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