On Day Three of the Olympic torch relay, surfers in this laid-back West Coast community pulled off a spectacular stunt that will be hard to top anywhere along the remaining 45,000 or so kilometres across the country.

As high, cresting waves pounded ashore on the spectacular expanse of hard sand known as Long Beach, 72-year-old torchbearer Ruth Sadler waded waist-high into the rolling surf, holding her torch high into the wind.
From further out, torchbearer Raphael Bruhwiler drifted in, riding a wave on his big blue surfboard. Their torches touched, and magically, Mr. Bruhwiler's burst into flame.

He then waited for a second wave to carry him into shore with his torch, its large orange flame a bright beacon against the fading, late afternoon light shrouding one of the country's wildest, most scenic outposts.

Shivering into the bitter wind, while trying to dodge the advancing tide, several hundred onlookers burst into cheers and whoops, as Mr. Bruhwiler advanced towards them.

Despite a feat, in unpredictable conditions, worthy of early Cirque du Soleil, the 34-year-old Tofino native maintained his surfer cool. "There was a lot of current out there. I'd give it eight out of 10. I used to ride my little daughter in on the board, so I'm used to this kind of thing."

Almost unnoticed was Ms. Sadler, his accomplice - widow, mother of three, grandmother of eight, and part of the surfing community here since she first arrived with her husband Jim in the 1960s.

Despite her years, she remains an active boogie-boarder. "I guess I'm the oldest one around, but I don't see any reason to stop. It's still fun."
Surrounded by family after her lonely wade into the surf, black wetsuit prominent under her official white torch uniform, Ms. Sadler couldn't stop smiling.

She did it, she said, in memory of her late, surfing husband, who died three years ago. "I just knew he'd be cheering me on, I did it for Jim."

Earlier, the Olympic torch showed its proven capacity to raise spirits with a stop in gritty, recession-ravaged Port Alberni.

Not so long ago, this mill town 115 kilometres east of here was one of Canada's richest. The many skilled tradesmen in its pulp and lumber operations regularly pulled in over a $100,000 per year.

Mayor Ken McRae, 69, was one of them. For 38 years, he worked at the large pulp paper mill on the waterfront. Now, he's presiding over a community that has been bleeding jobs, as mills close, businesses go bust and people leave.

"We have our challenges, let's put it that way," Mr. McRae said. "Ten years ago, we had 10,000 kids in our schools. Now, we're down to 4,000."
So the Olympic torch's detour through Port Alberni is important, he pointed out. "It's a real positive event for our community. And right now, anything positive is good."

At least for a morning, the gloom hanging over Port Alberni seemed to lift. Several thousand residents gathered in the damp, chilly air at the local high school football stadium to give a rapturous welcome to the torch, carried in by the town's local hero, Olympic wrestler Travis Cross.

Locals had raised tens of thousands of dollars to enable Mr. Cross to take time off from his firefighting job and compete at last summer's Olympics in Beijing.

Mr. Cross confessed to shedding a few tears on his way in. The experience, he said, was unforgettable.

"Just being in front of my home community ... it's beyond words. Seeing my family, all the children, everyone cheering and waving. This is a moment I will cherish in my heart for the rest of my life."

Nearby, Theresa Franks, whose 13-year old son, Bryon, also carried the torch, said times are tough in town. Her husband, after 20 years at his sawmill, has had only three weeks work all year.

Yet the day was still special, Ms. Franks said. "This event is pretty big. At least for a while, it gets your mind off the mundane and the bills piling up at home."