A University of Guelph coach and former Canadian Football League star will compete in The Amazing Race Canada.
Neil Lumsden, U of G’s assistant football coach (running backs) and a CFL Hall of Famer, will be on Season 3 of the reality show with his 31-year-old daughter Kristin. They will be up against teams from across Canada, vying for a prize package that includes $250,000.
The Amazing Race Canada premieres July 8 at 9 p.m. on CTV.
Lumsden was a renowned University of Ottawa running back, punter and kicker. In the CFL, he won three Grey Cups with the Edmonton Eskimos and also played for the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He has coached with the Gryphons for five seasons.
But Lumsden said playing university and professional football was nothing like the experience of competing in the Amazing Race.
“It’s very unique, and the only thing you can expect is the unexpected,” he said.
“They drop you in different places and present you with different scenarios, and they challenge you. The only thing I took from my playing career and my time as a Gryphon football coach is that when things don’t go your way, you don’t get rattled. You focus and try to maintain your composure.”
At age 62, Lumsden is the senior competitor this season. He said the race pushed him past what he thought was possible.
“The race took its toll on everyone, including me, because I was the oldest person in it. You really have to step outside of your comfort zone in experiences such as this if you want to be successful,” he said.
Kristin Lumsden had applied to be on the show the first two seasons but was not selected. Last year, when she was thinking about trying again, she asked her father to be part of her team.
“You do what you can to help your kids, and I was a fan of the show, so I was up for it,” he said.
“It’s quite the process you go through, and you have to put together an application package and a video. I always had a good feeling that we would be selected, but you never know.”
The race took place throughout May. All of the contestants were sworn to secrecy. Lumsden even had to pass up a reunion with his former Gee-Gees teammates who were being inducted into the Ottawa Sport Hall of Fame.
“I can’t say now how we did, but I will say that I’m very proud of my daughter and of how we competed,” said Lumsden.
“It was a great experience. You take the whole race and roll it up into one memory that you will look back on and be glad that you were a part of.”