PROFILE
Ottawa’s Rudy Hollywood
never stops trying
BY ANNE DUGGAN
IT’S a laTe Fall evening and the original architects of ottawa triathlete
AILEY
of fitness after years of hockey and busy
B
rudy Hollywood’s website are meeting to discuss a recent blow to the
ON
family life, rudy joined a session of aerobics
/R
Trirudy nation. The use of hidden identities to broadcast not-so-hidden
classes that ended with a run on the .C
OM
last day.
T
O
agendas in Hollywood’s daily e-mail to ottawa area athletes contradicts
the fair play nature of his intended message.
“That first run just totalled me,” admits
rudy who has since completed too many
T
OCKPHO
Y

IS
It is a crisis that will have to be dealt threatening the happy place of the Trirudy triathlons to count. His solution was to join

B
T
O
with, but for now Hollywood wants to world. “There have been bumps and hiccups up for another session of aerobics and then
P
HO
focus on the thing that makes him so in but this is disturbing,” Jamie admits. participate in his first Terry Fox run with
demand, his enthusiastic nurturing of Since September, two public incidents his two then school-aged sons, Brandon
local triathletes. have resulted in false and potentially and rustin.
“Done your training today? How did it inflammatory information being sent out The next challenge cooked up by rudy
go? what race is up next?” to Trirudy readers. each time, according and Dr. Bob Peace, his new training buddy
Those three questions posed to fellow to those members directly involved, at that time, was the national Capital
triathlete and Trirudy insider Jamie the submissions were made by people marathon. “we’d done the 10 km and we
Stevenson form the mantra rudy repeats
each day to the local sports world in his “We’d done the 10 km and we were ready. We gave
e-mails. rudy’s first official e-mail was
issued back in June 2001, shortly after
ourselves a year to prepare. There was no Running
retiring from a long career as a lab tech
Room then. We just did our own thing,”
with Health Canada. In seven short years,
the number of e-mail addresses on his electronically concealed behind fake e-mail were ready. we gave ourselves a year to
distribution list has soared from 50 to just addresses. an embarrassing tirade against prepare. There was no running room then.
shy of 6,000. along with his daily formula of motorists using gatineau Park roads to we just did our own thing,” he remembers.
a joke and a motivational quote, the e-mail view fall colours threatened relations with It took rudy less than a year to complicate
includes questions and answers from other the national Capital Commission and a this goal with the Dr. Don Johnston award,
athletes covering everything from finding well-known triathlete coach’s good name. a precursor to what is now known as the
the perfect wetsuit to ads for used sports Incorrect information regarding fees for much-coveted Trirudy award. “my wife
equipment. masters nordic ski programs offered by the Joan came home with this pamphlet for the
“I look at it like a newspaper. you read City of ottawa and nakkertok was supplied award. all you had to do was participate
it in the morning or at coffee break and by a person who changed the spelling of in four major events: the national Capital
then throw it out. I like to have it delivered her name with each submission. electronic marathon – we were already doing that
early in the morning,” explains rudy, 62, warfare is a long way from rudy’s first one – the great Canadian Ski marathon,
who spends two hours each evening simple steps as a triathlete. the lièvre Canoe trip and the rideau lakes
and another in the morning producing his Cycling Tour, which is a two-day trip. How
newsy bulletin. RUDY’S BEGINNING hard could that be?”
Stevenson automatically answers rudy’s The making of rudy Hollywood the a few years after first receiving this
question, never altering the seriousness triathlete began in the 1970s with an award, at a ceremony in Dr. Don Johnston’s
of his expression; electronic fraud is aerobics class. unhappy with his level living room, the make-up of the award
36 OTTAWA >> WINTER 2008/2009 www.OttawaOutdoors.ca
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