Rick Shone doesn’t mind if you call him a swamp donkey — in fact, he wouldn’t mind calling you one too.

Shone is co-race director along with John Ford of Swamp Donkey Adventure Racing. They have been organizing a variety of challenging outdoor races in all types of terrain since 2007 and run one of the largest eight to nine hour races in Canada.

The Silver Heights resident says it’s exciting to see the appetite for this type of challenge continue to grow.

"People are looking for something different, for physical fitness and something active," says Shone, who has participated in races all over the country.

"You get out in the bush and you have to be pretty self reliant and you’re doing things you don’t normally do on a daily basis."

The races include the brand new Dirty Donkey in August, The Swamp Donkey in September, The Ice Donkey in winter and the upcoming Pain in the ASSiniboine on June 24.

Shone, who owns Wilderness Supply on Ferry Road, says Assiniboine Park and Westview Park are great places to train for the races.

Typical races include cycling, canoeing and hiking and all course routes are kept secret from the contestants until the morning of the race. They then have to plot their course and get going as quick as possible.

The best part of the races for Shone is to see the look of accomplishment on the competitors’ faces when they cross the finish line.

Shone says he wouldn’t mind if his two young children eventually entered into the competition. In fact, his two-year-old is already on his way.

 "I have my little guy training already — he’s on his run-bike and he loves it just going down the street."

Registration is now open for the Pain in the ASSiniboine and Dirty Donkey races. Visit www.swampdonkeyar.com for more information.

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St. James-Assiniboia School Division’s International Student Program is currently looking for homestay families to assist with international students for the upcoming 2012-13 school year.
The homestay program gives international students the opportunity to learn about Canadian culture and family life while improving their English skills and benefit from the supervision and guidance that families provide.

The program has a variety of family hosting periods available: short-term (two weeks, one to four months); one semester (September to January, or February to June); and long-term (two semesters – September to June).

For more information contact assistant director Grant Ganczar at 837-1331 or email gganczar@sjsd.net.

Trevor Suffield is a community correspondent for St. James-Assiniboia. You can contact him at trevorsuffield@gmail.com.