Berkeley's dragon boat team competes in the Wavechaser race, starting and finishing in the South Sailing Basin on the south side of the Berkeley Marina.

As anticipated, the dragon boat with a crew of ten (half the usual horsepower, for better seaworthiness in the open Bay) proved to be no match for the fleet of outriggers and kayaks.

Despite the relative inefficiency of this 2400-year-old design, dragon boats are spectacularly good at providing inexpensive access to competitive paddling for entry-level participants. There is also a very active circuit of high-level competition, represented by about 20 regional teams.

previous photo - - - - - - - - - - - - next photo