Edmonds family push past Dusi double ton
We catch up with the Edmonds family who after this year's Dusi canoe marathon took their families combined total to a whopping 220 marathons completed.
IF you were looking for a family that embodied the spirit and camaraderie of the Dusi, you need not look any further than the Edmonds family. The local family have firmly etched their names into history of the three day race with this year marking the family’s combined total of 220 completed Dusis.
What’s more, eight of the nine Edmonds siblings have now each completed three or more Dusis. At this years’ race, eight members of the family, which included seven siblings and a cousin, completed the race.
Northglen News recently caught up with Wendy Edmonds, who was the oldest female paddler in this year’s event, to find out about her experience. Incredibly her Dusi safari began three years ago at age 60 and her enthusiasm, since her debut, has only grown and so has her love for the event.
Her story is even more incredible having battled cancer twice, and beaten it. This year Wendy partnered with her brother Chase.
“It’s such a privilege to be adding my little number of three, to all the brothers’ races, to Chase completing his 30th Dusi this year, and to John who tops the list, completed his 38th.
“The conditions this year were great, it was dry underfoot; nice water levels; wonderful paddling weather on day 2 and my brother Chase, was a great paddling partner.
Wendy’s involvement with canoeing began as a second in 1970, when her eldest brother, Trevor, entered the Dusi as a 16-year-old.
Having seconded her brothers every year since 1980, completing a Dusi herself had always been on her “bucket list”. That was until her brother John, who’s won the Dusi four times before (he also has two Non-Stop Dusi titles to his name) asked to her partner him in a K2 canoe for his 35th race.
“He offered to paddle the race with me, as ‘payback’ for 40 years of seconding. Who wouldn’t have accepted such a fantastic opportunity to paddle with him, especially since I’d just celebrated my 60th birthday,” she laughs
When asked whether she’d do the race next year, she simply replied in a heartbeat. “I’d love to. Paddling’s such an addictive sport. I challenge other cancer survivors to join us,” she enthused.
