Institution news
This year the team has taken part in the Ap Lei Chau Dragon Boat Race and the Sai Kung Dragon Boat Race, where they competed against the top professional dragon boat teams in Hong Kong. In the Ap Lei Chau Race, the team finished in 6th place, while for the Sai Kung race, the team was placed 3rd, breaking their own best achievement records of recent years.
As team captain Michael Lee explains, the results is not the most important thing in this sport,
“The spirit of dragon boat race is teamwork. Through the regular practice and participation in races, team members learn that a single effort does not work, and one paddle will only cause the dragon boat to rotate. The team members learn how to build up engagement and good relationships through focusing on a common goal.”
Just like in the work of engineering, where often a team is required to get the job done, and having a well-coordinated team with high spirited team members is a company’s greatest asset.
The regular practice also trains members to discipline themselves to follow through with commitments, moreover, the stamina training can help them to build confidence to overcome challenges and difficulties faced.
Lee explains that through dragon race participation, members are also able to network with other engineers to expand their horizons in terms of the planning of their careers. Moreover, it has a positive impact on team building for the Institution's Hong Kong Branch Committee and YM Section team members.
The team is now recruiting for more new members with passion and desire for the excitement of dragon boating to be part of the team. “In the near future, we would like to engage members from different regions of IMechE to form an international team to promote mechanical engineering,” Lee added.