By Mike McCombs
The Island News
Twenty-eight boats will take to the water early Saturday morning, June 24, as DragonBoat Race Day returns to the Beaufort River.
The event, first held in Beaufort in 2013, runs from approximately 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with the first race going off at about 8:15 a.m.
Spectators are advised to bring their own chairs. The course starts at the Woods Memorial Bridge and ends at the Downtown Marina. Any place along the seawall is a great place to watch the race.
The event usually averages 31 or 32 teams, but DragonBoat Beaufort’s Greg Rawls says this year’s number of 28 is the “sweet spot.”
“It works out evenly,” he said, “so we capped it at 28. We actually had some teams we could not accommodate.”
Rawls said “two-thids” of the teams are local, but “here are some club teams from out of town that are really, really good.”
There are three heats – everyone races three times before seeding into divisions A, B, C, D, and E. There are medals for the winners, as well as other awards for boats, teams, even best T-shirts.
Rawls expects a good crowd of between 2,000 and 4,000 people.
“Each team has at least 20 people, so you’ll get 35 to 48 people with each team,” Rawls said, explaining again why 28 teams is a good cap.
Some of the teams are out to win it all, and all of the teams are out to have some fun. But of course, the goal of the event is also to raise money.
DragonBoat Beaufort supports a cancer outreach program. According to it’s website, the group helps “cancer patients deal with the realistic monthly demands of keeping the lights on, keeping the fridge supplied with nutritious food, or keeping gas in the car to get to treatment.”
“We’re looking to raise $80,000,” Rawls said. “Right now, we’re at about $54,000 [as of Tuesday]. The money raised goes to our outreach program.”
As The Island News reported in February, DragonBoat Beaufort is still seeking a dock home for it’s boats and equipment.
“It’s really been rough. I’ve had so many people in this county say no to me. It’s really been rough,” said Rawls, who said the group would be putting out a big appeal on race day. “Right now, we’re keeping one boat on a trailer and towing it to Whitehall everyday to practice. It’s not the best situation.”
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.
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DragonBoat Beaufort looking hard for a home, Feb. 1, 2023
