ATHLETE PROFILE
Choosing Joy How Marissa Dolotallas found the key ingredient to her outdoor adventures
words :: Allison Kennedy Davies
ML: Your love of water sports has translated into a passion and a career. When did that begin?
I remember the first time I met Marissa Dolotallas: She was paddleboarding along the Georgian Bay shoreline, with her trademark grin sparkling nearly as bright as the waters she was braving. Dolotallas moved to the area back in 2014 and has already made her mark as both an outdoor guide and an inspired community volunteer. Locally, she teaches paddleboarding, kayaking and yoga under the umbrella of her business, Rise and Shine Adventures. Further afield, she’s recently taken on roles with both Wild Women Expeditions and Adventure Canada. We sat down, fittingly, at the waterfront Memorial Park in Meaford (Dolotallas is the chair of the parks committee for the municipality) to discuss her recent adventures.
MD: I’ve always loved being in and on the water. It brings me a sense of peace and serenity. Again, it started with being in a boat or canoe and fishing with my dad. When I still lived in B.C., I got my own sit-on-top kayak. Later I joined a dragon boat team and became a co-captain. I learned to windsurf at Jericho Beach and that was my first time feeling an adrenaline rush on the water. While I was windsurfing in Hawaii, I saw a lone kiteboarder and knew I had to try it. I learned to surf while I was there, too. SUP entered the picture when I was living in Toronto and didn’t have a car to chase the wind for kiteboarding.
ML: When did your love of the outdoors begin?
ML: Many of your guiding adventures focus on helping women explore and enjoy the outdoors. What’s so satisfying about that?
MD: At an early age. Mainly from fishing with my dad— whether it was casting from a beach, on a river or from his canoe. We would dig up sea worms for bait. We took lots of family road trips and camping trips. I also loved sports growing up. From volleyball to soccer, grass hockey, badminton, track and field. We made our own Stanley Cup out of ice cream buckets wrapped in tin foil! I graduated high school as the top female athlete and that journey continues today.
MD: I’ve met so many women through Women on the Water and they are all in different stages of their life and their careers—some widowed, some divorced, some about to retire. They are all looking to do something new. I’ve found that when they are learning to kayak or learning to SUP or canoe, it’s like a gift to themselves—to try and do something new and gain a sense of achievement—to find their power.
LEFT
ALLISON KENNEDY DAVIES. RIGHT
SUPPLIED BY MARISSA DOLOTALLAS.
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