from hearty breakkie prepared by the lovely Coach’s wifey, Jasmine; bags all secured and packed, paddles/life vests/butt-pads checked, walkie-talkies with full batteries per vehicle, and a passport short while arriving at the second link immigration check-point.  Ack. What a way to start our journey to the Putrajaya Dragon Boat race site!

Top Image: Breakfast;  Bottom Image: Dining room lighting from Coach’s house

The great expressway ahead lay unruffled until our tyres screeched while the exhaust pipes cleared clouds of fumes from our hungry engines. Malaysian motorists and roads were greeted that late morning by our Fantastic Four - Black Knight, Red Bull, White Horse, and Grey Wolf. Of course, our convoy wouldn’t be complete without our last wheeler, Silver Surfer, that caught up with us effortlessly the next day. From Fantastic Four, we emerged The Famous Five in less than 24 hours! Incredible.

Clockwise from Top Left: Red Bull, White Horse, Silver Surfer, Grey Wolf, Black Knight.

After two hours into the drive, we decided that we could not allow our own “engines” to run empty. We pulled up at the next R&R stop, and chomped down on A&W coney dogs, curly fries and root beer float! *burp!* Once fueled, we continued our journey with swift efficiency because we had to be early for our first water training at the Putrajaya lake itself! Tyres did burn at 180km/h, barfing and gripping of car seats all included!

Watch the clip below for more of our road trip, enjoy!