Racing dragon boats for a good cause
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Chris Abbott
Editor
The Norfolk Knockouts know their way around a roller derby track.
Paddling in a dragon boat, however, requires different skills.
“In our sport, we get very close and we bump around, and cause a wall,” said Angela ‘Booty Vicious’ Caswell, president of Norfolk County Roller Derby. “Whereas, this (dragon boats) is more of a synchronized way of attack. It’s a timing thing, you’ve really got to know where everybody’s at and follow that person in front of you. It’s a game of ‘follow the leader.’”
Teamwork is important in both sports, she said after their semifinal race in the annual Invasion of the Dragons festival Sunday, June 21 in Waterford, organized by the Rotary Club of Norfolk Sunrise in partnership with the Cancer Support & Resource Program of Norfolk.
“Maybe we can bring some things from the water to the track, maybe we can bring some things from the track to the water,” said Caswell. “We’ve got to mesh the two together and see what we can come up with.”
Win or lose, they were there for a good time.
“This is a wonderful team building opportunity, while helping and raising funds for the community at the same time. This is our fourth year in this event and it’s just fantastic. We plan to partner with them every year, that’s for sure. It’s a great event.”
The Knockouts, who had one hour to practice on Shadow Lake the day before, finished second in their preliminary race, a fair distance behind Knotical Disaster, a California team that went on to third in the top A Division, one half-second behind the grand champions, The Dragonators from Toronto.
“We’re not paddlers,” Caswell laughed. “We’re skaters. Without our wheels we’re a little lost. We’re just here to have a good time, support a great cause, and get together as a team in our offseason.
“We always have a good time – we’re here for fun, we’re here to enjoy ourselves – and support each other as we’re doing it.”
The roller derby crew finished third in their division semifinal, edged out by Ship of Jewels, a team of local cancer survivors, and Rock Ness Monsters from the Simcoe Curling Club.
Dragon R Asses, another local community team, pushed ahead of the Knockouts to win the F Final.
“That’s how we roll,” one of the spirited Knockouts joked after their team photo was taken.
Ship of Jewels went on to place second in the E Final behind Lively Gales from Hamilton. Rock Ness placed second in the D Final, won by Bleacher Rentals of Simcoe.
Ashley LaPante, captain of the Ship of Jewels for the past four years, said their team was composed entirely of cancer survivors.
The 11 a.m. cancer survivor ceremony was emotional, she said.
“They give us all flowers and send everybody – all the survivors – out on the water. We wave the flowers, then throw them into the water to remember those that we’ve lost in the last year or years,” said LaPlante. “It’s just wonderful to see the support for such a great cause. It’s always so full and busy and everybody gets along so well. It’s a really fun day.
“I do a couple cancer fundraising events in Norfolk and this is one of my favourites. I enjoy it!
“The CSRP (Cancer Support & Resource Program) in Simcoe, they offer a lot of assistance to cancer patients.
This is my 19th year as a survivor, and they helped me a lot, both financially and physically. I was diagnosed at 30 and I had two young kids. They have a lot of resources and they are a wonderful organization in Norfolk County. I recommend everybody, put into that situation, reach out to them. I find that a lot of people, newly diagnosed, don’t know about the CSRP.”
LaPlante said she was proud of the Ship of Jewels, win or lose.
“It’s so incredible… because everyone is at different stages of their journey, and to see how far everyone has come – and they are able to do this physical race – it shows how truly strong we are.
A lot of us have become friends just from meeting here and it’s really good.
“Out there today, I don’t remember a more perfect day. This is wonderful, just a beautiful day,” LaPlante concluded.
The 2026 dragon boat teams included Ship of Jewels, cancer survivor team sponsored by Norfolk Simcoe Electric, Bleacher Rentals of Simcoe, The Dragonators (Toronto), Woodstock Wave, Vein Vikings (Life Labs of Brant Haldimand Norfolk), Knotical Disaster (Zone 4, California), Aquaholics (Toronto), Rapid Responders (Norfolk County OPP), Be Lively (Hamilton), Final Touch Fitness (Simcoe), Schaeffler Canada Bearing Arms (Stratford), Rock Ness Monsters (Simcoe Curling Club Ladies), After the Cure (Anytime Fitness, Brantford), Dragon R Asses, a local community team, Lively Gales (Hamilton), and the Norfolk Knockouts.
For a full list of sponsors and results, visit www.invasionofthedragons.ca.