{"id":7670,"date":"2018-05-03T10:30:14","date_gmt":"2018-05-03T15:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=7670"},"modified":"2018-05-03T10:26:18","modified_gmt":"2018-05-03T15:26:18","slug":"paddle-royale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2018\/05\/03\/paddle-royale\/","title":{"rendered":"Paddle Royale"},"content":{"rendered":"

TEAM CITGO IS UNDEFEATED AFTER FIVE YEARS OF THE LOCAL DRAGON BOAT RACE. WHAT\u2019S THEIR SECRET?<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Brad Goins<\/em><\/p>\n

The sixth annual Dragon Boat Race will take place on Saturday, April 28. The event debuted in the Lake Area in 2013, and Team Citgo has emerged victorious in each of the previous five years of the races. I talked to a few members of the team to try to discover the secrets of their success.<\/p>\n

Light Clean Products Manager Mandy Michalko approached the team\u2019s winning ways with a light tone: \u201cNo pressure. But yes, we\u2019ve been very fortunate the last few years.\u201d<\/p>\n

One thing I learned from Michalko is that, when it comes to technique, rowing is a big, big theme.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Porch\u00e9 Aerial Imagery<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very dedicated to rowing.\u201d She explains that all 20 rowers in the long, canoe-shaped boat must row in sync if the boat is to travel in a straight line.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving to paddle together is not an easy challenge,\u201d says Michalko. Her teammates (and all boat race contestants) help themselves in this endeavor by putting a drummer in the front of the boat. The drummer beats out the tempo in which the rowers should row. The drummer sets the pace. The drummer is usually a small person, perhaps for the purpose of reducing the drag in the front of the boat.<\/p>\n

Michalko doesn\u2019t look around during races; she says she\u2019s concentrated entirely on the rowing. She says she and every other team member is \u201cjust paddling as hard as [they] can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The competing teams get assistance from the 22 Dragons company, which brings in all the racing boats and handles all the timing and the placement of the racing buoys. 22 Dragons gives each team a steersman; this person, who is placed in the back of the boat, controls the boat\u2019s direction so that team members can focus on rowing.<\/p>\n

To win, a team must be the first to cross the finish line, which lies 600 feet from the starting point. Boats race in groups of three. Each participant must wear a life jacket throughout the race.<\/p>\n

I was surprised when Michalko told me that long hours of practice aren\u2019t part of the winning formula. I assume that long hours were put in at some point in the past. But, says Michalko, \u201cnow that we\u2019ve done it so much, we\u2019ve don\u2019t practice all that much. We\u2019ve shifted to doing it for fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Practicing to build strength is not necessarily going to benefit a team, says Brent Mayo, process engineering supervisor at Citgo. \u201cYou can have a lot of strong people paddling,\u201d says Mayo. But if they\u2019re not paddling in sync, the crew may just become disorganized. \u201cA weaker group of people can go faster if they\u2019re paddling together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Communication<\/strong><\/p>\n

A second major element of the Team Citgo\u2019s winning formula is communication.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of communication in the boat,\u201d says Mayo. \u201cIf a team all stays together [while rowing], that is not an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n

Team members must become acquainted with what Mayo calls \u201cthe communication sequence.\u201d For instance, one sequence might go like this:<\/p>\n

\u2022 5 slow rows, followed by<\/p>\n

\u2022 5 medium power rows, and<\/p>\n

\u2022 5 fast rows.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s almost a lingo,\u201d says Mayo. Experienced rowers will learn the various sequences and become accustomed to putting them into play. If team members are familiar with the drill, \u201cnobody gets surprised by a change\u201d in orders about how to row during the race.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Porch\u00e9 Aerial Imagery<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sequences and single orders originate from the steersman in the back of the boat, who signals them to the drummer in the front. At the right time, the drummer yells out the order in a voice loud enough that all the rowers can hear it. In so doing, he helps the team avoid the problematic occasions when \u201cthe front of the boat doesn\u2019t know what the back is doing,\u201d in Mayo\u2019s words. And the situation isn\u2019t helped any by the fact that \u201con race day, it\u2019s hard to hear people.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a great help that each team gets to practice taking orders from its steersman on the day before the race. And of course, the more team members who\u2019ve had experience with following orders in the past, the more likely it is that the team will get in a productive groove.<\/p>\n

Following orders can prevent rowers from lapsing into the state of simply rowing at the same pace as the person closest to them \u2014 another problem in the making.<\/p>\n

Rowers are generally expected to pull the oars out of the water when they\u2019re in line with the rower\u2019s hips. Of course, the further forward the rower can move the oar before he puts it back in the water, the more pull he will get. The order \u201cmedium-power\u201d tells the rower to lean forward and go for a power pull.<\/p>\n

An order that\u2019s often given midway through the race is the \u201cpower call.\u201d \u201cPeople are getting tired,\u201d says Mayo. \u201cThey\u2019re not pulling.\u201d A \u201cpower call\u201d reminds rowers to harness their concentration and focus on their strokes.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood communication has been a strength\u201d for the Citgo team, says Mayo.<\/p>\n

Other Strong Suits<\/strong><\/p>\n

And then there\u2019s the size of the pool.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re fortunate to have so many employees,\u201d says Michalko. \u201cWe have 1,300 [Citgo employees] to choose from.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Porch\u00e9 Aerial Imagery<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Of course, not every employee is eligible to compete in every race. Michalko says at times, a would-be competitor has to skip a race for as simple a reason as the fact that he\u2019s scheduled for work on race day.<\/p>\n

Michalko herself has had to miss a race. But, she says, \u201cI\u2019m thankful I\u2019ve gotten to compete in it as much as I have.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the first couple of years of competition, the Citgo team had a turnover rate of 50 percent. But with each year that passed, more of the employees who did join the team had participated in the race at some time in the past, and often more than once.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe now have returning people who\u2019ve raced before,\u201d says Mayo. \u201cIt\u2019s such a benefit to have people who\u2019ve been in it before.\u201d Mayo has now participated in the race five times.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s another advantage, and it\u2019s a big one: getting a fast start. \u201cStarting fast is often the difference between winning and losing,\u201d says Mayo.<\/p>\n

A Team Sport<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo By Shonda Manuel<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

What about competitiveness? \u201cWe\u2019re all relatively competitive,\u201d says Michalko.<\/p>\n

As for Mayo, he may be more than just relatively competitive. He has a history of participating in team sports. And he thinks the Dragon Boat Race is a great opportunity for those with backgrounds like his.<\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoy team sports,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen you get older, there are not a lot of avenues\u201d for that sort of sporting. The Dragon Boat Race meets the need.<\/p>\n

Those on the Citgo crew who are in the team sports frame of mind feel that \u201cthey\u2019ve got to work together,\u201d says Mayo. \u201cAnd there\u2019s an emotional reward\u201d for doing that.<\/p>\n

\u2018They Tend To Talk Smack\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Team Citgo has dominated the Dragon Boat races for five straight years. Surely, after all this time, some other team must have put targets on the Citgo team members\u2019 backs.<\/p>\n

Michalko isn\u2019t so sure. \u201cI would think that teams are after us,\u201d she says. \u201cThey tend to talk smack. But we don\u2019t know [for sure].\u201d<\/p>\n

Ongoing Enthusiasm<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo By Shonda Manuel<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Years of hard rowing haven\u2019t diminished Michalko\u2019s enthusiasm for the Dragon Boat Race.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a fun day. I just enjoy being on the water … I\u2019m excited about it. I hope it continues to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

She notes that the crowd for the race now numbers at several hundred. And the number of boats participating has gradually grown from 10 to 30 over the years.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a really neat event to watch. It\u2019s definitely a one of a kind event.\u201d<\/p>\n

A large part of Michalko\u2019s enthusiasm is her great dedication to the cause that\u2019s benefited by the race: the Children\u2019s Miracle Network. It\u2019s a cause Michalko first started supporting during her school years at McNeese. Her commitment to the cause seems to be as strong as ever.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019d like to donate to any team or individual in the Dragon Boat Race, you can go to pledgereg.com and search for the term \u201cDragon.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sixth annual Dragon Boat Race will take place Saturday, April 28, at 8 am at the Lake Charles Civic Center. Christus St. Patrick Hospital will host the event. For more information, call 430-5353.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

TEAM CITGO IS UNDEFEATED AFTER FIVE YEARS OF THE LOCAL DRAGON BOAT RACE. WHAT\u2019S THEIR SECRET? By Brad Goins The sixth annual Dragon Boat Race will take place on Saturday, April 28. 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