It took a little luck, in the form of a canoe, to help team Bulls and Bears win the 2014 Power to Play annual adventure race around and across Beaver and Elk lakes on Sunday.
“There was four canoes and 32 teams, so do the math,” said Dave Burden, one of four teammates on the Bulls and Bears, a team of employees entered on behalf of RBC Dominion Securities. “There’s a lot of strategy involved in the race and we managed to grab one of the canoes and paddle across. Last year we weren’t so lucky and ended up (having to run) around the lake.”
Overall the Bulls and Bears finished in just under two hours and 10 minutes and won two of the three award categories, including the team’s second straight Act of Kindness trophy for the most money raised: $11,150. The event raised $132,000 in total for Power to Be’s local initiative, which provides accessible and inclusive nature-based programs to more than 800 local youth and families.
“The race challenges its competitors physically and mentally,” said Power to Be communications co-ordinator Kevin Chapman. “They all crawl through the mud and climb walls, but they also have to use their heads and come together as a team.”
The Victoria Power to Play adventure race is one of three annual events that help fund the Power to Be Adventure Therapy Society. Next month is the Vancouver edition of Power to Play and later this summer the Victoria Golf Club will hold a sold-out, prestigious tournament with host Cassie Campbell-Pascall and philanthropists Peter and Ali Gustavson.
reporter@saanichnews.com