For Catch-22 assistant coach Britten Witherspoon, dragon boating has become much more than a competitive sport.
It has helped transform her life after breast cancer while providing a community of survivors who support one another long after treatment ends.
Witherspoon, a member of the Vancouver-based Catch-22 dragon boat team, shared her experience during the Paddle for Life dragon boat festival, where breast cancer survivor teams gather to compete, celebrate survivorship and raise awareness about the disease that takes the lives of 42,140 women per year, according to the American Cancer Society.
"I was diagnosed with stage 3 triple negative breast cancer in 2018 and underwent months of chemotherapy and had several surgeries, and I had been pretty active beforehand but I was having a really hard time finding ways to be active after I was done with treatment," Witherspoon said. "Honestly, I didn't think I would like dragon boating but I saw a Zoom interview with Laura, our head coach, and she was talking about dragon boating. I thought I would give it a try, and the first time I went out on the boat, I was immediately in love and I haven't stopped doing it since then."
Because the COVID-19 pandemic limited opportunities to practice on the water, Witherspoon said she first learned paddling techniques in an unconventional setting.
"I would go up to the coach's house and she had a trough in her backyard and she would teach me how to do the strokes," she said. "So when I finally got out on a boat, I was in love."
Witherspoon said one of the greatest rewards has been joining a team of women who understand what cancer survivors endure.
"It is amazing to be part of a group of women whose stories are all different. We've all been through really horrific things done to our bodies, but to have this strength that we all have, like this camaraderie and the strength and knowing that we're not defined by this diagnosis, that we can come out of it and find a way to be athletes, is amazing," she said. "I think it's been great for my kids to see me come out of something where I was so very sick and to now be on the coaching team and paddling on multiple boats. It's really empowering."
The annual Paddle for Life event is especially meaningful because it gives local teams an opportunity to race close to home.
The Catch-22 Ospreys brought home the gold in the breast cancer paddlers division at this year's Paddle for Life in Ridgefield on Saturday, Aug. 1.
"I just love that this is a local race and so we get to see the local teams,” Witherspoon said. “And this is sort of like our home team race, so we have a large number of boats here from our crew and it's just very celebratory and fun.”
She encourages anyone looking for an active, welcoming community to give dragon boating a chance.
"I tell everybody to try it. If you like to be active and you like the water, then I think you'll love it," Witherspoon said. "It has 100 percent changed my life, and I now have this sort of extended family. There's this built-in support group and friendships, and we all hold each other up … I feel like it's just a gift every time I get to do it."
Fellow Catch-22 paddler and breast cancer survivor Tamara Greenwell said the team's identity extends well beyond its members' shared diagnosis.
"When we get in the boat and paddle together, we're athletes and we're competing to win, not just because we had cancer, but because we're athletes who are doing the work on the water for our team and for each other," Greenwell said. "There are several women on our team whose cancers come back … Having cancer come back is everyone's worst nightmare.”
Greenwell added that having a crew who shows up at one's doorstep with soup or sends flowers and have each other's back whether in a boat or at the hospital is life-changing.
Witherspoon also emphasized the importance of early detection and surrounding yourself with people who understand the challenges of cancer.
"Find your support group because that is who's going to get you through treatment and beyond, especially people that have been through it and know what it feels like," she said.
