GIG HARBOR, Wash. — Despite a weekend heatwave, gusty winds, and the largest field of dragon boat crews ever assembled in Washington state, the Gig Harbor Dragon Boat team turned in a podium-packed performance at the Seattle Dragon Boat Festival on Lake Union on Saturday, June 13.
Hosted by the Seattle Flying Dragon Boat Club at Lake Union Park, the festival drew 65 crews and more than 1,000 paddlers for a day of 500-meter sprints which was a record turnout that made it the biggest dragon boat race in state history. Roughly 65 Gig Harbor paddlers made the trip north, including three who competed in their very first race.
Gig Harbor’s two women’s crews stole the show. Both “Fire” and “Fury” reached the Women’s C Division Final and battled neck and neck down the course, finishing close enough to share the podium. Fury took the gold medal and Fire claimed silver. Even more telling was the clock: the two crews posted the fourth- and fifth-fastest finals times of the entire division bracket, outpacing every crew in the Women’s B Division and edging the slowest crew in the elite Women’s A Division.
The club’s mixed crews added to the medal haul. “Storm” qualified for the Mixed A Finals out of a stacked field and finished fourth, just shy of the podium, while the team’s “Master Mixed” crew earned a silver medal.
Coaches Anita Jones and Sherie Lou Santos credited the result to a deep roster and a large group of volunteers who kept the operation running on a hot, crowded race day. Steers Mike Swanton, Dennis English, Brandi Anderson and Margaux Serock navigated gusty conditions, side wake, and a course shared with seaplanes and paddleboarders to keep every crew safe and upright. Drummers Deb Hoy, Wendy Flick, Anita Jones and Shira Stark set the pace from the bow, while race coordinators Nikki Jones, Karen Shipp and Carrie Barker, team captains Carole Rosenberg and Jenny Chronister, and crew captains Deana Fanning, Toni Monzon, Leslie Stowell, Matt Stevens and John MacLeod handled the logistics of moving dozens of athletes through a full day of racing. Warm-up leaders Jane Davey and Jenny Chronister kept paddlers loose between heats, and a crew of families and volunteers managed tents, hydration wagons, and cheering duties through the afternoon heat.
The strong showing in Seattle continues a fast start to the 2026 season for the club, which opened the year with two gold medals at the Rainier Dragon Boat Festival in Tacoma last month. With their signature “DIG, DEEP, NOW” rallying cry, the Gig Harbor Dragons now set their sights north of the border, with a race in Victoria, British Columbia, this coming weekend and the Can-Am club crew event in Montreal on the horizon.