500 Adrenaline Adventures (Frommer's) - Lois Friedland [180]
Nanaimo is a modern town on the picturesque coast of Vancouver Island that has one claim to fame—the oldest and fastest bathtub race in the world. First started in 1967 by a game ex-mayor fond of dressing up as a pirate, the Nanaimo World Championship Bathtub Race is now the Formula One for flying faucet riders. Originally 200 craft took to the water and jetted 58km (36 miles) across the bay to Vancouver. Now approximately 60 souped-up tubs mounted on race boats do a fast, blustery circuit along the island, beginning and ending at Nanaimo. The race has become so serious, organizers have had to split the race into two professional and amateur categories as the latest bathtub technology was excluding ordinary folks from joining in. The serious race takes less than 2 hours to complete and the winner gets a golden plug on a chain.
A bathtub flies across the water in the World Championship Bathtub Race.
Nanaimo is known as the “hub, pub, and tub city.” Originally a mining town, it is now a gateway to Vancouver islands and is notable for the excellent bars located in the downtown district. Once referred to as “a mall in search of a city,” it comes alive for the 4-day marine festival that precedes the bathtub race held on the last Sunday of July. A town parade on the Saturday features local beauty queens, the oldest tubber, and the biggest bathtub in the world—a 10m (34-ft.) monster that is dragged through the streets and then put on display in the local Home Depot parking lot. On Saturday night there is a fireworks display and a ceremonial “Sacrifice to the Bathtub Gods” where an old boat is burned in honor of all the famous tubbers past and present. The race itself gets going at 10am on Sunday and can be viewed from the harbor pier and rocks that line the coast. Day-trippers take the beautiful ferry ride across Horseshoe bay from Vancouver to watch the mad frantic bathtub dash across the waters. A bronze statue of the man who started it all, the pirate costumed Mayor Frank J. Ney, overlooks the entire event. Originally the 1967 race was meant to be a one-off event to celebrate Canada’s centenary. Of the 200 craft that left the pier, only 47 reached Vancouver with most sinking before they left the bay. Men thrashed around in the water cursing their luck. They insisted there must be a repeat race next year, giving them time to improve their bathcrafts. Their efforts did not go down the drain. —CO’M
www.bathtubbing.com.
When to Go: Last weekend of July.
Vancouver.
$$ Coast Bastion Inn, 11 Bastion St., Nanaimo, BC ( 250/753-6601;www.coasthotels.com). $ Buccaneer Inn, 1577 Stewart Ave., Nanaimo, BC ( 250/753-1246;www.buccaneerinn.com).
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World Bog Snorkeling Championships
An Eel Is Wrapped Around My Ankle
Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales
“The stench of the bog was horrendous, weeds become entangled around my legs, mask, and snorkel, and an eel wrapped itself around my ankle. Once I got to the 30-yard mark, which was just halfway to the finish line, my legs felt like lead in the cold water and the finish line suddenly seemed 2 miles away.” This is how one woman described her experience in the World Bog Snorkeling Championships in Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales.
At the annual competition, contestants must fight their way through two lengths of a 55m (60-yd.) water-filled trench chopped out of a peat bog, wearing a snorkel and flippers. Competitors aren’t allowed to use usual swimming strokes, so must rely on flipper power. Only for orienteering purpose can they raise their head above the swampy water filled with leeches, water scorpions, and the odd fish.
Who would do this? Those looking for a rush and an unusual way to get it! People come from as far away as Hong Kong and Australia to experience this one-of-a-kind event. Past participants have included