The Prequel

 

What makes a person decide to take on a personal challenge? What drives us to do things that we've never attempted before - to push ourselves further and harder?

 

I don't know that I've ever really had a 'bucket list' of things that I want to do. If I did, one of those things would have been traveling to South Africa and experiencing the vibrancy of the place. My fascination with the music and culture of Africa goes way back. In 2015 that dream became a reality, of sorts, with Matt and I spending four amazing weeks in the North East of South Africa and meeting some amazing people. 

In the aftermath of that trip we have become so much more aware of the things that distinguish our humanity, and of the power in connecting with, and investing in, others. 

 

Not that this was a 'new' truth. Far from it. From the time God discovered Himself to me back in 1986 (a story for another time, perhaps) I have been exquisitely aware of how much He values each one, and invests in each one. 

 

But to see people from some of the most needy communities in South Africa, people who struggle daily with poverty and lack, reaching out to even more vulnerable children in their own communities and trying to feed and care for those children, was profoundly challenging. The activities of Hands at Work in Africa were particularly inspiring and we were greatly blessed to meet some amazing people who have committed themselves to supporting others to make a difference.

 

The other crazy idea was that I would like to bicycle across Canada before I turned 60. How hard could that be? 

Just grab a bike, and ride. Right?

 

 

Many years ago, when the kids were very little, we visited relatives in Calgary and then drove in to Banff, Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. 

It was the most stunning experience.

 

Some of us were a lot smaller then, and we got to play in the snow for the first time.

 

Fast forward and I have decided that trying to cycle the 6500 km from Vancouver to Halifax - or even the 7500 km from Vancouver to St. Johns - could be a thing. Helen was outwardly enthusiastic, but inwardly I suspect that she was carefully researching the symptoms of early onset senile dementia.

 

Small Beginnings

 

Boxing Day 2017 saw the start of the 'conditioning' process, to try to establish some kind of base fitness for this slightly crazy venture. It was also pretty obvious that my trusty mountain bike was not going to be carrying panniers and all the equipment required for wild camping across Canada. The hunt was on for a more suitable bike.

After much research we settled on a new Salsa Marakech touring bike. Helen had decided to retain her mountain bike with a rear pannier rack, but mine needed to be the 'beast of burden' and the Salsa seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

Swept back Jones Bar handlebars and Brooks saddle, dynamo front hub to power the LED headlamp and anything else we might want to plug into it. It was time to hit the road.

 

For those who are not aware of where we live, and the kinds of roads we typically ride on, there is a reason that mountain bikes are a good idea, and it has a lot to do with front suspension and big tyres. So needless to say, riding a rigid frame bike on corrugated gravel roads is a little different, as is the riding position which is much more horizontal, meaning a lot more weight on the wrists. Hmm. Riding on sealed roads was starting to look a little more attractive, even if it meant mixing it with cattle trucks and Four Wheel Drives.

Our 14 km 'standard ride' was soon pushed out to a 30 km 'standard ride'. Occasionally we were doing 60 or even 75 km trips, but no extra weight yet. Helen was doing some great rides and amazed me on numerous occasions with the pace she was riding, especially up hills. We also did some impressive gravel track downhills too, all part of the familiarisation process, and designed to desensitise the derriere for day after day of seat time.

 

The next challenge was to load up the panniers and try riding with some 'real weight' on the bike. Friends Julian and Brenda had invited us to camp on some land about 50 km from home so this seemed the perfect opportunity to do some real touring and check out the gear.

Sounds great in theory. No one mentioned the fact that between us and our destination was a small range of hills called the Cobaws, and that we were going to be riding pretty much straight up them with an extra 15kg on our bikes and gusting 35 - 45 km winds. Despite the pain, we eventually made it to our destination for the night, which was a gorgeous property on Pipers Creek. Our home for the night, and the adventure had well and truly begun.