Winnipegger struggled to stay mum about Amazing win By: Jen Zoratti Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Wednesday, Sep. 21, 2022

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This article was published 20/09/2022 (729 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They took planes, trains and automobiles across 20,000 kilometres and 24 cities from coast to coast. They solved brain-teasing puzzles and completed challenges that put their strength and endurance to the test. She jumped out of a helicopter. He did an obstacle course — on roller skates.

But one of the biggest challenges facing Catherine Wreford Ledlow and Craig Ramsay actually came after filming for The Amazing Race Canada wrapped: keeping the fact they won it all a secret.

Wreford Ledlow, a Winnipeg-based dancer, actor and singer, and Ramsay, her best friend of 25 years as well as a fellow actor and Broadway performer, were officially crowned the Season 8 champs of the Canadian reality game show, in which 10 teams race across the country and are put through their paces in the process, on Tuesday night’s finale.

Winners receive a bunch of prizes, including $250,000 and two Chevrolet Silverado ZR2s.

“I just pretended that we didn’t win,” Wreford Ledlow says over the phone. “I would say like, ‘Yeah, when we got eliminated, we had to…”

“And I escaped to Palm Springs,” Ramsay adds. “I’m back and forth between Palm Springs and southern Ontario. And there, I was able to stay isolated and not have to talk, which was the best option for me.”

Competing in the race together with her dearest friend was a thrill for Wreford Ledlow, 42, who knows a thing or two about rising to a challenge. In 2013, she was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and was given a prognosis of two to six years. She underwent an awake craniotomy in July of that year; nine years later — to the day, as it happens — Season 8 of The Amazing Race Canada premièred.

That was why she wanted to do the race: to be an example, to her children especially, that life doesn’t need to be limited by a diagnosis.

“She overcomes any obstacle that’s thrown at her,” says Ramsay, 45, of his longtime pal. “She’s a medical miracle and the legacy of Catherine Wreford Ledlow will continue on.”

Filming a pandemic-era reality show also comes with other unique obstacles. Wreford Ledlow and Ramsay were one of three teams who ended up testing positive for COVID-19 during the race, and had to temporarily bow out — which was cause for alarm for the members of Team Catherine and Craig, who offered them an outpouring of heartfelt support on social media, Ramsay says.

But the pair were given the opportunity to return to the race.

“It was a struggle,” Ramsay says. “It was a struggle back from the bottom of the ladder with leg six. And also, we had COVID. We were responsible, and we had our vaccines, we had mild COVID — but, as anyone who’s had it will tell you, there’s a recovery. I wouldn’t want that for any other racers.”

Wreford Ledlow and Ramsay met as students at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School — education, Ramsay says, that came in handy for the race.

“It’s not just about plié or turn out,” Ramsay says. “The stamina and strength you need to tackle ballet helped us tackle the race. You have to be smart. You have to draw on physical, mental, emotional strength.

“Ballet performers are capable of anything, and we brought that to every challenge.”

While winning is icing on the cake, being able to spend so much time together was already a win in Wreford Ledlow’s book. For Ramsay, it was seeing his friend tick off some bucket-list items, such as soaring through the sky in a biplane. “That’s what she wanted out of the whole race experience, was to be up there and feel the wind in her short hair,” Ramsay says, which makes her laugh. “She got that opportunity.”

Wreford Ledlow says she felt better than ever during the race.

“Every night I would sit down with Craig and I’d say, ‘OK, tell me what I can do better. What what do I need to do? How can I respond to that better?’ and he would tell me; I’d write it all down,” she says. “I got to sort of rewire my brain to be able to accomplish that. The functionality of my brain went higher than I’ve ever seen it go. I felt really good.”

jen.zoratti@winnipegfreepress.com

Twitter: @JenZoratti