By Chris Cronin
I started Dragon Boating about 10 years ago purely by accident. I was taking learn to row classes at the Pioneer Riverfront Club and when a Learn-to-Row-Level-2 class was cancelled, my friend Rose said “Hey, Donna and I are going to try that new Dragon Boating class. Want to do it?” I signed up, absolutely loved it, and the rest is history: I joined the Springfield Dragon Rays and an obsession was born.
Over the years, I have paddled under many coaches and had the privilege of going to several local festivals. I loved watching the other teams and meeting the other paddlers. The one thing I was missing was attending a national or international festival.
When I learned that a group of paddlers from around our region were putting together a composite team to attend the International Breast Cancer Paddler’s Commission Participatory Races in Lake Karapiro, New Zealand, I thought to myself. “Wow! I would love to be part of that.” But, having a full-time job and limited vacation time would put the kibosh on that until I retired. I would have to wait for a future race.
I know it sounds funny to say that the COVID-19 pandemic is a blessing, but it truly was for me. The race was postponed until 2023 and living through the pandemic made me reassess my priorities. In 2022, I made the decision to retire early, which meant that I could attend the festival. I immediately reached out to see if there was still room on the team. As luck would have it, there was.
Not only was I excited to participate in an international race and visit a country that had been on my bucket list of places to see, I was also thrilled to be able to paddle with women and men who were as passionate about the sport and doing well as I was. From our first day in the boat working with our coaches Anna and Alan Symington, I knew this was going to be a great experience. I realized then that I had joined not just a group of people who were cobbling together a temporary team, but a group of people who had connected to form a new team of serious paddlers.
Being on a team of all breast cancer survivors was wonderful. We have a shared knowledge of what we have all been through and a desire to make the most of every day that those who haven’t been through the journey sometimes don’t understand. Years ago, it might have sounded corny to me, but we truly are a sisterhood. Traveling and paddling with such a supportive group has been an amazing experience and I don’t want to give that up. I look forward to staying a part of this team and continuing to learn and grow as a paddler, and a person, with all of them. I am now and will always be a member of Baystate Connection Dragons.
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