Day of the Longboat is one of two UBC REC traditions that you have to do before you graduate, or else you’re missing out big time. The other one is Storm the Wall.
I had heard about both of these in first year. I saw photos of friends participating in both of these. I don’t know why it never crossed my mind to do them in first, second or third year, but this year, I realized that I would probably never have a chance to do it again.
Day of the Longboat happens in first term, Storm the Wall in second term. I’m in my fourth year at UBC, and in January, I’m leaving for one year to do three co-op work terms (I’m graduating at the end of fifth year). This year is basically my last chance to do Day of the Longboat, so I scrambled to make a 10-person team in the last few hours before the registration closed. Phew! Thanks Facebook for reminding me about the deadline.
Because it was quite late in the registration period already, all the just for fun spots were full. So I had to register my team as a competitive team. Oh man…
Day of the Longboat was a beautiful day. Boat Bums—props to me for the best team name ever—was ready to conquer the sea! Just kidding. We actually did everything except conquer the sea. We started out wobbly and totally uncoordinated, which was hilarious. Although we were in a competitive round, we were doing this completely for laughs and giggles. Halfway through, we figured out a pretty good system to keep things going. One, two, one, two.
Long short story, we were the last team to reach shore. But hurray! It was time to celebrate! Because we made it without capsizing or losing anyone to deep dark waters!
Day of the Longboat was more fun than I had imagined it to be. And I’m happy I got to make couple of new friends: Remember how I scrambled to make a team? My one friend added her friend, who added her friend, who added her friend. We went to have a yummy lunch afterwards to fill up our empty stomachs. I’m glad I finally got to experience Day of the Longboat. Apparently, it was raining all the previous years, so a pat on the back for me for picking this year to do it.
To be honest, I hesitated to make a team for Day of the Longboat. When I realized that the registration deadline was just a few hours away, I thought: What if I wasn’t able to find a team? How sad would that be? But I realized that that was unhealthy thinking. I always joke that as a left-handed person, I always try to reconcile my left-handedness with a healthy right mind.
So here’s a small takeaway: If you have something you kind of… maybe… sort of want to do, don’t wait. It’s better late than never. I want to quote Nike on this one. Just do it!
