Dragon boat in Shiqi

Dragon boat in Shiqi

Chen ZhuoguangThe Provincial intangible cultural heritage of gshan Shiqi Long Dragon Boat.陈焯光广东省省级非遗石岐长龙传承人陈焯光和未来的继承者，他的孙子。

Dragon boat racing is a traditional public activity in Zhongshan, with a long history that can be traced back to the Jiajing ( the 11th Emperor) Period of Ming Dynasty. One symbol of this is the Shiqi Chang Long, a special kind of dragon boat from the Shiqi Subdistrict which has been listed in the Catalogue of Guangdong Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage.

This kind of boat is famous for its extremely long body and the number of participants it can hold. It can be 40 meters in length with about 80 paddlers inside. This is a huge difference compared to the 20 boatmen that are usually found in a regulation sized dragon boat used competitively.

There are nearly ten boats in the river during a race, with hundreds of participants, making this dragon boat race in Shiqi especially fi erce and captivating.

Shiqi is a place with an extensive water network, which is a natural necessity for dragon boat racing.

As is tradition, a dragon boat's head and tail are placed in the temple, while the body is split into several pieces and submerged in the water. About one month before the Dragon Boat Festival villagers will pull these pieces out of from the water and mend them back into a complete body for the race. Youth in the village will then be recruited to train in these vessels for the big day.

On the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, also known as the Dragon Boat Festival, villagers will move the head and tail from the temple through a special ritual, and fasten them to the boat. Only the most excellent competitors will be selected for the coming race.

Among the teams, “Bull of Yuanfeng Village”,“Dragon of Jibian Village”, “Ancestral Temple of Zhangxi Village” and “Wuhou Temple of South Nanxia Village” are the most outstanding.

Nowadays, due to the process of urbanisation, some villages are unable to organise a team to participate in the race. But the places mentioned above have maintained the tradition of arranging at least two teams each.

Chen Zhuoguang, the inheritor of the dragon boat in Nanxia Village of Shiqi Town, is in his 60s. He is the core member of the team “Wuhou Temple of South Nanxia Village”, and has witnessed the glories

created by his team throughout the decades.

In 1996, the Zhongshan Government reorganised the traditional dragon boat race for the fi rst time afterthe Cultural Revolution. In the following three years, Chen's team won the subsequent races. When talking about his past achievements, Chen was so proud of his experiences and seemed to be younger than his years.

Unfortunately, to his dismay, the Zhongshan Government only allowed participants under the age of 55 to race for safety reasons this year, and Chen had to say goodbye to the competition.

Though Chen lost the opportunity to take part in the yearly tradition, working as the leader, he is responsible for picking the athletes, organising the training and making the preparations for the race.

Chen explained that most participants are amateur, but a qualifi ed candidate should have a strong body, a sense of coordination and discipline. That means he should get to know very well the rhythm of the drum because during the race it is the drummer who “controls” the speed of boat via the rhythm he produces at the bow. Also, he should make sure that his movements are the same as the other teammates, because it's only in this way that the boat will achieve its top speed.

Therefore, Chen can only select several of the qualifi ed candidates among the hundreds of volunteers that come out for the training program.

In recent years due to the urban migration, more and more young villagers work in the city and are not able to spare enough time to attend these training sessions.

Chen does not need to worry about his team. His nine-year-old grandson has gradually become very interested in dragon boats due to his family's deep connection with these boats and the race.

r the interview, I

a short video from Chen of his grandson, deep in concentration banging out a beat on the big drum, as if he were in the middle of the race. For now, it seems this tradition is in good hands.