Dragon boat races eye return to Sand Point Beach
Breast cancer fundraising event has been held in Tecumseh since 2009
The Windsor Essex Dragon Boat Festival for the Cure is steering its way back to where it launched 15 years ago.
After a seven-year run in Tecumseh, the fundraiser is preparing to return to Windsor’s Sand Point Beach.
Co-founder Beth Noakes said the festival — which features teams of rowers competing for medals while raising money for cancer initiatives and honouring those who have fought breast cancer — couldn’t find a way to overcome access issues at Tecumseh’s waterfront Lakewood Park.
“We had a really great time in Tecumseh but unfortunately we had to separate the teams from the water,” Noakes said.
The north part of Lakewood Park along Riverside Drive is separated from the southern portion of the park, which used to be a golf course.
Noakes said the festival had to set up across the road and that led to communication issues and a disconnect between the races and the teams.
“It segregated the teams. This is a spectator sport and the teams want to feel a part of it,” she said. “And we felt that it lost some of its glow just because of the fact that we all couldn’t be together.”
The dragon boat races moved to Tecumseh during the municipal strike in Windsor in 2009, when city parks weren’t being maintained and there was a threat of picketing during the event.
“We had to find a site relatively quickly,” Noakes said. “At that point, Tecumseh had not developed their park. It was one big piece of land, which was amazing.”
Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara said the park’s master plan has always included more “active” uses for the south side of Lakewood Park, while the waterfront area is a passive public space.
The town invested $22.5 million to acquire the land and create the waterfront park, which includes a boardwalk, gazebo, beach area and a memorial garden with a 28-foot granite dragon sculpture and a wall containing names of those who have lost their battle to cancer.
“It was very clear in the master plan that (festival) activities would take place at the south end,” McNamara said. “It was very clear that once the park was completed, tents and barbecues and all of that would be on the south side. It’s not just that they were told they couldn’t do it.”
Noakes said organizers understand that the town has invested a lot of money in the park but, in the end, “the teams want to be able to watch the races and be a part of it and (Tecumseh) did not want us on the grass.”
Windsor councillors still have to formally approve the move to Sand Point Beach this July but Noakes said she’s optimistic the festival will get the go-ahead.
“Sand Point Beach means that all of the teams, everyone … can be on the beach,” she said. “To us, that is so critical for an inclusive day. We’ve loved Sand Point Beach from the very beginning.”
Mayor Drew Dilkens said he’s delighted to have the dragon boat races back in Windsor. “We always knew at some point they’d come back and we’re happy to see them return.”
Volunteers, teams and sponsors are still needed. For further information, visit or contact Noakes at dragonboatbeth@gmail.com or at 519-817-7767.