It was all Léonce's doing. Ever since I met him, he'd been interested in public access to waterbodies, especially in urban areas. Anyplace he traveled around North America or Europe, he covered the waterfront. He praised cities like Chicago and Paris where people have free, direct access to the water. It's not enough to have some lovely vistas onto the lake or the river. If the water quality is safe, then people should be able to go swim in it and canoe on it. And not just if they own shoreline property. You should take a look at his article that appeared in Infobourg magazine.
So when he told me that he was forming the Société des Gens de Baignade in Quebec, and invited me for a ceremonial swim in the Bassin Louise off the St. Lawrence River, I said "I'm there!". I started training in an unheated outdoor pool so I wouldn't make a complete fool of myself next to the hardy Nordiques.