This weekend I had my first taste of a multi-day bike trip as I participated in Ride For A Reason - a ride to raise money for Southern Alberta Bible Camp. I joined my friend Trina and fellow Sea-to-Sea buddy Ava for two of the three days of riding. While the whole crew rode from Banff to Cochrane on Friday, I put in a (half) day of work and rode to meet them in Cochrane in the afternoon. We spent the night in a church there, then hit the road for High River the next morning. Saturday was a 6.5-hr, 140km hilly day in the saddle (including some loop-back time to meet slower riders before lunch). Coffee, then pasta dinner in High River was perhaps the most delightful thing ever after a long day of riding on some beautiful secondary Alberta highways. Sunday we rode from High River to SABC (located just East of Champion). 109km of riding in 4h49m with some nasty wind from the north. We fought a cross-wind for 3/4 of the distance, but sailed at over 50km/hr for a good 40km stretch of road heading south.
Overall, it was a fantastic experience. It's too bad I couldn't join for the first day - although the rain they encountered did not sound enjoyable. I only got wet on Friday afternoon - the last 15 minutes of riding into Cochrane I was caught in a crazy downpour, and I swear there was some hail mixed in. It was quite the experience trying to dry out all the wet gear that evening.
A few things I learned, and good things to remember when packing time comes:
- Earplugs are essential
- Shoes take a long time to dry. Stuffing them with newspaper or papertowel overnight helps a little bit.
- Racing is fun, but riding slower allows for time to connect with others
- Fixing/cleaning your bike in the evening is way less stressful than doing it in the morning
- Never let a rider face the wind alone
- Stretching is good, and I can't do it too much
- Tandems are fast
- Drink more water than you think is necessary (but not in the hour before bed)
- My bed at home is 1000x more comfortable than any air mattress. Bedtimes should be planned accordingly.
- Ears need sunscreen too
- Jackalopes are real
- Alberta has some beautiful landscape - especially along Hwy 762
- Volunteers often have a thankless job, but they make the ride so much better. Seeing people cheering riders along the way is a huge mental boost, especially on the flat, windy days.
As you can see by all the red dots on the map below, all 62 days of riding have been sponsored! Some technical difficulties prevented me from being notified when donations were received, so I was a little behind in assigning days to donors.
If you've donated, but haven't received an email from me about which day is 'yours', click here to open the map in another window, and scroll down the list of places on the left to find your name.
View Sea to Sea 2013 in a larger map
One more piece of exciting news is the fundraising BBQ I mentioned in my last post... things have changed a little bit, but the below is the current information:
What: Sea to Sea Fundraising BBQ & Send-off Party
When: Saturday June 15, 2013 -- 5:30pm
Where: Stephen & Clement's House - 6343 34 Ave NW, Calgary AB
Who: Everyone!
Details:
* $5 Burgers
* $4 Hotdogs
* $4 veggie-kabobs
* Bring your own drinks and snacks
* Food has been donated, so all proceeds go straight to the Sea to Sea
* Any donations over $40 will get a tax receipt (be sure to fill out a form with your mailing address)
The organizers for Sea to Sea have also come up with some SWAG (Stuff We All Get, for you "Office" fans) available for purchase online at Faith Alive Resources. I will have some of the "Reflectors" daily devotional booklets for sale at the BBQ (limited quantities), as well as a few of the Sea to Sea rubber reminder bracelets - again with all proceeds going to Sea to Sea. Be sure to show up early if you really want one...
Posts might be a little briefer after today, as I am beginning to feel the stress of preparing. Hopefully I'll be able to post more frequently, and include some more pictures as things get more interesting than new duffle bags and bike shorts.
Thanks a ton for all your support and prayers so far. Things are about to get real, so don't forget about all us riders and volunteers in the days and weeks to come!
Oh! I'll also be heading to Kelowna this weekend to see the family before I leave, and maybe give a quick update at the CRC there. Drop me a line, or swing by the church for their 10:30am Sunday service to say hello.
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