“ THE BIKE ” is in “ THE BOX “ !!!!!

Finally the bike is in the box but it didn't go quietly , no, it kicked , it scratched and it fought dirty the whole way, but when the dust settled it was IN THE BOX ! . 

I have no idea if it will survive the trip as it is really stuffed tight in there and if the baggage handlers are rough with it I will need to get first aid for it for sure. And if it does survive the trip I don't know if  I will ever be able to put it back together !!, that is if I can get it out of the box !!!!!. I am beginning to think that maybe the 7000 odd km of pedaling we will be doing might just be the easy part of the trip !!.

A special thank you to Evolution Cycles for fixing up the bike . It was a long night and long morning as bike shops don’t open till 10 AM but when I got there Jamie put it up on the bike stand and started working on it right away. As it turns out I had started to strip the thread but he was able to fix the damage and put the derrilleur back on, thank you , thank you , thank you !!!

Hopefully that’s the end of the stress , I must say it was all my own fault for leaving things to the last moment , but who would have known that stuffing a bike in a box could be that challenging !!!!

Almost there !!

Well it’s been a busy week , send of BBQ yesterday was lots of fun after a hectec morning sorting out the Turbo-stick for this computer , 

Well it’s been a busy week with plenty of ups and downs . 

Friday I finally decided to try out the Turbo-stick for this computer so that I can maintain contact with the world, well after downloading the software the computer asked for a password , I tried every combination under the sun , went through all the paperwork in the office all with out success and I finally went to bed quite glum . 

Next morning I was at the door of Best Buy as they were opening and was the first one at the Geek Squad desk, after explaining the problem the technician looked at me and said “ all you have to do is click OK “ . AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!, there was no password programed. He made me feel good when he said I was not the first one to come in with the same problem and then he proceeded to help me install the software and get the Turbo-stick up and running.

Saturday afternoon was great as family and friend came by for a send-off BBQ, the weather behaved even though there was a threat of thunderstorms and fun was had by all. I even got a cake with a picture of myself riding my bike on it !!!

Thanks to everybody for making it a great afternoon !!!

Pat on the BBQ

The cake with a picture of me biking !!!!!

Today was the last training ride closing 2 years of training for this adventure. I just did a short  25 km ride which brought my years total up to 2,622 km and I must say I feel READY !!!!!

After the ride I proceeded to clean the bike and take it apart to fit it into the box, well once again I ran head first into a wall of trouble. I have two boxes , one requiring both wheels to come off looked like the sturdier box so I decided on that route. First there was the twenty minute fight with the pedals , they just did not want to come off , but after a lot of grunting, groaning, sweating and swearing the relinquished . 

Then off came the wheels , the handlebars, the seat post and the rear derrilleur , and into the box they went. Well I just could not get it to fit right, so after a while of trying many combinations I decided I’d put the rear wheel back on and fit the bike to the other larger box I have, and there started the real problem , I could not get that derrilleur back on , it had been tight coming off but going on was just not happening and I think I my have even started to strip the threads, so I stopped and put the bike ( well the bike pieces ) into the car and I’ll be making an emergence run to the bike store for HELP tomorrow morning . 

I can’t believe it that with just 2 days left to go my bike is non functional. AHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Training rides coming to an end .

Well it’s getting close , just a week left before I hop on a plane and head to Vancouver to start what I hope will be a grand adventure. And with departure nearing the training rides are coming to and end, a lot of km under the hood since that first ride way back on the 6th of March in the snow !!, 2,546 to be exact.

The countryside has gone from dreary browns and grays to vibrant greens, were there where snow drifts now there are hay fields being cut, round bales for haylage being made and any day regular hay will be harvested also. The corn is already a foot tall, the Marsh is green with young vegetables, all this happened before my eyes as I pedaled along readying myself for the next step, the challenge of a lifetime , for me anyways as I don’t think I’ll ever do something this grand ever again ???

And so after two years of training rides I am really looking forward to the next phase of changes that will occur as I ride new roads crossing this beautiful country, I can hardly wait to see what’s around the next bend or over the next hill, sun and rain, wind and calm, hard days and good days all part of the experience, a lot of unknowns that at the end will be knows, and just maybe I’ll find that bit of myself that I’m looking for.  

I will try to share all these experiences with you as best as I can through this blog and when it’s all done it will be a great collection of memories that I can browse through on cold winter days as I wait for the snow to clear and to be on the road again ! 

Yesterday I had a very pleasant 65 km ride on a beautiful sunny afternoon, the temp around 25 degrees and a light breeze from the east, just a perfect, perfect day for a ride !!!.I headed into the Marsh first watching the farmers busily tending the crops , tractors and cultivators everywhere !!!

From there I headed west to Schomberg to visit with Bobby , but as luck would have it he was walking out to a fire call as I was walking in, and after saying hello to the barking dog I realized that there was nobody else home so off I went dropping into the soccer field to wish Tiffany a happy birthday and as a bonus I got to see Wiggy playing soccer . 

And so that's just about it for training,maybe one or two more rides. I plan to box the bike on Sunday, or at least try to !!, I’m a little worried about the procedure , especially after reading Andy’s account on his experience !!!.  I did some preliminary measurements and it should fit in the box but how easy or hard it will be, well I’ll let you know afterwards. 

10 days to go!!!, sorting, packing, unpacking, checking lists .....

Tent , mattress , sleeping bag.

Well it’s down to crunch time , time to put it all together , do I have everything, am I forgetting something , will the bike fit into the box , how much hot weather clothing do I take ?, how much cold weather clothing do I take ? Do I have all the spare parts that I need ? , and most important will it all fit into two laundry hampers ???? 

Spare parts , odds and ends 

Bike box, will the bike fit?

Working on getting the clothing pile smaller!

Along with the excitement for the trip the anxiety level increases !!!, am I ready ?? , can I do it ?? , will the bike be reliable and not cause issues, will my knees behave ? , will the rest of my body behave !!!, I’m I totally crazy ????

And then it’s hard to be leaving the loved ones behind, I’m going to miss them immensely , and as the trip gets nearer that realization gets more intense. A bit of gilt sets in, but they are being great about this trip of mine and very supportive.

So I’ve tried to put together a good line of communications, with long distance cell plans , learning to text !!, and taking the laptop with a turbo stick with the hope of being able to get online more often then not and to be able to maintain this Blog. They did warn us that maintaining a online journal during the trip would be difficult between connection problems and just plan fatigue from long days of riding , but I’ll do my best. 

I took the bike in for a final tune-up and I wanted them to go over it carefully in case I’ve missed a problem, the guys at Evolution Cycles did a nice job and they even found me a mirror that fits this this bike !!!!

Training though is getting harder, I’m finding it hard to get motivated to go out and do the same rides over and over, riding has gone from being pleasing daily voyages to push, push, push, faster, harder, longer, etc..,  it’s time for a change !!!, time to start enjoying riding again!!!. 

And it’s getting hard to actually find time to ride, last minute preparations for the trip, work days that are getting longer as I try and leave everything in order here on the farm; the World Cup and watching Argentina win !!!, all cuts into riding time.

This week I only got out twice for a total of 137 km , but I am finding that my average speed on the training rides are going up, todays 55 km was done at 24.7 km/h.  

I’ve encountered a new hazard on the road  “ baby birds “ that fly out wildly from the underbrush on the side of the road not knowing how to fly all that well and having absolutely no idea of what a person on a bicycle is !!!

In the midst of all of this excitement some sadness has entered as my aunt Elina passed away this morning , she was a lovely lady and will be missed. 

Life is a very short journey and we must make the most of it , live well , and enjoy it to it’s fullest, something that is easy to say but for some reason not all that easy do do ???

A very WET “ Ride for Heart “

Today was the annual “Becel Heart & Stroke, Ride For Heart “ together with over 13,000 other cyclist we participated in the event to raise funds for the prevention and treatment of heart decease and stroke , something that this year has actually hit close to home as our daughter’s mother in law had a massive heart attack on Monday.

It was WET !!!, cool and windy , it rained for about 3/4 of the ride but we made the best of it and as we got back the sun did peek through a coupe of times.

Only a small group of us ridding this year, my brother Pat, my favorite nephew Michael, Evelyn and myself ( Sneaky Pete was going to come but I guess the rain kept him away ) , we did the 50 km route ( which was actually only 48.5 km ) up the Don Valley and back. And even though it rained we had a good time, Pat on his new bike discovering the joy of a light machine !!, Michael leading the way with the young legs , and Evelyn on only her second ride of the year managed all the hills ( well done !!!! ) 

Pat and Evelyn

(Pat, Michael and myself.)

 (Together with Evelyn at the half way point.)

(Stopping for the scenic shot with the CN tower behind us, would have been better in the sunshine !!)

(It's all over and time to eat !!!)

(very wet shoes !!!)

Otherwise it was a quiet riding week I only logged in 159 km. I did make a big mistake in not riding for 4 days following last weekends long rides and when I finally went out on Friday for the first time I paid the price with stiff legs that wanted to cramp up towards the end of the ride which was only 58 km . I went out again on Saturday and pushed my self doing a good few hills and the legs were better and today they were good. Lesson learnt , keep training right up to the end !!!

Next weekend “ World Cup” !!!!!! , go Argentina go !!!!! 

Being away all summer will make following the World Cup and the Tour de France a bit of a challenge this year , I’ll have to read about it instead of watching it , oh well there are sacrifices in an undertaking as the one I’m about to embark on !!!

Training totals for May

Here are my training totals for May:

1 May  .....   86.1 km

2 May .....    62.9 km

6 May  .....   67.7 km

7 May .....    43.2 km

8 May  ..... 106.8 km

12 May .....  46.3 km

15 May .....114.6 km

16 May .....115.7 km

20 May .....  26.5 km

23 May .....  54.7 km

24 May  ..... 62.6 km

25 May .....  49.5 km

29 May .....170 km

30 May .....160.5 km 

Total riding distance for May : 1,166.9 km

Overall total training distance so far: 2,185 km

Well, I must say I’m happy with the training so far and feel ready ( or as ready as I can get ) for the Tour. I’ve exceeded the recommended 2,000 km of training and got some long rides in last weekend, the only unknown is the Tour itself, day in- day out of ridding long distances without the luxury of resting when I want to (need to !!! ), but I’m looking forward to the challenge, only three more weeks now!!!! 

Thanks to Andy, Bob and Jeff for your comments and encouragement .

Andy, like you I’m also starting to get a bit nervous, looking forward to meeting you!!

Bob , I wish you were coming with me !!!

Jeff, well done last weekend !!!!, Saturday sure was a tough day with that head wind !!!, and doing the 160 was quite an accomplishment for you guys on those bikes!!!, you’ll find it much easier next year on a lighter bike !!!  

Southern Ontario Century Ride

This weekend I participated in the “ Southern Ontario Century Ride “ put on by Cycle Canada. They have a few different ride options for the weekend I chose the 160 km ride from York University to Alliston, I wanted to test the legs and body to see if the spring training had worked , after all I only have 23 more days to get in shape if not !!!

Arrived early Saturday morning this year ( I had done this ride last year also but didn’t start till 9 ) signed in with Bud and collected my map and was on the road by 8.20. It was just a beautiful sunny morning, 25 degrees and a light breeze. Early in the ride I met up with some riders and was passed by others eventually I hooked up with Peter who was riding at my pace and we stayed together for the rest of the ride , near Kettleby Mike joined us making us a trio .

It wasn’t long into the ride that we realized that the pleasant breeze we started the morning with was in reality a good strong head wind coming right at us from the north, it was relentless and stayed with us the whole trip, and it didn’t mater if we were going east or west either it still was there impeding our progress, but we persisted and Peter who was only going to do the 100 ended up doing the 160 with Mike and I !!!, we felt especially good about this as some younger riders opted out of the long ride because of the wind and we persisted. 

It was a very social ride for the first 100 as we kept meeting fellow participants , stopping for snacks and a chat at the side of the road or at a great little pizzeria in Bradford were I think we all ended up stopping for lunch and eating on the out-door patio. The pizza slices were huge and one order was actually two slices , Peter had ordered 2 slices and ended up with half a pizza !!!!

It was hot , 30 degrees and we made a number of stops to top up our bottles with water and Gatorade or any available power drink . We went through Innisfill and were envious of all the people heading to the beach , the water looked very inviting !!!

Eventually at 5.13 we pulled into the campground  in Alliston after 170 km!!!! ( 7 hours 28 minutes in the saddle ), very satisfied and hungry, there were bananas and watermelon waiting and  dinner wasn't long in coming . Peter and Mike were staying but I was going home as I left it too late to arrange accommodations, so Evelyn came up to get me and had dinner with us .

I met a lot of fellow riders including Mark who will be doing the Tour with me this year , it’s actually going to be his second go at it !!!!

Sunday Evelyn dropped me at the Nottawasaga Inn ( our starting point ) were I met up with Peter and Mike and around 8 AM we headed out back down to the University. It was another bright sunny day , we all were covering ourselves in sun cream as we burnt the day before !!! 

No wind today ( to start ) but HOT !!! , my bike thermometer constantly read between 32 to 35 degrees !!!. We were all feeling good so we moved along at a good pace, but there was no escaping the heat and lots of water was purchased . As we came into Stroud looking for a store we heard the sound of bag-pipes and found the player at the local church which was celebrating it 101 anniversary, we stopped in the shade of an old maple to listen and take some pictures and then had a nice chat with the player. 

Lunch was again in Branford but this time indoors enjoying the air-conditioning !!!!, when we came back out to the bikes my thermometer read 43 degrees !!!! ( we had left them by the window in the full sun so we could watch them ) 

The last 20 km put us back together with a head wind but by then we were determined and just pushed hard to the University arriving at 4.16  after 160 km !!!! ( 6 hours 49 minutes in the saddle ) Bud and Margot were there waiting for us , we were the last in but I think the only ones to do the 160. And once again bananas and watermelon to snack on. 

(from left to right , Mike, Peter, myself.

It was a very enjoyable two days , we traveled some very scenic roads and through some very picturesque towns , saw lots of old cars and a line of very nicely restored model Ts that honked and waved at us as we crossed. My riding buddies were great company and I found that my legs were up to the challenge , the only part of me that ended up a bit sore was my bottom and now I’m going to go back to the Tour du Canada forums and read up on “bottom lubes” !!!!

330 kilometers was the weekend total !!!

A special thanks to Bud and Margot for putting on a great event, I really enjoyed this ride and am looking forward to the Tour !!!