Justin Trudeau challenges Thomas Mulcair and Stephen Harper to hike the Grouse Grind
Will the October 19 federal election be decided by the fastest Grouse Grind time of the party leaders?
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau headed to Grouse Mountain today (September 11) for photo ops on Mother Nature's locally famous Stairmaster.
https://twitter.com/yowflier/status/642394329772785664
And he issued a challenge to NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair and Conservative Leader Stephen Harper.
https://twitter.com/RichardMadan/status/642397353064792064
Covering a distance of 2.9 kilometres, the trail ascends 853 metres from a base elevation of 274 metres above sea level to below the ski area chalet at 1,127 metres. There's 2,830 stairs.
It takes most people around 1.5 hours. That's hardly long enough to qualify as a "campaign trail".
So I challenge Trudeau 2.0 and his rivals, including Green Leader Elizabeth May, to see how fast they can hike the Baden-Powell Trail, which extends 42 kilometres from Horseshoe Bay to Deep Cove, before election day.
But I request that they limit their party size to 10 people or less, for environmental reasons.
On July 11, Knee Knackering North Shore Trail Run winner Christopher Jones did the B-P Trail in four hours, 51 minutes, 34 seconds.
What say you, JT?
Comments
19 Comments
Stephen Rees
Sep 11, 2015 at 12:18pm
I could not complete the Grouse Grind, nor do I intend to try. I have a heart condition, and would certainly faint fairly early in the climb. But that does not mean I am unfit to hold public office, nor should it debar me from running for office. The assumptions in this article seem to me to be ableist.
James Blatchford
Sep 11, 2015 at 2:13pm
Unfair!....Trudeau has had much more practice. He regularly took a hike from question period as I recall.
Humphrey
Sep 11, 2015 at 6:14pm
Come on!! he's not only fit he Is Just'n True
Chloe
Sep 11, 2015 at 6:31pm
Challenging on the Gross Grind isn't a powerful argument to get credit for elections. His opponents won't even care about that unrelated challenge
Hcheryl McGregor
Sep 11, 2015 at 8:35pm
You've got to be kidding. Is this La Lapine? Beaverton?
Don't Mislead
Sep 11, 2015 at 9:44pm
The question at the beginning begs the inference that Trudeau made a silly challenge to decide the election. He did no such thing; he merely challenged them to do the grind.
Foxer
Sep 11, 2015 at 9:58pm
Well - that is now the silliest thing i've heard in this campaign from anyone. And it was up against some pretty stiff competition.
I'm sorry but "we'll see who the best leader is - drop and give me 20" is not a valid campaign position to take.
Stephen Hui
Sep 12, 2015 at 6:44am
Even better: the National Hiking Trail.
http://www.straight.com/life/402581/pacific-crest-trail-inspires-long-di...
Justin clearly remembers ...
Sep 12, 2015 at 8:32am
... the effect of this photo https://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2009/08/15/robert-stanfield-fumbles/
on his father's 1968 federal election campaign. Just imagine Harper and Mulcair trying to climb the Grind; flabby white legs, dorky shorts, the inevitable visit from North Shore Rescue.
Pirate
Sep 12, 2015 at 9:01am
Who the f**k cares which leader can hike faster? For the love of all that's good, it's not their physical fitness that matters! It's meaningless! Good lord.