Join the Oregon Women Lawyers Dragonflies dragon boat team as we kick off our 2010 season with a fundraising party at Irishtown Bar & Grill in Vancouver, Washington.

Live music, drink specials, door prizes, raffle items, Wii paddling competition and more!

More details coming soon... check back at www.owlsdragonflies.org/fundrasier.html for updates!

The OWLS Dragonflies team information session tonight (Wednesday) will be held at a new location - Sungari's DragonWell Asian Bistro at 101 SW Yamhill at 5:30 pm. Come meet team members, hear about the team, and ask us anything you want. No commitment necessary - hope to see you there!

Ever thought about dragon boating? The OWLS Dragonflies dragon boat team is holding info sessions on Monday, February 22, and Wednesday, February 24, beginning at 5:30 pm at the Hotel Fifty Bar, H5O. Come hear about the team, meet team members, and ask us questions. We plan to be there until about 7:00, so come by whenever you are available. If you are unable to attend but would like more information on the dragon boat team, please email the co-captains, Robin Seifried or Valerie Tomasi. We look forward to meeting you!

The OWLS Dragonflies dragon boat team is seeking sponsors for the 2010 race season. In 2010, the team plans to participate in the Northwest Challenge Circuit races in Portland, Salem, Tacoma and Kent. The team is also also participating in the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival, a competitive international race held in Vancouver, BC. Sponsorships go toward the fees for these races and help defray the costs of team paddling gear and food and water to fuel paddlers on race days. The team's sponsors are listed in press about the team, on our website, and on our team banner displayed at all of our race events.

You can sponsor the OWLS Dragonflies at the level that suits your budget. For first-time sponsors, we offer a $75 Pearl level sponsorship. We also offer Bronze Medal sponsorships at $100, Silver Medal sponsorships at $250, Gold Medal sponsorships at $500, and Platinum level sponsorships at $750. If you are interesting in sponsoring the OWLS Dragonflies 2010 season, please email sponsorships@owlsdragonflies.org.

Please be advised that because Oregon Women Lawyers is a 501(c)(6) corporation, contributions and gifts made to the OWLS Dragonflies are not tax-deductible. However, given the profile of the team in the legal community, it has been our experience that the sponsorship is an effective marketing tool.

The OWLS Dragonflies will be hitting the water two hours a week starting February 16th (Tuesdays from 6:30 to 7:30 pm and Saturdays from 9:30 to 10:30 am). Practices will increase to four hours a week starting March 16th (Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30 to 7:30 pm and Saturdays from 8:30 to 10:30 am)

If you're interested in learning more about joining the team, we welcome you to check out a practice! Please contact co-captains, Robin Seifried and Val Tomasi for more information.

On November 24, 2009, we lost Nancy Bergeson, formerly a member and captain of the OWLS Dragonflies team, and most recently a paddler with Wasabi Paddling Club.

Nancy, who would have turned 58 on November 30, was a dearly loved member of the Portland dragon boat community.  She enjoyed competing and did so with enthusiasm and sportsmanship.  She was a friend to all, encouraging us to be better paddlers and better people.  In races, she cheered everyone on with gusto, even competing teams, since it seemed she had a couple of friends in every boat.  We will miss Nancy's smile and her boundless energy.

Memorial services were held last weekend for Nancy in Portland including a memorial paddle on the Willamette River with Nancy’s former Dragonflies, Wasabi, and USA Grandmasters teammates.  Remembrances may be made in Nancy's name to The Forest Park Conservancy.

We're already planning for next year!

The OWLS Dragonflies are planning on joining the Northwest Challenge Circuit (consisting of the Rainier Dragon Boat Festival in May, the Salem World Beat Dragon Boat Festival in June, the Kent Cornucopia Days Dragon Boat Races in July, and the Portland Dragon Boat Race in September).

The team is also planning on making two trips to Canada. To the Rio Tinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival in Vancouver, BC (June 19-20) and the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival in Victoria, BC (August 14-15).

Apologies to those of you we missed at Voleur last Thursday. Apparently, it's closed for remodeling! Se we're moving the second information session (scheduled Tuesday, September 21st from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.) to Rock Bottom Brewery at 206 SW Morrison.

If you are interested in the team, but can't come Tuesday, let Gwyn know and we'll work something else out. Go 'Flies!

The OWLS dragon boat team, the Dragonflies, is hosting two informational meetings on Thursday, September 17th and Tuesday, September 22nd, each from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. at Voleur (SW 1st and Ash, Downtown Portland, on the MAX line), for those who are interested in learning more about joining the team. Drop in any time--happy hour goes until 6:00. We may wrap up early on Thursday if the Pub Quiz crowd gets to be too much.

Dragon boating is a great team sport that builds endurance, strength, and friends. We race in a big boat, with 16-20 paddlers facing forward, with half the paddlers paddling on one side and half on the other. There is a caller at the front of the boat, and a tiller in the back. When we race in the Rose Festival, we also have a flag catcher at the front who catches a flag to end the race. Check out our website to see pictures of our races.

No experience required, and no commitment necessary. If you're not sure if you want to paddle but want to be involved, we can also train you to call or till. Whatever your interest, just stop by one of the informational sessions and chat with us and see if you would like to give it a try! We'll fill you in on all the details of paddling with the team and answer the question that every new paddler asks, that is, what should I wear to practices?

The best way to determine if you like dragon boating is to come to a practice. Fall is a beautiful time to be on the river, so we'd like to give you the opportunity to get out on the water now. Practices for the remainder of the 2009 season are Wednesday evenings from 6:30 to 7:30 and Saturday mornings from 9:30 10:30 on the Willamette River, leaving from RiverPlace. In November, we'll break for winter and start up again in February, with 2 hours of practice a week, working up to 4 hours. We may be switching our practice days to Tues/Thurs/Sat in 2010.

We usually participate in 3-6 race weekends in the summer. Most of our races are in Portland or around the Northwest. We usually travel to Victoria, BC for one race and sometimes throw somewhere like San Francisco or Vancouver BC into the mix.

For more information, please contact co-captains Robin Bellanca or Gwyn McAlpine. We hope to see you at one of our informational sessions!

The OWLS Dragonflies are off to another race! We're heading north again, but this time all the way to Canada for the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival. 

This will be the 'Flies sixth year traveling to Victoria and it has to rank up there as one of our favorite races. This year, the festival organizers are trying something new--a women's division--so it will be interesting to see how we compete. Last year we were the top-seeded women's team among all of the teams and took second place in the women's final. We're hoping to bring home some serious hardware this year!