Chinese Center on Long Island 長島中華協會

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“CCLI LITTLE MONSTERS” INAUGURAL DRAGON BOAT TEAM

Initially, the concept and idea of putting together team just weeks before a race was overwhelming and seemingly impossible. We invited other youth from other Long Island Asian organizations to join in order to qualify to race with minimum requirements. The stars must have aligned and the fate was cast as the team came together and a well experienced coach volunteered to train and provide guidance to the new and inexperienced team.

As with any athletic race, there are complex rules and regulations to comply with including birth dates, minimum mix of girls and boys, left and right side rowers, designated pacers of the boat, drummers and steersperson. There seemed to be a never ending paper trail of original documents necessary to legitimize the participants and allow for fairness in competition. But we managed to learn with the help of kind people.

On August 8, 2010, the team competed for the very first time in the 250 meters with race time results of 1.19.84
(1 min, 19 sec). The team was very pleased and happy to have achieved these results. However impressive the results may be for these first timers, the positive experience by the team members cannot be measured or adequately described. New friendships were made and life lessons learned on team spirit and working together. This has been an unforgettable experience for our Long Island youth and we are grateful for this opportunity.

Thank you to Lillie of National Grid for this year’s sponsorship, our volunteers Coach Good Jean, CCLI Member Jen Chan, the parents and all the team mates. Team Members include Ali Bartoldus, Billy and Rachel Chow, Winston Lee, April Leong, Trevor Seet, Andy Su, LeeJ Chang, Stephen Eng, Victor Wang, Ben Tran, Anita Lombri, Derek Chow, Daniel Wong, Si Chen, Florence Chang and Pauline Janeo.

NEW DRAGON BOAT TEAMS ARE FORMING FOR 2011! 

Please tell us if you are interested! Youth division (15-18 yrs) and adult team (18+). This is a perfect opportunity for Lion Troupe/Traditional Dance and language school alumni to get involved again with CCLI. Also, any adult can join – parents, family members, etc! Indoor practices begin in November; practice at Flushing Meadow Lake and Marina begins in the spring of 2011. Please contact Patty Chow (chow446@hotmail.com) or Betty Leong (leongba@yahoo.com) to put your name on the list!