Tommy loves the adrenalin rush
When Tommy Booth is in his canoe he is ready to challenge any river.
In January, on the first day of the Eurosteel Highveld Crocodile Canoe race Selcourt resident Tommy Booth went for a swim and cut open his shin on a rock.
His had to have the cut stitched up and it was badly infected the next day.
However, it healed in time for him to compete in the 2015 Dusi Canoe Marathon two weeks ago.
Tommy (32) finished 115th and gained 33 positions from last year’s 148 in the K2 Dusi, a huge achievement for him.
Being one of the top long distance athletes at school in Fochville where he grew up he prefers running.
After finishing five Comrade marathons he was introduced to mountain biking and canoeing, but soon realised canoeing posed the biggest challenge.
He says canoeing is a competitive sport and the adrenalin rush from shooting big rapids is what he enjoys most.
He belongs to the Ekurhuleni Kayak Club (ERK) in Benoni and the club awarded him the ‘most improved paddler trophy in 2013.
In 2014 he won the Umkomaas Canoe Marathon with partner Jarryd Breeds, at the Ithala Canoe Marathon he and his partner Mike Barry ended in the top 10.
He came 55th in his first Berg River Marathon and came second with partner Mike Steward in the Vicotria Lake Canoe Club’s Flat One Race.
In 2012 he took second place in the Garmin Wartrail 60km run 135 MTB 75 Paddle race and third place in the Triple Challenge 20km run 54 MTB 20 Paddle.
For relaxation he loves to braai and to run with his biggest fan, his wife Izaan and their three dogs.
Once a month he treats himself to a sports massage.
Martin Dryer, seven times Dusi winner, is one of his inspirations.
“He doesn’t have a lot of natural talent like many of the other top athletes and I see myself as much the same,” says Tommy.
He trains six days a week, some days even twice a day with gym work and running in between.
He also enjoys cross training by cycling with Springs Wheelers cyclists on weekends when he is not paddling.
He sees himself getting more competitive in canoeing in the next five years and aiming for some top spots in the major national races.
“I chose canoeing as it has a blend of toughness, endurance, strategy, skill, risk and competitiveness to it,” he says.
