THE CANADIAN PRESS
Jesse Lumsden got the better of the Mantracker.
The former CFL star and Canadian Olympic blobsled team member emerged victorious on the reality show Mantracker. The episode featuring Lumsden and fellow bobsledder Justin Kripps teaming up together aired Sunday night on Outdoor Life Network (OLN).
"I can’t believe it, it’s almost too good to be true," Lumsden lamented after reaching the finish line. "I beat the trackers."
But Lumsden had to do it alone. He and Kripps were separated late in the chase, forcing them to attempt to find the finish line alone.
"I can’t do anything to help Justin," Lumsden says. "He’s got two on one but I still like the odds.
"He’s going to make it, I’ll meet him there."
However, while Lumsden was able to successfully sprint to the final destination point, the odds eventually caught up to Kripps, who competed despite a nagging hamstring injury. Waist-deep in water and his legs stuck deep in mud, he was forced to accept capture at the hands of the Mantracker, show host Terry Grant, just 112 metres from the finish line.
"I literally couldn’t move my legs," Kripps said on the episode. "So close."
Moments earlier, Kripps avoided capture as Grant was unable to use his lasso to catch the sprinting athlete.
The hour-long program features expert tracker Grant pursuing two contestants in the remote North American wilderness. Those being tracked are called "prey" and must deal with dense brush and ever-changing weather conditions while avoiding being caught by Grant and a sidekick, in this case show veteran Phil Lemieux, on horseback.
The prey is given only a map and compass to navigate to a finish line anywhere between 35 and 50 kilometres away, usually within a 36-hour span. They have to carry the gear they feel they’ll need to complete the competition and are given a two-kilometre head start.
When Lumsden and Kripps were separated, their plight was further complicated by Lumsden being in possession of the map while Kripps had the compass.
Lumsden and Kripps, a 23-year-old Hawaii native now living in Summerland, B.C., weren’t the first athletes featured on the show. Olympic freestyle skiers Steve Omischl and Jeff Bean also went up against Grant, as did Phoenix Coyotes star Shane Doan and his brother, Brook.
In both instances, the athletes emerged victorious. And that fact wasn’t lost on Grant, who after catching Kripps claimed a moral victory in that at least he didn’t come up empty-handed this time against two Olympic athletes.
This segment was shot in September 2010 just outside of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. It was done less than two weeks before Lumsden signed with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury with Edmonton to open the ’09 season.
The six-foot-three, 228-pound Lumsden retired from football in May to concentrate full-time on his bobsled career and competing for Canada at the 2014 Winter Games.
Lumsden and Kripps had only two weeks to prepare for Mantracker and that included brushing up on the fine points of orienteering and being able to use a map and compass effectively.
The two-day chase featured a number of close calls for the Olympians, who survived many ambush attempts by the trackers and even sought refuge in an abandoned copper mine. It was the perfect opportunity for Lumsden to use a set of night-vision goggles given to him by a friend specifically for the show.
