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Olympian determined to crack Dusi podium |
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Pietermaritzburg – Olympic sprint sensation Shaun Rubenstein is quietly determined to secure another podium finish in The Unlimited Dusi canoe marathon in a carefully constructed campaign with renowned running talent Steve Farrell.
Far away from the Dusi limelight training in the Western Cape the duo has been putting in the hard yards paddling and running with the boat making them dark horse competitors ahead of the start of the three day classic which starts in Pietermaritzburg on 16 February.
“The Dusi is a funny race, you’ve really got to earn the right to win it and it always brings surprise crews so who knows what could happen,” said Rubenstein. 
“I definitely think the top three are in a league of their own and will be a step ahead of the rest of us. We’ll just go at our own pace though and if things go well then I’m sure we won’t be too far off the top guys and if any of them happen to make a mistake then we’ll be right there to try capitalise on it.”
“Guys like Lance (Kime) and Kwanda (Mhlope) and Jasper (Mocke) and Craig are all great competitors though so there are just so many guys who could fill the other two positions in the top five,” he added.
After the 2008 Olympics Rubenstein surprised many when he finished third in the 2009 K1 Dusi where he used his boat speed and many years of experience in the uMsundusi and uMngeni River valleys to great effect.
Having recently turned his attention away from the sprint circuit and back to the river even Rubenstein’s nearest rivals have taken notice of the positive, happy demeanour of the former Dusi Junior champion and it appears impossible to remove the infectious smile which beams from his face.
“Graeme (Pope-Ellis) mentored me quite a bit as a youngster and I spent a lot of time on his farm and with his family so just going back to that has been so awesome and its really lekker being back on the river and in the valley again,” said Rubenstein.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my sprinting but it’s so precision orientated and such a high risk, high pressured, high reward kind of environment so I really went through quite a dip after the disappointment of not achieving my sprint goals so it’s been really good to get back out there on the river again!”
“Being on the river is completely different and it has really helped me just enjoy my training again. It’s great to be able to relax a little again and I’m just out there having a good time at the moment,” he added.
Despite having only met three months ago the pair have quickly formed a great bond and their complimentary paddling and running abilities have rapidly catapulted them into the mix as genuine top contenders.
“A mutual friend of ours introduced us after I mentioned I was considering doing Dusi this year but all the top guys were partnered up already,” said Rubenstein.
“It’s been really great to get to know Steve and it’s been so easy to work with him. We get along really well and we’ve been working really hard for the past couple of months.”
“Steve was a track runner at university so he’s an incredible runner but he’d never really raced in the river and was completely new to the Valley. He’s improved really quickly though and has certainly got the talent,” he added.
Despite being based in the Cape and away from all the action the pair will rely heavily on Rubenstein’s knowledge of the river as well as the fresh information gained in recent trips to KwaZulu-Natal.
“With Jasper (Mocke) being the only other competitive guy in the Cape it’s difficult for us to judge how well we’re going but we’ve been up for a couple of the build-up races which have been really good for us,” said Rubenstein.
“We decided to race these pretty hard because we needed to get some race practise under our belt and we got a first and a second so we were really happy.”
“We’re obviously under no illusions though that all the top guys are now hiding and trying not to give too much away so we’re not reading into the results too much and will just go out there and race our own race,” he added.
The Unlimited Dusi canoe marathon from Camps Drift, Pietermaritzburg to Blue Lagoon, Durban takes place on 16-18 February 2012. More info can be found at www.dusi.co.za |
