About Us

Pan Am Dragon Boat was founded in 2010 by long time, serial dragon boat entrepreneur, Mike Kerkmann.  Mike is a Canadian and began his dragon boat career in 1996, in Toronto, as co-founder of Great White North Dragon Boat Racing.  After selling his business, Mike moved to Tampa and after a year of pondering, launch his second dragon boat business which has since grown to become the most established and highly regarded supplier of dragon boat equipment & production services in North America. Mike has been providing innovation and products to the dragon boat market for over 25 years.  Mike recognized the potential growth of the sport in the early 1990’s and it became clear to him that the sport, along with its grass roots annual festivals, could only afford to spawn and grow with the availability of short- term rentals and with professional on-water race production.

After co-founding and growing GWN Dragon Boat in Toronto for 13 years, Mike moved to Tampa Florida to produce the 2011 IDBF World Dragon Boat Championships.  Out of that venture, Pan Am Dragon Boat was born.  Today, Pan Am provides the most comprehensive array of products and services available in the industry. Pan Am is now the official licensed manufacturer of BuK dragon boats and accessories in North America.  The BuK boat is simply the best designed and highest quality boat on the planet.
Here at Pan Am, our full-time staff and front-line weekend warriors are our family. These staffers are the most talented technicians, coaches and steerspersons on the continent, and they deliver their skills with professionalism and a smile. Our top-level coaches produce the two largest dragon boat training camps in North America. In recent years, they have expanded their roles into Europe and have, once again, been selected to Team USA Head Coach positions. Pan Am is delighted to support them in these roles. We are proud of our history and excited for the future.  Join us on our journey.

The Premier Supplier of Services, Small Equipment, BuK Dragon Boats and Accessories.