Bob's Suit

A little known fact is that I started racing triathlons when I moved to Squamish about three years ago. An even lesser known fact involves how Bob McIntosh helped me get through my first Squamish Triathlon – a memorial to his name. Here's the condensed version.

At about noon on one hot summer day in 2004, I meandered down to Sea-to-Sky Ocean Sports to talk with Karen about wetsuits. It was about 32 degrees out in the sun and even more hot in their store at the time. A few days before, Karen had offered a loaner suit to save me from having to make a purchase for my only open-water race of the year – she just needed to confirm a few things before committing the gear.

When I arrived at the store, I was already beading sweat on the forehead from the heat. The oven-like temperatures inside didn't help matters. As it turned out, Karen had come through huge. With permission from others, she had in fact brought the wetsuit that Bob McIntosh himself had used. If it fit, it was mine to race in.

My immediate thought was that this specimen should be locked up in a glass display case and remain a symbolic piece of Squamish heritage. "Bob would want you to race in it", they said. So instead, I carried it to the change room and tried it on.

I can pretty much pinpoint the exact moment that my life turned from euphoria to horror – it was just as I reached around my back and heard the snapping sound of the zipper breaking as I pulled it up the back of my spine. If it was 32 degrees outside, it just red lined to 50 in that change room at that moment. I had just ruined the wetsuit of Bob McIntosh.

Sheepishly I changed back into my clothes and almost instantly started showing through. There aren't many words to explain my humiliation.

The ladies at Sea-to-Sky Ocean Sports were very good all things considered and offered to arrange for it's repair – take it to the best place in the world, I said.........

Race day arrived and I waded knee deep into the water at the start line. Just one person in the field of hundreds. There is no doubt in my mind that Bob McIntosh is with each and every participant, each and every year of the race. Having said that, forgive me for feeling just a little bit closer to him that morning - after all, I was wearing his suit.

Many thanks, Bob
(with memories of Ray Peters too)