Paddling For Community
In the early 1980s, dragon boat racing became the fastest-growing sport in North America. The human-powered watercrafts, which are traditionally used in southern China for water rituals and festival celebrations, are manned by crews of up to 16 to compete in races. Each boat has a drummer beating time to keep paddlers in sync.
In the fall of 2004, Tampa hosted its first International Dragon Boat Festival. A group of team members and volunteers from Moffitt Cancer Center formed a team and enter the competition. The team had a successful first race season. Shortly thereafter, the group decided to partner with a local businessman to form a team made up of breast cancer survivors to compete in the 2005 season. That’s when the Pink Dragon Ladies were born.
A group of cancer survivors started the Pink Dragon Ladies in 2005. They now practice twice a week and compete in Tampa's International Dragon Boat Festival.
“This is a group of people that you would not necessarily get to know under other circumstances,” said Liz O’Connell, vice president of the Pink Dragon Ladies and the only original member still active with the team. “Cancer is the big equalizer, the one common denominator on the team.”
The Pink Ladies are Florida’s first cancer survivor dragon boat team. They have two boats, with a crew of 22 women per boat. Twenty paddlers sit in pairs facing the bow, one crew member acts as the steerer standing at the back of the boat, and the drummer faces the paddlers keeping them on beat. Dragon boats vary in size, but generally are about 46 feet long and weigh around 550 pounds.
“The boat itself is stronger than any one individual because we're all paddling together,” O’Connell said.
It’s a club that no one wants to be in, however, the alternative is a much darker reality and hits very close to home for those who come to paddle twice a week in the Hillsborough River in Tampa. Because of the cancer connection, the Pink Dragon Ladies don’t see the consistent turnover which is often a problem for others in the sport. The pink boats are always full. One thing about breast cancer survivors: there is no shortage of strong women and men willing and ready to fight.
“We provide support through sport,” O’Connell said. “That means we're not just a support group. We don't typically sit around talking about cancer. By participating in sports and traveling to races together, we get to know each other and share our cancer journeys. It’s understood that we’re there for members every step of the way — whether it’s lending an empathetic ear, offering a ride to treatment or just providing a diversion from a tough day.”
Twenty years later, the sport is still as popular as ever and the ladies aren’t quitting anytime soon. With local and international competitions on the horizon, these women continue to show up, fight and paddle for their community, all while proudly wearing pink.
“Once a Pink, always a Pink.”
