ThePADDLER 102
The World Cup in Milano , racing with Extreme Equipment made helmet , life jacket , paddle and boat
house in Weenen in Natal that was the next town over from Escort – the primary training ground for South Africa ’ s small slalom community . SA Canoeing had also hired the services of 1972 Olympic Silver Medalist Norbert Sattler to train us , and so I was set .
I had , however , brought the same problem with me from the Nantahala . Not having a car , and living 30km from the training site , each morning , I had to hitchhike to Escort , walk a few km to the river , train , sleep under the trees in the midday sun , do the afternoon training session , and then hitchhike home .
As I ’ d stand on the side of the road , I ’ d remember the words from Carli Lloyd when she said , “ If you have a dream , it ’ s definitely achievable through hard work , dedication and sacrifice of everything .” I ’ d remind myself of this every frustrating morning and every hungry lunch .
EXTREME EQUIPMENT
Wayne had a budding company , Extreme Equipment , that was starting to produce hard-to-get paddling gear in South Africa , and I brought with me my expertise and knowledge of what was being made in the USA and Europe . We ’ d work evenings on designs and ideas , and in the day , while I was off training , he ’ d sew the gear for sale , and I ’ d make a small amount of the money from the sales so I could begin to eat regularly .
Norbert was a godsend . He encouraged me incessantly . “ You are as good as any paddler in the
world ", he ’ d tell me . “ You need to get fitter and stronger to maintain your speed for all 25 gates .” We ’ d do extra sessions when the other paddlers had left , and he ’ d drive me home after some workouts to lift weights in Weenen . I got stronger . I got fitter . I got faster and more consistent .
Meanwhile , the Austrian team was in South Africa training for the winter . Their training program was paid for by their federation and sponsors like Red Bull . We got to train with them as Norbert knew them well , and this was motivating as I progressively closed the speed gap .
We should never forget where we were : civil war-torn South Africa . Weenen is in the heart of Zululand , and on top of the war against the oppressive white