Dragon Boats fly down Lady Bird Lake

By Yvonne Lim | June 15, 2008

Dancers at 2008 Dragon Boat Festival, Austin TX

A record crowd of about 5,000 attended this year’s Dragon Boat Festival held along Lady Bird Lake at Festival Beach on Saturday, April 26. Families, rowing enthusiasts and others enjoyed a day celebrating Asian culture along with traditional dragon boat racing.

The Austin Freescale team claimed victory in the boat race. Last years’ victors Houston Heat placed second and Veronica Lee’s “Moo Shu” team of Austin placed third. The Austin teams had worked for months with a special trainer to better compete against the Houston team.

“Houston had a very strong team, but they were impressed with the inroads we made this year,” said Dragon Boat Festival co-coordinator Carole Stockton.

The festival also featured cultural performances from Mongolian singers, Japanese drummers and Persian belly dancing, as well as various Asian foods. Visitors also enjoyed learning about different organizations from various booths, and kids delighted in special kids activities. A highlight for many was a traditional dragon/lion dance.

“They are enjoying themselves here; it’s been a lot of fun for the kids,” said Sonya Butler of her daughter Avery and godson Ben. The Butlers had been at the festival since it opened and so far the kids loved the dragon dance the most, she said.

This was the tenth year for the festival, organized by the Asian American Community Partnership under Amy Wong Mok of the Asian American Cultural Center.