Create a Team

Step 1: Filling the Boat
Filling a boat requires 20 people to paddle, someone to steer (very important), someone to drum or ‘call’ and a few people to act as spares. Mixed teams require that a minimum of eight (8) paddlers of BOTH genders must be paddling on the boat during the race. This does not include the drummer or the steersperson.

A paddler on a Mixed team may also paddle for a Women’s team and a paddler from a Women’s team may also paddle for a Mixed team.

A steersperson may steer for more than one team, however if there is a scheduling conflict, it is the team’s responsibility to provide an alternate steersperson or risk the chance of not racing.

Step 2: Defining Roles
Every dragon boat team that registers with the festival has three roles to fill - we recommend assigning these roles to different individuals to help in the success of your team. These people will be designated on your roster.

• Team Organizer - Responsible for registering the team and liaising with the festival office.
• Team Captain - Responsible for the team as a whole and for conveying all pertinent information to the team (practice times, race times, conduct of the team, attend team captain's meeting, explain rules).
• Pledge Captain - Each team participating in the festival’s Pledge Challenge should assign a Pledge Captain. The Pledge Captain is responsible for distributing pledge kits to team members and for monitoring team members' progress to encourage them to collect the pledges. It is recommended that the Pledge Captain turn in the money collected by the team, however that responsibility can be left up to the individual paddlers.

These roles are suggestions only and you may develop a process that works better for you. If you come up with new ideas, please feel free to share them with us.

Step 3: Team Roster and Waivers
All team organizers/captains must fill out the online roster in the Team Administration area. You may enter the team admin area at any time and add members to your team. Once a team member’s name and email have been entered they will receive an individual email generated by the system asking them to register to your team. It is at this time that they will have the opportunity to sign their waiver online. If a team member does not have an email address they must submit a manual waiver to the festival office, either through their team captain/organizer or directly to the office.

PLEASE NOTE: An email address may only be used for one person; the email address automatically becomes the username for that individual therefore only one person may use that particular address. Manual waivers can be downloaded here.

All rosters must be completed by the designated deadline (see Rules & Regulations). All waivers must be signed by the designated deadline. Team members who have not signed their waivers may not participate in practices and will not be allowed to participate in racing. All team members who have signed a waiver will receive a wristband to wear over the weekend. Anyone without a wristband will not be allowed in a boat. Wristbands will be distributed to Team Captains at the Team Captain’s Meeting the Friday night before the festival weekend.

If you are having trouble forming a team please contact the Festival Office, and someone will be happy to speak with you and offer suggestions.

Step 4: Practicing
Once your team is registered you will need to practice and learn how to operate a dragon boat. For safety reasons, we do not let teams participate in the event unless they have practiced first.

Your team entry fee includes two practice times. Practices are not organized through the Festival Office and are generally held in June. Once your team is registered in the festival, your captain will receive instructions on how to book the practices with the Rideau Canoe Club. Click here to visit the Rideau Canoe Club FAQ page.

If you have registered your team and have not received instructions - or for any team related questions - please contact us.

Step 5: Participating on Race Weekend

Team Captain’s Manual
A Team Captain’s Manual will be posted on the website and a copy will be distributed to Team Captains at the annual Festival Launch in May.

Please refer to our dragon boat glossary for a list of commonly used terms in the sport of dragon boating.

Team Captain’s Meeting
Team Captains and Steerspeople MUST meet with the Race Officials on the Friday before the event at 6:30pm to review the rules and regulations, pick up any last minute information, and team identification wristbands.

Race Schedule
The Saturday morning race schedule will be available online approximately one week before the event.

Race Weekend
The Tim Hortons Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival is a two-day event with races on Saturday and Sunday. Your team entry fee entitles you two races on Saturday, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, and you may advance to the finals on Sunday depending on your qualifying time. Your best time from your two races on Saturday is used to determine whether you advance to the Sunday races. The top 75 mixed teams and top 24 women’s teams from Saturday will advance to Sunday. Depending on the make-up of your team, you may qualify to participate in a Challenge Cup. If you do qualify under a particular Challenge Cup category, that race will count as one of your two Saturday races. Refer to the Challenge Cups section below for a full listing of competitions. For those who don't qualify for one of these Cups, you will still get to race twice on Saturday.

Map and Directions

Click here for map

Dragon Boat Buddies:

Big Buddy - experienced organizers who have been a part of the Ottawa DBF in the past. Pass on your experience to a new team organizer ("Little Buddy") and be their onsite "buddy team" during the festival (cheer them during the races, join them for a beverage, etc).

Little Buddy - organizers who are putting together their team for the Ottawa DBF for the very first time or bringing an out of town team to the city. Ask your "Big Buddy" for advice about booking practices, organizing your boat, recruiting paddlers, and what to expect during festival weekend.

If you are interested in signing up to be partnered with a "Dragon Boat Buddy" please contact Shelley at team@dragonboat.net or 613-238-7711, x226.