Hello friends,

Only 6 more days and I’m taking off to Beijing! It’s getting more real everyday and I’m really pumped for the upcoming weeks. I have been feeling very good on the water lately and it’s putting a big smile on my face. The other day I found “The Olympics the history from 1896 to 1976” in the Russell’s downstairs bathroom. I started going through it and I realized how lucky I was to take part of the biggest sporting event in the World. There is something so pure in the spirit of the Games that fills me with pride. My country chose me as their best hope to compete against the World. Since I have been racing for Canada, I have never truly realized what it meant.
As a paddler, my goal is to produce my best race ever and for the first time in my career, so many people have told me how proud they were. Quite frankly, I am just a guy who’s passion is to go fast. I have learned how to do so with a paddle in my hand and I’m super happy that people take pride in that. Thank you for your support and I will keep doing what I love most for as long as it’s possible.

Monday night was the Banook send off for Andrew and I. Once again I sincerely enjoyed shaking hands and sharing paddling stories with old friends and supporters. The presence of Scott Dickey, member of 2001 Jr. World’s canoe team was very appreciated. I forgot to ask him but Facebook recently told me he is engaged. Congratulations to you Emily and Scotty!
I want to thank the Banook Canoe Club for holding the event and for giving me and Andrew this very nice banners full of nice words. I am very honoured and I greatly appreciate the gesture.
Thanks also to Tamas Sr. for coaching us down here, and to Richie, Benny and the girls K-2 for training with us. I am leaving beautiful Nova Scotia on Saturday to go spend some quality days with my family in Trois-Rivières. Then Monday we’re going to Toronto for the official Mazda team send off and Tuesday we fly to Beijing. Our flight is going over the Artic circle, I hope for a clear sky so I can use my super duper digital camera once again. Until next time, keep your top arms straight and thanks for reading.



Chers amis,

Plus que 6 jours avant mon grand départ pour la Chine! L’excitation devient de plus en plus grande et je commence à ressentir des papillons dans le ventre. L’entraînement sur l’eau va de mieux en mieux et ça me rend encore plus de bonne humeur. L’autre jour, j’ai trouvé le livre « Les Olympiques de 1896 à 1976 » sur la table de chevet de la salle de bain des Russell. Plus je feuilletais les pages, plus je réalisais la chance que j’ai d’aller aux Jeux Olympiques. Depuis que je suis tout petit, je rêve d’y prendre part et je réalise maintenant que ça va vraiment arriver. Mon pays m’a choisi, je suis leur meilleur chance contre les autres pays et ça me rend très fier. Depuis que je course pour le Canada, c’est la première fois que je réalise ce que ça veut vraiment dire.

En tant que rameur, mon objectif est de produire ma meilleure course à vie lors du jour J. Que les gens autour de moi éprouvent une fierté parce que je donne mon maximum sur l’eau me donne du courage. Au fond, je suis seulement un gars qui aime la vitesse. J’ai appris à aller vite avec une rame dans les mains et je suis très heureux que ça donne un sens à ma vie. Merci beaucoup pour vos messages d’encouragement et soyez sûr que je vais continuer aussi longtemps que je peux.

Lundi soir, le club Banook tenait une réception en notre honneur. Une cinquantaine de personnes se sont déplacés pour venir dire bonne chance à Andrew et à moi. J’ai beaucoup apprécié serrer la main de rameurs et bénévoles qui de près ou de loin jouent un rôle primordiale dans la vie du club de Banook. Ils ont même donné à chacun de nous une grande bannière avec tous leurs mots d’encouragement. Ce cadeau m’a vraiment touché et soyez sûrs qu’elle trouvera une place de choix dans ma nouvelle demeure.
Scott Dickey mon équipier lors des championnats mondiaux junior en 2001 était présent pour l’occasion, ça m’a fait plaisir de le revoir en aussi bonne forme.

Je voudrais dire merci à Tamas Sr. pour être venu nous aider ici à Dartmouth, merci aussi à Richard Dalton, Ben Russell et les filles k-2 pour s’entraîner avec nous cette semaine. Je prends donc l’avion ce samedi pour un court séjour à la maison le temps d’un bon souper de famille puis je m’envole pour Toronto lundi prochain. L’équipe olympique sera reçue pour un dernier souper offert gracieusement par Mazda Canada puis nous partirons pour la Chine mardi. Le vol sera intéressant puisque nous survolerons le cercle polaire arctique. J’espère que le ciel sera dégagé pour être en mesure de prendre des photos avec mon super appareil numérique! D’ici là, gardez votre bras d’en haut bien droit et à la prochaine.

Bonjour à tous,

Je suis présentement en Nouvelle-Écosse dans la très confortable résidence des Russell pour notre dernier camp d’entraînement avant les Jeux. Ça fait du bien d’habiter dans une maison familiale et de manger des repas cuisinés sur le BBQ, il n’y a rien de mieux pour le moral. Après Ottawa, Andrew et moi avons passé quelques jours chez mes parents à Trois-Rivières et j’ai pu lui montrer mon club de canoë kayak. Même si mes séjours dans ma ville sont souvent courts, j’apprécie beaucoup revenir chez nous et me tenir dans les endroits où tout a commencé pour moi. J’ai ensuite pris ma chaise de camping pour aller voir les essais nationaux à Montréal. Andrew et moi n’avions pas besoin de courser puisque nous sommes déjà qualifiés sur l’équipe Olympique. J’étais donc ravi de pouvoir suivre les courses et de chausser les patins à roulettes de mon père.

Chaque fois que je regarde une course, que ce soit à la télé ou en vrai, j’essaie toujours de m’imaginer entrain de la faire. Je tente de comprendre ce qui fonctionne pour les gagnants et ce qui pourrait aller mieux chez les poursuivants. Tom Hall et Mark Oldershaw ont de très grandes qualités physiques, mais le secret de leur réussite est dans leur technique. Leur mouvement de hanche est parfaitement synchronisé avec leur mouvement du haut du corps, ce qui fait qu’ils utilisent les gros muscles donc ils se fatiguent moins vite. Quand ils plantent leur rame dans l’eau, il y a instantanément une connexion qui se fait. Dès que leur rame touche à l’eau, leur bassin revient en arrière et du moment que leur rame est verticale, leur bassin est déjà en mouvement vers l’avant. Cette motion très rapide est commune à plusieurs rameurs, mais la différence est que chez nos deux champions, ce mouvement est très bien connecté avec l’eau. Ils se servent de tout leur corps pour développer la puissance tout en gardant leur rame verticale.

C’est ce qu’Andrew et moi avons pratiqué pendant tout l’été. Nous devons garder la connexion dans l’eau et rester toujours synchronisés. Heureusement, cette semaine a été profitable sur ce point. Aujourd’hui nous avons fait une simulation de course avec les filles K-2 et nous avons très bien ramé du début à la fin. Comme l’a dit Mark dans son journal, je trouve ça important d’aller aux Jeux en croyant en nos chances de médaille d’or. Avec la force et la constance que nous avions ce matin, je peux dire que notre confiance a monté d’un cran!

C’est maintenant le temps de se reposer, cette fin de semaine sera remplie de distractions tels que Tiger Woods golf et Rock Band sur Xbox 360. Nous visionnerons probablement 3 ou 4 films et je veux aussi m’acheter le nouvel appareil photo numérique submersible et incassable qui vient de sortir en magasin. Je planifie aussi de battre encore Ben et Cullin au bowling sur gazon et descendre au lac Banook pour une baignade. J’espère que tout va bien à la maison et d’ici à mon prochain journal, on se voit sur l'eau!




Hello all,

I am now at the beautiful and warm Russell’s residence for our last stretch or training before the Games. This week has been really productive for Andrew and I in C-2 and also in C-1 (I still have big hopes for Nationals!). I’m really enjoying my stay here, I feel lucky to get barbequed food and a whole bedroom to myself.
We arrived on Monday and I felt the need to get back into a steady training routine. After following the 2nd National team trials on the side line last weekend, I was really motivated to get back in my boat. And just like The Cars sang it so well in 1978, a weekend off might have been “Just what I needed”.

When I’m watching a race, either on my rollerblades or on TV, I always try to understand what works well for the winners, and what can be improved with the followers. Tom Hall and Mark Oldershaw have tremendous physical abilities but I think a big part of their success relies on their technique. I try to watch them and analyse their motion to understand what they do to generate such good speed. I think the connection between the paddle and the boat is what they get better than the rest. They are using their big strong muscles like their legs, hips and back in perfect synchronism. As soon as their blade touches the water, their hips connect the paddle to the boat. We all have different motions and styles, but the most important thing is to connect your blade in the water and make your boat go forward. For our champs, we can see that their paddles are in front of them when they put the most power, that way all the force is directed forward. That’s exactly what I have been trying to work on lately. I think about my body as a whole, my hips lead the movement and all my energy is used to keep that connection through the stroke.

And it worked quiet well this morning! We did 1 x 500m time control and it felt like all our efforts were used to keep our boat speed. Like Mark nicely said in his journal, winning to Olympics is the goal, and Andrew and I believe in our chances. I get more and more excited thinking about racing and it feels like everything is falling at the right place for the big dance. Practices like this morning give me a lot of confidence in our crew and I am more fired up than ever to race in 23 days.

Until then, this weekend will be spent relaxing and playing Rock Band and Tiger Wood golf on Xbox 360. I also plan on buying a new unbreakable, submersible with super powerful zoom digital camera to bring back pictures for the website. Finally, I would like to congratulate Adam Van Koeverden for is nomination to be our flag bearer, he’s always been a leader for amateur sports in Canada. Hopefully the whole Canadian team will be inspired by his fearless attitude like we have been for the last years.
Thanks for reading,

Good day to you,

The last two days of our training camp here in Ottawa will be in my memory for a very long time. I’ve never felt such enthusiasm around a canoe club in my life, everyone was so pumped and happy, it made me love my sport even more. On Friday morning, the bantam program had a 100m fun race followed by all you can eat pancakes. I had the chance to jump in a C-2 with three new partners. Clark, Charlene and Nick, I was really impressed by your balance skills and determination to win. You showed up to the line with the eyes of champions and that’s the way to go, congratulations and good luck for the rest of the summer.

Then the whole day Friday, I had every kids smile in my head. It really gave me a boost of happiness to hang around such tireless youngsters. It truly has a positive effect on me to see how much fun life is for them. The camaraderie they share is really refreshing, and every member/user of the canoe club feels like being friendly is the only way to go.

That led me to Saturday morning workout. Earlier this week, I was feeling pretty tired and not exactly at the top of my game. That’s why I wanted to end the week with good speed and glide feelings. When we jumped in the C-2 yesterday, I was ready to give one last big effort to conclude our camp with style. We went through the workout with good connection in the water and were able to accelerate the boat and maintain a good speed without too much effort. The H.O.P.E volleyball tournament happening at Mooney’s bay was pumping music to motivate us during our workout. The whole practice felt like a party. It was also nice to share the course with some jet skiing friends, their donuts and slalom tricks showed what skilled athletes they were... Nevertheless, we had some very good 500m pieces paddling beside Adam Van Koeverden, Anders Gustafsson and the K-2 of Kristin Gauthier and Mylanie Barré. After our workout and a marvellous breakfast at POW, we sat at the canoe club and played an epic game of Ten Trick. Morty and Vank both won a game but don’t worry, the 4 way tie for the lead in the ranking list isn’t close to being broken.

To conclude the night, Rideau canoe club held a reception that made me very emotional. It was really appreciated by all us, but it meant something more for me, because without Rideau, my journey towards my ultimate goal would have been a lot more difficult, if possible at all. I’ve been living in Ottawa for the past 4 years and I’m so grateful to Rideau for accepting me as one of theirs. I have received so much help from this club and I was so happy yesterday to shake hands and take time to tell everyone who would listen how honoured and lucky I am to be around Rideau canoe club. That’s why I like formal receptions, it’s the perfect time to meet and share stories with the people who give our sport a soul. Robert Kutenko, Liz Elton, Mike Scott, along with all the members, I specially thank you for making me feel at home in your canoe club. Everyday now and in the future, I don’t and won’t ever forget how generous and genuine people from Rideau are. Thank you so much.

Hello friends,

We are now in the middle of the 3 week long training camp in Ottawa and I must say that I’m a pretty tired. Our workouts have been longer and more intense than the last couple weeks and that was a shock to my body. It is a necessary part to our Olympic preparation so I try to make the most out of it. Later in July, we’ll focus on getting sharper but now it’s time to work the body. Andrew and I are going out 4 times a week in C-2 and I’m really happy the way we’re doing on and off the water.

During hard weeks like this, it’s important to find a certain balance in your routine. When I spend basically all my energy on the water, I sometimes tent to get grumpy in the mid-day period, or not simply not enjoying every part of my day. That’s when I try as much as possible to find happiness in little things. I try to focus on little events I can laugh at to realize that I spend everyday doing what I love most. This training camp is really important, every practice is design to make us faster for the Olympics. Everyday, we try to become a better paddler, and most of the time, resting is as important as working hard. With a well balanced program and routine, we are able progress and enjoy putting all we have into canoeing.

This week, I watched a lot of the Wimbledon tennis tournament. I became a big fan of Rafael Nadal and read almost all his blog on http://www.rafaelnadal.com/. This guy is too good. When he plays, you could think he’s out of the court because you can’t see him on the screen, then he’ll hit a winner smash. Like our ozzie friend Ken Wallace would say without opening too much his mouth - “ he is sensational”.
Talking about awesome entertainment, nothing compares to the hip hop master Snoop Dogg!! Sunday night, I proudly were my 3XL t-shirt and Andrew and I squeezed ourselves to the very front on the stage to see him performed at the Bluesfest. He played all his classics and his beats blew me away. A real crowd pleaser that Snoop Da Loop.

Other things I do to distract myself: I eat nutella, I try to play guitar, I watch the TV show “Entourage”, I read fiction books, jump of a tarzan rope, I call my old friends, I swim in a river (doesn’t matter which one), I watch youtube videos, and if all that doesn’t work, I go check out how many people visited our C4C website this week and that for sure will put a smile on my face!
Thank you for reading,




Mes amis,

Je suis en plein cœur d’un camp d’entraînement de 3 semaines à Ottawa et je dois dire que je suis pas mal fatigué. Sur l’eau, nos pratiques sont plus longues et plus intenses que le mois passé et ça m’a donné un petit choc. Il est nécessaire d’augmenter le volume d’entraînement tout de suite afin de peaufiner les détails techniques vers la fin juillet. Il est donc normal d’être fatigué ces temps-ci. Andrew et moi avons ramé en C-2 quatre fois cette semaine et je suis très content de notre attitude sur l’eau et hors de l’eau.

Durant des semaines d'entraînement comme celles-ci, il est important pour moi de garder un équilibre dans ma routine. Quand je dépense toute mon énergie sur l’eau, je peux parfois devenir marabout en milieu de journée. C’est pourquoi j’essais de me distraire le plus possible avec mes amis pour réaliser qu’en fait, chaque jour se passe exactement comme je le veux.

Par exemple, cette semaine j’ai suivi le tournoi de tennis de Wimbledon. J’ai du lire tous les blogs de Rafael Nadal via son site web. http://www.rafaelnadal.com/. Ce gars là est trop fort! Puis vendredi, mes amis et moi sommes allés voir Feist jouer au Bluesfest d’Ottawa. Cette fille a la voix d’un ange (même si ça sonne quétaine). Enfin, dimanche soir on est aller voir Snoop Dogg! Tout un concert! Je portais avec fierté mon 3XL t-shirt et ma calotte pour aller me coincer en avant de la scène et lever mon poing au beat de cette légende du hip-hop. Il devait y avoir 20 000 personnes, c’était trop cool.

D’autres trucs pour m’aider à relaxer : Je mange du nutella, je gratte ma guitare, je regarde la série télé « Entourage », je lis des romans fictions, je vais sauter la corde à Tarzan, j’appelle mes vieux amis, je vais nager dans la rivière (peu importe laquelle), je regarde des vidéos sur youtube.com et si tout ça ne fait pas encore, je vais voir le nombre de visiteurs hebdomadaires de notre site web, ça me fait toujours sourire de voir que nous sommes aussi populaires! :)

Merci de me lire et à bientôt!

Hello,
Happy day after Canada Day everyone! I am really happy to be in the national capital to celebrate the 141st anniversary of our country. Yesterday morning, I participated to the HBC 10 km run with a bunch of other athletes from different sports. My idea was to run at a slow pace and encourage the runners while having fun. I effectively started at a comfortable pace until I started getting passed by so many people it was impossible to count. At the 4 km mark, I started running a little faster, then I saw this little 12 year old girl running in front of me. There was no way I was going to let that happen. I passed her and gave her a wide smile. Then at the 6 km mark, I saw Émilie Fournel and Victoria Tuttle with at least a 1 km lead. At that very moment, I decided that the physical pain I was going to endure to catch them was worth not letting them finish in front of me. Not an easy task, because I knew they saw me as well and I’m sure they also picked up the pace. It took me a long time to catch them, but when I made my move, I never looked back. I had my game face on and nothing was going to stop me. I finished the race exhausted but emotionally healthy. However, today I am painfully walking, and suffering severe armpits chaffing due to my extra large HBC t-shirt.

This run made me realize how many people love running and physical activity. I was proud to be in the main event and will do it again for sure. I found it inspiring to see 3000 runners going for a 10 km race at 7h30 in the morning. I felt supported and thanks to everyone that sent me good luck wishes.
We are now heading to on of the famous Rideau Pot lock. I’m still hesitating in what to bring. Will it be a pre cooked barbequed chicken or a delicious chicken and strawberry salad. I guess you have to come to find out.