What you don't know about dragon boat science
Xinhua News Agency reporters Zhou Chang and Wang Junbao
Dragon boat festival, dragon boat race. Dragon boat race is one of the important folk activities of Dragon Boat Festival. Every year, various forms of dragon boat races add a lot of color to this traditional festival. In addition to the competition, there are some traditional customs and common sense about dragon boat racing, which are also quite interesting.
Dragon boat festival
In Taohuatan Town, Jingxian County, Anhui Province, the first day of May is the day when the dragon boat is launched. Early in the morning, people beat gongs and drums and set off firecrackers. They invited the "Dragon Dragon" to the home of an old local artist who made dragon boats, and went across the village to burn incense and set off firecrackers by the Qingyi River in order to pray for good results. They also hoped that the weather would be good, the government would be harmonious, and the people of Taohuatan would live and work in peace. Mei Guoxing, who has been rowing dragon boats for more than 20 years in Taohuatan Town, Jingxian County, Anhui Province, said that every dragon boat in the town has to go through such a sacrificial ceremony, and the dragon head is put on the dragon boat before it is officially launched.
The finishing touch of dragon boat
Little Paradise, good luck, good luck; Two noses, harmony and happiness, family peace; At three o'clock, you can always laugh and have good luck; Dragon horn at four o'clock, good weather, peace and prosperity; At five o'clock, may the dragon boat bring us health, good luck, good luck ... The dragon boat coronation ceremony at the 10th National Minority Traditional Sports Meeting is still impressive. In fact, most dragon boat races are held before the start or when the dragon boat is launched all over the country. The finishing touch of dragon boat comes from the saying "finishing touch", which means peace and good luck.
A rhythmic drum
In the dragon boat race, there is a drummer in front of almost every dragon boat, playing rhythm with music and trumpet. This drumming is not purely for fun. The rhythm of drumming is to control the oars when rowing dragon boats. Sun Wei, chairman of the Dragon Boat Club of Anhui Lu 'an Vocational and Technical College, said that the number of people on the dragon boat is mostly twenty or thirty. If you want to row neatly, you have to master the rhythm by listening to the drums. Rowing together according to the drums will be more concentrated and faster, and it will also make every dragon boat participant realize the significance of unity and cooperation in the dragon boat race.