TVA Park at Chickamauga Dam

Combine teamwork, adrenaline and a dragon boat and what do you get? The Fourth Annual Chattanooga Dragon Boat Festival on July 24. The races will be held at the TVA Park at Chickamauga Dam, just past the marina.

 

Dragon boats are very long and narrow canoe-style, human-powered boats that originated in China. Traditional Hong Kong-style dragon boats are about 41 feet long with 10 seats for 20 people to fit. A drum seat in the front of the first two paddlers holds a drummer, typically the smallest, loudest and most rhythmic person the team can find. A steerer guides the boat with a steering oar in the back.

 

Today, dragon boat racing rapidly gains popularity as the eighth fastest-growing sport in the world. States have formed teams and associations for the state all over the country to compete for the title of Grand Champion of the dragon boat races.

 

This out-of-the-ordinary cultural event in Chattanooga features adrenaline-pumping action that draws thousands to the riverfront to witness each year. This year, U.S. Dragon Boat Festival Club Crew National Championships will be held in conjunction with the Chattanooga Dragon Boat Festival, featuring three days of competitive racing. National club crews will race 200, 500 and 1,000 meters from July 23-25.

 

Festival and national teams will race 200 meters on Saturday, July 24, with festival teams looking to capture the Grand Champion title. National Championship division winners will take a piece of a $10,000 purse and be qualified for World Club Crew Championships in Hong Kong in 2010. Festival teams may also choose to race in National Championship heats against club crews from across the country.

 

The Chattanooga event will benefit T.C. Thompson Children’s Hospital Foundation. Last year, paddlers from 49 teams raised more than $93,000 in pledges for the organization.

 

HelloChattanooga Tip: More information is available online about how to register teams.

- by Leah M. Caudle , Chattanooga Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

Leah M. Caudle

Leah Caudle is a professional storyteller with experience in covering local, community and feature stories. While at newspapers such as The Tennessean in Nashville and The Lexington Herald-Leader in Lexington, Ky., Caudle also has experience in shooting and editing videos and photos to accompany stories. The Western Kentucky University graduate received degrees in print journalism and Spanish in 2007 and also has expertise in the areas of public relations, copy editing and proofreading.