Keeping the Shamrock walk alive
‘Steady Eddie’ Williams has trekked to Oakville from Toronto since 1977
His friends call him “Steady Eddie” for his endurance during yearly eight-hour walks to Oakville from Toronto, 42 of them counting Saturday’s trek in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.
But “Sprightly Eddie” might suit Eddie Williams best. The 66-year-old is buoyant with energy, greeting passersby with a spring to his leather-booted step as he marches toward a victory beer.
“I keep this tradition going because it’s for Canada, as well as for the people that are unable to do it. It tests my mettle, too, from year to year, to see what kind of shape I’m in, and it’s great to bring people like this together,” he said.
Williams was joined by four walkers at the Nathan Phillips Square starting point at 9:30 a.m. He expected others to tag along in shamrock-covered outfits during the home stretch as they approached the finish line at an Oakville pub late Saturday afternoon.
Williams was hard to miss. The bearded and bespectacled walker was decked out all in green, save for heavy-looking black boots (his green shoes are saved for parties), a green walking cane and top hat complete with a button that says “Kiss me, I’m Irish.”
There’s the odd kiss during the roughly 40-kilometre journey, he said, but mostly he gets honks, waves and selfies.
“I’m a strange kind of guy. I don’t use modern technology. I’ve never owned a cellphone,” he said. “I don’t know what people are doing, but they tell me I’m on there, I’m on social media.”
The greetings can distract from the physical exertion of walking for eight hours straight, but Williams doesn’t get any major aches or pains. Having a good mental state is important, too, the avid chess-player said, explaining how the game has helped his mental stimulation.
“I always say, there’s two good things about the walk: It’s oneway, and it’s once a year … I don’t know how those other guys in 1922, how they even got back,” Williams said, referring to the folkloric origins of the St. Patrick’s Day walk.
A group of Irishmen started the tradition in the 1920s, as the story goes, searching for bootlegged alcohol in the Prohibition era to celebrate their patron saint.
There’s little evidence this “Prohibition trek” actually happened, but the tradition carried on in1930 when Charles Priestman of Toronto, founder of the Morning Glory Walking Club, started doing the walk after a friend bet him he couldn’t.
Barney Heard then took over the walk until 1976, but was injured after a fall during an ice storm. Williams picked up the torch the following year.
Williams’ Irish ancestors came to Toronto in the 18th century, and one of his walking members is also “partly” of Irish blood.
“It’s the red hair,” said Raychyl Whyte, grabbing the long braid tucked under a black top hat. The Hamilton woman has been joining Williams for the past 12 years, and Williams thinks she’ll be the right person to take over the walk when he’s ready to retire.
But those leather boots will be big shoes to fill, she said.
“He’s Steady Eddie. He’s really fast, he’s got legs of steel and mine turn to concrete blocks by the time I get to the end of Southdown Rd. and Lakeshore. It’s just so painful,” she said.
Lynn Moniz of Oakville, who has done the walk each year for the past decade, brought her son Johnny Kavooras on Saturday. They lagged well behind Williams at the start.
“You start out, you’re energetic … About midway, you’re hungry, you’re tired. And about twothirds of the way, you’re going, ‘why am I doing this?’ ” she laughed. “Tomorrow, I’m going to be hurting.”