Rapid Eagles Soar to Gold at Spring Sprint

May 5, 2025 Robbin Whachell

Posing for their official photo at the Burnwater Spring Sprint on May 3, 2025

We’re incredibly proud of the Rapid Eagles, a dedicated high school dragon boat team that trains with the support of Nothin’ Dragon Paddling Society — using our boats, equipment and safety crew.

Led by Erica McArthur, a Riverside Secondary teacher and former Nothin’ Dragon coach, and co-coach Susan Priestly of Gleneagle Secondary, the team is a shining example of youth teamwork, perseverance, and paddling passion.

This composite crew — made up of students from Riverside Secondary and Gleneagle Secondary — recently competed in their first junior race at the Spring Sprint Dragon Boat Festival in False Creek, Vancouver this May.

And they didn’t just show up — they powered their way to a gold medal finish in the Junior B Division!

We’re thrilled to support the next generation of paddlers and can’t wait to see where this incredible crew goes next. Way to go, Rapid Eagles — you’ve made your whole paddling community proud!

Pam and Jason of Nothin’ Dragon stand with their son Marcus.

Bronze Medal at the Oddball Fall Classic

September 30, 2024 Robbin Whachell

Nothin’ Dragon entered one mixed team in the Oddball Fall Classic on Sept. 28 held at False Creek, Vancouver.

This event featured three exhilarating 200m races and despite windy and cool conditions, the team did very well, ending up with a bronze in the F Division Final!

Not only that, Nothin’ Dragon improved on last year’s fastest team time of 00:56.184.

Race results:

Race 8 – 0:57.962 (6th)
Race 15 – 1:01.998 (3rd)
Race 26 – 0:55.137 (3rd)

Thanks to Coach Denise for having us race ready, tent transportation and setup by Michele and Brent, results and warmup management by Lori and to our drummer Trish and steers Rob and Warren for guiding us down the water.

View Facebook Photo Album

Penticton Race Weekend Recap

September 16, 2024 Robbin Whachell

We had perfect weather for the Penticton Regatta from Sept. 6 – 8! The waters were smooth and there was no wind.

Thanks to those who went out to the park on Friday night to set up the tents. We had a great spot under some trees close to the water spray park which gave us lots of privacy, a great open space for warming up, spreading out, staying cool and relaxing between races.

Friday night was enjoyed by all those that were staying at the Riverside Motel and others that dropped by to enjoy our traditional appetizers and drinks.

Saturday was a beautiful morning with still waters. Lori and Robbin stepped in as managers for the weekend and kept track of our race times, results, gathering everyone for warmups and just being there to support. Warmups were led by Darlene with great music by DJ Grace. In our down time, we enjoyed the ambiance of Dale’s saxophone playing.

Congratulations to Dave F for steering a fabulous slalom down the race course finishing us in 10th place in the Steers Challenge. Dave’s expertise, focus and dryland practice prior to the race proved successful. Everyone had fun paddling the 1000m and many experienced it for the first time.

BIG thanks to Sandra for organizing the potluck barbecue for Saturday night. Over 60 paddlers enjoyed the potluck and BBQd chicken, burgers, smokies and grilled salmon. We were happy to invite the Draggin Divas to join us so that the teams from Rocky Point could enjoy an evening of food, drinks, socializing and dancing. Rob V was also able to join in on the fun as his team was also staying at the motel. The potluck food was endless and extras were brought to the race site for Sunday enjoyment.

There was potential for a thunder and lightning storm on Sunday, but races sped forward and ahead of schedule to keep us ahead of any impending storm which helped finish the racing early. We packed up in our usual quick fashion and headed to the beer garden for a much deserved and rewarding cold drink while eyeing the black clouds in the distance. As always, this venue never fails with spectacular beach side/water views for both racers and spectators, numerous vendors and food options.

No bling or coveted “sticker”, we know we gave it our all, and we had smiles on our faces at the end! It was a first for us to make it into the Platinum (highest) Division. We made it into the top 8 of 24 mixed division teams. Here are our race results:

Race 1 – 2:18:56 2nd place
Race 2 – 2:20:87 2nd place
Steers Challenge – 3rd out of the gate, finishing 10th out of 20 teams with a time of 6:33.17
Race 3 – 2:23:10 4th in the Mixed Platinum Semi 1 Final
Race 4 – 2:19.56 4th in the “B” Platinum Final

It was a fun weekend, with fabulous races and excellent times. Thank you to Dave F and Bob for steering us down the race course and for Trish on the drum seat yelling encouragement to dig, dog fight and finish!

We appreciated our large group of cheerleaders and family members who joined us for the weekend: Joan, Elaine, Sara, Stuey, Isla, Karen, Susan, Scott, Ronnie, Brent, Paul, Carol, Mary, John and Sophie! On Saturday we also had Robbin’s sister and nieces, one with her 10-day-old baby; and David Wood’s daughters drove in from Vernon.

Thanks to Coach Denise, who put a lot of time and effort into our training and lineups. We felt we did her proud while she was off at the World’s in Ravenna, Italy winning medals in every race with her teams – showing us how her hard work and dedication to dragon boating has successfully awarded her and NDPS. Huge thanks to Linda who filled in for Denise while she was away.

Vessi 500 Championships Recap

June 2, 2024 Robbin Whachell

Nothin’ Dragon Rock and Roll at Vessi 500 on June 1, 2024

The weather cooperated providing a cloudy cool day on June 1 with calm waters for racing at the Vessi 500 Championships dragon boat festival in Vancouver at False Creek.

Thanks to all who attended, with special mention to Brent J for early a.m. tent delivery.

Coach Denise was again tasked to put together teams with last minute roster changes.

Congrats started early with a couple of golds 🥇 being won by related Womens teams. The Rapids youth team we support also medaled.

Teams Rock and Roll took to the water in race 6 with team Roll bettering Rock by 9 seconds.

Team Rock worked on improving focus throughout the day and in the F Final just missed a third place medal by .5 of a second.

Team Roll progressed to an amazing D final which had 1st place boat far ahead and then a 7 boat cluster fractions of a second apart, (Roll came in 6th place), all in the 2 min and 21-23 second range. Well done all!

Race results:

Race 6: Nothin' Dragon Rock – 2:34.065
Race 6: Nothin' Dragon Roll – 2:25.790

Race 14: Nothin' Dragon Rock – 2:38. 681

Race 15: Nothin' Dragon Roll 2:29.179

Race 22: Nothin' Dragon Rock – 2:31. 600 (Division F)

Race 24: Nothin' Dragon Roll – 2:23.219 (Division D)

Compare to 2023 Results

Photos on Facebook

Penticton Dragon Boat Festival Race Recap

September 12, 2023 Robbin Whachell

Congrats to those who competed in Penticton!

What an amazing weekend of sunshine, pool time, camaraderie, great food, and super dragon boat racing! We ran one mixed team and one women's team.

The weather was idyllic and although there was some smoke it was not too bad. Winds were nonexistent in the mornings to light in the afternoons. We held our traditional team dinner at the Riverside Motel on Saturday night and it was yum!

Our Penticton crews consisted of Michele, Laney, Pat W, Bryan, Darlene, Ian, Pete, Warren, Brent J, Bob, Lori, Denise, Robbin, Linda, Sandra, David W, Rob, Dave D, Marg, Bruce, Dave F, Marianne, Nicole, Carol, Marjorie, Christine, Jola, Patty, Sally, Marlene and Trish. Thanks for leading warmups, Darlene; and for keeping us on course, Bob, Dave F, Sally and Trish!

A big thanks to Sandra and her husband Paul who were a huge help in getting us paddlers to fill out our women's team. Thanks to the ladies from Paul's team, the TCC Dragoneers: Rachel, Sherry, Gail and Leanne.

This weekend proved that all the hard work we've been putting in since April has paid off. Our results show proof of our excellent coaching and our dedication to our sport. Thank you Denise for having us race-ready, sorted out, and updated throughout the season and over the weekend.

Our women's team started off strong and placed second in their first three races, increasing their time each race. By Sunday, we were in the 20th position of 44 teams. This put us in the Jade Final A Division. Despite coming last, it was only by a couple of seconds and it was the women's team's fastest time of the weekend. Great going ladies!

Our mixed team took home silver after strong performances in their first three races, placing 2nd, 2nd, 1st, and then 2nd in the Diamond Final A! By Sunday, we were placed 15 out of 30 mixed teams. Strong starts and finishes were noted by those on the shore. Great job!

Team history was made with the Steers Challenge race with Dave F at the helm. We had to race down the 500m course, then make a full turn, and then guide the boat back through a 500m slalom course set up with 10 buoys. Each missed buoy was a 5-second loss. We were the third team to do the course (the first to complete it) as the first two teams decided to just paddle back after experiencing the difficulty. It was great fun and resulted in big excitement and hilarious chaos with calls coming from many in our boat. The women's team, FLCC Race Crew won the challenge, and we are still awaiting our results. Thanks to Dave for leading us through the course along with Trish and Denise's directions up front. We can't wait until we can do this one again!

We appreciate and thank the family and friends who came out to cheer us on! The weekend came to a close with cold ones in the beer garden before some of us headed home, and others enjoyed another night in beautiful Penticton.

Here are our race results:

Day 1----

MIXED

Race 4 – 2:17.15 (2nd)

Race 22 – 2:20.20 (2nd)

WOMEN

Race 15 – 2:34.46 (2nd)

Race 33 – 2:32.41 (2nd)

STEERS CHALLENGE (1000m) -- still awaiting our result.

Day 2----

WOMEN

Race 45 – 2:31.43 (2nd) - Jade Semi

Race 69 – 2:29.04 (4th) - Jade Final A

MIXED

Race 54 – 2:19.54 (1st) - Diamond Semi

Race 75 – 2:14.22 (2nd) - Diamond Final A

Link to event results page

Thank you our photographer, Jola!
Here is our Facebook album.

Next up is our final race of the season, the Oddball Fall Classic on Sept. 23.

Harrison Regatta Race Recap

July 23, 2023 Robbin Whachell

The Harrison Regatta crew with Henrietta.

We had perfect weather for the Harrison Regatta on July 22! This tricky dragon boat venue never failed to disappoint with a spectacular visual feast of BC beauty, wild waters, and winds that increased as the day progressed and kicked sand up into our faces on the shore.

We appreciated the cheering from Roy, Joan, Elaine, John and Sophie!

Thanks to those who supported teammates by carpooling. We had a great tent spot at the far end of the village, which gave us lots of privacy, and a great view of the race action. The event announcer was set up close to us so we knew when to head to marshaling. We all brought potluck food, so feasting began after our first race.

Marshaling on the beach at Harrison Lake.

In our first race, (lane 1, closest to shore) our start was faltered by a buoy that hugged the boat on the right side. Once we got going, however, we came on strong, and our fans on shore said we were gaining and had a strong finish.

In our second race, we were placed in lane 6, far side, and the winds had increased. We had a very strong start, but our boat was being pushed by the current and winds, and our steer lost course, so we had to hold the boat, and then restart.

The venue at Harrison Lake showing the docks and boat loading area.

For race three (C final), we were determined to make it our best race. Winds are usually highest in the afternoon and often switch directions. We were once again in lane 1. Our start was strong and we powered down the course and finished well, almost matching our morning race time, missing that by fractions of a second.

Here are our team's race results:

Race 1 – 2:25:457 5th place
Race 2 – 2:37:892 6th place
Race 3 – 2:25:502 6th place in C final

To compare, our best race time at Concord this year was 2:20.041 (open team), so we did very well! With a smaller race event, our mixed competition was made up primarily of very young teams.

A big thank you to Henrietta who came out to manage our time and results board, and kept our tent area monitored while we were on the water. Thanks to Randy for transporting our equipment and making fast seat changes on the way out to the start line to balance our boats when needed. Thanks to our steers, Bruce and Linda, and our drummer Trish who took on and guided us through the beast we call Harrison!

Thanks to Steve for leading our warmups. To everyone that helped with setup and tear down and carry. Thanks to Coach Denise, who despite not being able to attend, put a lot of time and effort into our lineups and training.

No bling, but we know we gave it our all, and although we left with sand in our hair (and other places), we had smiles on our faces!

ps. We talked with teams from Washington and Seattle about our next Inlet Spring Regatta and they are very keen.

Photos on our Facebook page.

Our next race event will be in Victoria on Aug. 12 and 13!

Bronze Finish in Vessi 500 Senior C Cup

May 20, 2023 Robbin Whachell

Team photo at Vessi 500 Championship on June 3, 2023.

A beautiful day for racing at the Vessi 500 Championships dragon boat festival in Vancouver at False Creek. It was also a historic day as it was the first time Nothin' Dragon had two teams in the Senior C Cup race!

Both Red and Black teams put in a great day of racing and times improved as the day progressed.

From the Red team: "Despite being down a few teammates, no one got discouraged and everyone put in 100% effort all day. Our first race was a bit of a challenge. Just couldn’t get the glide! We figured it out, worked on ‘long and patient’ and ‘top hand pressure’ and the next three races felt great! Good glide, and strong finishes. Our times kept improving and we ended proudly with 2:26. It really was a fun day!"

From the Black team: “The consensus was that in our first race, the rate was high, but we managed to maintain it. Our effort resulted in a bronze place finish in the Senior C! Our focus for our next races was to go longer at a slower rate, and as we consistently aimed at doing so, we were able to improve each time and often were surprised to see our results as the effort felt like we may not be going that fast. It helped that most of our starts were strong and smooth. “

A big thanks to Coach Denise who manage lineups, answered questions and provided encouragement and feedback. She has drilled these points into us at training: go long, top hand pressure, patience. We're getting it!

And a special thank you to our steers and drummers who keep us on the course with their steadiness, calls and encouragement, even if they would rather be paddling. It's wonderful to see those new to these positions all doing so well. Your team is very proud of you!

Here are the race results for the Senior C Cup:

Race 1: Senior C

Nothin' Dragon Red – 2:38.291

Nothin' Dragon Black – 2:32.218 (bronze finish)

Our other race results:

Race 5: Nothin' Dragon Red – 2:35.784

Race 7: Nothin' Dragon Black – 2:27.158

Race 13: Nothin' Dragon Red – 2:34. 800

Race 15: Nothin' Dragon Black 2:25.124

Race 20: Nothin' Dragon Red – 2:26. 058 (Division F)

Race 22: Nothin' Dragon Black – 2:17.896 (Division D)

Rapids High School Team Wins B Division Gold at Spring Sprint

May 15, 2023 Robbin Whachell

Posing for their official photo at the Burnwater Spring Sprint

A huge shout out to the Rapids, who train in our boats and with our safety team and steers! The students are led by Riverside teacher, Erica McArthur, former coach to Nothin’ Dragon. Susan Priestly, a teacher from Gleneagle is the co-coach.

This high school team is made up of students from Riverside Secondary and Gleneagle Secondary students and they did very well at their first junior race at the Spring Sprint dragon boat festival at False Creek, Vancouver in May.

The outcome was a gold medal in the Junior B Division!