For about the past 3 years now, I have been spending the bulk of my 4 weeks worth of vacation days in Port Burwell, Ontario at the home of my close friend Dave. As former roomies it's a great chance for us to catch up and talk and make good food with some other friends by the lake.
Sometimes Dave will pick me up in his truck or I'll find a ride out there with someone else or as was the case on four occasions, I bike out there.
I've done so on a variety of bikes, all of which were assembled for me by my brother in law Brad who is a bit of a natural at it. We call them the "Franken-bikes" as they are usually built out a few bikes worth of parts. Brad was part of the first trip I had made out there as well as the second while my third and fourth treks were both solo.
When I tell people in town that I biked from London they generally comment with "Surely, you mean motor bike?" and the look of surprise changes to astonishment and then curiosity as they follow up with "How long did THAT take you?" when they realize that I did actually mean by leg power.
My best time was 5 ¼ hrs with my nephew Jensen and Brad. My Longest 6hrs 5mins and this last trip was 5 ¾ hrs. For some that I talk to they immediately say "I could never do that length of a trip. I wouldn't make it." I told myself that until the day I called Brad up and said I thought I was ready. He had already done the trip and had a good idea of which roads should be avoided and which were good.
Now let me say that I am not a "cyclist" and I do not train for this as an athletic endeavour. For me the bike is my mode of travel by choice around the city and with a full set of bags for transporting groceries or clothes or whatever, I am pretty self sufficient without a car. Riding the various multi-use pathways every couple of weeks in the summer I believe has given me the impetus to try something bigger and I am not done there. Brad and I are talking about a few days at a time with more gear like tents and cook tools.
So I guess you could say that my main inspiration was the knowledge that Brad had done it and fairly safely at that. My biggest concern was finding suitable roads where I didn't have to fight with traffic and I have done that now. My trip is pretty well mapped out but I know where I can make detours and stops for various reasons, like lunch or the odd fruit and vegetable stand or even for a beer.
The trip overall is more about enlightening your senses now and experiencing a variety of interactions with nature, man, the wind and rain. Our first trek was started in a hard rain fall.
On all of the previous trips we/I stopped at The Hill Berry Farm, and rested up, cooled down, had a bite to eat and grabbed some fresh foods for after the trip. Brad and I remember "Wicket", a type of Jack Russell pup who knew he could mooch a piece of sandwich or other snack off of us. The other two dogs would lumber over as if they were only half interested in the activity but would still stick their nose in your lunch pack when you weren't looking. Unfortunately, the stand wasn't open due to the rainy spring. Still I had hopes that maybe I'd find some asparagus but to no avail.
Keep in mind this ride isn't near what some of those die hard cycling enthusiasts work for and do year in and out. A colleague I have met through work, Ted, is in his 50's and trains in rain and snow to keep his self race ready year round. His treks astound me and at this point I couldn't fathom doing any of them.
Yet.
The trek is a lot of work at times as you can never fully avoid some steep hills or long inclines, but that being said there are many great hills to get a good momentum built from as to propel you up the other side with a minimum of effort. Wind can be a factor also in regards to the level of work your legs need to do. Going up a steep incline with a headwind can slow you down a fair bit and tire you out.
What it comes down to is that you have to be bigger than the trip. You have an ultimate destination and various other goals and tasks and distractions. Every stop is a means to an end, a checkpoint or the like. You get yourself to a point where it would be wrong to turn back or give in and call for the ride which of course any distance rider would have setup in advance in case of an emergency etc.
I try to absorb as much from every pedal turn as I can. Conversely I try to absorb something from the stops. The whole trip becomes a communion with your ever changing environment. You are thrust into strange places alone with whatever you can fit in your panniers or rack trunk and the bike itself.
I must admit to having become a bit of a bike geek being fully outfitted with panniers, a rack pack, my trusty helmet, a mirror, a bell and various lights and reflectors. The only area of biking I haven't gotten to at this point is the clothing.
You know what I mean, the lycra "junk in the trunk" shorts and the multi coloured moisture wicking, form fitting shirts complete with a pair of Oakleys and the special toe clip shoes. Ummm yeah… not ready for that yet.
It doesn't matter about the training, it doesn't matter about the clothes or the type of bike as long as you are comfortable first and foremost.
Being out there on the road under your own propulsion heading 70km away from home is daunting for about 5 minutes, and then every meter you ride gets etched into your memory with a variety of sights, sounds, smells etc.
The dead animals along every stretch of road remind you of the frailness of all in comparison to the great road monsters you will meet along the way. We've seen the usual assortment of cat, squirrel, ground hog, birds, rabbit and raccoon. Sadly on this last trip I also saw someone's hound dog at the edge of a ditch and on our first trip we stopped to see a deer. Morbid and horrifying maybe, but it's part of the trip and acknowledging what they gave for the road to be there is greater than all of us and our machines.
Whether you ride like I do with a source of music accompanying you on the trip, or with just the sounds of the environments and terrains, the sound track can very much influence the overall trip.
All in all, I find the trip to be an awakening or maybe an escape from the confines of the city. For nearly 6 hours, it's me, the elements and the inhabitants of the country side. I can't imagine ever getting tired of that.
This being the earliest of my 4 trips here, was quite interesting as I get to witness the various stages of growth in spring. I hope to do another summer trip and then one more in the fall this year so as to enjoy all of the cycles and colours and treasures of the land before the snow hits.
Things I recommend to anyone ever considering taking such a trek:
- Have a good set of plans. Know your roads available to you and map it out if you have to for the initial inspiration. Google Maps has a beta feature currently that gives you a few different cycling directions between two destinations with a travel time estimation.
- HYDRATE! Of course this point cannot be stated enough. I have never found that I need more than 2 litres for a trip but sometimes I stop for a sports drink to keep electrolytes up and a chance to cool down.
- Light weight high protein snacks like granola or sports or cereal bars are good to have. Bags of trail mix and nuts are good snacks to tuck in a pocket and eat as you ride. I like to pack a few sandwiches with an ice pack in my rack pack for short breaks.
- Take a smallish towel. There's a good chance you're going to sweat and you'll thank me later.
- Have a "buddy", someone who'll keep in touch with you through your ride by text or cell phone or that you can call in case of an emergency. Always let people know you are going on a long trip before you hit the road, google Maps can also be used to email someone your projected route.
- Take your time to enjoy every stretch of road and all that appears along them.
This is the trip I took on Saturday May 21st, 2011
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