AVIATION, IMMIGRATION & LIFE ABROAD

For Richard Bethell life in Canada is all about the new. New food, new sports and frankly, a whole new way of life.

“It has been a dream in recent years for my family to immigrate to Canada and it was decided that this year would be the year and we chose Barrie as our home town,” said the aviation management student, whose family are in the process of emigrating from England. “I applied for a number of universities and colleges in Ontario and it was an easy decision to choose Georgian as it had the best course available for me.”

It has not taken long for the 19 year-old to settle into a sporting way of life in Barrie, as he is participating in two sports this fall, rugby and cross country, a rarity amongst most OCAA athletes.

Playing rugby since the age of six for his local team Sutton and Epsom, the quiet Brit climbed the rugby ranks, going on to play for his school Glyn Technology School, before playing more recently for Old Freemans RFC. There he played a key role in their season enroute to becoming league champions and posting an undefeated season.

Translating his rugby talents from across the pond to here has defiantly been an experience. “The OCAA league is a much more open, free running game of rugby which is good for the spectators,” dissected Bethell. “It is clear to tell those who have played together for more than a year.”

But his rugby coach thinks he has made the adjustment just fine.

“Richard is by far the most experienced player on the team,” states head coach Kevin Gillan. “Due to injuries, he was asked to play different positions and take on a leadership role, which he did with complete confidence, resulting in Richard gaining
the respect of his team mates and coaches.”

Making the adjustment to a new country and one sport is tough enough, but the newest Georgian Grizzlies also decided to run Cross Country this season as a rookie. “I ran when I was in the UK for a running group called Surrey Hash House Harriers. These running groups are based all over the world including Canada. We ran every Sunday all over Surrey, across various types of terrain,” he recalled. “Everyone who ran was called by a nickname decided on your running style or comical aspects that have happened while you ran and mine was Pinball Wizard.”

“In Cross country I have set myself a personal target that by the end of the season I will complete a race in under 30 minutes. My fastest cross country race so far has been 30:23.”

Balancing such a hectic schedule can be difficult. “Time management is essential. I tend to do my studies after or between classes where I do my review of the class, homework or revision. Cross country training runs from Monday-Thursday at 5-6pm in various locations near the college. Rugby training is mainly Tuesday and Thursday at 6-8pm. As well as this I go to the gym most days to workout as long as I am injury free,” ‘Pinball Wizard’ rhymes off.

Bethell is not the only one who has to balance his schedule. Practicing with two team’s means there has to be some give and take between his coaches as well.

“Actually, myself and his cross country coach worked well together to ensure
that we didn’t impact on each other’s program,” said Gillan. “Richard’s training with the
cross country team built his fitness level, so I only had to worry about
working with him on rugby skills and game preparation.”

“I see the two sports as complementary,” injects running coach Tony Podziemski. “Richard’s speed and cardio workouts with our Cross Country team make him stronger in both sports. We did have two conflicts in scheduling with the Rugby squad but resolved them without any bad blood. So luckily, it hasn’t been difficult.”

With a full practice schedule as an athlete, how does he make time for flying and why a career in aviation? “For a number of years the stories my granddad has told me about his career, starting in the RAF, flying jets and Concorde, has inspired me to study and learn about Aviation,” glows Bethell. “I have done work experience both in England and abroad. In England I worked for a magazine called Flight, and I worked at Dijon airport in France.

“Flying an airplane has been my hardest task (since arriving in Canada), especially trying to combat air sickness and keeping the plane in a straight line,” said Richard. “I was at an airport just outside Barrie learning to fly. The instructor took off and shortly after gave me controls and I performed various maneuvers before landing at midland airport then taking off and returning back to Barrie.”

With cross country running, rugby and school taking up a lot of his time, he has also had to adjust to some culture shocks as well. Including things many of us here in Canada take for granted.

“Halloween in Canada is a huge activity that everybody or most people participate in no matter how old you are. In England it is a bit of a small thing but is set out mainly for the youngsters and not many people go trick or treating at night. There are a lot more fast food restaurants, and some I haven’t had before such as Wendy’s,” said Richard. He has also been trying to adjust to different types of food as well. “In my short time over here I have experienced a lot of new tastes such as peroggies.”

As for the sporting cultures he has noticed differences there as well. “I have noticed the emphasis on winning in all games as even if the scores are level at the end of the game, overtime will be played to determine a winner. In England we play till the final whistle and if the scores are level the game will end as a draw.”

Living in the soon to be snow covered town of Barrie, Richard is also getting a real taste of Canadian life. “With my relatives playing ball hockey and the NHL season starting I have watched a lot of hockey, including the Barrie Colts playing at the Molson Centre. I have picked up the rules but still ask some questions. I only have intentions to learn, but not to play as I can’t skate yet, but I’m sure with Canadian winters I will learn.”

There may not be any hockey shootouts in his future, but Richard is defiantly taking full advantage of the college life and life here in Canada.