Lake Louise Alberta

Still not on the bicycle.  Telen has given me strict instructions to keep off the bicycle.  She said my epiglottal spasm was “incompatible with life”.  That sounds ominous to me. What this means is that we had the option to change our course of direction and see something interesting.   So we went north through the Yellowhead pass instead of over the troubled Rogers Pass and Kicking Horse pass.   This way we got to see Mt. Robson and some moose and spent the night camping in Jasper.   Today we drove down the Icefields Parkway.   In spite of the wet and miserable weather it is still a beautiful drive.  However, we did see a number of cyclists riding the parkway and Telen cheered them on and I thought to myself…”I could take them!”

 The level of the rivers is a bit alarming, however.  There were a few places where the water was up to the road bed and actually running over it.   With the amount of water coming from the sky and the water already on the ground I thought we had actually taken a wrong turn and were driving down the Saskatchewan River.   We did see some wildlife – a few trout, and couple of lost-looking salmon and a Russian submarine.

Because of the heavy rain and the heavy chest we have only camped twice.   Once in Merritt and once in Jasper.  The rest of the time has been in guesthouses, cheap motels and hostels.  We found that having a river running through the tent was “incompatible with sleeping”.

All this means is that we will be arriving in Calgary quite a bit earlier than anticipated.  Apparently the car will travel faster than my bicycle.  I am hoping all the people we are hoping to see in Calgary will still be available for a visit.  It also means that we can spend more time there and, perhaps, head out for points East when the weather “is more compatible with riding”.  Telen will be so happy that I am on my bicycle again and not in the car with her since I am the worst backseat driver in existence.

Valemount B.C.

Telen writes:

After 2 days in Kamloops, we have now arrived in Valemount, just less than 2 hours driveB south of Jasper.  I am pleased to report that Rand is feeling better though not 100% yet.  The coughs are still loud and startling to the public.  His appetite and his sense of humor have returned.  

The weather has improved considerably.  The temperature reached a high of 26 degrees today.  Oh, and the sunshine!  Unfortunately the weatherman said that this will not last too long.  The water level in the Thompson River is really high.  In fact, we witnessed significant flooding in the park downtown Kamloops.

Rand has resigned to the fact that it is more important to get better before cycling again.  Our travel plans have since changed.  Over the next 4 days, we will spend time visiting Jasper, Lake Louise and Banff.  I feel that now we have more time to travel, we can do the scenic route.  Initially Rand was hoping to cycle via no. 1 highway through Salmon Arm, Revelstoke, Kicking Horse pass etc.

The beauty and the huge expanse of wilderness along the way impress me.  I feel very fortunate to live in Canada.  We had 2 sightings of black bears on the road.  One ran right in front of our car.

Tonight, we are staying in a cabin full of variations of moose i.e. paintings of moose and moose figurines in various costumes.  Life feels wonderful tonight after a meal of rotisserie chicken, stir-fried broccoli and roasted potatoes.  The owner operates a hobby farm with miniature horses (2 of them), chickens, ducks, kittens and 2 large dogs that always seem to want food from you.  And, yes, we are now in mosquito country. 

Rand writes:

Telen tells me that I have to say that, yes, I am starting to feel better and that, yes, she is right…

Kamloops June 19,2012

How do I say this without coming across as a complete wimp?

Things have not gone well for the last 2 days of this trip.  My cough is to the point where I am unable to ride.  Every time I try to take a deep breath I end up trying to cough up my liver.  It has been very disappointing and frustrating.   This morning I was prepared to ride from Merritt to Kamloops along the old Princeton-Kamloops highway.  This is a very scenic ride and not too difficult except for a long hill at the end.  Telen was looking at me over breakfast (which I could not eat) as I was trying to explain my plan to her interrupted by long coughing jags that left me gasping.   My cough has gone from a poor seal imitation to an authentic-sounding walrus imitation.  She did not say anything at first – just looked at me in that quiet, puzzled way that she has and shaking her head as if I was suggesting driving the car to Mars.  Then she quietly suggested that perhaps I was having a psychotic episode and that riding under these conditions was a symptom of schizophrenia and she was going to have me committed.

Without my bike.

So, we drove.

Tomorrow is scheduled as a rest day here.   By this time I thought I would have needed it.   Rest from what?  I feel like such a failure.  However, we will stick to the plan and perhaps by two days from now I will be in better shape to tackle the ride to Salmon Arm.  Telen prescribed some antibiotics for me and told me not to be so hard on myself.   I will take the antibiotics but I cannot guarantee the latter.

She does have common sense.  Something I think I got short-changed on.   I do have the Rogers Pass and the Kicking Horse pass to deal with in a few days and I will need my lungs to be in shape for it. 

It still feels as if I am wimping out.

Telen writes:

I am very proud of Rand’s strong commitment to cycle but one needs to have strong lungs and normal digestion to cycle up all these hills and passes.  He is darn stubborn and would not listen to my advice until I mildly threaten divorce.  His coughs are so loud and incessant that people nearby seem startled, avoiding us.  I have a cold too but not as bad as his.  We will have a good time, just in a different…and this is what I keep telling Rand.  Tonight, we are meeting my niece Tiffany for dinner.  

Day 2

Day 2

We made it to Harrison Hot Springs.  A word of warning to those who feel that it is ok to insult Mother Nature.  Don’t do it!    She went from being passive-aggressive to being full on aggressive-aggressive!   Heavy rain accompanied by constant headwinds.   I swear that when I stopped to eat my sports beans and turned around to see where I had been the wind turned around to be in my face.   I did not know that she read blogs or was even computer literate.

This bug that I contracted before we left has not let up that much.  My seal imitation while riding has gained me more than a few peculiar looks as well as some applause.  Not only that but it scared the daylights out of both Telen and myself.   When I arrived here at Harrison Telen greeted me with a banana and a glass of water.   I took a bite of the banana and a drink of the water and went into full epi-glottal spasm.   I stood there desperately trying to get some air and inhaling with this horrible loud “strider” and turning quite blue.   Poor Telen thought I was choking and was going to do the Heimlich maneuver on me but I waved her off.   It took a minute or so for things to settle down but it felt like an eternity.   This is not an experience I want to repeat.   We may have to re-think our plans for the next few days in order for us to both be healthy when we get back on the bikes.

Harrison is a very cute but very touristy town with nobody in it.   Sunday night, I guess as well as a season that has been cold and rainy so far.    Rather than camp in the cold and wet with our viruses Telen made the executive decision to stay at a motel called the Spa Hotel which was cheap, had a kitchenette and no Spa. 

Day One

It seems that Mother Nature has decided to make the start to our great adventure a bit of a challenge.   Cranky old bat.  A few days ago I developed a cold that, of course, went straight to my chest.   So I started coughing and wheezing away like a defective bellows.   Since I am going to be riding a bike for three months this presented an obstacle.  I find that breathing when I am riding makes the ride go so much nicer.   A lot less of the falling on the ground from hypoxia and less bruises on my forehead from hitting it on the handlebars from coughing.  So, we decided to delay our departure for a day. 

This morning as we were finally getting the car packed and ready I noticed that my front tire was completely flat.   Normally this would be nothing more than an inconvenience except that we had a ferry to catch in order to meet friends in Tsawwassen for lunch.   Since we were already behind this did not help.  I am not sure I can blame this on Mother Nature, but I am going to anyway.

We got down to the ocean to dip our wheels in the Pacific to find that there was a particularly low tide today.  That meant squishing and sliding our way out to the water over and into salty muck and slippery seaweed.    This I can blame on Mother Nature!  Another delay.

When I finally got riding I was really behind and had to crank it to get to the ferry on time.  All those cyclists that I saw on the way to Schwartz Bay who greeted me so politely were given scowl and what they probably thought was a bad seal imitation in return.

However, we did catch the ferry and did make it across to the other side.   Our friends indulged us in a wonderful brunch and great company that hid from us the deluge that began outside.   Darn that Mother Nature anyway.  I think it must be her time of the month.

So, day one completed.   A bit of a set-to with a deity, a series of confused and offended commuter-cyclists, great brunch, a monsoon and here we are.   In a hotel in Langley with full tummies, comfortable beds and no idea how to get to Harrison Hot Springs tomorrow but not really caring.

We are on our way!

High Anxiety

The great escape is rapidly approaching.   I am going through emotions ranging from “I can hardly wait!”  to ‘”What the hell am I doing??”  I am particularly familiar with the latter emotion.   It seems to be a recurring feeling in my life.  That and “It seemed like a good idea at the time”.  Both statements apply to this trip.  As the time draws nearer to our departure the more negative feelings seem to be prevalent.  We are still going to go ahead, never fear, and once we are on the road the positive feelings will prevail. 

  I desperately believe that…

It is just that I have had a job since I was thirteen.   I am a bit worried about how I will cope without one.   Such a strange worry.   Everyone I have spoken to has raised their eyebrows at me in incomprehension and said, “Oh, I think you’ll get used to it.”  

I think they might be right. 

The downsizing continues.   We packed at lot of our books and gave them to the book drive.   We love books and we don’t like to part with them.   We parted with THIRTY boxes of books.  It was like sending your kids off to university.  You worry about them and there is a sense of loss but then you feel the freedom and start dancing in a circle singing rugby songs.   Well, maybe I didn’t sing any rugby songs but I did dance in a circle using words I don’t normally use. (I dropped a box of books on my toe).  With the weight of those books gone I am worried about the house during the next windstorm

I am having some concerns about the ride across Canada.   Every route I plan has these mountain thingys in the way.   I still want to end up in Calgary after a few weeks to visit with lots of family and friends there but that means going over all these mountain passes.   What is THAT about!  Why is British Columbia so wrinkly anyway?   Just something to add to my overall anxiety levels!

We have spoken to the accountants, the banks, the travel agent, the insurance people and everyone else who has a reasonable grasp of reality and quite a few people who have little or no grasp of reality and they all seem to think this is feasible.  So why am I worried?   I look at myself in the mirror in the morning and say, “You can do this!”   My reflection mere sniggers and walks away.

Looking at my reflection is in no way reassuring even when I ignore the suppressed laughter.   I see a little fat sixty-year-old man who thinks he can ride his bicycle across the second largest country in the world.

 This could be worth a few laughs, indeed!

Preparation

As we get ready to drop out of our normal lives for a year there have been a million little details to attend to.   Professional organizations need dealing with, insurance companies need reassurance, renters need to be found and all the other minutiae of every day life need adjusting.  Reality is being obstructive and bureaucratic.

 I think it is separation anxiety.

There is one ugly thing that keeps breathing fetid air down my neck, waking me up in the night and whispering evil in my ears when I am not occupied.  Training.  If we are to ride across Canada, the second largest country in the world, we need to do some training. We have dozens of books on how to train for long distance rides.   All we need to do now is read them and follow the instructions.   Somehow, I don’t think we are going to get in shape by osmosis.

People say that wearing black is slimming.   Well, I have been wearing black for months now and I have not lost 1 gram of fat.   So, I guess training has to be done the old fashioned way – work!

Telen is going to be just fine.   She is a very fit, slender Asian woman with tremendous drive and lung capacity.   With her small frame and high power-to-weight ratio she disappears down the road like the Roadrunner spotting Wile E Coyote.   That is one of the reasons I refuse to let her get a horn for her bike.  

I am in shape.   Round is a shape, right?

There always seems to be a good reason for me not to train.   Snow, freezing rain, hurricanes, riots, civil unrest etc. etc.  I’m sure those are happening somewhere in the world.

Don’t get me wrong.   I love riding my bike.   It is one of the things I love doing the most.  Training on my bike, well, that is a different story.   That requires work, concentration, following a schedule and all those other unpleasant things.   Eddy Merckx, arguably the best cyclist the world has ever seen, said that the best training for cycling was to “Ride your bike, ride your bike, and ride your bike.”   So, not to gainsay the great Eddy Merckx, I guess I better get out and “Ride my bike”

We have ridden our bikes in Italy, France, Ireland, China, the USA and, of course, here in Canada.   Most of those places were great places to ride.  China, on the other hand, was just plain terrifying and the USA was puzzling.  Those rides were holidays that lasted only a couple of weeks.   The bike ride across Canada will be almost 3 months long with a few mountain ranges thrown in. 

Can a little fat man do this?

 I guess we will find out!