Wanna Paddle a Dragon Boat?

Individual Paddler Registrations Now Accepted

The 16th Annual Lake Superior Dragon Boat Festival (LSDBF) will take place Friday and Saturday, the weekend of August 25th & 26th on Barker’s Island. Time is short though, you must register by August 20th.

Perhaps you’ve attended the Festival in previous years, but never had an opportunity to be part of a team. This year the Rotary Clubs sponsoring the event are accepting individual paddlers! 

So, if you’ve always wanted to join in the fun, but didn’t know how, here’s your chance!

Get On The Water!

If you have wanted to get involved in this great event, but have been unable to put a team together, this will allow you to jump in and paddle this year! Aren’t involved in a company or a group that paddles in the Festival, but still want to get in on the fun…don’t miss this opportunity!

All you need to do is follow this LINK and you’ll be on the water!

The Festival organizers will take care of getting you on the water for one practice session before the Festival, and into a boat for at least two races on Saturday, August 26th. Some lucky paddlers will get to race three times!

After you’ve registered, Festival organizers will contact you with all the details! Click HERE for online registration.

The cost is only $40.00 and includes a snazzy new team T-shirt, a Friday night of music and fun, and a full day on Saturday of festival fun with a minimum of two races.

Fun On Land & On the Water

The Festival starts Friday night on August 25th, with a Team Parade on Barker’s Island. You’ll get a chance to get to know the folks you’ll be paddling with then. The Rotary sponsors will have a beer garden set-up and multiple food vendors on the island to add to the fun.

Immediately before the FREE live music starts at 6 pm, all of the teams line up for a parade and to be introduced to the crowd from our main stage.

Each year the Festival features a parade of teams on the Friday night before the races

FREE Entertainment Friday Night

Two bands will perform on Friday night. Beginning at 6:30 pm and playing til 9:00 pm will be the Lake City Smoking Section playing on the Barker’s Island Festival Stage. This band is a high energy R&B group that always brings the dancers to their feet.  

From 9 pm until 11 pm, the Mackie Brothers will perform in the Festival Beer Garden Tent.

Saturday – Races and Games!

Saturday morning starts off with the annual Superior Optimist Pancake Breakfast. Racing begins at 9 am, a Craft Fair will be held in the Barker’s Island Inn parking lot, the Kiwanis Club will sponsor Children’s Activities, and a “Bags” Tournament will be held in the Beer Garden area.

Photo credit: Karl Everett

There will be additional entertainment on the Festival stage throughout the day, and the final race heats will commence at 6 pm. The closing ceremony will be at 7 p.m.

More About the Lake Superior Dragon Boat Festival

To learn more about the Lake Superior Dragon Boat Festival, click HERE to go to their website. 

The LSDBF has been held the fourth weekend of August each year since 2002 and charitable sponsor Essentia Health has been able to raise over $1M in the process to help provide support cancer patients and their families, and for the purchase of equipment. One such purchase was for a mammography machine for the Essentia Hospital in Superior.

Additionally, the Superior Rotary, Harbortown Rotary (Duluth), and Sunrise Rotary (Superior) raise funds through this festival which are then channeled back into our communities for a variety of youth and community related programs. Those funds typically exceed $25,000 each year thanks to all of the paddlers and sponsors involved in the Festival.

In addition to Essentia Health, other Premier Sponsors include the API Group/Jamar, Graymont, and Barker’s Island Inn.

Other sponsors of this year’s event are: