Octogenarian Hugh Raw excited for his tenth Dusi
When the huge field of paddlers sets off from Camps Drift on the morning of February 18 at the start of the 2021 MyLife Dusi Canoe Marathon, Pietermaritzburg paddler Hugh Raw will almost certainly be the oldest paddler in the field, treating himself to a K1 Dusi shortly after turning 80 years old.
The sprightly octogenarian has a long and involved history with the race that has seen him champion the annual canvas Dusi paddle that replicates the early Dusi, and next year he aims to finish his tenth Dusi, which will earn him his permanent green number, to go with his ten canvas Dusis.
Modest and unassuming, Raw and his family are deeply rooted in paddling and it surprises many that he has not competed in more Dusis since his introduction to the sport in 1982, but his involvement with the race goes much further back than that.
Running a kayak shop he then spent ten years helping paddlers with all sorts of canoeing supplies and repairs at each overnight stop before his debut in 1982.
Since then he has accumulated nine finishers medals, six of them consecutively, but has now planned a K1 Dusi finishers medals in February 2021 as the first 80 year-old to achieved that feat.
He holds an unique record at the annual Fish Marathon where he has completed the race in a K3 with his sons and grandsons, celebrating three generations of the family in various combinations in recent years.
When he finishes the 2021 MyLife Dusi at Blue Lagoon on Saturday February 20 he will become the first octogenarian to get a Dusi finishers medal, eclipsing the mark set by Arthur Duncan, who completed the Dusi in a K2 aged 79 with Colin Burden, and will earn his permanent green number for completing the race ten times. The 2021 MyLife Dusi Canoe Marathon takes place from 18-20 February 2021. Entry details and more information can be found at www.dusi.co.za