The young crew members of the Fireballs dragon boat team were among those plying the waves last Saturday at the annual Dragon Boat Festival in Long Beach. As always, the event drew dozens of teams to Long Beach Marine Stadium to compete in their long trademark boats with colorful dragons' heads and tails, paddling to the beat of drummers positioned at the boats' prows. Dragon boating is believed to have started in Yueyang, China, more than 2,500 years ago, when local fishermen used their boats to try to rescue a well-known poet-statesman who drowned himself. The fishermen are said to have beat drums and hit the water with paddles in an attempt to appease the water dragon.
