At age 95, competitive paddler Mike Fremont continues to hit the water three times a week

CINCINNATI -- It's 7:15 a.m. when Glendale resident Mike Fremont arrives to stage his canoe near Winton Woods Lake. While many people are just waking, he and other members of his ambitious group take to the water every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to competitively paddle three miles. Their level of commitment is especially impressive given the group's demographics: They're the Elderly Paddlers Association (EPA), and Mike Fremont is 95.

"The group itself is rigidly unstructured," Fremont said. "We don't have meetings, we don't have minutes and we don't have rules."

Earlier in the month, 10 members of the EPA participated in the 2017 USCA National Marathon Championshipsin Dubuque, Iowa. In their age groups of 55 and older, members took home a first-, second- and third-place medal for their respective races. This came on the heels of five medals the group took home for statewide competition. Fremont said he was especially proud of their performance in Dubuque despite hazardous waves created by boat traffic on the Mississippi.

"It was the perfect day, cool and sunny – that's what brought all the speed boats out," he said. "Everyone was really pleased with the results. They had no idea how they'd do on the national scene."

The group's strong finish isn't surprising, said Paddlefest founder and paddling enthusiast Brewster Rhoads. People often think 20-something folks will dominate competitions, but the more seasoned racers tend to prevail, he said.

"It's a wonderful sport at any age," he said. "What's amazing to me is the people who are among the best long-distance canoe racers are folks well over 60."

While this marks the first national event for many in the EPA, Fremont is a seasoned veteran. He holds numerous national and world records for the sport, including the 70-mile General Clinton Canoe Regatta in 2009, where he broke his own record this year as the oldest competitor to complete the race. Fremont said his passion for paddling began in 1962 when a friend suggested he participate in a canoe race. At 40, he felt a bit old to be taking up a sport but selected a partner and headed to the Little Miami River to practice.

"When we got in the Little Miami Canoe Race, which was in 1963, we came in fourth out of 90-something canoes, and that ruined our lives because we thought we were good," Fremont said. "The next year, we practiced all winter practically until the ice was too thick and in 1964 the two of us won that race. We came in No. 1. And that did ruin us, because from then on we just paddled canoes."

Catching up with Fremont can be a challenge; when he's not in the water, he's out running 10 or more miles. In addition to canoeing, he also holds national and world records for marathons and half-marathons in various age divisions over 80. He never considered himself much of an athlete but did wrestle in college while attending Yale. He began running at 36 after losing his wife to a brain hemorrhage two weeks after the birth of their third child.

"I lived in a place where I could run," he said. "So I decided to run every day instead of having a couple of martinis every evening, and it worked."

At 72, Fremont was diagnosed with advanced colorectal cancer and given three months to live without treatment. Instead of going the chemotherapy route, he took the advice of his son and radically changed his diet to vegan, eliminating animal proteins. He credits that action with saving his life. Within a year, metastasized tumors had disappeared and the primary tumor became inactive.

Skeptics often question how, as an athlete, he can retain muscle and energy without protein from meat.

"I ask them where do elephants get theirs?" he said. "They're big and tough, they're smart and they live a long time. They get all the protein they need out of green stuff."

EPA member Greg Bechtel said he changed his diet to vegan when he and Fremont teamed up to compete in the General Clinton Canoe Regatta earlier this year in New York. At 55, Bechtel said, the pressure was on to keep up with Fremont.

"Halfway down a 70-mile race, I didn't want a 95-year-old having me tell him, 'I'm tired. I can't go on,' and have him tell me I'm not eating right," he said. "It was a very, very memorable day. It's just an honor to be with him. I got the best seat in the house for the whole race: I got to watch him. I had trouble remembering he was 95 most of the time."

Bob Sadosky, 82 and also vegan, leads the EPA as the Temporary Acting Provisional Interim Orchestrator Coalition Activities (TAPIOCA). He and Fremont started racing on Winton Woods Lake more than 17 years ago. The group now boasts men and women ranging in age from their early 50s to 95.

"Originally it was just the two of us, for years," he said. "So we've really come a long way."

But Fremont's accomplishments can also be seen in the clean waterways locally and nationally Rhoads said. In addition to starting what's now called the Mill Creek Watershed Council, Fremont started Rivers Unlimited in 1972, which became the national organization today known as American Rivers.

"The thing about Mike is not only does he excel in the athletic scene, he's inspirational to others to actually do work that makes a difference when it comes to the quality of the environment and waterways," Rhoads said.

Fremont credits his passion for cleaning America's waterways to his mechanic, an avid fisherman who in the early '70s suggested he take a closer look at the river he and his fellow paddlers practiced on.

"He said, 'If you get out of your dang canoe long enough … you might want to do something about it," Fremont said.

It's difficult to find a local project advocating canoeing or waterway cleanup not in some way associated with Fremont. For his role in helping bring Paddlefest to the Tri-State, he earned the honorary title of commodore. At this year's event, Rhoads said, Fremont lapped the other paddlers along with his partner both on and off the water – his wife of more than 25 years, Marilyn Wall.

"A lot of the people stop at the halfway stop. Mike and Marilyn didn't," Rhoads said. "They were paddling in this massive crowd of people and then, boom, they had the whole river to themselves."

As for what's next for Fremont, he joked that he tends to take it day by day.

"People my age don't make arrangements too far in advance," he said. "At my age, you don't buy green bananas, if you know what I mean."

Brewster Rhoads' tips to start paddling

* Before buying a kayak, visit retailers to test paddle boats.

"Local retailers will often have demo days several times a year where they will take a bunch of their boats to a lake and invite people to come for free and test paddle boats."

* Sign up with and join one of the two paddling clubs in town.

"Borrow boats from friends or go with people you know or people from clubs who would be willing to take you out on the water and show you how to do it at local rivers and streams."

* Just get out there and do it.

"Nothing beats setting up a regular schedule saying, 'I'm going to paddle every Friday' or 'I'm going to paddle twice a month and I'm going to try different places out,' and then invite your friends to go with you."