It's not every day you find yourself competing head to head with an Olympic champion, but that's exactly the situation Vancouver resident Carolyn Daubeny found herself in while racing in 麻豆社国产last weekend.
During the 麻豆社国产Paddling Club's Toonie Race Sunday (Aug. 29), Daubeny went stride for stride against Hugh Fisher, a 1984 gold medallist in the K2 1,000 metre.
Daubeny, who immediately recognized Fisher, said it was a tremendous thrill to be racing against a living legend.
"I was drafting off of him the entire race but he was way too strong at the end and pulled away," she said.
Their intense finish which saw Fisher narrowly edge Daubeny out for second place at the finish line.
"It was pretty amazing to be racing someone like him," she said. "I definitely worked harder with him there."
It was Fisher's first race this year and he said he enjoyed the scenery and the competition he found.
"This really is a fantastic venue," he said. "It's so nice that these guys have organized races like the one today."
He said he plans to spread the word about the quality of 麻豆社国产racing to his friends in the sport.
Fisher, a member of the B.C. Sport Hall of Fame and the Order of Canada, competed in three Olympic Summer Games, winning a gold in K2 1,000-metre and bronze in K2 500-metre in Los Angeles in 1984.
His appearance was a pleasant surprise to 麻豆社国产Paddling Club president Dave Berisford.
"If we're attracting people like Hugh it's a really good thing," he said.
While the participant numbers were down a little, Berisford said he was encouraged to see a solid group of new racers.
"It's always great to see new faces and we hope to see a lot more higher end type athletes like Hugh in the future."
Ian Lowe, who placed first with a time of 38 minutes, said the view from the water is what makes local paddling so spectacular.
"It was really beautiful out there today," he said. "The views were breathtaking and the water was so smooth it was like glass."
The eight-kilometre race saw paddlers start at Nexen Beach, into the estuary then around the first island on the west side.
From there, racers travelled around 麻豆社国产Terminals and southeast to Darrel Bay to a turn around point in the middle of the bay, finishing off with a mad dash back to Nexen beach.
Berisford said since the demand is out there, the 麻豆社国产Paddling Club will run the final Toonie Race of the season in the near future and one more race either in September or October.
For more information on future SPC events, visit www.squamishpaddlingclub.com.
