It's hard to believe that the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival is celebrating its 10th birthday! Time truly does fly.

When the volunteer group of Operations Committee members came together to put on the first CDBF in 2001, it seemed like we were throwing a big party to celebrate the Denver area's rich and diverse Asian communities.

It was a pretty big party at the time: We expected about 7,000 people to check out our Marketplace and Performing Arts Stage and root for teams in the ancient sport of Dragon Boat Races at Sloan'sLake Park. Much to our shock, 15,000 guests enjoyed the one-day event, and most of the five (only five!) food vendors that day ran out of food before the end of the day, even after running back to their restaurants and warehouses multiple times to re-stock. Westword named CDBF "Best New Festival" in the next year's Best of Denver issue.

The next year, we had 30,000 festival guests. In 2003, when the Rocky Mountain News named us the "Best City Festival," 50,000 spectators turned out. In 2005, we expanded the festival to two full days, and for the past three years we've had over 100,000 people celebrating Asian culture and athletic competition with us.

The Dragon Boat Races have grown with the festival too. That first year, we had 16 teams. The following year, there were 32 teams. This year, we have 48 teams competing for the coveted Dragon Cup. Along the way, we've added a Youth Division, and also added Competitive Race Divisions when we purchased two Hong Kong style boats (you can read about the difference between the Hong Kong and the popular "Flag Catching" boats from Taiwan).

The Competitive races have attracted teams and paddlers from across the country, and eventually, will be an international draw for our festival. We also created the Dragonboat Racing Association of Colorado (DRACO), which keeps dragon boat racing alive year 'round for members, and even built a clever simulator that folks can practices on at the Wheat Ridge Rec Center pool!

The races make CDBF Denver's most unique summertime free family event, but we also take our mission -- to build bridges of awareness, knowledge and understanding between the diverse Asian Pacific American (APA) communities and the general public through cultural education, leadership development, and athletic competition -- very seriously.

Our Asian Marketplace has been, from the very start, a wonderful place to shop for gifts, artwork, novelties and fashion that reflect culture from across Asia and the Pacific. The Taste of Asia Food Court showcases some of the area's best Asian restaurants as well as the culinary talents of organizations and individuals who prepare a weekend's worth of dishes for your enjoyment. You won't just find typical Chinese or Japanese food either. You'll find Thai, Korean and Vietnamese cuisine, and you can sample Laotian and Filipino food at the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival. It's truly like eating your way across Asia without ever leaving Denver!

The SCFD Tier III Performing Arts Stage has also reflected our mission to showcase both traditional Asian and contemporary Asian American talent from within our communities. You'll be able to enjoy Hmong folk dances or traditional Thai dances, but you can also dance to the rock of Wendy Woo or the country-rock and blues of Dwight Mark. The festival closes each year with two very popular rgoups, the Mudra Dance Studio, which features contemporary Indian dances, and Denver Taiko, an award-winning Japanese drum ensemble that makes a thunderous sound to end the weekend (this year Denver Taiko plays at the end of both days!). We've always worked hard to showcase as many cultures as possible, so you'll learn about the Gamelan music of Bali, the traditional hula of Hawai'i, and authentic Chinese Shaolin kung fu, the most traditional of martial arts.

From the first year, we've had an area dedicated for kids called Dragonland, where volunteer organizations such as the Denver Art Museum and the Girl Scouts teach kids activities from origami to cutting ourt dragon masks, and learn about Asian culture. But we wanted to do more to educate the general public about the richness of Asian cultures -- and teach that there are many different and wonderful Asian communities even in Denver, each with its own history and heritage.

So in 2003 we created Gateway To Asia, which is just what it seems: a portal into Asian culture that offers more intimate performances (for quieter dances or musical sets than on the main stage), along with demonstrations for traditions such as Japanese flower arranging to Chinese calligraphy, or Thai fruit carving to Hawai'ian lei-making. In 2007 we added Explore Asia to Gateway, as an exhibit area to showcase local Asian communities, manned by representatives of those communities wearing traditional dress and inviting visitors to learn more about that country's heritage history, and browse through the artifacts and displays. Since then we've introduce festival-goers close-up and personal, to the cultures of the Hmong, Philippines, India, Hawai'i, Mongolia, and this year, Taiwan and South Korea.

Also in 2007, we introduced a new feature that has quickly become one of the most popular and talked-about areas of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival: The Cultural Unity Hip Hop Showcase stage. It's where you can find DJs and B-boys and girls (breakdancers) showing off incredible moves all weekend, as well as spoken word artists and martial arts. If you've never made the connection between hip hop culkture and Asians, you must not see the hugely popular MTV show, "America's Best Dance Crew," which always features many groups that are made up of all or mostly Asian American dancers. Hip Hop is a cross-cultural phenomenon, which is why it's so important for CDBF to include it as a prominent part of our annual event.

This year we're also introducing a new area in Gateway, Find Zen in 2010, where you can enjoy free interactive demonstrations about the many ways that ASian cultures have to deal with the stress of modern life, from feng shui and qi gong to meditation and yoga.

But amidst all this education you're soaking in at the festival, we want you to first and foremost, have FUN, and help celebrate our 10th birthday with us! It's been a terrific decade, and look forward to many more yuears of sharing our Asian and Asian American communities' cultures with all of Colorado!

MEMORIES OF THE FESTIVAL: HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE

Mary Lee Chin, who served on the Operations Committe for 8 years, recalls that after the 2003 festival, she received a beautiful flower arrangement from a woman she'd met at the event, Joanne, who was a member of AARP, an organization in the Marketplace. "She was an elderly lady who found it difficult to park," she says. "But a concerted effort at the last minute with festival volunteers allowed us to give her a parking space in the Boat House, golf cart transportation and permission to rest in the volunteer tent. The small individual attention like this helped as much as the successful overall big 50,000 festival to generate good will in the community."

Derek Herman, the current Race Chair, remembers when he was a fledgling volunteer helping to manage the races in 2003. "I walked over to the race area to get a bottle of water. Upon returning there was a very large guy hanging out in the on-deck tent. He did not have on a wrist-band, so I confronted him."

Here's how the conversation went:

Derek- "Excuse me, but you cannot be in this area."

Guy- "Yes I can."

Derek- "No, this area is for teams only."

Guy (pointing behind me)- "I'm security for the mayor."

Derek (turning around and seeing Mayor Hickenlooper)- "Oops. OK, I guess I'll let you stay. But just this once."

Guy- "Maybe you should have my job."

Katy Meng, a volunteer for several years, told these stories:

"A lady came to Dragonland and told one of the Chinese school teachers that she is a late stage breast cancer patient and she is scheduled to have her surgery on Monday. Since she did not know whether she will come out of the surgery okay, she decided to do something to cheer herself up. That was why she was at the CDBF. She asked the teacher to write something in Chinese to wish her good luck. So the teacher wrote something for her and explained to her what they meant. The lady was so happy she was in tears when she left."

Katy also saw a severely burned Chinese girl adopted by a white couple, and was taken aback by the severeness of burn marks on her face, as well as her arms. "The burn was so severe she did not have any fingers on her hands. However, this girl did not scare the young volunteer who was chosen to do the face painting for her. He calmly asked her whether she wanted to paint on her face or her hand. And he did a great job for her. I am soooooooooo proud that our kids are so understandable and kind."

Erin Yoshimura, now the Executive Director for CDBF, volunteered from 2001-2007 as Performing Arts Chair. "Namita Nariani of Mudra Dance Studio told me after her performance that a woman in a wheelchair motioned that she wanted to talk to her. She told Namita that she was diagnosed with breast cancer and while she was trying to fight it, the doctors also found a tumor in her hip area. She's been very depressed for awhile and told Namita that her performance was the only one that really uplifted her spirits and put a smile on her face. The woman told Namita all this with tears running down her face."

Howie Solow, founder of the Shaolin Hung Mei Kung Fu Academy and one of the founders of the CDBF along with Ding Wen Hsu (CDBF Board Chair) and John Chin (former Board Chair) remembers the birth of the festival:

"It’s hard to believe that we are about to celebrate the 10th Colorado Dragon Boat Festival. I remember first discussing such a festival with John Chin in 1995. John and I were on the Board of OCA-Denver and I had recently returned from participating in the New York Dragon Boat races. In 1997/98, one of the early organizers of the American Dragon Boat Association, came into town and contacted OCA. We began planning a local event and contacted the ADBA to line up the boats. While those plans never materialized, discussions and planning continued.

"Then, in 1999, Ding Wen Hsu, John and I got together. Ding had been pursuing her own path concerning a Dragon Boat Festival. Together, we reached the critical mass necessary to get the thing off the ground.

"In the original plan, we were going to hold a small, first festival at Fillmore Plaza in Cherry Creek. We would bring in one boat to display and attempt to raise awareness for Dragon Boat racing. The full-blown festival would take place the following year. Shortly, we decided to just “go for it.” Armed with only a concept and a video of other festivals, we began assembling the most wonderful group people for the first Operations Committee and knocking on doors soliciting the participation of greater metro area, APA organizations. The rest is now history!!"

John Chin, another of the original founders of CDBF, adds: "I think that one of the most important things that Ding, Howie and I did as we started talking about the festival was, very early on, in fact I think it was at our first meeting, agree that the festival needed to be inclusive and pan-Asian. While dragon boating racing – called long boat racing in some southeast Asian countries – was gaining popularity, dragon boat racing had its roots in Chinese history and all of us were at the time affiliated with Chinese organizations. However, all three of us had experience with the growing pan-Asian feeling in Denver and wanted the festival to be a celebration of all things Asian.

"I think that the growth and success of the festival is an affirmation of the importance of its vision. Beginning with the small group of the initial operations committee to the organization that is the festival today, what has continued to sustain the CDBF is a collective vision of what the festival is intended to be. And the articulated values of the festival underscore that vision. That vision, and the underlying values, promote the passion, commitment and drive that continue to nurture and foster the festival."

Tom Ging, race coordinator from 2003-2007 and now a dragon boat racing coach for DRACO and in charge of Race Logistics during the festival, has these memories:

"It is surprising how popular dragon boat racing became in the metro area—starting with 16 teams in 2001, doubling in 2002, 48 teams (including a community pickup team) in 2003, introduction of the youth racing division in 2004, culminating in 2006 with 48 adult and eight youth teams. Fifty-six teams is the maximum number that could race in one day.

"When I got out of administration and back into a boat, I came to understand why dragon boat racing is so popular. The motto of the American Dragon Boat Association is "Friendship Through Paddling." I am amazed that I met a person living Seattle, mentioned dragon boats, and found out we have multiple mutual acquaintances in Washington D.C.! When I discussed dragon boating with the Washington D.C. racers, we discovered a mutual acquaintance who lives in Pittsburgh, visits his sister in Denver, and raced a couple of years with our community pickup team, Sync Or Swim.

"My favorite race story of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival occurred in the first year, 2001. There were sixteen teams in the races. To my knowledge, no one had been in a dragon boat prior to this time.

"In fact, probably the majority of the racers didn't know dragon boats existed. But, this being Colorado, most every one had at least been on the water, in a canoe, kayak, or raft.

"Everyone except members of the Colorado Mongolian Project. Members of this team are native Mongolians, from a landlocked country. Many had never set foot in a boat before the dragon boat practice on Saturday, the day before the races.

"As if this wasn't large enough of a handicap, most of the racers didn't speak or understand English! During the practice, instructions from the American Dragon Boat Association trainers to the racers had to be translated by a Mongolian interpreter.

"The practice went well enough, and the Mongolians overcame their fears and apprehensions. In fact, the team raced so well that they reached the semi-finals, competing against the Department of Safety, a team comprised of Denver police, fire fighters, and sheriff deputies.

"The race ended in a tie! The Safety team wanted to race the Mongolians again. Doing so, however, would put the winner of the tie-breaking race at a disadvantage for the finals, because they would have run one more race than the other semi-finalist team.

"It was decided that the tie would be broken by a coin toss. The Safety team captain, Captain Brian Gallagher, let the Mongolian team captain call the toss. The Race Director tossed the coin into the air and it landed on the floor of the stage, without the Mongolian captain calling heads or tails. It turns out he was not familiar with the practice of tossing a coin to decide an outcome. The interpreter explained the process to the Mongolian captain.

" The coin was tossed again, and the Mongolians won the tie-breaker! Members of the Safety team were unhappy about the outcome, but the esteem of Captain Gallagher in the eyes of the Asian community increased immensely because of his graciousness and sportsmanship.

"The Mongolian team went on to finished first in the final race and won the First Annual Colorado Dragon Boat Traveling Trophy."

And, here are some memories from Karen Nakandakare, who has been an Opertions Committee member for 10 stright years, handling traffic, public safety and community relations:

"Ten years ago, I stood on a hill overlooking Sloan’s Lake around 9 p.m. The sun was going down and the noise level had subsided considerably. I had been at this lake since 5 a.m. that same morning as a volunteer for the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival. For at least nine months prior, I learned about festival logistics by obtaining the park permit, water rescue personnel, off-duty personnel, volunteers, off-site parking and shuttle service, along with securing volunteers for the park beautification program (also known as trash pick-up). The park was cleaner than before we started the event and had 15,000 festival attendees.

"As I was standing there watching the sun go down, I looked over a quiet, clean park—amazed at what had been accomplished by all the volunteers, including our volunteer operating committee.

"Then I heard a voice, not sure if he was speaking to me or not . . . 'I’m proud to be Asian.'

"I thought to myself and said back, 'Me, too.' I have never forgotten that moment. Who would have thought a festival could have that kind of impact?

"In addition to this memory, working on the festival has been all about relationships. In the early volunteer years, I had multiple responsibilities ranging from park permit to “park beautification”. I didn’t have vast experience or knowledge in either. My focus however became public safety/community relations.

"Because of the relationships I’ve established, I’ve had great mentors who walked me through and provided me valuable guidance especially during the challenging times.

"It’s been the neighbors who invited me into their homes to chat, DPD District 1 Commanders who continue to meet with me annually to discuss aspects of the festival and from day one invited me to community meetings. All of this topped off with an effective off-duty supervisor, Sgt. Dino Gavito, a man of few words and a great strategic thinker.

"The success of the public safety/community relations program has been because of the people who came to the table to contribute, to problem solve and listen. The public safety team now consists of Harvey Wong and Bing Walker totaling over 20+ years of CDBF experience in racing, volunteers, Gateway to Asia and public safety."