A Dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft. Dragon boat racing, on the other hand, has been a traditional Chinese paddling watercraft activity for over 2000 years and began as a modern international sport in Hong Kong in 1976. During a race, there are typically 22 people making up a boat. There are 20 paddlers, who sit in rows of 2, with a total of 10 rows, one drummer, and one steersperson.

The rhythm of the drum beats, produced by the drummer, may be considered by some as the "heartbeat" of the dragon boat that helps to symbolize the frequency and synchronization of the paddlers' strokes. The stroke rate, which is also just known as the "rate", cadence or speed the boats are traveling at, is the rhythm the drummer beats the drum to. As the boat speed accelerates, the beat of the drum accelerates, this is also the case if the boat decelerates in which case the beat of the drum also decelerates.

As the name suggests, the steersperson is the one who keeps the boat straight and on the race course. They are usually one of the coaches or assistant coaches for the high school teams or they are a trusted and experienced steersperson on adult teams. The steerers (typically) use a 9-foot straight oar, called a steering oar which they use to adjust the position of the boat by cranking. When a steerer cranks the steering oar, the boat’s stern (also known as the end of the boat), moves either to the left or right to turn the boat.

The most common race courses are 500 meters, there are also 200 meter, 1,000 meter and 2,000 meter races. If you are interested in dipping your feet into the world of dragon boat and live in or near San Francisco feel free to go to "Teams" and seek out a dragon boat team near you today. All paddles and PFDs (Personal Flotation Devices) will be provided so all YOU have to do is bring some water, snacks, flip flops and maybe a change of clothes. Thank you for reading and see you out on the water!