2015 ICF World Championships Slalom
 
1
2
3
K1M
CZ J. PRSKAVEC
PL M. POLACZYK
US M. SMOLEN
K1W
CZ K. KUDEJOVA
DE R. FUNK
DE M. PFEIFER
C1M
GB D. FLORENCE
SI B. SAVSEK
GB R. WESTLEY
C1W
AU J. FOX
CZ K. HOSKOVA
ES N. VILARRUBLA
C2
DE ANTON/BENZIEN
FR PICCO/BISO
FR KLAUSS/PECHE

Marathon

Doctor Ian Player, the founder of the Dusi Canoe Marathon, passed away

Dr Ian Player describes the very first Dusi in 1951.

Brad Morgan - Ian Player, the founder of the iconic Dusi Canoe Marathon, passed away on the weekend, just days before the Commemorative Dusi Canvas Journey, a four-day trip from Alexander Park in Pietermaritzburg to Durban's Blue Lagoon, begins. The event, which starts on Thursday, features a select group of invited paddlers and takes place in craft similar to those used in the first Dusi Canoe Marathon in 1951.

The inaugural Canvas Dusi was held in the 50th year of the Dusi. Now into its thirteenth edition, it celebrates the traditions of the race, including the boats and the clothing worn in the middle of the previous century.

In December 1951 the Dusi Canoe Marathon was first discussed at a meeting of five men, which included Ian Player. The Natal Canoe Club was also founded that day and the minutes of that meeting note: "The objects of the club would be to foster the sport of canoeing, promote self-teaching in the art of bush craft, map reading and compass reading and veld lore. Also to encourage young Natalians to gain knowledge about the outbacks of their province, by canoeing down rivers and meeting the native peoples in their natural habitat.

"Mr Player explained that by doing this they would do South Africa a service; because in the event of a war all their knowledge would be put to immediate and useful purposes." Those words were particularly relevant given that the Second World War had ended only six years previously.

canoe kayak marathon dusi south africa founder ian player founder sportscene in memoriamOnly doubles were allowed in the first Dusi and they were solely used in the first year of the Canvas Dusi, but the challenges of yesteryear quickly came to the fore and ever since the commemorative journey has featured singles only.

"They are very buoyant," Anton Venter, who builds the boats, explained recently at Natal Canoe Club's weekly Dice. "They are very stable. If you hit rocks from the front, it is no problem. When you hit them from the side, it breaks."

The boats weigh about 22 kilograms when dry, but that could increase to about 30 kilograms during the race. They are also a lot wider than today's kayaks, so harnesses are used when portaging, just as it was in the past.

"You get an idea of what the guys had to do in the old days. We've got it very easy now," Venter reckoned.

Sticking to the traditional theme, the participants in the event dress in khakis and bush hats, some of which include a leopard skin band which harks back to the first Dusi when Ernie Pearce cut up a leopard skin carpet at home and added it to his hat.

"Once you have done one of these trips, you get your leopard band on your second trip. Then you are one of the 'manne'," Venter said.

Smiling, he recalled how race founder Ian Player nearly made an unwanted mark on the very first Commemorative Dusi. "Ian Player came to see us off the first year. Nearly shot us! The shotgun was not on safety and he put it down and was fiddling with it [and it went off]. I was straight in line with him and said 'I'm getting out of here'. Fortunately, Doug [Burden] ran and grabbed the shotgun from him, put it on safety and said 'you shoot up there' [pointing at the sky]."

Expounding on those who take part in the Commemorative Dusi and continue Player's legacy, he added: "We are a helluva nice crowd. We don't take 'laaities'. We look for the more experienced paddler. That is very important. We have a super crowd. The oldest guy is 75.

canoe kayak marathon dusi south africa founder ian player founder sportscene in memoriam"It's not a race. It's just a trip and it's nice for us guys who still do the Dusi. We can see every rapid, see what is going on and what has changed. It's four days of hard work, but it's super fun.

"You get an idea of what the guys had to do in the old days. We've got it very easy now."

The lessons about conservation taught by Doctor Ian Player continue in the Valley today. He has passed the torch on to younger generations and among their number is Doug Burden, a Canvas Dusi regular and the General Manager of the Duzi Umngeni Conservation Trust (Duct).

Venter explained the role Burden plays, saying: "He takes note of all the illegal sand mining and reports it. We look at what is being dumped into the river and take record of that, we check out for any damage to the river, so there is a benefit to us doing this trip.

"Going down, it is quiet. We see a lot of animals and a lot of snakes. It is nice to get out there."

Doctor Player loved the Dusi and the wildlife and flora along its route. It's a love that has been passed on to many others.

Peter Peacock, a five-time winner of the great marathon with the late great Graeme Pope-Ellis, is another regular participant in the Commemorative Dusi and said he appreciates the opportunity to take his time on the paddle down to Durban.

"It's great fun. You have time to look at the birds and take it easy," said Peacock, who first contested the Dusi in 1967. "It has changed a lot, but it is a special place for me," he said of the Valley.

"The Canvas Dusi is commemorative of the original Dusi craft and reminds us of the roots of the race and its history and traditions, which are so important, and which we try, despite the challenges of modern day life, to uphold," Natal Canoe Club General Manager Brett Austen Smith said.

"Doctor Player nearly abandoned the inaugural trip down the uMsunduzi and Mngeni rivers. If he had, we may never have enjoyed the unbelievable experience of The Dusi Canoe Marathon. The Dusi is now an integral part of KwaZulu Natal heritage and folklore. Doctor Player will never be forgotten by the people who do the Dusi."

Website: http://ianplayer.com