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Invictus Paddling Club - Tampa Dragon Boat & SUP Club cover photo

Invictus Paddling Club - Tampa Dragon Boat & SUP Club

4.9•855 ratings

39 members · Public group

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What we’re about

Welcome to the Invictus Paddling Club, a community dedicated to the excitement of highly competitive dragon boat and Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) racing. Our team provides all necessary equipment, including dragon boat paddles and life jackets, for those eager to learn these thrilling sports.
We hold dragon boat practice twice a week at Rick's on the River in Tampa—Wednesdays at 6:30 PM and Saturday mornings at 8:30 AM. Dragon boating is not just a sport; it's a vibrant, competitive social experience that fosters new friendships and the opportunity to win medals at races.
This is a membership-based non-profit club, with a monthly fee of $20. Membership contributions support the costs of boat storage, insurance, and maintenance for our dragon boat and SUP fleet.
Since our founding in 2014, we have participated in various dragon boat and SUP races annually, bringing a strong sense of community to the sport. Our mission is to cultivate a supportive community culture through teaching and engaging in dragon boat and SUP racing, alongside volunteering for numerous outreach projects.
The team is led by Captain Jim Ellis, who brings 18 years of dragon boat racing experience and a passion for paddling and fitness. He is dedicated to sharing this enthusiasm with new members interested in joining our team.
In addition to our racing activities, Invictus actively engages in various environmental and community events throughout the year, including:

Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful.org - Member of the Board of Trustees
**Paddle4Autism.org** – Volunteering to help teach SUP to children with autism
KnottyGirl.org Partnership – Campaigns for Breast Cancer Awareness in October
Tropical Nights – A fundraiser for Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful
Trashy Flashy Fashion Show – Presented by Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful

To learn more about our activities and the sport, visit us at [www.InvictusPaddlingClub.com](http://www.invictuspaddlingclub.com). We welcome new members who want to try their hand at these thrilling sports or become involved in our community and environmental projects.

Upcoming events

106

Sat, Nov 1 · 8:00 AM EDT
2025 Lake Hernando Dragon Boat Festival - $77
Lake Hernando Park, 3699 E. Orange Drive, Hernando, FL, US
Florida’s largest dragon boat festival! The 2024 event brought out 80 teams participating in fun and competitive races, but also 50 Arts and Crafts vendors, 15 food vendors, live music, games for the kids and much more. This festival is focused on community involvement and charitable giving. This event is hosted by the Citrus County Education Foundation, with all of the event proceeds going to the work they do for education in Citrus County. Citrus County Education Foundation Created in 1988, the Citrus County Education Foundation is the only 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation whose sole mission is to support public education, prekindergarten through twelfth grade, in Citrus County.

![img](https://www.panamdragonboat.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/HER_CCEF-Impact3_blue-791x1024.png)

Mission Statement: To support our Citrus County public schools in order to enhance learning and improve personal development for present and future generations.
Programs you will help fund:
Foundation for Success Mini Grants: Classroom mini-grants that enhance curriculum and instructional activities, with a focus on STEM/Literacy and Health & Wellness. First Library: “Read-ins” with preK and kindergarten classrooms throughout the school year, allowing each student to build their own “first library” with 3 (K) or 6 (preK) books given out annually.
Recognition for Students & Staff: Annual Galaxy of Stars event, honoring teachers and school-related employees of the year. Also, student recognition ceremonies, scholarships for aspiring teachers and high school seniors, and other district events including teacher Digital Learning Day.
Supplemental Funding: Support for a myriad of programs based on annual funding needs.

![img](https://www.panamdragonboat.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Hernando-2019-5-boats-on-water-cropped.jpeg)

![img](https://www.panamdragonboat.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/LCKC-Hernando-2019.jpg)

![img](https://www.panamdragonboat.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/LH-2019-Dragon-Dance-1024x741.jpg)

### ENTRY FEES

$990 - All 20-Paddler Club/Community Teams
$770 - Club/Community 10-Paddler 1st Entry
$660 - Club/Community 10-Paddler 2nd Entry
$550 - Club/Community 10-Paddler 3rd Entry

### RACE COURSE

300m

### RACE FORMAT

Each team will receive 3 races for both 10-paddler and 20-paddler entries.

### RACE SITE

Lake Hernando County Park
3699 E. Orange Drive
Hernando, FL
8 attendees
Wed, Nov 5 · 6:30 PM EST
Dragon Boat Practice
Rick's On the River, 2305 N Willow Ave, Tampa, FL, US
Invictus Dragon Boat Club Racer's Practice:

http://photos3.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/8/6/8/5/600_442594437.jpeg

For anyone new to the sport, I would recommend reviewing the attached video. This is great to show some quick technique for the proper dragon boat stroke, you can also find many other videos on YouTube.com.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IL8bGKKICc

This is a group for anyone that is interested in recreational dragon boat or SUP racing. All fitness levels are welcome, training is provided. The team has dragon boat practice twice a week (Wed 6:30 pm and Saturday 8:30 am) at Rick's on the River in Tampa. The strive to participate in charity benefit races throughout the Florida area. The team is also partnered with Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful (KeepTampaBayBeautiful.org). We participate in a few different events with KTBB yearly, are members of their Ambassadors Program. Invictus is also the 1st Team/Organization in Tampa to adopt a part of the Hillsborough Shoreline for quarterly clean ups. The shoreline clean ups consist of picking up litter on foot from the North Bridge to Columbus Bridge on foot, along as a fleet of watercraft to collect bottles/debris floating in the River. Check out www.InvictusPaddlingClub.com. The team is continually growing and welcome new members that want to try out the sport for the first time, or just get involved with out environmental projects as well. Everyone is allowed 2 free practices before deciding to join. If you decide to join the team, there is a $20/month membership fee. This is a non-profit team and those fee's help pay for the monthly boat storage at Rick's on the River, Club dragon boat paddles, life jackets, and insurance.
1 attendee
Sat, Nov 8 · 8:30 AM EST
Dragon Boat Practice
Rick's On the River, 2305 N Willow Ave, Tampa, FL, US
Invictus Dragon Boat Club Racer's Practice:

http://photos3.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/8/6/8/5/600_442594437.jpeg

For anyone new to the sport, I would recommend reviewing the attached video. This is great to show some quick technique for the proper dragon boat stroke, you can also find many other videos on YouTube.com.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IL8bGKKICc

This is a group for anyone that is interested in recreational dragon boat or SUP racing. All fitness levels are welcome, training is provided. The team has dragon boat practice twice a week (Wednesday's @ 6:30 pm and Saturday's @ 8:30 am) at Rick's on the River in Tampa. The strive to participate in charity benefit races throughout the Florida area. The team is also partnered with Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful (KeepTampaBayBeautiful.org). We participate in a few different events with KTBB yearly, are members of their Ambassadors Program. Invictus is also the 1st Team/Organization in Tampa to adopt a part of the Hillsborough Shoreline for quarterly clean ups. The shoreline clean ups consist of picking up litter on foot from the North Bridge to Columbus Bridge on foot, along as a fleet of watercraft to collect bottles/debris floating in the River. Check out www.InvictusPaddlingClub.com. The team is continually growing and welcome new members that want to try out the sport for the first time, or just get involved with out environmental projects as well. Everyone is allowed 2 free practices before deciding to join. If you decide to join the team, there is a $20/month membership fee. This is a non-profit team and those fee's help pay for the monthly boat storage at Rick's on the River, Club dragon boat paddles, life jackets, and insurance.

Please fill out this waiver before attending practice:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeSnC011c19tkrL3vM5CL4hrpnGxpN372ilHWQ_vDpT4orF5A/viewform
2 attendees
Wed, Nov 12 · 6:30 PM EST
Dragon Boat Practice
Rick's On the River, 2305 N Willow Ave, Tampa, FL, US
Invictus Dragon Boat Club Racer's Practice:

http://photos3.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/8/6/8/5/600_442594437.jpeg

For anyone new to the sport, I would recommend reviewing the attached video. This is great to show some quick technique for the proper dragon boat stroke, you can also find many other videos on YouTube.com.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-IL8bGKKICc

This is a group for anyone that is interested in recreational dragon boat or SUP racing. All fitness levels are welcome, training is provided. The team has dragon boat practice twice a week (Wed 6:30 pm and Saturday 8:30 am) at Rick's on the River in Tampa. The strive to participate in charity benefit races throughout the Florida area. The team is also partnered with Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful (KeepTampaBayBeautiful.org). We participate in a few different events with KTBB yearly, are members of their Ambassadors Program. Invictus is also the 1st Team/Organization in Tampa to adopt a part of the Hillsborough Shoreline for quarterly clean ups. The shoreline clean ups consist of picking up litter on foot from the North Bridge to Columbus Bridge on foot, along as a fleet of watercraft to collect bottles/debris floating in the River. Check out www.InvictusPaddlingClub.com. The team is continually growing and welcome new members that want to try out the sport for the first time, or just get involved with out environmental projects as well. Everyone is allowed 2 free practices before deciding to join. If you decide to join the team, there is a $20/month membership fee. This is a non-profit team and those fee's help pay for the monthly boat storage at Rick's on the River, Club dragon boat paddles, life jackets, and insurance.
2 attendees

Past events

1105

Organizers

Jim Ellis and 1 other

Members

39

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