IT seems West Vancouver Olympic windsurfer Zac Plavsic can pump his legs almost as well as he can pump a sail.
Plavsic finished fifth overall in the open mass-start category of the massive GranFondo bike race from Vancouver to Whistler Sept. 10, placing first in the men's 19-29 age category. Plavsic also spurred his team, representing the Right to Play sports charity, to first place in the team competition. Although the team race took place in the "non-competitive" GranFondo event and not the professional Giro race, the action was fast and furious at the front of the pack.
"It was basically like our team up against Trevor Linden's team and Thomas Hass' team. There was some pretty good rivalry going on," Plavsic told the North Shore News last week after race organizers had sorted out the final standings. "We were riding beside Trevor (Linden) and Thomas Haas, it was getting pretty competitive towards the end. We definitely turned ourselves inside out towards the end to make sure that we won it."
Joining Plavsic on the nine-man Right to Play team were other non-cycling athletes such as North Shore Olympic sailing hopeful Hunter Lowden, Olympic medalist rowers Ben Rutledge and Scott Frandsen as well as Steed Cycles manager Steve Savage.
Plavsic even had the thrill of leading the pack in front of the house that he grew up in just past Horseshoe Bay.
"I worked hard to get out front and lead in front of the house," he said with a laugh. While his team was a little light on cycling experts, it was heavy on athletes with big muscles and big hearts, said Plavsic.
"I was really stoked to see that our team - even though it wasn't filled with cyclists, it was filled just with high-end athletes - we were able to have four guys inside the top 10 and then also bring the awareness to the Right to Play foundation," he said. "If we can bring some awareness to that charity and help their cause and put ourselves in a little bit of pain at the same time, that's a good thing, I think."
Plavsic, an Olympian in 2008, will be looking to secure a spot in the 2012 London Games with a top-10 finish at the world championships to be held in Australia in December. If that doesn't happen he'll have more shots at qualifying next year in the lead-up to the Games.
