Dragon Boat Festival 

Barb Michaels opened by sharing that she was recently inducted into the International Dragon Boat Hall of Fame in Germany as a "sports developer" — one of only 3–4 inductees from countries including Thailand, Italy, and Indonesia.

She gave an overview of the Fort Dodge Dragon Boat event, now in its 29th year, which began as a river cleanup service project and later moved to Kennedy Park. It's now one of the oldest continuing dragon boat events in the Midwest.

Key highlights she mentioned:

• The event has moved to June, with a paddling clinic on June 11th featuring two internationally accomplished coaches who train 50+ paddlers across the U.S.
• Teams race in 44-foot boats with 16–20 paddlers; entry is $25, and organizers provide boats, gear, and instruction.
• Friday night features a free street-dance-style event with a band called Burnin' Sensations, open to the public at no cost.
• Saturday racing begins around 8–9 AM.
• The committee is actively trying to grow local participation, as regional teams are plentiful but local teams have been declining.
• Volunteers are needed — timers, starters, beach helpers, and more.
• A fun aside: former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack was once a paddler and got a speeding ticket on his way to the event.

Tom Donner spoke about the breast cancer survivor dragon boat program:

• The Fort Dodge team stumbled into the breast cancer community at an event in Stratford, Ontario in the mid-1990s and was unexpectedly placed with cancer survivor teams.
• He referenced a landmark 1995 study by Dr. Don McKenzie (University of British Columbia), a sports medicine physician who challenged the prevailing medical advice that breast cancer patients — particularly those at risk for lymphedema — should avoid physical activity. McKenzie's study with 24 survivors showed that dragon boating did not worsen lymphedema and actually produced significant benefits: improved mental health, stronger immune systems, shorter recovery times from chemo and surgery.
• Dragon boating for breast cancer survivors has since grown into a global movement, with 3,000–4,000 survivors attending world tournaments.
• Tom helped start several teams across the Midwest (Kansas City to the Twin Cities) and notably started the Mayo Clinic breast cancer survivor team — a connection that also led to his own cancer being treated there.
• The team's international representative, Cheryl Lynch-Wig, serves on the international breast cancer survivor board.
• A recurring challenge is reaching newly diagnosed patients due to HIPAA restrictions, making it difficult to connect them with the program.

Linda Donner appealed to the group for volunteer help. In particular, volunteers with boats are needed to follow the dragon boats for paddler protection. If you can help with this need, let her know by emailing lsdonner55@gmail.net, or calling her at 515-571-9642.

Information can be found at www.badgerlakedragonboating.com