Category: General

What an exciting season! This year, Houston Heat welcomed close to a record number of members, each bringing energy, dedication, and spirit to every paddle stroke. From practices to races, it’s been a season full of hard work, camaraderie, and plenty of fun – all made possible by the dedication of our board members, coaches, and committee volunteers.

Special thanks to VP Margaret and board member Ann for their unwavering support over the years. Their leadership has played a huge role in shaping our club.

We ended the season with an amazing celebration, surrounded by both old and new friends who make this journey unforgettable. Thank you to everyone who paddled, cheered, and supported us along the way. Reminder: The new season starts at the end of February, 2025 – see you there! 

And now for something completely different. This past weekend, for our September social meetup, some team members put down their trusty dragon boat paddles and picked up pickleball paddles instead. In lieu of trying to stay in-synch, everyone did their best to hit fast moving plastic balls across the net as well as dodge (and chase!) the errant ones that flew through the air. Everyone had fun trying a new activity and socializing over food and drinks.

What a perfect morning for the Houston Heat 2024 Season Kick-off! We want to thank all of the adventurous first-timers as well as our dedicated members for coming out to make it one of the biggest and best kick-offs yet! Watch out as we set the water on fire!! HEAT IT UP!!!

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The very first Houston Heat crew formed in the summer of 2006, specifically to head to Nationals in Tampa that same year!

“With heart and perseverance, we went from the humble beginnings of forming a small dragon team in Houston to forging a path towards a culture that now expands over 10 dragon boat clubs and hundred of paddlers across Texas and its neighboring states. Now we are set to take on the world! “ – Jeff Gee

While we are still celebrating the 2023 Club Crew National Championships win with our teammates who raced with the Lone Star Dragons , we want now want to turn our attention to the upcoming 16th International Dragon Boat Federation World Dragon Boat Racing Champions held next week in Thailand! We are very proud that Team USA will be represented by our very own, Jackson Lau, Joel Castaneda and Michael Zheng, who are long time members of Houston Heat. We are also excited for Texas paddlers, Shirley Che, Rhonda Gideon, Elizabeth Olivares, John Jamerlan and Scott Baltisberger, who will also be on Team USA! We wish them all safe travels as they make their way to Rayong, Pattaya. Racing will start next week at the Royal Thai Navy Rowing and Canoeing Training Center. Best of luck to our friends as well as all the racers!!

A Texas-sized congratulations goes out to the Lone Star Dragons on their championship win in Sarasota last weekend at the USDBF Club Crew National Championships 2023 ! It was truly awesome to watch the team, which included several of our very own Houston Heat paddlers, battling it out against some of the fastest teams in the country! With this win, LSD has earned a berth to the 2024 Club Crew World Champions in Ravenna. Italy! They let it be known that Texas is now a true player in the elite competitive dragon boat world!

Hats off to our very own Houston Heat paddlers and coaches for their contributions to the success of the Lone Star Dragons’ spectacular showing at the 2023 Club Crew National Championships!!