Got into Montreal last night after some challenging times around Trois Rivieres.
But there it is- a complete journey.
Still hard to believe.
Thank you for reading about my trip- it really meant a lot, knowing how intersted people were.
I just biked across the country!
Cheers
Mikey
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Quebec City Rest - 2 Days Left
Biking Solo has really grown on me!
I'll take a quick walk through the last few days.
1) Moncton-Jemseg
This was by far the toughest day. It was crazy hot- like 37 degrees, the wind was in my face, and there was a pass of over 70km with NOTHING (no place to fill up water, get food, find a nice place for a break). So that sucked. Also, it was weird being alone...I was used to having the boys around. That night I stayed in a backyard in Jemseg, NB.
Funny story- when I asked Jim to stay in his backyard, he asked to see I.D before he said yes. I presented my good old Ontario drivers license, and I was clear to camp. Weird eh?
I felt kinda homesick that night, but a few phonecalls to my folks and meaghan made me feel better.
2) Jemseg-Southampton NB
I had good breakfast in the morning, and hit the 105- which turned out to be one of my favourite highways on the trip. The 105 ran right beside the St. John river...which was key for such a HOT day. That day I swam about 4 times, ate lunch in Fredericton, and stopped along the highway in a town called Southampton.
The house I stopped at belonged to Susan and Cliff- a couple with a beautiful property on the river. After I met Susan, I took my bike down toward the water to set up my tent. Cliff was down there, on the deck with his friend Wolfgang. The two were fishing and drinking a few beers when I met them. The welcomed me, and immediately asked if I was a strong swimmer (which was a bit odd...). I told them I was strong enough.
With that, they explained that they had just lost their boat's motor in the river, and they were wondering if i could try to find it for them. I agreed, as I thought it be a sweet adventure, and off we went down the river. Cliff and Wolfgang were great characters, but they didn't have the best memories, which meant that my general guidelines of where the motor 'could be' were pretty board. I dove to the bottom of the merky river about 10 times, found nothing. And in the process, I lost both of my contact lenses. But the boys apprecited my effort, despite my lack of results, and headed back to Cliff's place.
After I set up my tent and ate my can of beans, Cliff invited me up to the garage for a beer and some pickeled eggs. I went up, and was almost force fed 2 of Cliff's famous pickeled eggs (Wolfgang was a big fan).
Before he said his goodbyes, Wolfgang told me I was welcome to go to his place for breakfast. He the hopped onto his lawnmower, and drover home (which was directly next door).
3) Southampton-Grand Falls
In the morning I packed my things up, and went over to Wolfgang's for Breakfast. There, I was treated to a traditional German breakfast made by his wonderful wife. Over my eggs, meat, and strong coffee, Wolfgang explained to me why he moved from Germany to New Brunswick 6 years ago. He was a great storyteller. After breakfast I was offered a shower- which I greatefully accepted.
Before leaving, I thanked Cliff and Susan for letting me camp, they sent me off with a new can of beans and some snacks...both came in handy over the next few days.
Riding that day was great- I went over 165kms...and still had energy in my legs at the end of the day. But I ran out of light. So, I stayed in a town called Great Falls, NB.
It was supposed to storm all day, but I only got drizzeled on. so that was sweet. That night I fell asleep to a RAGING party at the Golden Age Hall next door. Who knew old people liked to party to Brian Adams Cover bands?
4) Grand Falls - Cambino
Over a stretch of 125km, I had to change my back tire 3 times. Not a great day!
But that night, I stated at a WICKED campground- only $12 for a site, unlimited swimming in a sweet pool, showers...the whole bit. That made me happy.
5) Cambino- _____________?
The highlight of this day was biking along the St.Lawrence river. It was incredible have such a beautiful view all day, and I was in the company of many other bikers. looks like bike tourism is big in this area.
After biking 1535 km, I slept on the grass of a football field along the highway. I'm still unsure of the name of the place I was in.
6) ________________?- Quebec City!
This was a pretty easy day, I woke up early and had 135km done by 5:30pm, which is pretty early. The highligh of the day was the ferry ride to Quebec from Levis.
7) Rest Day in Quebec
Now I'm at a hostel in Old Quebec city, and its great here. Tomorrow I will reach Trois Rivieres, and the day after, I will FINISH BIKING ACROSS CANADA, when I reach Brad's aunt's house just outside of Montreal.
Brad is meeting me there, and we are going to celebrate before we bike from Montreal to Ottawa on Sunday.
OVERALL-
Biking alone is a really cool experience. I'm almost glad it worked out this way truthfully!
I'll post again from MTL, and that will be the end of it.
cheers!!
Mikey
I'll take a quick walk through the last few days.
1) Moncton-Jemseg
This was by far the toughest day. It was crazy hot- like 37 degrees, the wind was in my face, and there was a pass of over 70km with NOTHING (no place to fill up water, get food, find a nice place for a break). So that sucked. Also, it was weird being alone...I was used to having the boys around. That night I stayed in a backyard in Jemseg, NB.
Funny story- when I asked Jim to stay in his backyard, he asked to see I.D before he said yes. I presented my good old Ontario drivers license, and I was clear to camp. Weird eh?
I felt kinda homesick that night, but a few phonecalls to my folks and meaghan made me feel better.
2) Jemseg-Southampton NB
I had good breakfast in the morning, and hit the 105- which turned out to be one of my favourite highways on the trip. The 105 ran right beside the St. John river...which was key for such a HOT day. That day I swam about 4 times, ate lunch in Fredericton, and stopped along the highway in a town called Southampton.
The house I stopped at belonged to Susan and Cliff- a couple with a beautiful property on the river. After I met Susan, I took my bike down toward the water to set up my tent. Cliff was down there, on the deck with his friend Wolfgang. The two were fishing and drinking a few beers when I met them. The welcomed me, and immediately asked if I was a strong swimmer (which was a bit odd...). I told them I was strong enough.
With that, they explained that they had just lost their boat's motor in the river, and they were wondering if i could try to find it for them. I agreed, as I thought it be a sweet adventure, and off we went down the river. Cliff and Wolfgang were great characters, but they didn't have the best memories, which meant that my general guidelines of where the motor 'could be' were pretty board. I dove to the bottom of the merky river about 10 times, found nothing. And in the process, I lost both of my contact lenses. But the boys apprecited my effort, despite my lack of results, and headed back to Cliff's place.
After I set up my tent and ate my can of beans, Cliff invited me up to the garage for a beer and some pickeled eggs. I went up, and was almost force fed 2 of Cliff's famous pickeled eggs (Wolfgang was a big fan).
Before he said his goodbyes, Wolfgang told me I was welcome to go to his place for breakfast. He the hopped onto his lawnmower, and drover home (which was directly next door).
3) Southampton-Grand Falls
In the morning I packed my things up, and went over to Wolfgang's for Breakfast. There, I was treated to a traditional German breakfast made by his wonderful wife. Over my eggs, meat, and strong coffee, Wolfgang explained to me why he moved from Germany to New Brunswick 6 years ago. He was a great storyteller. After breakfast I was offered a shower- which I greatefully accepted.
Before leaving, I thanked Cliff and Susan for letting me camp, they sent me off with a new can of beans and some snacks...both came in handy over the next few days.
Riding that day was great- I went over 165kms...and still had energy in my legs at the end of the day. But I ran out of light. So, I stayed in a town called Great Falls, NB.
It was supposed to storm all day, but I only got drizzeled on. so that was sweet. That night I fell asleep to a RAGING party at the Golden Age Hall next door. Who knew old people liked to party to Brian Adams Cover bands?
4) Grand Falls - Cambino
Over a stretch of 125km, I had to change my back tire 3 times. Not a great day!
But that night, I stated at a WICKED campground- only $12 for a site, unlimited swimming in a sweet pool, showers...the whole bit. That made me happy.
5) Cambino- _____________?
The highlight of this day was biking along the St.Lawrence river. It was incredible have such a beautiful view all day, and I was in the company of many other bikers. looks like bike tourism is big in this area.
After biking 1535 km, I slept on the grass of a football field along the highway. I'm still unsure of the name of the place I was in.
6) ________________?- Quebec City!
This was a pretty easy day, I woke up early and had 135km done by 5:30pm, which is pretty early. The highligh of the day was the ferry ride to Quebec from Levis.
7) Rest Day in Quebec
Now I'm at a hostel in Old Quebec city, and its great here. Tomorrow I will reach Trois Rivieres, and the day after, I will FINISH BIKING ACROSS CANADA, when I reach Brad's aunt's house just outside of Montreal.
Brad is meeting me there, and we are going to celebrate before we bike from Montreal to Ottawa on Sunday.
OVERALL-
Biking alone is a really cool experience. I'm almost glad it worked out this way truthfully!
I'll post again from MTL, and that will be the end of it.
cheers!!
Mikey
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
To be Continued...
So, I am back in Moncton!
Today I flew from Vancouver to Moncton, the rest of the boys flew into Toronto on a different flight.
Flying back into Moncton was kind of weird- just over 2 months ago I needed crutches to get around in that small airport...and going back was quite odd. But, it was also a good feeling, knowing that I can finally get this done with.
Truthfully, I'm not SUPER SUPER pumped for this part of the trip- but I do think it will be a neat experience. I have 10 days of alone time- guess I should have my life worked out pretty well when this is all done!
Right now I am at the C'mon Inn (get it?) hostel in Moncton. Its really nice here, kinda feels like I'm staying in a REALLY REALLY nice student house in Ottawa. Tomorrow I will walk my bike to the nearest bike shop (2km), because I forgot to grab the good pump from Rainer before I took off, and I can't pump my tires up totally with the back up pump we had. Oh well.
From there, my goal is to be in Ottawa by August 4th. Brad is meeting up with me in Montreal, and we are going to bike into Ottawa together. So that'll be sweet.
And oh yeah- my mustache is gone. It just wouldn't have been the same being a lone mustached man, so i shaved it off yesterday. haha.
cheers!
Mikey
Today I flew from Vancouver to Moncton, the rest of the boys flew into Toronto on a different flight.
Flying back into Moncton was kind of weird- just over 2 months ago I needed crutches to get around in that small airport...and going back was quite odd. But, it was also a good feeling, knowing that I can finally get this done with.
Truthfully, I'm not SUPER SUPER pumped for this part of the trip- but I do think it will be a neat experience. I have 10 days of alone time- guess I should have my life worked out pretty well when this is all done!
Right now I am at the C'mon Inn (get it?) hostel in Moncton. Its really nice here, kinda feels like I'm staying in a REALLY REALLY nice student house in Ottawa. Tomorrow I will walk my bike to the nearest bike shop (2km), because I forgot to grab the good pump from Rainer before I took off, and I can't pump my tires up totally with the back up pump we had. Oh well.
From there, my goal is to be in Ottawa by August 4th. Brad is meeting up with me in Montreal, and we are going to bike into Ottawa together. So that'll be sweet.
And oh yeah- my mustache is gone. It just wouldn't have been the same being a lone mustached man, so i shaved it off yesterday. haha.
cheers!
Mikey
Friday, July 20, 2007
CELEBRATORY MUSTACHES!
People ask us- now that you have biked across the country, what will you do next?
The answer- MUSTACHES!
The answer- MUSTACHES!
Photos
the group shot in Vancouver!
Dipping the Tire!
Our tents outside of Meritt.
View of the mountains
Me and Brad in the Tent.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
VANcity Today
So here we are.
30km away from the end of our trip!
The road from Calgary to here (my aunt's house in Port Coquitlam, BC) has been an incredible one. We have seen the mountains. We have camped in some beautiful places. We have met even more giving and incredible people.
Truthfully, I cannot remember each and everyone of our stops form Calgary to here at the moment- I will have to take a look at my journal and enter those in the next entry. But I will however, touch on some highlights.
1) Rogers's Pass
This was supposed to be the largest challenge of our trip- the steepest and longest climb in the mountains. Once we hit the pass, and I looked up the road which winded up and around the first portion of the mountain, I knew it would be a challenge. I would have to say that the hardest part was the heat- sweat poured off of my body the whole time. Luckily I was able to cool off a bit at creek of glacial water about half way up teh pass. Overall, it was a great feeling to conquor such a challenge- and my lunch of a burger and fries at the top tasted better than it should have for sure.
2) The Biker's Tan
After getting used to wearing my small biking shorts without anything over top, and after some shirtless days above 30 degrees, I have developed a sweet biker's tan. Basically, my back is crazy dark, along with the tops of my legs. Its a sight.
3) The Beauty of BC
After spending some time at my aunt's in Invermere, and after biking through places like Banff, Lake Lousie, Roger's Pass, Hope and many others...I think I have to give the prize to BC as Canada's most beautiful province. The mountains are incredible, the forests thick, and the lakes are amazing- especially if they are glacial fed.
4) "The Coq"
This pass was supposed to be the #2 to Rogers. People warned us of this gradual, but long uphill ride often. But we actually rode over the coquihalla without really knowing it- we had expected a larger challenge I guess.
But the best part was the downhill of the coquihalla. This was nuts, let me tell you. AND- we reached our highest of all speeds going down (mom, you probably don't want to know)...74km/h on our bikes. It was nuts, almost surreal. We were passing trucks in crazy videogame-like tunnels. That was definately a highlight.
5) Being "Done" the trip!
Eventhough I will bike the portion I missed during my knee injury, it is pretty amazing to be so close to done the trip. To think that we have covered over 6200km as a team is unbeliveable. But I think the most unbelievealbe part of it is how natural it all seemed to us. While there were some definate low points, the highs were just constant. For us, biking across the country has been nothing sort of a pleasure and a privilege. It is a trip I would recommend to anyone, and one I will never forget. What a journey.
30km away from the end of our trip!
The road from Calgary to here (my aunt's house in Port Coquitlam, BC) has been an incredible one. We have seen the mountains. We have camped in some beautiful places. We have met even more giving and incredible people.
Truthfully, I cannot remember each and everyone of our stops form Calgary to here at the moment- I will have to take a look at my journal and enter those in the next entry. But I will however, touch on some highlights.
1) Rogers's Pass
This was supposed to be the largest challenge of our trip- the steepest and longest climb in the mountains. Once we hit the pass, and I looked up the road which winded up and around the first portion of the mountain, I knew it would be a challenge. I would have to say that the hardest part was the heat- sweat poured off of my body the whole time. Luckily I was able to cool off a bit at creek of glacial water about half way up teh pass. Overall, it was a great feeling to conquor such a challenge- and my lunch of a burger and fries at the top tasted better than it should have for sure.
2) The Biker's Tan
After getting used to wearing my small biking shorts without anything over top, and after some shirtless days above 30 degrees, I have developed a sweet biker's tan. Basically, my back is crazy dark, along with the tops of my legs. Its a sight.
3) The Beauty of BC
After spending some time at my aunt's in Invermere, and after biking through places like Banff, Lake Lousie, Roger's Pass, Hope and many others...I think I have to give the prize to BC as Canada's most beautiful province. The mountains are incredible, the forests thick, and the lakes are amazing- especially if they are glacial fed.
4) "The Coq"
This pass was supposed to be the #2 to Rogers. People warned us of this gradual, but long uphill ride often. But we actually rode over the coquihalla without really knowing it- we had expected a larger challenge I guess.
But the best part was the downhill of the coquihalla. This was nuts, let me tell you. AND- we reached our highest of all speeds going down (mom, you probably don't want to know)...74km/h on our bikes. It was nuts, almost surreal. We were passing trucks in crazy videogame-like tunnels. That was definately a highlight.
5) Being "Done" the trip!
Eventhough I will bike the portion I missed during my knee injury, it is pretty amazing to be so close to done the trip. To think that we have covered over 6200km as a team is unbeliveable. But I think the most unbelievealbe part of it is how natural it all seemed to us. While there were some definate low points, the highs were just constant. For us, biking across the country has been nothing sort of a pleasure and a privilege. It is a trip I would recommend to anyone, and one I will never forget. What a journey.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Calgary!!!!!!!!!!
A sunset outside our tent
Welcome to Alberta where the players play.
Us with Jess- we will be seeing her again in VanCity!
Here we are with the Regina crew- minus Ben. They were a ton of fun.
CALGARY!
Here we are in Calgary after 5 TOUGH days of riding. Since leaving Regina, we have have encountered nothing but heat, head-wind and a slight (but very constant) uphill to deal with in the Praries.
We had a hard time leaving Regina- after Jess drove us to 3 different bike shops in the morning, we made a HUGE pasta lunch, packed, and THEN we were on our way (LATE). We rode 104 km that day to Basant SK, not a bad showing considering the time we left. That night we camped in a nice provincial park just outside of Moose Jaw.
Day 2, we had brutal headwind all day, but we still managed to get 176km under our belts, which landed us in the sprawling metropolis of Webb, SK. In Webb, we slept in a farmer's field, which had a wonderfully comfortable ground (really).
Day 3 we traveled to Walsh, AB which was just over the provincial border. A rider we ran into earlier that day told us that there was a great campground there. Turns out he was wrong. The camp ground was right beside the TransCanada, the bathrooms were dirty... but we did get a lot and a shower for $5 each. And what a shower it was. After days of being covered in sunblock, bug spray, sweat, and road grime, it was worth every cent.
Day 4 we rode to Brooks, AB. This day was a burner- over 40 degrees! On top of all that, we were riding through the DRYEST part of Canada- the southern Alberta bad lands. It was desolate- no trees, no green plants...it was just brown for hours and hours. And boy was it HOT. Like REALLY REALLY hot. But, we stayed nice and hydrated, and saved a good portion of our biking for the evening when it was cooler. We rode until it was dark...ate dinner at a Tim Hortons, and then camped on the back grass of the VICTORY CHURCH in Brooks. We found the name pretty funny.
Day 5 was an interesting one. In the morning we knew we would have a problem, as the rim on Brad's back wheel was cracked. This meant that his wheel could brake at any moment, and it needed to be fixed. Unfortunately, there we no bike shops in Brooks- so we had to ride on and hope for the best.
About 45km later, we stopped for lunch, and Brad's back rim bit the dust. It was pretty incredible actually...just as we realized that Brad couldn't bike anylonger- a man came up to check and make sure everything was ok.
After Brad explained his situation, the man (named Mike) immediately offered Brad a ride into Calgary- again showing us how amazing and selfless people can be. 5 minutes after we realized we had a serious issue, it was resolved.
So, with that we were back on the road- with a ton of kilometres to cover, and very little time. The 3 of us rode really quick, trying to get into Calgary befor the sun went down. We switched our lead every 10 minutes (usually we do 15min shifts), and boy were we fast.
I had two killer shifts in a row just before we finished the day- never going below 30km/h, even uphill. It was a wicked feeling- my legs were strong, and I found a perfect rhythm. I was amazed to find that I had that much power left in my legs after 5 days of intense biking into the wind. I guess this whole biking across the country thing really does get you into shape! haha.
Day 6 is the beginning of a little rest here in Calgary. Today we are going to relax at Chris' place- we are excited for the bachee ball tournament that is going on tonight in the backyard! Tomorrow we will have a full day at the Stampede- and I'm sure I will have a great amount to write after that!
All is well- we are healthy and happy. Today marks the beginning of the finale of our trip- we are over 80% done, and excited for all that is ahead of us (yes, we are excited for the mountains).
Cheers!
Mike
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Show and Tell
Prairies!
Here we are with Ainsley, our server at the Toad in the Hole Pub in Winnipeg.
This is us with Mike Sweeny- our great host in Kenora Ontario.
Monday, July 2, 2007
600km in 3 days= A Great Rest Day
So, remember how I said we wouldn't be able to reach Regina for Canada Day?
Well, we decided we could.
About 20km into our first day after Winnipeg, me and the boys started talking about how "fast" we were on prairie ground. One thing led to another, and we then decided to reach Regina for Canada Day (which 3 and 600km days away).
Our first day was 169km- we had a slight tail wind, and the roads were really flat. So, despite starting out at noon- we managed to fit in a great day.
Day 2 was our biggest day ever. We had a good tail wind, which was very important. I believe we covered 226km, we biked until it was too dark to go any longer- and we then camped in a farmers field. We set up our tent beside a small, abandoned barn. The ground was bumpy and uncomfortable but we didn't care. We just needed a place to crash.
About 6 hours of sleep later, day 3 started. We biked uphill (yes, the prairies can have an uphill) into a head/cross wind for most of the day. But, we still covered W over 210 km (I don't know the exact measurement) to get into Regina- and biked straight to the place we were staying at.
Brad's old roommate Jess had told us we could stay with her sister Katie and her boyfriend Ben, and gave us their address and phone number. Despite calling all day, couldn't reach them- and with that...we showed up at their house without them home.
However, a helpful neighbour gave them a call, and they we home about an hour later. The best part- Jess was in town as well!
We went to a party the night of Canada day, to celebrate our 600km in 3 days. We had a great time, and slept a ton that night.
Today, we woke up to a great breakfast which Jess prepared for us, and we headed to Ben's cabin about an hour away.
The cabin was great. I tried wakeboarding for the first time (finally!), and did a decent job, and boy did I love it. I can definitely see myself on a wakeboard again very soon. We all gave it a try. Brad cut his cheek a little bit on his go, but all was good nonetheless.
Tomorrow we will start our trek to Calgary for our Stampede experience. Looks like we will have 5 days of an average of 140km. It should be no problem as long as the wind is nice to us for the majority of those days.
As always, things are amazing. Our experiences just keep getting richer, and the people more generous.
-Mike
Well, we decided we could.
About 20km into our first day after Winnipeg, me and the boys started talking about how "fast" we were on prairie ground. One thing led to another, and we then decided to reach Regina for Canada Day (which 3 and 600km days away).
Our first day was 169km- we had a slight tail wind, and the roads were really flat. So, despite starting out at noon- we managed to fit in a great day.
Day 2 was our biggest day ever. We had a good tail wind, which was very important. I believe we covered 226km, we biked until it was too dark to go any longer- and we then camped in a farmers field. We set up our tent beside a small, abandoned barn. The ground was bumpy and uncomfortable but we didn't care. We just needed a place to crash.
About 6 hours of sleep later, day 3 started. We biked uphill (yes, the prairies can have an uphill) into a head/cross wind for most of the day. But, we still covered W over 210 km (I don't know the exact measurement) to get into Regina- and biked straight to the place we were staying at.
Brad's old roommate Jess had told us we could stay with her sister Katie and her boyfriend Ben, and gave us their address and phone number. Despite calling all day, couldn't reach them- and with that...we showed up at their house without them home.
However, a helpful neighbour gave them a call, and they we home about an hour later. The best part- Jess was in town as well!
We went to a party the night of Canada day, to celebrate our 600km in 3 days. We had a great time, and slept a ton that night.
Today, we woke up to a great breakfast which Jess prepared for us, and we headed to Ben's cabin about an hour away.
The cabin was great. I tried wakeboarding for the first time (finally!), and did a decent job, and boy did I love it. I can definitely see myself on a wakeboard again very soon. We all gave it a try. Brad cut his cheek a little bit on his go, but all was good nonetheless.
Tomorrow we will start our trek to Calgary for our Stampede experience. Looks like we will have 5 days of an average of 140km. It should be no problem as long as the wind is nice to us for the majority of those days.
As always, things are amazing. Our experiences just keep getting richer, and the people more generous.
-Mike
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Fun and Resting in Manitoba
Winnipeg is cool. I have come to that conclusion.
We are staying with amazing hosts (again) in the Sanders family. Mr Sanders is a social worker, and Mrs. Sanders works for CBC Winnipeg- and they have treated us like kings (again).
We got into Winnipeg yesterday, after battling our second day of bad head wind. The night before, we slept in McMunn Manitoba (just after we crossed the border out of Ontario!).
When we arrived at the Sanders' home, we were greeted with beers (Labatt Genuine dad!), each took a warm shower, and sat down for a great spaghetti dinner. After that, we headed downtown and spend the night a bar called the Toad in the Hole- it was great fun. I played a wicked video game called Buck Hunter, we had a few drinks, and our server Ainslin (spelling is wrong) gave us a shot of jagermeister on the house, and also brought TROUBLE (the 80's boardgame) to our table to keep the fun going.
Today we took our bikes in for some repairs, and headed downtown to buy tickets for a concert, explore the city and to tour the CBC headquarters with Mrs. Sanders.
The tickets we bought are for Girl Talk, an amazing DJ that Brad and I like a lot. The show is part of the Winnipeg jazz festival.
Our tour of downtown was brief, but fun nonetheless...but the best part was our tour of CBC. We got to sit in on the afternoon current affairs radio show- which was great to watch from the perspective of a communication student. And wouldn't you know- there was a hole to fill in the show...and we were asked to go on!
So, we spoke about our trip and CANFAR...it was a great experience that we all will remember. Hopefully our media exposure will help with the awareness of CANFAR, and of our ride.
Tomorrow we will be the start of 4 demanding days of riding, averaging around 150km per day. Turns out we won't be able to reach Regina for Canada day either- we will be arriving there on the 2nd of July. Ah well. You win some, you loose some.
I am really pumped for the concert tonight- hopefully I don't tire myself out too much!
I think the next time we will have acces to the net will be in Regina- so you can expect another update in about 5 days. Thanks again for reading!
-Mikey
We are staying with amazing hosts (again) in the Sanders family. Mr Sanders is a social worker, and Mrs. Sanders works for CBC Winnipeg- and they have treated us like kings (again).
We got into Winnipeg yesterday, after battling our second day of bad head wind. The night before, we slept in McMunn Manitoba (just after we crossed the border out of Ontario!).
When we arrived at the Sanders' home, we were greeted with beers (Labatt Genuine dad!), each took a warm shower, and sat down for a great spaghetti dinner. After that, we headed downtown and spend the night a bar called the Toad in the Hole- it was great fun. I played a wicked video game called Buck Hunter, we had a few drinks, and our server Ainslin (spelling is wrong) gave us a shot of jagermeister on the house, and also brought TROUBLE (the 80's boardgame) to our table to keep the fun going.
Today we took our bikes in for some repairs, and headed downtown to buy tickets for a concert, explore the city and to tour the CBC headquarters with Mrs. Sanders.
The tickets we bought are for Girl Talk, an amazing DJ that Brad and I like a lot. The show is part of the Winnipeg jazz festival.
Our tour of downtown was brief, but fun nonetheless...but the best part was our tour of CBC. We got to sit in on the afternoon current affairs radio show- which was great to watch from the perspective of a communication student. And wouldn't you know- there was a hole to fill in the show...and we were asked to go on!
So, we spoke about our trip and CANFAR...it was a great experience that we all will remember. Hopefully our media exposure will help with the awareness of CANFAR, and of our ride.
Tomorrow we will be the start of 4 demanding days of riding, averaging around 150km per day. Turns out we won't be able to reach Regina for Canada day either- we will be arriving there on the 2nd of July. Ah well. You win some, you loose some.
I am really pumped for the concert tonight- hopefully I don't tire myself out too much!
I think the next time we will have acces to the net will be in Regina- so you can expect another update in about 5 days. Thanks again for reading!
-Mikey
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Avoiding the rain in DRYden...(get it!?)
We are in Dryden, Ontario right now at the home of the wonderful Collins family. Mrs. Collins is friend with Alexandra Erikson's mom- who went out of her way to conact Mrs. Collins after treating us so well in Thunder Bay.
Some of you may have heard about the crazy weather that the prairies saw over the past few days- and I am glad to say that we have not seen any tornadoes here in North Western Ontario. Although the 400+km winds would be interesting to handle our our bikes.
Last night we slept in the garage of a beautiful couple in Ignace, Ontario. Bob and Pam treated us very well there, after we asked to set up our tents in their backyard during the beginning of a large downpour. They had us in for coffee, sandwiches and beans (our favourite), and also set up their garage for us to sleep in, so we didn't have to deal with the 7cm of rain that was supposed to fall that night!
PLUS- Bob made us an amazing breakfast of bacon, sausage and pancakes in the morning to send us on our way. Our ride today was great- 94km in 3h and 28 minutes- really really fast.
We were a pretty funny sight on the road today for most of the time- four guys on bikes with only our bike shorts on. That's a lot of skin for the Trans Canada highway. It's like we were traveling chip and dale dancers...haha!
Right now we are basically right between Thunder Bay and Winnipeg- and it feels great. Soon we will be out of Ontario, and we will even be able to celebrate Canada Day in Regina.
I met one of my trip goals today- I got to put around in a paddle boat! And let me tell ya, if you want to get around quickly in a paddle boat- you should ride halfway across Canada to train for it. Rainer and I FLEW out on the water today.
Tomorrow we have a pretty big day- about 150 km to Kenora Ontario. From Kenora, we have 2 days until Winnipeg (which means another OFF Day!!!).
Things are still going great- and we have been very lucky to avoid the terrible weather that has hit the area. Here's hoping that continues!
Cheers
Mikey
Some of you may have heard about the crazy weather that the prairies saw over the past few days- and I am glad to say that we have not seen any tornadoes here in North Western Ontario. Although the 400+km winds would be interesting to handle our our bikes.
Last night we slept in the garage of a beautiful couple in Ignace, Ontario. Bob and Pam treated us very well there, after we asked to set up our tents in their backyard during the beginning of a large downpour. They had us in for coffee, sandwiches and beans (our favourite), and also set up their garage for us to sleep in, so we didn't have to deal with the 7cm of rain that was supposed to fall that night!
PLUS- Bob made us an amazing breakfast of bacon, sausage and pancakes in the morning to send us on our way. Our ride today was great- 94km in 3h and 28 minutes- really really fast.
We were a pretty funny sight on the road today for most of the time- four guys on bikes with only our bike shorts on. That's a lot of skin for the Trans Canada highway. It's like we were traveling chip and dale dancers...haha!
Right now we are basically right between Thunder Bay and Winnipeg- and it feels great. Soon we will be out of Ontario, and we will even be able to celebrate Canada Day in Regina.
I met one of my trip goals today- I got to put around in a paddle boat! And let me tell ya, if you want to get around quickly in a paddle boat- you should ride halfway across Canada to train for it. Rainer and I FLEW out on the water today.
Tomorrow we have a pretty big day- about 150 km to Kenora Ontario. From Kenora, we have 2 days until Winnipeg (which means another OFF Day!!!).
Things are still going great- and we have been very lucky to avoid the terrible weather that has hit the area. Here's hoping that continues!
Cheers
Mikey
Thursday, June 21, 2007
8 days of THUNDER!
So here we are, in Thunder Bay at the end of our first rest day in 8 days.
here is a log of what we have done for the past while-
june 13- espanola to blind river, on - 96km
june 14- blind river to sault ste marie- 148km
june 15- sault ste marie - montreal river- 108km
june 16- montreal river- wawa - 119.8km
june 17- wawa to white lake prov. park- 138km
june 18- white lake prov. park- outside terrace bay- 95km
june 19- outside terrace bay- outside nipigon, on- 131.4
june 20- outside nipigon- thunder bay on 137km
so many highlights- i'll name a few to keep it brief.
1) the beauty of northern ontario
-lake superior is incredible. it's huge, its beautiful. if you haven't seen it, you have to come up here and check it out. the huge hills (mountains) and trees are breathtaking- at some points you feel like you could be anywhere in the world.
2) how generous people are (again).
-in sault ste marie, a family friend of adrian's put us up in a beautiful hotel for the night and had us over for an amazing dinner. a total stranger paid for our lunch one day out of the blue. alexandra and her family have treated us so well, and have given us a great day off in thunderbay.
3) hills are huge.
-we have gone up hills that have taken us 20 minutes to climb at 10km per hour. we are masters now, and are barely out of breath when we get to the top.
4) there ARE a lot of blackflies in northern ontario.
-they don't seem to want to bite us that much, but they love swarming us.
5) we are still having fun, and still like each other a lot.
it's true, the days can get long...and the tent small- but we are still loving every minute.
we will be in manitoba in less than a week, and our next rest day will be there.
it has been a great time in ontario, but we are excited to get out and see a new province. ontario is really big. check out a map- it really is really big.
enjoy the pictures, i wish i could put more up.
cheers!
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Our Days of Rest
We are still at Adrian's place on Manitoulin Island- enjoying the amazing scenery, living, and company.
I'll just update on the last few days we have had.
I haven't written a long update for a while- so please excuse me if I repeat some small details I mentioned before.
I'll go back to our time in Sturgeon- where we stayed with Christine.
We arrived in Sturgeon after biking about 136km, at about 8pm and we were greated by Christine...she was ready to take us to her nearby cottage for some much needed relaxation. Once we got there, we hung up our tents to dry from the rainy morning we had...went for a dip in the lake, and we were greated with a beer (the trend continues!).
Christine's mom cooked us an amazing dinner that night- a huge roast, pasta and the works. We all at more than we should ( I actually ate the least amount), watched a little television, and called it a night. Just as I was going to be though, I was hit with a crazy bad stomach ache...I still don't know what from. So, all night I was hurting. I didnt' get much sleep.
We agreed to sleep in, and leave late the next day. So we slept in a lot, ate a great breakfast and went back to Christine's house to use the internet at get our bikes ready for our bike to Sudbury. After checking our emails and updating our blogs a little bit, we went outside to get going.
But once outside, and all packed up- Christine's neighbour drove infront of her driveway and said "NO BIKING THIS AFTERNOON BOYS...there's a big storm in Sudbury...golf ball sized hail".
So, we decided to stay another night in Sturgeon. I cooked everyone's burgers for dinner on the BBQ at the cottage, and after we watched Crash- one of my favourite movies.
No stomach aches that night! We then woke up at 6am that morning and started our 165km ride to Espanola On, where Adrian's mom was to pick us up and bring us to their house on Manitoulin island. The ride was a long one, but fun. Brad stopped after 100km- his knee was acting up...so Adrian's mom picked him up in Sudbury.
The rest of us continued on...and eventually finished our 165km ride at about 8pm. LONG DAY, but it was a great feeling to finish such a great distance.
From there, we macked on some burgers from Wendy's, and headed for Adrian's house. I slept the whole way in the car, with my head being supported by Rainer and Brad's shoulders, depending on the way the van just turned.
We have been at Adrian's for a few days now- this is our 3rd. The highlights so far are Adrian's parents, his house powered entirely by solar and wind energy...and our sailing afternoon.
HERE IS A VIDEO OF US SAILING!!!! - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSACfJ98zgw
That's about all for now. We will be heading to Blind River On tomorrow, and after that I do not imagine that we will have access to the internet for a while, but we will do our best to keep in touch.
Thanks for reading, hope all is well!
I'll just update on the last few days we have had.
I haven't written a long update for a while- so please excuse me if I repeat some small details I mentioned before.
I'll go back to our time in Sturgeon- where we stayed with Christine.
We arrived in Sturgeon after biking about 136km, at about 8pm and we were greated by Christine...she was ready to take us to her nearby cottage for some much needed relaxation. Once we got there, we hung up our tents to dry from the rainy morning we had...went for a dip in the lake, and we were greated with a beer (the trend continues!).
Christine's mom cooked us an amazing dinner that night- a huge roast, pasta and the works. We all at more than we should ( I actually ate the least amount), watched a little television, and called it a night. Just as I was going to be though, I was hit with a crazy bad stomach ache...I still don't know what from. So, all night I was hurting. I didnt' get much sleep.
We agreed to sleep in, and leave late the next day. So we slept in a lot, ate a great breakfast and went back to Christine's house to use the internet at get our bikes ready for our bike to Sudbury. After checking our emails and updating our blogs a little bit, we went outside to get going.
But once outside, and all packed up- Christine's neighbour drove infront of her driveway and said "NO BIKING THIS AFTERNOON BOYS...there's a big storm in Sudbury...golf ball sized hail".
So, we decided to stay another night in Sturgeon. I cooked everyone's burgers for dinner on the BBQ at the cottage, and after we watched Crash- one of my favourite movies.
No stomach aches that night! We then woke up at 6am that morning and started our 165km ride to Espanola On, where Adrian's mom was to pick us up and bring us to their house on Manitoulin island. The ride was a long one, but fun. Brad stopped after 100km- his knee was acting up...so Adrian's mom picked him up in Sudbury.
The rest of us continued on...and eventually finished our 165km ride at about 8pm. LONG DAY, but it was a great feeling to finish such a great distance.
From there, we macked on some burgers from Wendy's, and headed for Adrian's house. I slept the whole way in the car, with my head being supported by Rainer and Brad's shoulders, depending on the way the van just turned.
We have been at Adrian's for a few days now- this is our 3rd. The highlights so far are Adrian's parents, his house powered entirely by solar and wind energy...and our sailing afternoon.
HERE IS A VIDEO OF US SAILING!!!! - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSACfJ98zgw
That's about all for now. We will be heading to Blind River On tomorrow, and after that I do not imagine that we will have access to the internet for a while, but we will do our best to keep in touch.
Thanks for reading, hope all is well!
Monday, June 11, 2007
Sunday, June 10, 2007
PICTURES AND VIDEOS...yes!
Us with ED, the 70-some year-old man that biked from Victoria Island...he was a wicked dude.
Because of him we yell YEEEEHOOOO whenever we start biking now.
rainer tan is always sexy. always.
that's a biiiiiig nickel! (go sudbury)
Us infront of Parliament, just before we were interviewed by the CBC (thanks Celeste!).
two strapping youngens.
rainer and adrian in deux rivieres.
_______________________________________________
We are at Adrian's place now, with his parents (and dog zoey...and cat tiger).
I will write more of an update tomorrow hopefully.
More videos are ready too!
check them out here, and here.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Sturgeon Falls
Quick Post-
We are in beautiful sturgeon falls, on with a beautiful host in ms.christine anawati.
We got in last night around 7pm after about 140km- and Christine took us to her cottage for a great dinner with her mom and dad. we also managed to go for our first swim (in clear lake).
we will be taking off for sudbury very soon- we wanted to enjoy a bit of a day in sturgeon, so we are biking in the afternoon and evening. it should take us only about 4hrs, so we will get in around 8pm.
last night we camped out behind a general store in Deux Rivers, which was nice. accept for the horseflies.
i have some videos i will post in the near future
cheers!
We are in beautiful sturgeon falls, on with a beautiful host in ms.christine anawati.
We got in last night around 7pm after about 140km- and Christine took us to her cottage for a great dinner with her mom and dad. we also managed to go for our first swim (in clear lake).
we will be taking off for sudbury very soon- we wanted to enjoy a bit of a day in sturgeon, so we are biking in the afternoon and evening. it should take us only about 4hrs, so we will get in around 8pm.
last night we camped out behind a general store in Deux Rivers, which was nice. accept for the horseflies.
i have some videos i will post in the near future
cheers!
Saturday, June 2, 2007
video time!
here is the first of many hillarious videos care of mike anderson and brad armitage.
check it out here.
check it out here.
On The Road Again...
Lots to write- let's get going!
The Train
May 29-Wednesday
I took the train to Dorval QC to meet up with the boys and continue the trip. The day before I rode 80km at home in Waterloo, so the knee was a bit sore- but I had a good feeling it was ready to go.
The train was pretty boring- I reached Dorval (just outside of Montreal) at about 4:30pm. From there, I got my boxed up bike and put it together in record time (much much quicker than our first bike assembly in Halifax, NS). From there, I went on a ride of my own, biking along the st.lawrence for the afternoon as I waited for the guys to get to our home for the next two night- Brad's Aunt Lynn's place.
After getting a call from Brad, I headed to his aunts place and I was greeted with burgers, a beer, and hugs from all the boys. It was great to be back. That night we ate as much as we could (it was really hard to keep up with the guys), chilled out in Aunt Lynn's basement and played some wicked super nintendo.
MTL
May 30-Wednesday
We slept in the next morning- at a nice breakfast, and we hung out with Brad's cousin Britt all afternoon- she was really cool and a great host. We went for some MTL smoked meat at Smoke Meat Pete's (and smelled like it after, too), and took a nice drive down Lakeshore Road. That area of the island is so nice- it would be a great place to live one day.
After that- we had one of our MTL highlights- dinner with gaggy and grandad- Brad's grandparents. They were two amazing characters with great hearts and a knack for humour that many don't have. It was great to see Brad's family.
After dinner- we headed to one of our favourite Montreal Bars- Fou Founes Electrique. After the bouncer made fun of us for wearing flip flops (we don't have enough room in our bags for real shoes), we headed in and watched a free concert featuring one of Montreal's finest- the Saint Catherines. It was a great concert- the perfect way to spend a night out in Montreal.
After drinking a great amount of water when we got home, I fell asleep.
My first biking day since the injury
May 31-Thursday
The next morning we woke up around 9:30, ate an AMAZING breakfast of bacon and pancakes prepared by Aunt Lynn, we showered, packed up, and waisted a few minutes doing nothing before we took off.
We left the house at about noon to start our ride to Alfred Ontario- about 120km. And boy did we fly that day- average speed was over 25km/h. My knee held up really well- at one point I was leading the group for a half hour at over 30km/h and it didn't hurt at all. I think that's when I knew it would be good for a while.
We made amazing time getting into Alfred on account of our speedy-ness and set up camp in the side yard of a nice couple. After eating a ton of chili and bread, and treating ourselves to a donut and a game of frisbee- we jumped in our tents for the night. Brad and I played poker and listened to music...I'm out $6.50. haha.
Ottawa Day!
June 01-Friday
The next morning we woke up early, around 8:00- ate our regular breakfast of bread, peanut butter and bananas and took off for Ottawa. The ride was 80km and we covered it well, arriving in Ottawa just after noon. About 3/4 of the way through, Brad took a spill along the way, got a little 'road rash' on his hip and arm. But that just makes him look more hardcore. He's hopped right back on his bike, and we continued on.
My knee felt great yesterday- like really, really good. Which makes me really happy.
When we got into Ottawa, we parted ways- Brad and I headed to our friends Becca and Nat's place. When we arrived, the girls treated us so well, with cold beers ready (seems to be a growing trend). They made us lunch, dinner, and made us very happy. Me and Brad love our Nat and Becca.
We also saw the article written about us in Metro - check it out here!
http://www.metronews.ca/uploadedFiles/PDFs/20070601_ottawa.pdf (it's on page 3).
At night- we had our fundraiser pub at the Great Canadian Cabin in the Market. I had worked out a deal with France, the bar's manager, allowing us to get the $3 cover from anyone who handed in a little Speak with Spokes ticket.
The night was an absolute blast. So many of our friends came to support CANFAR, and to see us during our Ottawa stop. That was probably one of my favourite nights out in my entire University tenure.
At the beginning of the night Brad and I were greated by France and one of my friends Nat Carrier. Nat bought us a drink, and introduced us to the people at her table- including a few people from A Channel... we may have some more Ottawa press coming our way soon!
And the night just got better and better as time went on. This trip has made me realize how giving people really are- and last night was no exception. People saught us out to make donations all night- it was incredible.
But it wasn't only that- seeing everyone again was so great. Everyone had great stories and accomplishments to talk about- I had some great conversations. Thanks to everyone who came out, we really appreciated it. And to top it all off, we raised $400 for CANFAR last night- incredible stuff.
Today we will be getting our bikes tuned up, and heading to one of our favourite Ottawa places- Chateau Laff for Lucky Ron at 4pm. Should be a great day.
We will be in Ottawa till Monday, and I think we will love every minute.
Friday, June 1, 2007
OTTAWA!
Hey Everyone
We are in Ottawa after 2 great days of riding. Tonight we have our fundraiser pub at the Cabin on York street- we hope to see everyone out.
If you are planning on coming, please print off the logo above. If you present the logo with your $3 cover, the money will go to CANFAR. If not- the $ goes to the Cabin.
I'll have a more indepth update later...but for now I'm going to enjoy being in Ottawa!
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Pictures!
Hey all
The knee is almost ready- I have/had a meniscal tear in my right knee. After resting it for a while, and after going through 2 physio sessions, I should be good to go for Monday when I meet the boys in Montreal. It hasn't been fun being home- but some things are just out of your control.
We are gonna have a fundraiser pub night on Friday June 1st in the Market - I'll keep you all posted on the details as soon as I get them.
Cheers Guys, enjoy the pictures!
Mikey
Rainer is always cute. always.
The tent life.
My dip in the ocean. Like the sweet rain gear!?
The team's dip in the ocean
On top of the MacDonald Brige in Halifax
The set-up outside the Halifax Airport
The knee is almost ready- I have/had a meniscal tear in my right knee. After resting it for a while, and after going through 2 physio sessions, I should be good to go for Monday when I meet the boys in Montreal. It hasn't been fun being home- but some things are just out of your control.
We are gonna have a fundraiser pub night on Friday June 1st in the Market - I'll keep you all posted on the details as soon as I get them.
Cheers Guys, enjoy the pictures!
Mikey
Adrian after doing his business.
Rainer is always cute. always.
The tent life.
My dip in the ocean. Like the sweet rain gear!?
The team's dip in the ocean
On top of the MacDonald Brige in Halifax
The set-up outside the Halifax AirportMonday, May 21, 2007
My Trip on Hold
so- bad news.
After biking from Halifax Nova Scotia to Moncton New Brunswick, I have flown home to Waterloo to nurse and injured right knee.
I will be back with the boys in 5 days...but for now I'm healing at home, and I'm not very happy about it.
One thing is for sure though. Whatever distance I miss- I will bike once we are done in Vancouver. Instead of flying home after our trip, I will be flying back to Moncton to finish my own trip.
Our travels so far have been incredible- we have met some amazing people, we have come together as a great cycling team, and we are really enjoying our experiences.
My knee was bugging me for the past few days- and on Saturday, it all went bad. I woke up knowing that I would need to be checked out once we reached Montcon- my knee was sore, tight, and swollen. But I had no idea how bad I would need it.
After we stopped for lunch on Saturday at a Pizza Delight (we treated ourselves), my knee was intensely painful and tight. After lunch I led the group to Moncton (about 25 km) in the most intense pain I have ever experienced, propelling the bike with my left leg mainly.
I biked all the way to the front door of the emergency room, where I was x-rayed and told that I have pretty impressive ligament damage, that I should not put any weight on my knee for at least 4 days, and that I couldn't cycle for 7.
So the boys are biking in New Brunswick now- I will meet up with them in Quebec, and eventually we will ride into Ottawa together on the 1st or 2nd of June.
Despite the knee thing- the trip has been amazing. Together, we can really fly...we can get up to 35km/hour easily if we are on flat terrain. Unfortunately, we are a bit behind schedule because of HORRIBLE weather in the east coast. It has rained on us each day. The worst day we biked through a 3 degree temperature which featured a downpour at the end of the day.
But we have all fallen in love with bike touring, and I can't wait to get back with the boys.
After biking from Halifax Nova Scotia to Moncton New Brunswick, I have flown home to Waterloo to nurse and injured right knee.
I will be back with the boys in 5 days...but for now I'm healing at home, and I'm not very happy about it.
One thing is for sure though. Whatever distance I miss- I will bike once we are done in Vancouver. Instead of flying home after our trip, I will be flying back to Moncton to finish my own trip.
Our travels so far have been incredible- we have met some amazing people, we have come together as a great cycling team, and we are really enjoying our experiences.
My knee was bugging me for the past few days- and on Saturday, it all went bad. I woke up knowing that I would need to be checked out once we reached Montcon- my knee was sore, tight, and swollen. But I had no idea how bad I would need it.
After we stopped for lunch on Saturday at a Pizza Delight (we treated ourselves), my knee was intensely painful and tight. After lunch I led the group to Moncton (about 25 km) in the most intense pain I have ever experienced, propelling the bike with my left leg mainly.
I biked all the way to the front door of the emergency room, where I was x-rayed and told that I have pretty impressive ligament damage, that I should not put any weight on my knee for at least 4 days, and that I couldn't cycle for 7.
So the boys are biking in New Brunswick now- I will meet up with them in Quebec, and eventually we will ride into Ottawa together on the 1st or 2nd of June.
Despite the knee thing- the trip has been amazing. Together, we can really fly...we can get up to 35km/hour easily if we are on flat terrain. Unfortunately, we are a bit behind schedule because of HORRIBLE weather in the east coast. It has rained on us each day. The worst day we biked through a 3 degree temperature which featured a downpour at the end of the day.
But we have all fallen in love with bike touring, and I can't wait to get back with the boys.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
We Are So Good At Halifax.
Wow. so much to write.
I will keep this one brief though, because we are on library computers which specify "no e-mail, chat or games please".
But this is a blog, so I think I'm in the clear.
I last left off at the Halifax airport.
We left the airport with our spirits high- ready to take on the 30 km bike ride to downtown Halifax. After accidently biking the wrong way down some small one way airport streets, we were on the road.
Everything was going great until 5 minutes in when I realized that Adrian and I were missing Brad and Rainer. We waited for a while, to see if they would catch up...but that didn't work.
So, we biked back about 2 minutes down the road, only to find Rainer with his first flat tire. That's right- 5 minutes into our journey we already had a flat. But Adrian and Rainer fixed it quick, and we were back on the road.
After that, the mirror fell off my bike (i left it behind), Brad's saddlebag fell off of his bike (Adrian swiftly avoided it, as he was drafting behind), and Adrian's arrow handle bars broke (not the main important handle bars). So, our ride in was quite interesting- but we handeled it all quickly and properly...looks good for the rest of the trek.
Riding into Halifax was amazing- we rode over the MacDonald Bridge into Halifax, and stopped for a photo at the top. I love this city a lot.
Rainer's friend Nick has given us a place to sleep for the 2 nights we are here, and everything is going well. We have caught up on the sleep we missed, as we napped all of yesterday evening (4pm-9:30pm), and we slept from 11:30-9:30am today.
We toured around Halifax for a bit today- and got our first media coverage! Some local station stopped me on the street to ask us questions for some magazine show. Would you believe the questions were "is there a certain event you are looking forward to this summer", and "do you plan on taking a vacation" (or something like that)?! So, we of course took the chance to speak about the cause, and our trip. Please don't forget to visit the speakwithspokes.org site when you can, and make a donation if possible.
Now we are doing some more tourist-y stuff, and soon we will
I will keep this one brief though, because we are on library computers which specify "no e-mail, chat or games please".
But this is a blog, so I think I'm in the clear.
I last left off at the Halifax airport.
We left the airport with our spirits high- ready to take on the 30 km bike ride to downtown Halifax. After accidently biking the wrong way down some small one way airport streets, we were on the road.
Everything was going great until 5 minutes in when I realized that Adrian and I were missing Brad and Rainer. We waited for a while, to see if they would catch up...but that didn't work.
So, we biked back about 2 minutes down the road, only to find Rainer with his first flat tire. That's right- 5 minutes into our journey we already had a flat. But Adrian and Rainer fixed it quick, and we were back on the road.
After that, the mirror fell off my bike (i left it behind), Brad's saddlebag fell off of his bike (Adrian swiftly avoided it, as he was drafting behind), and Adrian's arrow handle bars broke (not the main important handle bars). So, our ride in was quite interesting- but we handeled it all quickly and properly...looks good for the rest of the trek.
Riding into Halifax was amazing- we rode over the MacDonald Bridge into Halifax, and stopped for a photo at the top. I love this city a lot.
Rainer's friend Nick has given us a place to sleep for the 2 nights we are here, and everything is going well. We have caught up on the sleep we missed, as we napped all of yesterday evening (4pm-9:30pm), and we slept from 11:30-9:30am today.
We toured around Halifax for a bit today- and got our first media coverage! Some local station stopped me on the street to ask us questions for some magazine show. Would you believe the questions were "is there a certain event you are looking forward to this summer", and "do you plan on taking a vacation" (or something like that)?! So, we of course took the chance to speak about the cause, and our trip. Please don't forget to visit the speakwithspokes.org site when you can, and make a donation if possible.
Now we are doing some more tourist-y stuff, and soon we will
Monday, May 14, 2007
HALIFAX!
So, we arrived in Halifax this morning at 8:30am local time.
We were at the Ottawa airport at 4:15am...our flight took off at 6am (I slept all the way).
Upon arrival in Halifax, we got our boxed bikes and saddlebags right away, and went to try to piece together our rides.
We found a patch of grass in the airport's parking lot- took out our tools and put our bikes together. Now, it must be said that Rainer, Brad and myself have little-to-no knowledge of how bikes work, or how they are assembeled. So Adrian helped us through the process. Now we know more about bikes.
3 hours later- we were all done. haha. After the assembly- I fell off my bike while trying to hop off of it (don't worry mom, no scratches or anything). It was moderately embarssasing- but I'm sure its something we will all get used to.
That brings us to now- we are still at the airport; we just finished a nice soup and sandwich lunch and soon we will be biking to downtown Halifax...about 30kms away.
Today we realized a few things.
1) Our bikes weigh a whole lot when they are all packed up with our saddlebags.
2) Biking into the wind for 2 months will make our experience much more 'interesting'
3) Our trip's theme song will definately be a wicked-bad rap song called "this is why i'm hot" by mims.
We are pumped.
We were at the Ottawa airport at 4:15am...our flight took off at 6am (I slept all the way).
Upon arrival in Halifax, we got our boxed bikes and saddlebags right away, and went to try to piece together our rides.
We found a patch of grass in the airport's parking lot- took out our tools and put our bikes together. Now, it must be said that Rainer, Brad and myself have little-to-no knowledge of how bikes work, or how they are assembeled. So Adrian helped us through the process. Now we know more about bikes.
3 hours later- we were all done. haha. After the assembly- I fell off my bike while trying to hop off of it (don't worry mom, no scratches or anything). It was moderately embarssasing- but I'm sure its something we will all get used to.
That brings us to now- we are still at the airport; we just finished a nice soup and sandwich lunch and soon we will be biking to downtown Halifax...about 30kms away.
Today we realized a few things.
1) Our bikes weigh a whole lot when they are all packed up with our saddlebags.
2) Biking into the wind for 2 months will make our experience much more 'interesting'
3) Our trip's theme song will definately be a wicked-bad rap song called "this is why i'm hot" by mims.
We are pumped.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Last Normal Day
Welcome to the Blog.
Just sitting here- enjoying my last normal day in Ottawa. We are flying out to Halifax tomorrow morning (6am to be exact) to begin our bike across Canada.
This will be an amazing experience for us. We are raising funds for CANFAR, through an organization we are a part of called Speak with Spokes. It's going to be a challenge- but I know that Rainer, Adrian, Brad and I are up for it. This blog will chronicle all of our adventures, and I will get some pictures up of us and the scenery as well. So please keep checking up on our tomfoolery.
We partied pretty hard last night- one last chance to abuse our bodies before the trip starts. The nights highlights included fruit hockey in an abandoned 476 Cumberland, and my good friend Jonny Mexico giving me his necklace for good luck. That really meant a lot.
Today I'll be putting the finishing touches on everything. I'll be packing my saddlebags, going to buy a few last things...and then I'll be good as gold.
It's really starting to sink in now. We are going to bike across Canada. haha.
(Maybe this will be the spark I need to start my extremely successful Tony Robbins-esque Motiviational Speaking empire.)
Just sitting here- enjoying my last normal day in Ottawa. We are flying out to Halifax tomorrow morning (6am to be exact) to begin our bike across Canada.
This will be an amazing experience for us. We are raising funds for CANFAR, through an organization we are a part of called Speak with Spokes. It's going to be a challenge- but I know that Rainer, Adrian, Brad and I are up for it. This blog will chronicle all of our adventures, and I will get some pictures up of us and the scenery as well. So please keep checking up on our tomfoolery.
We partied pretty hard last night- one last chance to abuse our bodies before the trip starts. The nights highlights included fruit hockey in an abandoned 476 Cumberland, and my good friend Jonny Mexico giving me his necklace for good luck. That really meant a lot.
Today I'll be putting the finishing touches on everything. I'll be packing my saddlebags, going to buy a few last things...and then I'll be good as gold.
It's really starting to sink in now. We are going to bike across Canada. haha.
(Maybe this will be the spark I need to start my extremely successful Tony Robbins-esque Motiviational Speaking empire.)
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