The first Rowan Chamber Dragon Boat Festival takes place Saturday, August 2nd, 2014, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Shrine Club at High Rock Lake, 6480 Long Ferry Road in Salisbury. It’s free to watch. Bring your lawn chairs and blankets. Food trucks will be on site and there will be live musical entertainment.
Here’s some information on dragon boat racing, from the festival’s website:
With a history of more than 2,500 years, the sport of dragon boating originated in ancient China. The legends include warring states, radical politics and fierce loyalty and passion written poetically by one man – Qu Yuan. This man was exiled from the land that he loved, and in turn committed suicide in the Miluo River in a final form of protest against the corruption of his era. During an attempt to save Qu Yuan, the locals took to the river in their fishing boats, splashing their paddles to keep the water demons and evil spirits away.
Modern day dragon boating has few elements to this ancient tale remaining. However, it has evolved into a worldwide competitive sport, bringing together millions across the globe annually. Festivals with traditional Asian flare and culture are commonplace alongside a dragon boat race in recent years. High level competitions have also been organized since the mid 1970s.
But the sport’s growth has been most commonly found at the grassroots level. Dragon boating has become an extremely popular vehicle for fundraising, and tool for corporate team building. Local communities combine these two concepts to breathe new life into their waterfront areas, and to stimulate their local economy.
Standard sized teams are formed with 18-25 people from all walks of life, while small boat events have teams of 8-14 people. Any age, size, ability and gender can learn to paddle on a dragon boat team. 10 or 20 paddlers are seated in rows of 2 with a drummer sitting in the bow, facing the paddlers. The paddler’s job is to paddle in unison with the entire team. The drummer’s job is to beat the drum in sync with the paddlers and to motivate their team to the finish line. A steersperson (provided by the festival) stands in the stern of the boat, guiding the boat straight down the race course with a 10-foot oar.
Charlotte on the Cheap is a member of 
