Racing, dancing, singing, oh my!
Photo via Victoria Dragon Boat Festival Website.
The race began at 8:00 a.m. on the morning of August 10. Thirty-seven teams came from across B.C., and some from California, to compete. The womens and mixed teams raced down Victoria’s inner harbor until 5:00 p.m. Amidst the crowded docks were food trucks, stalls, and local performers. It was the 27th annual Dragon Boat Festival.
The Dragon Boats first came to Victoria during the 1994 Commonwealth Games, organized by the Victoria Chinese Commerce Association. Dragon Boats are long boats, with teams of up to 20 people paddling, one drummer, and one steerer. It is an ancient Chinese sport.
The first Dragon Boat Festival was hosted in 1995, but the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival Society was founded in 1997, and has hosted the festival each year since.
“It’s something that the local Chinese community wanted to do, and have been pushing for it since, and an organization grew up around that: the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival Society. They’ve been organizing the event ever since then,” said Dominic Lai, one of the festival organizers.
Despite the Festival only being a single day, with the opening ceremony occurring the night before, that didn’t mean there was nothing to do besides watching the boats.
“Beyond the sports side, there is cultural programming. For example, there is Chinese Opera, there is Chinese dancing, there’s local acts that ensure that the Festival doesn’t just become a caricature of Chinese tradition. It is relevant as well,” said Lai.
“And contextualized in the context of Victoria now, so there’s local live music acts that are going to be on stage, emerging indie bands, artist groups that represent the diversity of the community, Indigenous groups that will come, local organizations and non-profits that want to share what they are doing with the larger community. It really represents a little bit of what Victoria is about,” he added.
Between the shows and the boating, there was always something to keep you occupied. There was a lineup of performers throughout the day on two separate stages. The main stage was host to a variety of bands, beginning with the Esquimalt Singers and Dancers. The smaller patio stage had Chinese cultural acts, such as lion dancers, a Sichuan face changing show, dancing, and Chinese opera, as well as the Naden Band of the Royal Canadian Navy.
Besides some minor technical issues during the Chinese opera, all the performances were arresting. Amateurs and seasoned professionals alike came together to share their skills and passion with Victoria.
But the performers weren’t the only ones giving it their all; the racers were blurs on the water as they paddled across the Inner Harbor to victory.
“For some folks that have Dragon Boats as part of their cultural background, it’s a way for them to reconnect with their culture. For some people that don’t, they’re getting out onto the water as a team, the teamwork, working together as a part of a group, the sport aspect, the social aspect,” said Lai.
“But then, there is such a broad range of reasons that every time you talk to a different paddler you discover a little bit behind why they participate.”
As Lai spoke, I noticed we were standing next to a family holding handcrafted signs supporting their father.
At the Dragon Boat Festival, there is always something to enjoy. Registration for the 2025 festival is already open, and I am already looking forward to it.
