This year it is held on the Saturday of the Victoria Day Long weekend. May 17, 2008.

The 2007 Gung Haggis dragon boat team getting loaded into the boat.


The Lotus Sports Club is one of
North America's oldest dragon boat paddling clubs.  It was started in
1986, for the first dragon boat race in Vancouver during Expo 86.  The
club has won the Canadian Men's Dragon Boat Championship three times.
In 1996, the Lotus Mixed Team placed first at the Vancouver
International Dragon boat Festival and went to Toronto to compete in
the Toronto International Dragon Boat Festival.

My first dragon boat experience was at the Lotus Sports Club, where our Headliners Team practiced in 1993.  We won the novice division that first year.  I paddled and steered three years on the Headliners before starting up the Celebration team in 1997.  We would take Celebration team to Lotus Sports Club organized Golden Spike dragon boat race at Port Moody's Rocky Point Park.  The races were moved to Barnet Marine Park and later renamed to the Bill Alley Memorial Dragon boat Regatta, in honour of one of the club founders.

Read about last year's Gung Haggis team at the 2007 Lotus Dragon Boat Bill Alley Dragon Boat Regatta
We won the Adult Mixed Final B race.
– Gung Haggis dragon boat team does well at Lotus …

The following is information to our paddlers and friends who want to come compete or cheer us on!!!

Here's a map to Barnet Marine Park
Map to Lotus Sports Club
http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=49.290846,-122.928954&spn=0.003537,0.007


From Vancouver/Burnaby:

drive East on Hastings St, it will turn into Barnet Rd.

Go past Cement factory on your left, past Velodrome on right

Go past Texaco Road on your left

Turn left at next light marked Barnet Marine Park.



From Port Moody/Coquitlam

Go West
on Barnet Rd. (arriving from Clarke Road or St. Johns St.

Drive past Reed Point marina – just West of Port Moody.

Turn right at light marked Barnet Marine Park



If you have equipment to drop off:

proceed
to the right on Takeda Drive.  Cross the train tracks – then there is a
loading zone… watch for other cars unloading. drop off your partner
with equipment.  After drop off – turn the car around and proceed back to parking lots.



The parking lot along Takeda Dr. will fill up fast.  Park in the large parking lot West of the park entrance.  There is also a pathway from the parking lot to the beach.



The dragon boat teams set up tents East of the concession stand…. usually
along the beach.  This is where we set up in 2006.  Because of rain, we
set up under the trees near the concession stand in 2007.

Gung Haggis schedule

10:20 DOTTING OF THE EYES ceremony + Gung Haggis Lion and Dragon dance ceremony.
11:30 2nd race heat  8
12:30 3rd race  heat 10
2:15 Mixed Adult Final B
2:30 Mixed Adult Final A

PADDLERS
please arrive for 8am
to help set up the tents and our “camp” for the day.
If somebody arrives at 7:30 – they can claim better real estate for a beach view!
 
We need your signatures on the
waivers handed in by 8:20am

Stephen Mirowski is Team Captain
Todd wong is team coach / drummer
Dave Samis is steers

BRING: bowl + spoon for chili (courtesy of Chef Hillary)
             sandwich + own food + something to share
             your own water + drinks. 
             BANANAS recommended.
Bring: lawn chair, blankets,
tents if needed.

(there
is a food stand on site – but fried foods with lots of fat eg. hotdogs
and hamburgers sit in your system for 3+ hours and are slow to digest).

Bring your SUV sun protection, a hat and water.

TEAM COLOURS are:
RED and BLACK – with BLUE kilts
(women's small and medium Gung Haggis team shirts
available)

4 races – almost all paddlers will sit out a single race as spares.
Everybody will race 3 races.  Key positions will race every race eg. lead strokes, mid-strokes, drummer, steers.
spares announced during line-up
if you are sparing a race – please stay close to the team, in case somebody goes missing, or is sick or injured.