Iowa the hotbed of dragon boat racing in America? It is, and that’s where all but two of the boats for the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival come from.
“We just bought two boats of our own, but volunteers from the Iowa festival drive 14 hours to get (the rest of) the boats to us each year,” notes Ding- Wen Hsu, executive director of the Colorado event.
Dragon boat racing is an immensely popular sport in Asian countries, and is gaining quite a following here, too. Seven years ago, the first time a festival was held in Colorado, spectators numbered about 35,000. As many as 100,000 are expected July 28-29 at Sloan’s Lake Park. Next year will be even bigger, when the American Dragon Boat Races are held here.
And as seriously as the racers take the sport, you’ve got to love the creative thinking that goes into naming many of the teams.
Wild things
The opportunity to get up close and personal with a cheetah or two can be yours on July 22 when Emmett and Marsha Duemke host a fundraiser for the DeWildt Cheetah Centre of Pretoria, South Africa. They’ll be serving a champagne brunch at their home that day; tickets are $50 for adults and $25 for children and can be purchased by calling 303-773-9061.
The brunch is the final installment of a weekend visit by Vanessa Bouwer, the DeWildt Centre’s executive director. Bouwer also will appear with her cheetahs at the Wildlife Experience Museum in Parker from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21 and at 7 that evening at the Holiday Inn Select at E-470 and Parker Road.
The Duemkes are longtime supporters of the DeWildt Centre and have been honored not only for their support of it but for engaging several of their friends to support it as well.
Meanwhile, the National Kidney Foundation of Colorado, Montana and Wyoming is having its annual Bernstone Picnic at the Denver Zoo on July 29. As many as 500 people are expected for a buffet lunch, followed by bingo and the opportunity to explore the zoo.
Admission is free for kidney patients; family members or friends pay $8. Registration deadline is July 20 as no tickets will be sold at the door. Call Melissa Hale, 720-748-9991, ext. 113.
Coming right up
The Girl Scouts Women of Distinction for 2007 will be introduced Aug. 1 at a reception held at Dr. Jody Mathie’s Denver home. … On Aug. 4, the Rocky Mountain Multiple Sclerosis Center Guild hosts “Casino Royale: Betting on a Cure” at Invesco Field at Mile High. Co-chairs are Ginny Messina, Sandy Unrein and Sandee Walling with Mary McNicholas putting together the auction. … Denver Post publisher William Dean Singleton will be honored Aug. 11 when the National Sports Center for the Disabled has its Legacy Dinner at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
