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#OurAthletes: Ben Hayward wraps up 2nd ICF World Cup event

Follow slalom kayaker Ben Hayward's training and trip across Europe as he prepares for the 2015 Pan Am Games, which take place next month in Toronto.

Hayward is teaming up with CBC's #OurAthletes to give an insider's view leading up to the Pan Am Games

Caitlin Hanson · CBC News ·

Ben Hayward

10 years ago
Duration 3:56
It's crunch time for 24-year-old Ben Hayward. In just a few weeks, he'll be competing in the kayaking events at the Pan Am Games. Part of his training has taken him back and forth from Minden - about two hours northeast of Toronto. All that travel can be pricey for an amateur athlete. But Hayward has come up with an unusual way to keep costs down. Videographer Paul Borkwood caught up with him, in between training sessions.

It's been a busy few weeks and a whirlwind trip across Europe for Edmonton's Ben Hayward.

Hayward, a slalom kayaker, is currently in the thick of the International Canoe Federation (ICF) Worlds season and also prepping for July's Pan Am Games in Toronto, in which he'll be competing in two events: slalom kayak and doubles canoe.

In the past few weeks, he's travelled from Guelph, Ont., to London, England, then to Prague and Krakow — and has no plans to settle in any one spot soon.

Throughout it all, Hayward has been posting regular dispatches from the road and river as part of CBC's #OurAthletes feature.

Life in 'the Hobbit Van'

Because most of the ICF races take place in rivers across Europe, Hayward spends most of his time overseas.

In order to cut down on expenses, he and a friend built "the Hobbit Van," a customized caravan that he uses to travel from race to race.

The van has a kitchen, which Hayward uses every day to create some of the 4,000 to 5,000 calories of food he consumes daily, along with his daily cups of coffee (prepared creatively).

Sometimes he even uses the van to transport boats for his teammates and competitors to help cover gas costs.

"Now that I have my Hobbit Van accommodation plan, I'm spending closer to 10 months out of the year," Hayward says of his four-wheeled home away from home.

His usual travel companion is also his partner in the doubles canoe event: Cameron Smedley. The two will compete in the event at the Pan Am Games in July in addition to Hayward's solo slalom kayaking events.

"I think we've got a good shot in both," Hayward says.

If they win, Canada will secure spots in both events in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Hayward won't know whether he's filling one, or both, of those spots until next spring, however.

In the meantime, Hayward's focus is on the five ICF World Cup races scheduled for the summer.

He's already raced in Prague where he made it to the semi-finals.

On Friday, he raced in World Cup 2 in Krakow fuelling up beforehand with a large bowl of perogies.

Next up, Hayward will head to Slovakia for World Cup 3. 

Follow's Hayward's progress:

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