Festival just a day away

The Montana Dragon Boat Festival hits the water Saturday and Sunday at Flathead Lake Lodge on the east shore of Flathead Lake near Bigfork.

Two days of racing will include 93 teams from Kalispell and across Montana in addition to Alberta, British Columbia, Wisconsin, Oregon, Washington and California.

All event parking is at the corner of Montana 35 and Montana 82 near Bigfork. People will be shuttled from there to the race site.

Parking costs $10 per vehicle (cash only) good for Saturday and Sunday and includes free shuttle rides to Flathead Lake Lodge. Shuttles will run all day Saturday and Sunday beginning at 6 a.m.

Admission is free to the festival.

Races will go from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and start at 9 a.m. Sunday. Championship races begin at 1:30 p.m. Sunday with the awards ceremony at 3:30 p.m.

The festival features local food, beverages and live music, vendors selling Montana-made products and children’s activities including a fishing pond.

Boats will race in recreation, competitive, Breast Cancer Survivor and women’s divisions.

Activities on Saturday will be capped by the Dragon Bash starting at 6 p.m. at the Red Lion Hotel Kalispell. This event features free beverage sampling, dinner and live music.

The Dragon Bash costs $25. Tickets are available online at http://montana.racedragonboats.com.

The festival is sponsored by the Flathead Community Foundation and produced by the Kalispell Convention and Visitor Bureau.

For more information on the festival, go to montana.racedragonboats.com or call (888) 888-2308 or 758-2820.