Zdeno Chara is Quite the Boatswain; Who Knew?
International crowds gather to watch @NHLBruins' Zdeno Chára take some shots. #InAbuDhabi #goazzam #VORNewport pic.twitter.com/jrGaEHo9vl
— AbuDhabiOceanRacing (@ADORlog) May 16, 2015
Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara is spending his off-season a tad less sullenly than he did in 2013, forgoing a trip to Canobie Lake Park in favor of the Volvo Ocean Race in Newport, Rhode Island. Besides possessing the fastest slapshot ever recorded and striking crippling fear into the hearts of lesser men, Chara’s myriad talents include speaking seven languages, selling real estate, and as we learned Saturday, boating.
Chara, 38, was the celebrity guest aboard the Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing Team’s yacht Azzam for an in-port race. “It will be great to have a fearsome competitor like Zdeno sail with us,” UAE Olympian Adil Khalid said in a release prior to the race. “I don’t have much experience on ice, but I’m hoping we can get him to show us his hardest shot technique before we race.”
Chara took some shots on the docks, but thankfully not into the water, a la Cosmo Kramer.
Zdeno Chára, @ADORSkipper and @Adil_sailing are all smiles before the In-Port Race #InAbuDhabi #goazzam #VORNewport pic.twitter.com/PQTVlPI8lc
— AbuDhabiOceanRacing (@ADORlog) May 16, 2015
Big Zee greets the crowd in Newport prior to the race with @ADORlog. #goazzam #inabudhabi pic.twitter.com/E7vxlUrdiZ
— x – Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 16, 2015
https://twitter.com/TonerGenerators/status/599928001816473600
“Obviously I didn’t hesitate. It’s something that I haven’t done in my life,” Chara told WLNE-TV’s Nick Coit. “I’m going to see how it’s all going to be played out, how it’s organized, and how the team works, and the crew, how they have to work together…I hope they give me the least responsible job out there so I don’t mess up.”
All “You’re going to need a bigger boat” jokes aside, Chara looks positively massive aboard the Azzam.
via WLNE-TV
Abu Dhabi is currently leading the Volvo Ocean Race, which began October 11 in Alicante, Spain. The race will span four oceans and 45,000 miles before before it concludes in Gothenburg, Sweden in June.
