From “100 Years of Champions”, by C. Fred Johnston

1928 John W. Black Trophy, Men’s Junior Single Blade Fours, ½ mi.
It took three years before the Canadian Canoe Association finally accepted the offer of the Black Trophy from the St. John’s Yacht Club, St. John’s, Quebec. It was first offered in 1925 but not accepted pending resolution of a dispute between the club and the Eastern Division Executive. Not until July 18, 1928 at an Eastern Division meeting was the trophy accepted on behalf of the Canadian Canoe Association from Mr. Rollo, Trustee for the donor, Mr. John W. Black. The race is now known as the Junior Men C-4, 1000m.

“The Black” conjures up images of strong competitive canoe racing in a ‘Canadian’ style C-4 for 1000m. In 2001, “The Black” had major restoration conducted by Birks Jewelers so that it may reflect its luster for another few years. In 2006, it underwent another restoration, with repair and reconstruction of the trophy box. In 2008, additional repairs were done. It is very delicate and the decision was taken to continue to present the trophy at the National Championships but to keep the trophy in the possession of the association between Championships. It is commonly believed to be the largest trophy awarded in North America for amateur sport.

The intent is to record the winners and their stories on the CKC and BOC website for all to enjoy. The first call for these stories was made in November 2009; as more stories are contributed, this document will be updated and posted.

Contributions to the Editor: Judy Tutty / judy.tutty@sympatico.ca / updated August 2020

“The Comeback is Always Better than the Set Back”

My quest for the John W. Black trophy started before I truly knew or appreciated what it was I was going after. Junior Men’s C4 for me evolved from being a race I saw as filling out my racecard to being something far more personal, it came to symbolize a race I lost without taking a single stroke. The worst losses are the ones which you deliver to yourself, when it is you who takes yourself out of the race. I’ve fallen victim to letting up in a race before and no feeling is worse when you cross the finish line knowing full well you cheated yourself. A close second to this is when something else takes you out of the race, a broken tee grip, weeds on the rudder, a misapplication of a rule, etc. When you quit, you are left questioning if you could have gone harder here or gone with this person then; when circumstance takes you out of the race or boat altogether it’s the same deal but different. Could I have done what the other paddler who replaced me did or what could have been if x, y and z didn’t happen? You’re no longer left questioning yourself but the things out of your control. Sure, you didn’t quit but you didn’t even have the chance to quit or worse, the opportunity to prove you could rise to the occasion. The window of opportunity to win the Black is fleeting and small and with my lost chance in 2013 I’m happy to say I managed to find another.

My first attempt at the Black was Dartmouth Nationals in 2012. I was 17, the crew we fielded was good, but we weren’t contenders for the trophy. We finished 5th and were never in medal contention.

My second attempt at the Black was Montréal in 2013. We had the same crew as the year before, but everyone was older and better. This time we had a shot, or should I say my fellow crew members had a shot. To give some context earlier that year I had raced at the Junior World Championships in Welland, Ontario on behalf of Team USA. An experience and opportunity I am incredibly grateful for, not just for the racing but everything that went along with being on team USA that summer. Unfortunately, at that Canadian National Championships, there was ambiguity in the interpretation of phrasing and language of the rule which dictated eligibility to compete at Nationals and how it related to racing for another country internationally. This resulted in CKC booting me from the regatta the day before the event and sanctioning me with an 18-month suspension. This was resolved months later in my favor with the support of my club, through the SDRCC, with an arbitrator removing my ban issued by CKC. This ruling came too late for me though and I was subbed out of the boat. Luckily Senobe was overflowing with so much talent that another skilled paddler in Ian McCormick was waiting in the wings to swoop in and help deliver the dub.

Now looking at the result sheet and seeing Senobe winning this race by nine seconds you would think if you subbed in a similarly skilled paddler for one of the guys you would still come away with a victory but for those that have raced this race you will know that’s not the case; with the threat of turning senior these races can be much closer than final times may suggest. Senobe, for instance, was in Mississauga’s wash and had to spike the bow to prevent going out of their lane at one point. Would I have been able to push through the wash and help the crew to a lead resulting in other crews backing off? Without sounding to melodramatic, this is a question I can only ask but can’t answer.

To make my point when the guys won I was stoked for them but I couldn’t look at the result and tell myself take Ian and sub me and we would have still got the race. Until you line up and do it you never know if you have what it takes. Part of me selfishly felt robbed of a trophy I didn’t earn or even race for, but a bigger part of me was worried that given the chance I wouldn’t have been good enough to help win it. The missed opportunity that was this event underscored the frustration and embarrassment I felt at the 2013 Nationals as I was relegated to sitting on the sidelines. I didn’t care about waiting for the perfect storm and lining up a golden opportunity to win it, I just wanted a chance to go out there and send it.

I would have my chance to do just that for the 2015 National Championships in Ottawa. My crew looked much different from its earlier iterations with myself, Ben Firth, Connor McGregor and Colin O’Neil helming the boat. To give some context to this showdown that was the Junior C4 race this year no one in our boat had made a Junior singles final at Nationals compared to the stacked Cheema crew with multiple guys who had raced internationally for Canada. It didn’t matter though. We lined up treating this race like we had a chance to win and went for it. We fought the entire way down the racecourse, beating Cheema, the B crew that is. The Cheema A crew trounced us. Anytime you can medal at Nationals though is an accomplishment and we earned that finish and won second. No one in our boat considered sitting up and coming third because we were too busy trying to cross the line. We went into that race with the mindset that we could come out winners and lost to a great crew. Turning senior for four years seemed liked a small price to pay, in my eyes, for a chance to prove to myself I could compete in that race. I knew I’d be around for another shot at the top of the podium and getting to stand so close to it after that race just made me want it more.

Four years went by and I found the pieces begin to fall into place in the summer of 2019 for another attempt. I would now revert back to Junior status in Junior Men’s C4. This time we had Connor Fitzpatrick, a National team paddler who had competed at the Senior World Championships in C2 this same year, Peter Lombardi a seasoned club paddler who had won the Black in 2013 and had put a full year of training in and Jacob Quillan, an athlete primarily focused on Hockey but still a talented Juvenile paddler who showed up every summer, put in good work and always came to Nationals prepared.

Fast forward to the National final in Regina, we were Lane 5 and went into it knowing after the heats that it was us or Mississauga. For most of the race we sat back within striking distance of Missy. Staying in contention through the middle while being efficient was the focus but admittedly I was worried that Missy had us by a boat going through the 500. We started to pick up the pace though, and knew we wanted to settle it earlier rather than later.

The outcome of the race was then determined at the 250m mark. We had chased Missy down and made our move, Peter called for an up and we shifted gears into race pace. In response Missy made a move and they fought to hold their lead, following this Peter yelled for a second up and we sent it. We surged past Missy and they fought to hold on going through the 200 but we were moving, and no one was letting up in our boat. We finished the race with a 10 second win over second. A fitting parallel to Senobe’s dominant win in Montréal six years previous.

Six years previous I was left wondering had I been in the boat if Senobe would have won or even pulled off its nine second win and six years later I got as close to answering that question as I think I will ever get with my own 10 second win.

They saved the best for last – the Junior Men’s C-4 1000m – the final race on Day 4 at the Canadian Sprint Canoe Kayak Championships. For the hundreds of fans at the Welland International Flatwater Centre, it was a thrilling wrap-up to another jam-packed day of elite paddling.

Decided by only a few seconds, the first place prize – and the John W. Black Trophy – went to the Lachine Canoe Club, with the Maskwa Aquatic Club in second place, and the Mississauga Canoe Club in third. It’s the first time since 1979 that Lachine has won the Black Trophy, which is the most iconic prize to be awarded at the National Championships.

"The last time Lachine won the Black Trophy, I was paddling in the boat with Yves Schmidt, André Aubut and Denis Francoeur! It’s the 4th time that Lachine won that race, and in ‘79, it was even right here in Welland," noted Mark Granger, national development coach at Canoe Kayak Canada. "It's so nice to see young guys like them winning the Black Trophy, it's like the Stanley Cup in canoeing," added Granger, pointing at the crew holding their big prize.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First third generation – Bert Oldershaw, Island 1940; Scott Oldershaw, Quebec 1971.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“The Day I Almost Won The Black”

Robaert has been after me for the past year to get into a Junior C-4 crew at Senobe. I have been putting him off because I have no intention of traveling out west for Nationals. Last night I was at the club going for my first paddle in 12 months and Mark James and Eddie Spriggs were giving me a hard time about it. Rob said that his strategy for winning the Black this year is to put my name on the program and watch all the best crews drop out. Then he subs me out and puts Nick in instead. Something tells me the days of my name striking fear in the hearts of Canadian canoers are long gone. Anyway, this all got me thinking about Junior C-4 and about the day that I – and seven other people – almost won The Black.

For those unf amiliar with The Black (the two of you reading in Australia I mean), a short explanation is in order. First you must understand what a Canadian “Junior” is (or at least used to be). An International Junior is, of course, any athlete who is under the age of 19 on December 31st of the year of competition. In Canada, we called that a Juvenile. A “Canadian Junior” is an International Senior (i.e. over the age of 18) who has not yet received sufficient points at a National Championship to be dominant or is so far from the peak of their career that they have not finished in the top five in a Senior race for four straight years. Status is given on a per event basis, so it is possible to be a Senior in C-1, 1000m, while still Junior in all other events. Complicating things even more is the fact that National team athletes can be Junior, but once they turn Senior they remain Senior as long as they are on the National Team. Confused? Good. Here is what you really need to know. In the Junior C-4 race, the top two teams at the National Championships receive enough points so that they must race Senior the following four years. There is almost always one or two excellent young canoers who are in the race, so it generally makes it difficult for an older crew to come back from Senior and win. Timing your attempt at the event can be crucial, and it is rare for someone to win the race more than once in a career. Now, those familiar with canoeing but not familiar with Canada will assume the C-4 is a long, sleek, fast boat that is propelled down the course by four skilled canoers who must paddle extremely well and perfectly together or the result is a horrible shaky and ugly-looking race. You are wrong. Although Canadians have been racing C-4 since the beginning of time, our boat design did not progress much past 1936. If you were to look at a C-1 from the Berlin Games, you would see a boat that looks much like the Canadian C-4; slow, fat, and relatively easy to paddle. The boat was a great leveler. Even four great canoers could not make it glide, and trying to go too fast would often result in a bounce that killed your speed faster than throwing out an anchor. The last thing you will need to know is that the winner of the Junior C-4 race at the Canadian National Championships is awarded one of the most legendary trophies in Canadian sport. The Black Trophy. The trophy stands about four feet tall, is made of silver, and has been awarded for the Junior C-4 race since the early twentieth century. It held a ridiculous amount of beer and has been the subject of many a story coming out of the Nationals after-party (some of which should be enough to convince people to never drink from it again). Every canoer in Canada wants to get his name on The Black.

Back to 1988. I was in a great Black crew. There was Kevin Mullen, Glen Girard, Brian Burns, and me. Glen and Brian had raced in 1987 at the Junior Worlds. Kevin and Glen would go on to almost take the C-2 entry for the 1992 Olympics. I was only 16, but well on my way to becoming a dominant C-1 paddler in Canada. Together we were a strong smart crew, who combined to win most of the Junior and Juvenile canoeing medals at the 1988 Canadian Championships. We were the heavy favourites in the C-4. Popular opinion was that the second best crew in the race was from Banook – Albert McDonald, Carl Francis, Steve Gallant and Dave Gallant. They were a more mature bunch, most of them approaching the end of their careers. Adding some colour to the race was the crew from Cartierville, Quebec. In the crew was Bob Kay, a Canadian canoeing legend, who had last won The Black in 1968. His crew certainly was past their prime and would take on the role of “Old Bull” on that day.

It was a typical Lake Banook day – sunny, warm and a screaming headwind. There were whitecaps on the first 800m of the course and there had been several casualties throughout the day. In fact, Larry Cain’s crew sank in the Senior C-4 that day. But my boat was full of Lake Banook natives; we had seen it all before and were unconcerned. I remember the race quite well, considering it took place nearly 22 years ago. We got off to an early and commanding lead. I looked around a few times and saw absolutely nobody. Watching the video later (memory says CBC had the race shown tape-delayed but I have not seen it since) we came through the 500m almost 50m ahead of the next crew. At that point I remember thinking the race was in the bag ...

... Meanwhile, somewhere behind us, Banook was putting a plan into action. Realizing that the race was unfolding as predicted and that they were likely to be “Blackwashed”, they began to slow down; and not wanting to appear too obvious, they started early and put themselves in a position to finish a convincing third. Cartierville were happy to oblige and took over second place with several hundred metres to go. Calm and steady were their words to live by. As we closed on the finish the crowd was cheering loudly. Orenda was on its way to a second National Title and we were excited. The Black was the biggest race of the day and everyone was watching. We were about to become the first crew from our club to win the coveted trophy. With 150m to go our boat began to behave strangely. We veered hard right and I was forced to pull the bow over. As I did so I realized that I was in water above my bottom knee. The boat had veered because of the huge mass of water we had taken on. Two strokes later the stern was under water; two strokes after that the bow was under water and we were swimming. Our dream was over and a hush fell on the crowd. Then the cheering masses went wild again as they realized the real drama was only just beginning. As we went down, the crew from Banook came to the sudden realization that they had made a serious error in judgment. Had they continued on at their regular pace they would have been in position to claim the gold after we deep-sixed in the final 150m. What they had done instead was allow Cartierville to get into a convincing second – which had, of course, just turned into a sizable lead. The atmosphere inside the Banook boat at that moment must have been foul. There was a sudden burst as they thought they had a chance to catch Bob Kay. Then an even more pronounced capitulation as they realized they could not win. The end result was a Banook crew standing still just a few metres from the finish waiting for someone to claim the honour of being Blackwashed. And who were the champions? Cartierville, of course.

The “Old Bulls” had beaten us all.

The following is from the Ottawa Citizen August 7,1928.

"A well-deserved victory in the junior fours was scored by the St. Rose Club of the Eastern Division. This club has but 6 paddling members, four of them being placed in their only shell for Saturday's Dominion championship event. The shell was originally used in Canada title races in 1902, and at present is somewhat worse for wear. The four youngsters from St. Rose were conceded little or no chance of even figuring among the first three. They fooled the wise ones, however, and coasted home easy winners, their smooth and powerful stroking, giving them a four-length advantage at the finish line. Time 3:33, Gananoque was 2nd, while Parkdale came home in third."

There is a bit of discrepancy in this article from the Ottawa Journal August 6, 1928.

"One of the biggest surprises was the victory of the youthful St. Rose crew in the junior fours. With only a handful of paddlers to draw from and competing in a borrowed boat, the young fellows crowned themselves with glory when they finished first and became the initial holders of the magnificent Black Trophy."

My dad was a humble man and he didn't brag about his accomplishments. He was an incredible natural athlete and excelled in any sport he participated in. Our mom told us that our dad had won Dominion championships in paddling, swimming and diving. It was only through old photos that my niece discovered the connection between the John Black Trophy. I have a huge collection of trophies, but most of them just say the place won in the race and not the event.

My dad had another considerable collection of medals mostly from his diving accomplishments. As happened on more than one occasion when my parents were elderly, someone showed an immense interest in my parents' possessions. A receptionist at a doctor's office said she collected medals and my flattered dad gave her all of his. We were heartbroken when my brother approached this woman to try and retrieve these family treasures; she said she gave them away.

My parents moved to 50th Avenue in Lachine, Quebec, in 1950 and still lived there when they died. My dad was a few weeks shy of 94 and my mom was 92.

An unusual coincidence is that two subsequent winners of the John Black Trophy from the Lachine club lived on the next street to us. Barry Wright was part of the 1959 crew and Alan Wright, his brother, was part of the 1965 winning team. Alan and I went all through school together.