Friday 200m Sr A women

1st race we did an adequate job of racing. Regrouped and we were ready to lay it out in the second race. Just like Penang and Macau the helm holds a bar on their right and the drummer holds a floating toggle on their right. The idea is to have these items On opposite sides so the drummer and helm can keep the boat lined up straight. All the boats are in the chute. Bring up boat 3. Take it back boat 6. Paddles are holding. The cannon booms and we are off. Pounding out a strong start.  Connie and I calling presses. The crew making ground with each set.  Press press press press press A-N-D LAUNCH for power now!  The crew is moving great water. We are in a washing machine out there. SNAP! My steering oar snaps in half. I almost get launched overboard when it does. I yell let it run as our boat pulls hard to the left. I yell hold so that we don't put our dragon head right in to Quebecs helm. We all sit there is shock for a second. The crew has no idea what happened until I pull the half of the oar I do still have-- the handle and t-grip out of the housing and throw it away. The safety boat then comes up to us at full speed giving us a nice wake that I cannot turn into or away from and offer to tow us in. We politely decline and I steer us in using a dragon boat blade to poke like an OC blade. We are Wasabi. We may not finish the race but by George we damn well will make it back to the dock on our own thank you very much. They let me keep the broken oar. It's coming home in the paddle bag. They look on people's faces as we came up the gangplank was priceless. I had to pose for pictures four times before I cleared the launch. We did file a protest even though we were beyond the 50m mark. It was their equipment malfunction after all. They wouldn't re-run the race or allow us into another heat to put a time in but they are using our time from our third race as our time for our second race as well. Our third race was we nailed it so it very well may have worked out better for us. I have never had an oar break. One second  you're fighting wakes --a little pull here and a little push out with the oar there and then it's just gone. GONE! You never realize how much pressure you are putting on it until it goes out from under you. I'm just glad I stayed in the boat, we didn't crash, and we won't have a DNF next to our crews name. I'm going to make the crew autograph it and we are hanging it in the boathouse. Hopefully we'll make some medals to hang on it while we are here. That's my story for the day! And hopefully for the week.