The 14th annual Brian Connor’s Rice Lake Challenge in support of Defeat Duchenne Canada took place on Saturday, August 27, 2022.
Connor lives in London, Ontario but has always and will always call Cobourg his home.
It’s where he grew up, played hockey and still has many friends in Cobourg.
Growing up, Connor’s two brothers, Kevin and Terry passed away from Duschenne muscular dystrophy.
Many years have passed since his brothers passed away, but the love Connor has for both his brothers is clearly evident when he speaks about them.
Connor was 52-years-old when he first started the five kilometre swim from the north side of Rice Lake to the south side ending up at Gores Landing.
Even as he looks out over the choppy waters of Rice Lake around 7 a.m. from Gores Landing dock, he still has the determination to do it.
Accompanying him for all those years crossing Rice Lake has been his close friend George Bennett.
On this day along with the pair are 15-year-old, Jolie Appleton and Dietra Kelly who is six-months pregnant.
Over the years the swim has developed into other events including a 100-kilometre bike ride around Rice Lake and a three or six kilometre walk around the Gores Landing area.
Since the beginning through Connor’s efforts over $400,000 has been raised to defeat Duschenne muscular dystrophy.
But Connor said the event is also about raising awareness.
Bennett said over the years the hardest part is the cold.
“But it’s a small price to pay considering what a lot of these boys with Duschenne have to go through.”
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
