San Francisco Rainbow Koi Dragon Boat Team

The San Francisco Rainbow Koi Dragon Boat Team is riding the waves as it colorfully “sashays” on the Bay Area waterways. Although considered a gay and lesbian team, San Francisco Rainbow Koi is a very inclusive team with gay, lesbian, and straight members of various ethnicities and ages.  We welcome anyone who wants to have fun while fostering team spirit and friendship. We are a unique group. No other crew warms up to the beat of Latin salsa music and no other team breaks out in songs in the middle of paddling; we are as colorful as our name implies!

Dragon boat racing is practiced worldwide and draws its origins from mythical ancient China dating back to the Chu Kingdom over 2,000 years ago. Crafted from wood and fiberglass and beautifully adorned with a dragon head and tail, a dragon boat typically seats 20 paddlers with 10 along each side, accompanied by a steersperson and a drummer to keep the team in synch.

It’s a team sport in its purest form that encompasses the elements of power, speed, synchronization, and endurance. The average race course is 500 meters, and each heat may race between 4 and 6 boats. The dragon boat season in the Bay Area starts in February or March and ends in October, but off-season practices are common.  Team practices occur at various locations but primarily in San Francisco, Alameda, Berkeley, Foster City, and Redwood City . Races are scheduled in April for the Youth Race; in May for the Fun Race; in July for the Sprint race; and in September or October for the two-day Annual San Francisco International Dragon Boat Festival at Treasure Island. Other races are held throughout the country and internationally.

Rainbow Koi was formed in 2004 under the auspices of the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance (GAPA) and the Asian Pacific Islander Queer Women & Transgender Community (APIQWTC).  With Jean Danao as its first captain and Michael Ellis as its first coach, Rainbow Koi became the first-ever gay, lesbian, and transgender dragon boat team in California.  In addition to GAPA and APIQWTC, Rainbow Koi drew paddlers from various corporate teams.

While racing as a novice team at Lake Merced in San Francisco in 2004, Rainbow Koi was approached by Jennifer Eng, a 10-year veteran who has started and coached many teams. Under her encouragement and coaching, Rainbow Koi became the San Francisco Rainbow Koi and grew into a Recreational division team during its second season. The team mission: To increase the visibility of LGBT athletes in this fast-growing sport.  The team motto: “Fierce and Fabulous!” The idea of an independent gay and lesbian team where one can be relaxed and be his or her own colorful self instead of simply doing the regimented snap-ready-and-reach drill, made the sport much more attractive for many. But hey, that doesn’t mean that the team cannot be serious as well ... it’s just that San Francisco Rainbow Koi paddles to the beat of a different drum!

Now finishing its fourth season, San Francisco Rainbow Koi continues to evolve and improve.  This is reflected in our goals, which started as “To Have Fun!” to this year’s goal, “To win!” Two of the highlights of our four seasons of paddling:  bringing home a silver medal at the first Outgames, held in Montreal, Canada, in 2006 and snapping up our first gold medal in the Rec C division at the 2008 Kaiser Permanente San Francisco International Dragon Boat Festival.

We have tasted gold and are hungry for more. We look forward to next year’s challenges, perhaps an out-of-state competition! The fifth season for San Francisco Rainbow is scheduled for March 2009 but the team is holding several pre-season meetings. We look forward to strengthening our team through new membership so that we can be fiercer on the water, and more fabulous everywhere!  Paddles up!

For more information on this dynamic sport of dragon boating, please visit www.sfrainbowkoi.org. You can also contact Coach Jenn Eng at via email at sfrainbowkoi@gmail.com

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