Dragon Boating!

It is at least never boring around here. The Dragon Boat tournament in Dole was tons of fun . . . particularly because (or in spite of the fact that?) we won. No seriously. Out of 16 teams, even though we’d never rowed together before.

While we all appear happy in this victory photograph (below), I must admit that I was a little embarrassed. While we were all young-ish, hyper-competitive, athletic, over-achieving, darn-it-if-I-can-succeed-at-five-years-of-calculus-I-can-succeed-at-this-too, CERNois types (at least the other members of the team were), some of the teams we competed against were sweet, mixed-aged, mixed-ability cancer charities, with fewer members on their team. They had no chance. We were coached by one of the top kayakers in Britain (number 7 in a national competition—no joke), who kept us motivated by practice drills, inspiring speeches and loud shouting.

Our prize was several bottles of the vin jaune which is a specialty of the Jura . . . . feeling as I do about this kind of wine I couldn’t help but wonder, “This is an award?” Here we are on the celebratory stage to receive the honorary wine, I am the tall pale thing on the left with the water lily wedged in my hat and the dubious expression on my face.
More photos from this event (including quite a few of the rather muscular folks who operated the rudders) are here.

I kept trying to get people to sing the Trogdor from the very famous Sbemail58 . . . but my efforts were all in vain. Europeans! Sheesh!