IN a bid to drive interest in river paddling a group of fathers have been the talk of the town as the Dusi Canoe Marathon gets underway this morning.

The group of 18 paddlers (nine boats), all fathers from Durban Preparatory High School (DPHS), known as the Rapid Rookies, has not only drawn the interest of Dusi organisers but also a Highway businessman.

Each of the seven boats lining up at the start line sees one experienced paddler take a novice or rookie down the river for the first time. One of those experienced paddlers is Durban North resident Duane Taylor, who will paddle with James Schorn.

Also read: Debutant joins experienced hand ahead of Dusi Canoe Marathon

This will be Taylor’s 22nd Dusi.

“James approached me last year to paddle the Dusi, I’ve done a few so he was keen to jump in with me and get it done with someone who’s been down with the river. We were having coffee one morning and we spoke among ourselves and soon the idea spread to get the other fathers involved. We started out with about 24 paddlers but sadly injuries brought it down to around 18 paddlers. I think what is great is that everyone involved, especially the rookies, are keen to give the race a crack. Our hope is this movement grows,” he said.

Organisers of the Dusi have given the Rapid Rookies their own batch to race in, while a local businessman has stepped in to sweeten the deal for the winning crew, offering two outdoor cookers as prizes.

Taylor added there is a handicap system in place, which levels the playing field out a little bit. Another member of the Rapid Rookies is former Sharks winger Riaan Swanepoel, who will attempt his first.

Also read: Father and daughter ready to tackle Dusi together

“I think Duane captured it perfectly. Our hope is to grow it among the fathers but also generate interest in our sons, hopefully in six or seven years they will be keen to give the Dusi a crack. There’s been great banter between the crews and I think we are all ready for what lies ahead. We’ve used the weekly dice (race) along the uMngeni River from the Kingfisher Canoe Club as extra preparations as well as the pre-Dusi races,” Swanepoel said.

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