Bon Jovi - "Livin' on a Prayer"

"Whooah, we're half way there...."

- Bon Jovi - "Livin' on a Prayer"

Terrace Bay – White Lake - Day 36 HALF WAY!!
147 kms / 91 miles

Today is the ‘Halfway Day’ – we are half way through our trip across Canada..!

It’s hard to believe that we’re already 35 days into the trip. It seems like just yesterday that we set off from the residence at UBC in Vancouver. At the same time, when I think back to all of the amazing people I’ve met, things I’ve seen, feelings I’ve experienced, and scenarios that we’ve lived through and laughed at I can’t believe that we’ve packed all that in 36 days. It really is such a strange and ‘bitter sweet’ feeling – I’m happy that we’re half way but at the same time I wish that it wasn’t because I’m having such a great time. The ‘real world’ will definitely be a shock to my system and I keep postponing thinking about it..!

I feel that I’ve definitely learned a lot about both myself and my country on this trip. I have learned that I can push myself physically to an extent that I’d never dreamed possible and with the right combination of food, sleep and exercise I have energy that knows no ends…! As Andrew says, he knows that I am in ‘fine form’ when I am fed and watered… much like a plant. I’ve also learned that if I put my mind to something that I can do it – crossing Canada, initially, seemed like a monumental trip and when you look at it as a ‘total’ distance then it is… however, when the trip is broken up into sections and you mentally break those sections down into something pleasant like coffee stops, donut stops, picture stops, pee-stops and chatting stops then it becomes much more of an ‘experience’ rather than a means to an end. I’ve also learned that I actually love road biking. I’ve always considered myself more of a ‘mountain biker’ but the past 35 days has really opened my eyes to the speed and ‘grace’ that a road bike offers. Whilst the excessive use of lycra and spandex takes some getting used to I do feel as though I am no longer a ‘newbie’ and have slowly become a ‘hard core’. I would never ever in a million years have guessed that this would have happened on Day 1 of this trip..!

You know that you’ve been on the road too long when:

- main topics of conversation include the words ‘butt cream’ and ‘chaffing’
- you leave butt cream in random rest rooms around the country
- you fall asleep on your bicycle going uphill
- you spend your Saturday night on Galley Duty until 9:30pm
- your pjamas have pockets in the back for toothpaste, toothbrush, dental floss
- you put up your tent outside of a University dorm
- you eat triple breakfasts
- you eat with your hands and out of a trough
- you eat anything
- your butt goes flat and takes on a triangular bicycle seat shape
- 40% chance of rain means that you WILL definitely get wet
- 8pm is a ‘late night’
- you don’t get off your bike to pee
- your knuckles look like they have nicotine stains
- you recognise people by the decibel level of their snore
- you walk in a paceline and point out all ruts in the road

Today was a great day – I knew it would rain as the forecast called for a 40% chance of rain which, from past experience, means that it will definitely rain. I was not looking forward to that but Brendan and Andrew promised that we could go to the Terrace Bay bakery so that I could have a coffee (they are getting better at bribing me).

My Manager and my Coach

On the topic of Brendan and Andrew and my evolution from ‘Newbie’ to ‘Hard Core’ over the past few weeks… I have developed roles for them (yes, my mind tends to wander when I am in the saddle). Brendan, I have decided, is my Canadian Manager. He is the ‘Roman Abramovitch’ of my cycling career. Brendan has hired Andrew to be my Kenyan Coach. Andrew cycles with me about 85% of the time (when he has not buggered off to chase the French Connection). Every few days Brendan disappears for a few hours – sometimes even an entire afternoon – leaving Andrew to work on my technique and bark orders at me from behind. He has fine tuned what he calls ‘techniques’ to make me cycle faster – the promise of food, the promise of downhills, the promise of ‘a stop in 5 minutes’, the threat of rain. At the end of the day, Andrew and Brendan meet and discuss my progress. “Mate, ‘Your Highness’ is like a rocket now. She’s graduated” is the usual report back to Brendan. Of course, Brendan then coolly starts the following day off with a turbo 30 km / hour uphill start just to ‘test’ me to see if the progress is indeed as advanced as Andrew claims it is. Sometimes I impress, sometimes I don’t. I have learned that even if I do keep up, and even if I do impress, Brendan will ALWAYS blow past me and smile just to put me in my place. Andrew is then put back on the case to train me further until Brendan’s next test. I fear for the day when Brendan puts a spanner in the works and orders Andrew to make me pump up my own tire pressure to 110psi in the morning and also change my own tire if I get a flat. Now that I have become stronger on the hills I do realise that I need to improve on the technical ‘DIY aspects’ of the ‘hard core’ title.

Todays ride opened with a visit to the Terrace Bay bakery where I had ½ cup of coffee because by the time I was ½ way through it Andrew and Brendan already had their helmets on and were on their bicycles whilst I was still inside of the bakery, steamy mug of coffee in hand. Manager AND Coach were impatient and keen to get on the road as they were both on Galley Duty for the evening and it was going to be a long day, broken up by a ‘Half Way’ lunch 50kms into the ride.

The morning ride was a gorgeous one and my huge appetite yesterday certainly paid off and gave me the energy I needed to fly up the steep hills into Marathon. It felt good to ‘attack’ the hills and not worry about them like I used to do in BC and Alberta. The scenery definitely helped as did a great tail wind. The hills are steep and long but they are rolling and bordered on either side by steep granite faces, reddish in color and pine trees, birch trees, spruce trees and hundreds of lakes. Every bend seems to reveal another ‘kodak moment’ but there are only so many that you can capture on film..! It was a bit of a shame that the weather was overcast and ‘damp’ but it was a bit of a blessing in disguise. I can’t imagine climbing up some of those hills in 30 degree heat plus humidity..!

Everyone was in good spirits and looking forward to our Half Way Lunch which was to be held at the Ney's Park in the former Prisoner of War Camp. We made it there in record time and waited for the truck by eating coffee crisp chocolate bars and downing a litre of iced tea. The temperature seemed to plummet while we were waiting which was not helped by the fact that my clothes were wet from sweat and the humidity. By the time we made the 4km journey into the park I was absolutely freezing, hungry and keen to continue on with our ride.

It was great to meet up with everyone half way through the day though as generally you only see people ‘on the road’ in small groups or one at a time. It was nice to gather round the truck and along the beach and have some ‘off bike’ time together and have a bit of a trip down memory lane as we reflected on the past 36 days. Everyone agreed that it had b been a great trip so far and we were looking forward to the next 36 days together. May they be equally full of health and happiness...

The French Connection bravely (madly) went into Lake Superior. It made me cold just watching them..! Andrew, Brendan and I had a look at the clouds which looked full of rain and about to explode and we decided to head out and make good time into camp as they were both on Galley Duty. The agreed pit stop for a quick refuel would be Marathon which was 30kms away. We flew the 30 kms and made it in record time – very fun and very fast..! It was an absolute pleasure to ride.

Unfortunately Marathon is ‘off piste’ so we did not venture the 4km from the highway into the town. Instead we pulled up along an old (closed) restaurant and a gas station where BC and Andrew refuelled on chocolate milk and I had a large steaming cup of hot coffee. I needed it..! We all sat outside along the curb staring out at the gas pumps and reflected on the afternoon and strategised our next 40kms. I suddenly heard a strange ‘tick, tick, tick…’ sound coming from Brendan’s bike. He also heard it and edged closer to it trying to figure out what was making the strange noise when suddenly,

BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!

The front tire totally exploded leaving our ears ringing. Some burly looking men in leather chaps who were refuelling their Harleys at the pumps came running over to check what had happened. Brendan quickly took a closer look at the tire and the tube was totally destroyed but the tire itself seemed ok. It was a random incident but did shake everyone up a bit especially to think that it could have happened on the road. Given that we had been flying down hills at 60kms/ hour about 5 minutes earlier it could have been much more serious. It really put into perspective (yet again) how you should always be careful and you never know what might happen next.

The rest of the afternoon was much more subdued but equally fun as we had a wicked tail wind and were cruising at about 35kms/hour on relatively flat terrain. We passed through some very, very rough construction for about 10kms which ‘shook’ (literally!) everyone up a bit as the bike suddenly became a giant carbon fibre vibrating machine. The road was rough and I was a bit concerned what it was doing to my tire but upon closer inspection it was ok and survived the harrowing ride.

We passed the Hemlo gold mines as well as the Yellow Brick road which is the road to Battle Mountain Mine. The name ‘Yellow Brick Road’ is a literal name as the contractor mistakenly used gold ore instead of gravel to make the road…! I didn’t feel too much like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and if I had some red ruby slippers I wouldn’t be clicking my heels just yet. The scenery stayed very picturesque with tall pine trees lining the road and the rough shield was sticking out through the beds of pine needles. At times it felt as though we were cycling through a giant canyon as rocky pink and reddish coloured cliffs lined the side of the road. The sun even started to make a welcome appearance as the afternoon progressed. It seemed as though the storms and isolated showers that had been chasing us throughout the day had dissipated.

We cruised into camp at around 4pm which gave BC and Andrew enough time to get their tents etc. ready in time for their Galley Duty chores. Somehow as we cycled into camp a dark cloud managed to ‘sneak’ up on us and JUST as I put the fly on my tent the rain which we’d been avoiding all day came pouring down. I had just enough time to throw my wordly possessions into the tent and jump in after them without getting too wet. It was a lucky escape and I felt bad for all those riders who were just getting into camp and were going to end their day with wet clothes.

Northern Ontario = Mosquitoes, Black flies, Rain...

Unfortunately that wasn’t the end of the rain. The rain fell on and off in sheets throughout the evening and was joined by a campers worst enemy – mosquitoes and black flies. The mosquitoes were TERRIBLE. I have never experienced anything like it. The second you stopped moving or revealed a patch of skin it would soon be covered by a swarm of mosquitoes. The black flies immediately go for the head. They are tiny and seem to conglomerate around the base of the neck and take large ‘chunks’ of skin for their dinners leaving behind a giant itchy welt. I’ve been relatively ‘lucky’ so far (only about 5 welts). Some of those on the team have been much less fortunate and are absolutely covered in bites. The problem in some cases is also that the flies have gotten into the helmets and then have all day to have a ‘feast’.

So, it was one of our first wet and itchy evenings but Brendan and Andrew’s Galley Crew still managed to put on a feast. Burritos..! They were absolutely delicious and very much appreciated by all. A fantastic meal to end a fun day. I must admit, I am absolutely exhausted tonight from the hills, the cold, the pressure to get to camp on time etc. and am now quite happily settled inside of my tent away from the rain and away from the flies. Hopefully the weather will clear up for tomorrow as it would be nice to see a day of sun again as it seems like ages ago that we’ve had 24 hours of gorgeous weather (I think it was Thunder Bay…).