On the weekend of August 1 & 2nd, the Renaissance Man ...
competed in the annual Long Beach Dragon Boat tournament, at the heralded Marine Stadium. The Renaissance Man put in a typical awesome performance as a paddler for the Space Dragons, helping land the team the following distinctions:
A third place bronze medal in the competitive "A" division for 200m sprints.
A sixth place finish in the competitive "1A" division (i.e., top division) for the 500m races.
A qualification into the the competitive bracket for the Space Dragons Men.
Our man is now working towards training for bigger and badder competition in San Francisco, where he competes in late September. The world should beware. The man himself has vowed to be both stronger and leaner, meaner and more technical ... in other words, the man is going to allow his true self out. World watch out. Wear sun glasses in San Francisco.
completed his read of David Benioff's "City of Thieves". Fansite blogger "Janie" was able, after much effort, to agree to have the Renaissance Man share a few words on the novel. Mr. Benioff now owes more than a handful of thank yous for the Renaissance Man's kind endorsement & subsequent surge in book sales.
From the man himself: City of Thieves, set during the Siege of Leningrad, follows the journey of Lev as he is arrested for looting and, along with accused deserter Kolya, instead of being executed is given a mission to find a dozen eggs. Nazis! Sex!! Death!!! Cannibals!!!! Discussions on Russian Literature!!!!! An epic bowel movement!!!!!! This book has it all. Full of black humor, at turns funny, sweet, sad, and horrific, City of Thieves is engaging from beginning to end.
Final note: It's rumored that while reading "City of Thieves" in his front yard, the Renaissance Man noticed his neighbor's kitten stuck in a high tree. To the panic-stricken neighbor's great appreciation, the Renaissance Man apparently nonchalantly rescued the petrified kitten with one hand - all while continuing his read of the "City of Thieves". Typical amazing behavior.
Attended his first Bikram Yoga session. The Yoga is often referred to as "Hot Yoga" or "Fire Yoga" in reference to the 105 degree temperature and 40% humidity environment in which it is practiced. But certainly no problem for Renaissance Man, right?
Well ... it turns out that his first Bikram Yoga session will also likely be his last. Word on the street is that the Bikram Yoga instructors firmly notified the Renaissance Man that he would no longer be welcome in their studio.
Apparently, while the Renaissance Man flawlessly and with seemingly minimial effort stretched himself into each of the 26 poses, the many ladies in attendance could not maintain concentration on their own poses & breathing. The distracted ladies were heard gasping, "Wooooowwww, his chi is so strong and dominant ... I love it but I can't focus on this exercise ... i'm breaking down ...".
Alas, the curse of the Renaissance Man. Unable to switch off that which is so natural to him.
Immediately after completing the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Tournament, the Renaissance Man ...
partied like a rock star, passed the F out in a club, woke up, stumbled to a local downtown Vancouver Casino, won $1000 in a cash poker game, then passed out again. All in his Space Dragons jersey that he furiously competed in during the day time hours.
Immediately after completing yet another successful Vegas run, our man himself jumped on a direct flight to match his godly strength and paddling stroke technique against some of the finest dragon boat paddlers in the world on the famed waters of False Creek.
The results?
1) The Renaissance Man played a critical role in the "engine room" of the Space Dragons Red crew, which finished 15th out of 96 total mixed teams. The crew qualified in the Competitive B division, opening many eyes along the way. Official race results here.
2) The Renaissance Man participated in the famed Alcan "Guts & Glory Race", a 2000m race complete w/ 3 hairpin u-turns reserved for the top 16 teams in the tournament. Think 16 dragon boat teams, 20 paddlers each, 3000 pounds of mass for each boat, racing hard through turns in a best-of-the-best free-for-all race.
3) Apparently, word of the Renaissance Man's participation in the festival reached local public news providers in Vancouver. Paddlers were caught off guard when the festival became flooded with paparazzi jousting for position in an effort to capture media of the Renaissance Man in action.
The following pictures were taken from a Vancouver television news feed on June 19th, which filmed the Renaissance Man & the Space Dragons in action:
As we've all come to expect, the Renaissance Man put in a herculean effort, helping carry his beloved Space Dragons team to new heights.
We all stand envious of his paddling team mates, who enjoy the rare and distinct privilege of going into battle w/ a man of the Renaissance Man's stature. But the Renaissance Man has been humbly quoted as saying, "I am just one of 20, just one cog of a machine, with all cogs of equal importance. We act & compete as ONE."
So inspirating, so motivating. As always, we stand in awe of his wisdom.
According to an undisclosed source, the Renaissance Man was spotted at an adult club on the evening of June 12, partying away until sunrise.
A stripper working the Renaissance Man's table was overheard saying, "....Me give him la dance and....WOWeee....they shoo call him meestah Seekoia (Seqouia)...)!"
The blessed few shall have such an encounter with the Renaissance Man..........
Blogger #2 left her children behind to follow the Renaissance Man's journey in Las Vegas...when there he was, looking magnificent in his search for the buffet line in Paris (Las Vegas) , impressing a bystander in his map-reading abilities. Renaissance Man's reading skills extend beyond the poker table.....
