The Coaches have revised the selection process for the upcoming Long Beach Event.  It is important that everyone reads this announcement since it will apply to other future competitive events.    The selection process for recreational events will be more flexible.  

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In previous races, the main criteria for being on the event roster were not based entirely on paddler skills. It was basically the first 25-35 to sign up on the list. This is not how Houston Heat will create the rosters for every event - particularly the competitive events. We do wish that everyone could paddle in every race. However, Long Beach is one of the bigger and more competitive dragon boating events in the US, and there is room for only 25 paddlers on each boat. We’ll want to seat our best available paddlers for each race. These paddlers will be chosen from the pool of participating HH members in Long Beach.

Some of you have asked in previous races, "Why was I not put on the boat?" In dragon boat racing, a strategy is to find the best combination of weight & height, synchronization, form/technique, teamwork and power. It's never easy to juggle all these factors. For some events, we can be less stringent about some factors - but for Long Beach, all of these will be very important.    However, if we get enough paddlers to form a second boat, then the Coaches can create rosters for two teams: Team A and Team B.    Having two boats will guarantee that everyone will paddle for most, if not all, of the races. 

We will be running a tight and strict training schedule. Paddlers will be required to attend a minimum number of water practices. Coaches will also select paddlers based on their assessments, progress evaluations, teamwork attitude and dedication. When the decision comes down to whether one person is more “fit” or “capable” than another, the choice will be made for including the person that has displayed more dedication, knowledge, power, experience and willingness to sacrifice it all for that race. It’s never an easy choice but men have not been given preferential treatment over the female paddlers on the HH boat, as witnessed recently in Austin, for the final heat.

We hope this process will motivate members and Coaches to improve as paddlers, so that Houston Heat can become one of the top ranked competitive teams in the country. It's clear that in Texas, Houston Heat is a top team...but at national events, it's a different story. The teams we'll face at Long Beach will be more experienced, competitive and tougher than those we've faced at local events. Long Beach will be a humbling experience for Houston Heat, and will hopefully motivate us to work harder as a team.

Everyone is always welcome to ask a Coach for what you can work on specifically. They will be happy to give individual suggestions and feedback. Use the race videos as a tool to see your performance during a race.