Tampa Has Taken to the Dragon Boat

What are those funky boats with the dragonheads racing across the Garrison Channel?

And all that drumming when the people are paddling together – what’s that about?

If you live anywhere near downtown, you probably have an idea.

You’ve seen the men and women trekking across the Franklin Street Bridge, toting their paddles in big, black cases that resemble musical instruments.

And you’ve watched them pile into those giant boats for wild races on the Channel.

It’s certainly not crew (rowing), that collegiate and club sport so popular in northern cities like Boston, New York and Philadelphia.

Rather, it’s dragon boat racing - one of Tampa Bay’s most popular sporting activities.

Moreover, dragon boat racing is an emerging social and philanthropic phenomenon in the region.

But devotees are quick to point out the stark differences from crew.

“In dragon boat racing, people are paddling, not rowing, said Christine Canevari, executive director of the Tampa Bay Dragon Boat Institute (TBDBI), the sport’s primary education organization in the Tampa area.

“Paddlers sit on the side of the boat, not in the middle, and (they) use single-sided paddles to move the boat.”

Canevari notes that dragon boat racing is a water-paddle sport, in which teams of 20 people compete in long, dragon head-adorned boats. 45-feet-long and weighing up to 600 pounds, the boats sit 20 paddlers in 10 rows. In the stern, a steersperson stands on a platform and guides the boat through the water. A person in the bow sits facing the crew and beats a drum to the stroke-rate of the paddlers.

“We’re really babies in this sport compared to Canada, which has been hosting races for 25 years,” said Canevari.

The sport was introduced to the Tampa Bay area in the late 1990’s when businessmen Kevin Burns and Keith Greminger teamed with Thom Stork, president of the Florida Aquarium.  The trio saw dragon boat racing as an opportunity to foster community involvement and create fundraising opportunities for local non-profits.

Their efforts led to the creation of TBDBI – an organization that promotes the sport by lending equipment to club teams, creating educational programs, and hosting quarterly “mini-regattas.”

The three men were also instrumental in helping create the Tampa Bay International Dragon Boat Races, TBDBI’s signature event that draws dragon boaters from all over the world.

The growth has been astounding.

The first race, held in 2004, featured 34 teams. This year’s competition, held during April’s Asia Fest, included more than 100 companies, local businesses and teams.

And TBDBI pulled off a coup earlier this year when they landed the IDBF’s World Dragon Boat Racing Championship. The Olympics of dragon boat racing, the competition is the premiere event of the International Dragon Boat Federation. Teams from 30 countries will face off August 4-7 on Tampa Bay to race for the gold.

Canevari noted several reasons why the sport has grown so fast in the Tampa Bay area.

Obviously, there’s the climate - which permits year-around paddling. But there’s also the all-inclusive nature of the sport. Participants can have a disability and still compete at a high level. And dragon boating appeals to the “born-again” athlete, men and women who may not have participated in team sports for many years.

“People just love the team aspect of the sport,” said Joyce “the Denmother” Fornero, coach of the Red Dragons Tampa. Fornero has trained teams from various companies, including the Hyatt and the Florida Aquarium.

The origins of the dragon boat are rooted in Chinese culture. The 2000-year-old legend tells of a warrior and poet named Qu Yuan, who was falsely accused of treason and banished from his homeland. Distraught, he threw himself into the Mi Lo River and drowned.

According the legend, fishermen raced their boats to recover his body before it was devoured by fish. They beat drums and threw rice and dumplings into the river to distract the fish.  Late one night, the spirit of Qu Yuan appeared before the fisherman. He told them that the rice was being taken by a huge river dragon. 

In remembrance of Qu Yuan, people hold dragon boat races annually on the day of his death. It’s also said that dragon heads were added to the boats to ward off evil spirits.

10TH IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championship needs volunteers for a variety of jobs. If you are interested, contact Christine Canevari at ccanevari@tampabaydragonboats.com.