Dragon Boat Races

The Dragon Boat races were held today at Lake Phalen. The local favorite team - the one that I like - is the CAAM Flying Dragons. Two of the paddle wielders on that vessel are pictured below - Unky Herb and the Prairie Princess. They are part of an 18 member force that try to propel the dragon boat along a chosen course in the fastest time. It's pretty much a sprint. The races took place as part of an Asian festival, where besides dragon boat racing, they sold some very tasty egg rolls and also Asian folk art.


This is a photo of the end of their first heat. The flag grabber in front of the boat takes the flag and that act signals that the course is complete. The Flying Dragons easily outdistanced the opponents in this heat and also the second a while later. UH is near the back of the boat on the near side. PP is near the front on the far side of the boat. Unfortunately, there was a big rain storm which caused the cancellation of further heats, so the racing was done for the day. Out of about 28 boat crews, the dragons finished about 11th.



Team photo of the Flying Dragons.


The World Cup finished finally. The 64th game of the tournament wasn't the prettiest of matches, but it was hard fought and went to over time. Spain scored with about two minutes left in OT to win 1-0. It was the first time that Spain has won the cup, so the result was immensely popular in Madrid and Barcelona.

Apparently Lance Armstrong lost the Tour de France today somewhere in the Alps. He's had a pretty good run and it's time for the younger racers to take over.