Nick's Ultra Adventures 2008

To Thunder Bay.

2008-08-03T14:36:00.000-07:00

After a marathon night of t.v watching I woke up and started the search for my passport.I went through every bag I have,looked under every bit furniture,and tore the garage apart to no avail.It wasn't until I was walking past the back of the hotel an hour or so later that I noticed a housekeeping trolley and went over to investigate.Well what do you know,there it was neatly tucked away with all the hotel brochures.WTF!!!!At least I didn't have to go through the pain of trying to get a new one.So what to do next then?

I decided that I would continue the ride but in order to make up for lost time I was going to catch a bus 1600k from Ottawa to Thunder Bay and continue the ride from there.I had checked the weather forecasts and it seemed that I would at least get away from all the seriously shitty weather and put myself back on schedule.I booked my bus to Thunder Bay for the next morning and spent the remainer of the day checking out the bike paths and sights of Gatineau and Hull.I tell you there are a few city's around the world that could learn a thing or two about being bike friendly from the folks over here.I think I ended up riding about 70k that afternoon all around the river front and through countless parks.Mind you it was pretty easy to ride without all the weight of my panniers and trailer.

Bright and early the next morning it was off to the bus terminal to pack up the bike and get ready for the 23hr trip to Thunder Bay.I was actually really looking forward to the trip as I am one of those rare people who can quite happily sit and stare at the passing countryside for hours on end.I love it and I really like the nights when all you can see are the running lights of the semi-trailers as they thunder past.I loaded everything into the bus and it was off to Ottawa for an hour before being loaded onto the crammed Greyhound heading west.

The next day came and went without too much excitement considering what we were all to learn about Greyhound buses the next day(more on that later).I sat quietly taking some photos of the passing countryside and testing my action cam.As the trip wore on I got to meet a few of the people sitting around me and we became a bit of a travelling community.Thankfully after stopping at North Bay the bus emptied and we all had a couple of seats to ourselves.That didn't stop the social aspect of our trip and it wasn't long before we were all swapping life stories and sharing jokes in between coffee stops at isolated communities along the way.

A couple of the people on the bus were pretty interesting.Brian.is a 24 year-old guy from Lethbridge, Alberta who was on an epic four week trip to New Brunswick to attend four party's.Three were family related and one was a Facebook party.You have to be pretty keen to travel for six days across the country only to spend a week there before heading back again.The cool thing about him was that he is something of an artist and the return trip was spent getting off at randon small towns along the way to sketch whatever he found to be interesting.He also asked people to try a sketch of their own in is book and sign them.It was pretty cool actually.The down side of his character was the sleazy side which reared its ugly head late in the night when he started making out with a young 19 year old girl from Calgary.I though it was pretty funny actually to hear this girl carry on about her great boyfriend back home while playing tonsil-hockey with Brian. He started giving her the lines about her being so special and all that crap.She soon got sick of teasing Brian and dismissed him to the other side of the bus once things started to heat up.Women-I'll never understand them!!!!

Others on the bus had figured out that they were all ending up in Calgary together so there was quite the community forming.I kept to mainly to myself but at one of the early morning stops a couple of them started asking questions about me and what I was up to.Apparently more than one of them wanted to know what the weird contraption was that I had carried onto the bus.I explained that it was my bike trailer and that even though clearly,I wasn't doing a very good job of it,I was riding across the country trying to raise the profile of my chosen charity(even less success there).They were all suitably impressed and the next few hours were spent chatting away with everyone about the trials and tribulations of life on the road.It was great.
We would learn,the next day,about the tragic murder and beheading of a Greyhound passenger 1000k up the highway and which would certainly put a halt to too much over-friendliness on the buses for the next few weeks.

After watching a beautiful sunrise from the window of the bus we soon descended under the clear blueOntario sky, into the lakeside city of Thunder Bay.I didn't really have too many pre-conceptions of this place as I'd never met anyone who had spent time there.I quickly realised that all good plans can be dramatically changed,usually as a result of bad luck.My plans would change because of a serious dose of way too much as originally going to stay at a hostel a little way up the highway but Greyhound would not deliver my bike there so I booked into the Sleeping Giant guest-house which was not too far away from the bus terminal and even closer to town.My bike didn't arrive with me(no surprise there)so I hopped a cab and headed off to the hostel for what was supposed to be a two night stay.

DAY FOURTEEN-157K

2008-08-01T16:55:00.000-07:00

Wet is the only way I could describe my nights sleep that night.With the rain pouring down outside and my body heat creating all kinds of condensation on the inside of my tent it was impossible to stay dry.Thankfully the contents of all my bags were dry so that was something I s'pose.I was really reluctant to get out of bed but once I did I realised that it was going to be a foggy old morning once again.No point bitching about the dampness though as I pulled on all my wet clothes and readied myself for another uncomfortable mornings ride.

It was so dark in the forest were I had made camp that I had to wait a little while until it was bright enough to hit the road.Once I did though I settled into a nice pace and was clicking off the kilometers pretty quickly.I figured I'd be in Gatineau by lunchtime and then be ablt to ride another 40 k or so on the other side of the city before I booked it for the night.

There were, as I had come to expect here in Quebec,lots of cute little villages which were at regular intervals along the highway.I didn't stop at any this time but did manage to have a long chat with a guy named Patrick who was stopped at a roadside pullout.He was really interested in my trip and we sat down at a table near a huge crucifix and talked all about travelling and bike riding.It was pretty cool to chat for a while with someone who appreciated being out on the road and all that goes with it.

I continued along the flat farmland of the river valley for a few more hours and as predicted arrived on the outskirts of Gatineau around mid-day.Getting into the city however,took a long time.The highway that I was following suddenly joined the expressway that led into the center of the city and I got stuck riding with all the trucks flying by at breakneck speed.That didn't last long though as I soon heard the unmistakeable sound of a police siren and was pulled over by a traffic cop who wasn't too happy with me being on the expressway.He told me off and then gave me some really bad directions for an alternate route into town.By some fluke I managed to find a cycle path that followed the river and I figured if I followed it I would evntually find the city.
As luck would have it,while I was stopped and studying a map of the park system,another cyclist stopped and asked me where I was going.I told him that I was trying to get through Gatineau and Hull to join the 148 on the other side of the city.He started giving me directions and then decide to ride with me himelf and show me the way.That was really nice I thought.We rode for about half and hour chatting as we went and finally came upon another bike path which he told me would take me all the way to hwy 148.I thanked him and rode off down yet another of the city's amazing bike paths until I decided to have a little rest by the river overlooking some really cool rapids on the Ottawa River.I sat there for about an hour and then headed off again to find the highway.

Along the way I met a lady who was riding by and upon hearing of my plans warned me against riding the 148.She told me that she lived on that road and that it was a very dangerous place to be on a bike during the afternoon rush hour out of the city.I really had no choice so off I went,yet again into a rain storm.The rush hour warning was spot on and I was soon being bullied off the road by some really crazy drivers in between dodging some huge potholes that were just everywhere.As another storm system approached I ducked into a gas station and had a coffee to wait out the rain.A young guy told me that I was looking to get killed if I rode that highway in the aternoon but again there was no other way so on I went.

Ten minutes later during a huge,huge,huge storm I hit a flooded pothole and it threw me off my bike and into the middle of the highway.My bike,trailer and myself were now strewn all over the road but thankfully relatively unhurt.It was the 4x4 with speedboat in tow that became my next comcern.As I crashed the driver hit his brakes hard but in the cyclonic conditions his truck and trailer aquaplaned and jack-knifed with the truck passing me on one side and the trailer passing me on the other.The trailer stopped just as the wheels bumped up against me and thankfully no-one was hurt.I was done for the day though and pretty much over this whole riding on shitty Quebec roads in the fucking rain.I turned around and headed back toward Gatineau and the bike paths I had been on a couple of hours earlier.

I found a motel by a nice beach not far from where I'd had my afternoon break and checked in for two nights to figure out what to do.Really I was over it and after having such a great time in Montreal my heart was not into this ride anymore.I didn't want to be a triathlete,I didn't want to be on the road,I just wanted to hang out with some friends and have some fun!To make matters worse I had lost my passport as well.Somewhere between checking in,storing my bike and having a shower I'd lost it.We searched and searched to no avail and now I was thinking that someone had found it and kept the damn thing.Great,now there was the possibility that I'd have to stay in Ottawa for a few days until I got another one.Bloody hell what was a guy to do but go to the store and buy some shit food and some Guiness to go with it.With that I set mysef up in my room and veged out in front of the television for the night.With 157k done that day I had actually had a great day riding,pity the rest went all to hell.I left it to the next day to make any decisions as if I was made to choose right there and then I would have hopped a plane and flown to Penticton the next day.

DAY THIRTEEN-123K

2008-08-01T12:44:00.000-07:00

So, after finally deciding to get my lazy ass out of Montreal I packed my stuff and rolled out of my sisters place at about 1pm on a sunny Sunday afternoon.I had been in Montreal for fifteen days instead of the five that I had planned but to be perfectly honest I could have stayed a lot longer.The only problem was that now I was so far behind my ride schedule that I feared I would not be able to make it to Penticton at all.My attitude toward the ride had been lifted by a couple of old friends who had contacted me and told me that they would be contributing toward the Athletes in Kind cause.My old mate Lloyd also so told me that he and his wife Ead had decided to put another $2000US into an account for me should I need it.That was really all the motivation that I needed to get me on the road again and so the long trip through the city of Montreal was begun.

It was actually a lot easier to get out of town than I thought it would be but it wasn't all plain sailing as I did find myself hoplessly lost in Laval for about 40 minutes during which time I ended up having a nice tour of some really beautiful riverfront properties.Once I figured out where I was it was pretty plain sailing out along hwy 148 toward the city of Gatineau.

My target for the afternoon was to try and reach the town of Lachute some 80-odd kilometers from Montreal.I figured that would be a nice ride to get me used to being on the road again after my long break in the big city.It was great to be out and about again physically but mentally my head wasn't really in the game.I don't know why but even though it was pretty easy riding there was something that made me think I could be doing something way more constructive with my life. I did manage to hit Lachute in the early evening and after a promising entry into what I thought might be a nice town I found myself in one shithole of a place.I have heard joking remarks about some serious inbreeding in Quebec and I swear if those rumours are true then Lachute must be the inbreds capital of the province.Sitting outside a gas station sipping coffee I was amazed at the cast of weird characters that passed me by each slightly more eccentric than the next.I mean talking to yourself isn't really such a crime but arguing with yourself should be.I saw more than one guy do that.I also saw more redneck drivers racing around the streets of Lachute than I had seem anywhere else.It was very scary being on the road with them as I took off after my short stop.

I was pretty glad to be out of that town and was happy that I was going to far exceed my days planned 80k.It was only the fact that the weather closed in(yet again) that I started to look for somewhere to sleep that night.I was happily barrelling down the highway when I realsed that everyone had their headlights on and that it was getting really dark,really quickly.It was about then that the lightning started and the thunder rolled overhead!Damn it,I did not want to spend another wet night outside so I really started to look in earnest for a campsite.I found one by the side of the highway just over the bridge that spans the Riviere Rouge(red river).It was literally ten feet off the highway but was quite a bit below it and was hidden quite well.

As I wheeled my bike down the track along the road I realised that there must have been some huge weather here over the last day or so as the ground was soaked and there was evidence of a nice stream that must have flowed strong with the run-off from the highway.Luckily the campsite I chose was slightly elevated and I was pretty sure I wouldn't get flooded out.Getting rained on was something that I couldn't control.Just as I was setting the tent up the heaven opened and I had to cover my exposed tent with my tarp and hide under it until the rain let up.

Fifteen minutes later it stopped raining and I was able to set up camp and put all my stuff under cover.I did get caught myself though and by the time I crawled into my tent I was soaked yet again.There was not much I could do about it and after removing the outer layers of clothes I got into my damp sleeping bag wearing my wet under shirt and bike pants.I would be wet all night but at least I was warm and thanked my lucky starts for the tarp that covered me as the deluge that hit didn't add to the damp misery that I experienced for the next seven hours.After settlling in I ate a can of beans,did my daily report and tried as best I could to go to sleep.This was not fun at all!!

DAY 12-172K

2008-07-24T12:07:00.000-07:00

I had a really sound sleep that night and woke up feeling great and ready to ride myself to Montreal to spend a week or so with my sister.I hadn't seem her for four years and so I was really looking forward to doing nothing but hang with her and her friends for a while and forget about everything to do with the road and trying to raise enough money not only for Athletes in Kind but for my own trip.First things first though,I still had to cover the 140k or so to Quebecs' largest city before I could start to enjoy anything.

The roads were pretty quiet that morning so I decided to ride the main highway for a while.I would also ride again on the 132 today instead of riding the 138 on the northern bank of the river as by doing that I would save a few kilometers that the 138 had in detours.The roads would meet up again after about ten ks so I figure that I would risk it.Man what a difference riding on the expressway.That road surface was awesome,unlike the potholed excuse for a highway that I had been riding for the last 500k.All good things must come to an end though and I was soon back on the dodgy 132 winding my way through the Quebec countryside once again.This time without the wind.

It was a great mornings ride and I was thinking that I may be able to get into Montreal at about 2'ish but the roads really started to deteriorate and I had to slow down to a crawl at some stages as there was just no room for me to ride on the tarmac,I had to ride on the dirt by the side of the road.Trust me,with all the weight I had to pull along that made for a really tough few hours and my fatigue levels started to rise.It was pretty mind numbing work not to mention the fact that my hands and feet were starting to lose feeling.All that shaking around started to loosen some bits on my bike as well and I found out one cause of my problems with being not so comfortable on my bike.My saddle had shifted way back and was now in the totally wrong position for me to ride properly.No wonder my legs and ass were sore,they had been trying to get used to a new position on the bike.That never goes very well!

I made it to the large town of Sorel-Tracy and sat outside a gas station wondering why todays ride was feeling so hard.I mean,my legs didn't hurt at all but I was suffering.I guessed that the effort of 1ook into the wind the day before was taking it's toll but I was confident that I could still make Montreal today.Maybe not as early as I first thought but I'd get there if it killed me.A lady at the gas station wasn't so convinced when she asked me where I was going and I told her that Montreal was my destination for the day.She looked at her watch and shook her head. "Today" she said "I don't think so".I just laughed and assured her that there was still about nine hours of sunlight left and that would give me plenty of time to make it.She wished me well and drove off,no doubt while telling her husband what an idiot I was.

I didn't take long for my enthusiasm for the whole day to leave me.I was really suffering and figured that I may actually have to try and hitch a ride to Montreal.Which ,after another horrible hour of riding in the dirt ,I tried to do.I had made it to the town of Varennes which really isn't that far from the city but I just didn't want to ride anymore.It was weird but I stood on the side of the road for a while thumbing a ride without much enthusiasm.I figured it was my minds way of demanding a long rest stop.I really knew that nobody would pick me up but at least I wasn't on that damn saddle anymore. After a while I decided to stop acting like a little girl and got back on the road for the last long push to the city.

As seems to the be the norm for me out of nowhere my pace picked up late in the afternoon.All through this trip I have had some really bad mornings followed by awesome afternoons.Don't know why.Maybe it was the change in road surface as the closer I got to Montreal the better it got.It wasn't long before I was riding on a beautiful bike path through some really pretty outer suburbs of the city.Some of the houses on the river were amazing and at less than 40 from the city I think I could quite easily live here.Don't think they would like me pitching a tent in their neighbourhood though.

One thing that did perplex me was the fact that I knew I was really close to a big city but I still couldn't see it or any signs that there may be a city anywhere in the distance.It took about two hours of wondering before I finally saw the Montreal skyline in the distance.God was I ever happy about that.My pace quickend again and I raced down the streets to the outskirts of Longueuil which sits on the opposite bank of the St Lawrence from Montreal.I followed the roads along the expressway and soon found myself in the middle of a huge street party which was part of the Longueuil summer festival.There were bands ,playing and street performers doing their thing while thousands of people crowded the bars and spilled out into the streets right where I wanted to go.I was too tired to find a detour and wheeled my rig into the throng,much to the dismay of the security people manning the road block that I totally ignored.

After explaining to them that I had just ridden from Quebec City and that I was just trying to get to Montreal before I was too tired to move they let me through and even gave me directions and hints about riding the Jacques Cartier bridge.I must have looked an absloute mess as so many people just stared at me as I walked my rig through the crowds to the other end of the festial precinct. With that done it was a simple task to find the bridge and start the long climb into space.I thnought I'dbe really freaked out but the barriers are really high so I didn't feel the affects of my vertigo tis time-thankfully!

The rest of the trip through Montreal to my sisters place was easy as well.I had a map of the city with me and after about 20 minutes I found her street and pulled in for a week of R&R and more importantly a great family reunion.

DAY 11-138K

2008-07-24T10:10:00.000-07:00

So after getting off the ferry in Levis I turned west and followed the bike path along the river stright throung the now peacefull park that had served as our race transition.I continued on along the bike course and then hit new ground as I quickly left Levis behind.I did stop in at a local bike shop at the end of the bike path to see if they could help me with a spare tube for my trailer tyre.I still hadn't fixed it and the slow leaking valve meant that I had to pump it up every four hours or so.They didn't have a tube that size so on i went and rejoined route 132 which had brought me to Levis some ten days earlier.

I was headed away though and once I negotiated the traffic out of Levis and ducked under the huge bridges that lead to Quebec City I was on quite country roads again.The only problem was that this section of highway 132 was just terrible.There were pothole everywhere and almost no shoulder for me to ride on.I swear,it would be safer to ride on the damn expressway.At least there I would have a huge lane to myself insdead of waiting to be hit from behind by a vehicle on this narrow secondary road. There was noting I could do but suck it up and continue.

After about ten kilometers I stopped to take some photos of the river which could be seem for the first time since the bridges.While I was taking the pictures a guy wandered over and started asking me questions about my bike and the trip.He was really interested and asked if I was hungry.He then mentioned that his family were about to have brunch and I was welcome to join them at their house across the street.It was then that I looked over to his place and saw two really nice mtb's on the top of his car.Obviously this guy was a mountain biker and by the numbers on the bikes I figured that he raced as well.Sadly I had to turn his offer down as I was on a bit of a schedule and I knew that if I stopped now I may not get started again.I really did have to get to Montreal to visit my sister and I had promised her that I would be there the next day.I made a mental note to make sure I didn't force any time limits on myself for the rest of the ride after Montreal.

Not long after,the wind started to pick up and I found myself struggling into the strongest wind of the trip so far.It was brutal!Thankfully there wasn't a lot of rain associated with it but there were the occaisional rain cells that did dump their load a couple of times.Luckily for me I was near shelter both times and was able to hide out in an info center for the first storm and in a gas station for the other.The rest of the trip was relatively dry but the wind did give me something to complain to myself about.There was nothing to complain about regarding the scenery though as there were plenty of nice views of the river and surrounding farmland to keep my fully appreciative of where I was.

Ever so slowly I plugged along the road getting closer and closer to my intended destination of Trois Rivieres.I figured if I could make it there(or close enough) then maybe I could cross the river and ride into Montreal on the higway on the other side.I was a bit worried about crossing the bridges in the city as they are really high and I do suffer a little bit from a fear of heights.I did not relish the thought of riding over those bridges at all,especially if the wind was blowing.

Hour by hour I fought my losing battle with the wind and decided to just cruise along until I had covered about 140k.According to my map that would be about half way and in my mind that would be enough for the day so i put myself in cruise mode and even tok the time to stop at some nice veiwpoints overlooking the river and take in some of the scenery.Even though it was windy I was kind of enjoying the day.The rest in Levis had done my legs the world of good.

By late afternoon I had seen enough of the highway for the day and started thinking about a place to stay for the night.I was getting tired and decided that I would spoil myself one more time and stay in a motel if I could find one in the next half hour or so.Just as I was thnking about it I saw a sign on the highway advertising lodging in a hamlet just outside of the town of Becancour a little ways off the highway. I took that as a hint and followed the signs through the streets until I came upon a really nice and very new looking motel.Sitting outside the reception was a burly looking guy with a full beard and coveralle that looked like they had seem a full day on a worksite.I rolled up and said hello and he asked if I needed a room.Turns out he is not only the owner of the motel but he built the damn thing from scratch.

He organised my check-in and then told me he had somewhere safe for my bike as he didn't want it in the rooms.Fair enough I thought and so I took what I needed from my panniers and then he showed me around the back of the motel where he locked my bike in an unfinished room.He then gave me a quick tour of his motel and told ma all about how it had taken him two years to get to this point and that the last rooms should be ready in a month or so.he was obviously very proud of what he had done and if the condition of my room was any guide he should be proud as well.The room was really nice,easily the nicest place I had stayed in Canada thus far.I was very impressed.

After a quick shower it was off to the store a short few blocks away to buy some food for the night and then it was back to the room to call my sister and lie in the comfy bed watching t.v.It had been a pretty good dayreally, even with the wind in my face for hours.I was happy and confident that I would make Montreal without too much trouble the next day.

Quebec City-part three

2008-07-24T06:09:00.000-07:00

So it was up early again and feeling great after a long sleep.I headed downstairs for breakfast and realised that my stomach was much better and even though I felt a little weak it was all good and I settled in for another long breakfast shift.

I caught up with Ontario Mike and he was pretty sad about my tales of woe as he had been really interested in the whole ultra-triathlon thing.As we sat chatting a few of the other hostellers came up and asked me how it all went.It's great to be around people who are so interested in peoples lives.That's what I like about hanging in hostels,you very rarely meet negative people and generally everyone is upbeat and positive about life.I was sharing a room with four Canadian girls who had been in town for ten days on a conference and they were so into the thought of crossing their country by bike and asked me all kinds of questions about the trip.One of them bike races for a team in Ottawa and she was all over my bike like a groupie,it was pretty funny.

I also was given by another lady,the remaining weeks worth of passes to the 400th anniversary celebrations.That was huge and even when I told her I would only be in town for a day of so she just told be to pass it forward and that's just what I did,to another cyclist who had just arrived in town after cycling from Whitehorse in the far northwest of Canada.He was from Ontario and after two months on the road was only a couple of weeks ride from finishing his cross Canada trek in Halifax.It was great to meet another adventure-cyclist and chat for a while as he inspired me a to get back out there and it confirmed what I had told Mike the week before.Lot's of people get out there and ride cross country,it's hard yes but you don't have to be a super athlete to do it,you just need a little bit of courage to start and a lot of patience to keep going.

I did stay an extra day in Quebec City though as I wanted to make sure that I was all better and also because I was really having a great time.This week I noticed the streets were a lot quieter than the previous one and it seemed that the crowds were thinning quite a bit.That was great for me as I was a bit over having to battle so many people on the street all day.It made being a tourist a little easier.I did have to make the decision to head off though and after a long breakfast chatting to Mike and my new cyclist comrade I did eventually load up the bike,hitch the trailer and ride my rig down through the narrow streets back down to the ferry for the trip across to Levis where I wold start what I'd hoped would be a two day, 270k ride to Montreal.

The aftermath and some fun as well.

2008-07-23T11:30:00.000-07:00

The fire pit at Jerry's b.b.q.What a great night yet again.

The English and Singaporean reps right and the Grems below

So after a pretty shocking night of throwing up six times the morning rolled around and it was time to head off to the awards brunch.I just couldn't make it and told Barb to go ahead without me.I really just wanted to sleep some more and maybe I would be well enough to go to Jerry's place for one of his famous post race barbeques.They are just one of the highlights of any trip to this event and the look on the faces of those who have not seen the llama farm is priceless.

I did ,in the end start to feel better and that evening headed off with Barb to to the party just outside of Levis.We did get a little lost though but eventually made it to the llama farm and met up with most of the athletes and crews.I guess 55 people in all turned up and it was a great night as usual.I was carefull and only had one glass of wine and some really nice food which made me feel much better and confident that I would be able to make the next days whale watching tour.Normally saying goodbye at Jerrys place is a sad thing as we generally go our separate ways after that but most of us were heading off together touring the next day so the goodbyes were kept to a minimum as only those from Montreal were leaving before the next days trip(something do do with having to work the next day).It was to be an 8am start though so I had to drag myself and a few of the others away from the campfire and off to Levis to get to bed .

Barb decide that she wanted to head off and continue with her cross -Canada tour.I tried to cnvince her to do the tour with us but to no avail.Thankfully she agreed to take a whole bunch of stuff off my hands and take it back to Penticton for me.I handed her a bag with about 8 kilos worth of stuff in it that I would not need until I was lining up for Ultraman at the end of August.With that we went over to the meeting point for our tour and she said her goodbyes to everyone and was off.I'm very grateful to her for coming over and helping out for the weekend,she has been a great friend and true to form, just before she left, she handed me two $50 Petro Canada gift cards to use on my trip west.She is a class act..It's not easy crewing through the night like that and both her and Melissas whole family could not have been of greater help during what was a disappointing result for me.

So it was then off on a whale watching adventure a couple of hundred kilometers down river from Quebec City.Twenty two of us all headed off in a little convoy of mini vans and toured the beautiful scenery of the St Lawrences' northern bank.Thankfully I had ridden in on the southern side as the road we were on that day was hilly with a capital H.It was really nice driving through the counrtyside and after a few rest stops we arrived at our destination not far from the mouth of the Saguenay River.We were promtly fed our lunch and then were given some really sturdy wet-weather gear.I figured that we were in for a rough ride on the river of we needed this much protection but when I saw the size of the boat I realised it was more for protection from the spray than for any inclement weather that we may have to face.

The trip itself was great.The river is amazing and for today anyway was full of whales for all to see.I stood at the back of the boat with Michel and Jean-Guy and we had to laugh as those at the front of the boat got absolutely soaked while we stayed pretty dry throughout the three hour tour(yes Gilligans theme played in my mind too).I loved it and still marvel at the sheer size and ower of that huge river.

After the boat-ride it was off again to do some more sightseeing and some dinner on the way home but not before we all stood on the cliffs of the entrance to the Saguenay Fijord and held the world rock throwing competition.Very juvinile but excellent fun as the assembled internationals tried to outdistance the Canadain contingent by throwing rocks into the Saguenay river.The Canadians won.

We stopped for dinner on the way home in the town of Baie Saint-Paul and invaded an already busy restaurant for gourmet burgers and beer.It was excellent and a really nice end ing to a great day.The trip home tok us into the night and by the time I arrived back at the apartments I was already feeling the effects of the rich food I had eaten earlier.I got sick again but this time out of the other end and sat on the toilet for most of the night.By the time the morning rolled around all I wanted to do was sleep but I had to vacate the apartments as the cleaners were already there tending to all the now empty rooms.It was a reall struggle for my to pack all my stuff and ride back to Quebec City when I felt so weak but once I was back in the hostel I started to feel much better.How long I would stay I didn't know but I thought it would be to chill out in Quebec City for a day or two at least to get rid of what was ailing me.Funny thing these hostels,I felt at home straight away.

THE DOUBLE IRON

2008-07-23T10:41:00.001-07:00

So it was up early the next day for all everyone and after a quick breakfast and scout around my room to make sure I hadn't left anything behind,we headed off down to the race site.All in all the weekend went very well with all eight of the scheduled events going off without a hitch.The double iron had it's problems though,not with the event organisation,but with the weather.It is pretty hard for me to describe this course as tough since it is pretty much dead flat but as we all know,if you throw in some wind,everything can go to hell,especially when you are trying to ride 360k.For me though the thought of doing my fourth double here in Levis left me unconcerned as it was really just a "training day" and not a race.I would be worrying about other events in the year and this weekend I just wanted to get the job done and hang out with all my mates fom Quebec.

The swim was held in a small cove just off the mighty St Lawrence River opposite the imposing citadel in old Quebec City.It was a 12 loop,7.6k crowd free affair with the 27 athletes(24men and three women) having lots of room to splash around without getting in each others way.Due to the huge tides that occur on this river the swim start changes every year to allow us to swim in the calmest water possible and for the first couple of hours everything was going to plan.My swim was always going to be slowish as I had only done a handfull of swims in training this year.I just wanted to get around in about 2hrs 30ish and I would be happy which is what was happening until the last three laps when the current started to take control.

That didn't worry the swim leader Itallian,Frabrizio Botanica(what a great name)who had a speedy 1:57:08 to exit the water eight minutes in front of defending champ and Gatineau,Quebec native Eric Deshaies.Daylight was third as Eric Colbert hit dry land next,some 18 minutes later.They were all way in front of me but I was happy with my 2:37 as I had bluffed my way through another swim in tenth place,unhurt but full of St Lawrence River water.I wandered the 200meters to transition slowly changing into my bike clothes as I went and hit the bike course with 2:47 on the clock.

By the time I got on the bike the pace of the other nine athletes was furious,as was the intensity of the wind.They were all head down and going hard at what to me seemed a near suicidal pace for the start of a 360k ride,especially with a 25kph wind bearing down on us.Eric was going really hard and was ticking off laps at 34kph while German,Marcel Henning and Austrian,Andreas Karral began their long dogfight for the minor places on the podum.I had asked Eric the day before if he was going for the sub 20hr holy grail of the Double Iron and he told me that was indeed his plan but it would depend on the wind.Todays 92x1.92 repeats into the wind would not help his cause one bit.

For my part I was just tooling around on my brrowed bike at a more sedate 29kph just planning to finish in the 12:30-12:45hr range.It was very interesting to check out the boys as they lapped me(which they did regularly) as only Eric seemed able to handle the tough conditions well.I spoke to Andreas briefly and he commented on the tough conditions as he started to slow down in his chase of Eric to concentrate more on staying with Marcel.Fabrizio,the studly Itallian B&B owner seemed on the same program as I and rode up to my only to say " Nick,there are so many beautiful girls here to look at,I don't want to do this anymore".Spoken like a true Itallian and he was right,the endless supply of bikini-cald Quebecers,walking,jogging,skating,riding and sunbathing all around the course was a real treat for the eyes but a even greater distraction for a bunch of guys with their blood already up.

At about 100k I hit pit lane for a food stop.The stuff I had on my bike wasn't cutting it and I craved real food so I pulled in for a hot cup of soup and sat down for five minutes to hang with the crews.I just wanted to finish and had planned to stop three times during the bike to eat and socialise.Little did I know that I would get more than my wish.About 40k after my first stop a huge thunderstorm hit and I just made it back to pit lane in time to avoid the worst of the rain.I knew it would be a brief storm and so waited it out with legendary eight-time Deca-iron finisher Guy Rossi and mutiple world Ultra-tri champ Pascal Joli.While everyone else was getting soaked we stayed dry and headed back out on the course only losing a few mintues.From there ,however things began to go south for me.

My eyesight had statred to go blurry and I was experiencing dizzy spells from time to time.At first I didn't think much of it but they became more frequent and I stated to get a chill before each episode.I continued though and ordered a coke from my crew as I passed thinking that it might wake me up.It didn't.A couple of laps later I blacked out for a second and hit a traffic cone which threw me onto a concrete garbage bin.Thankfully my leg took the brunt of the impact and I managed to stay upright without scatching my borrowed bike.I knew somthing was wrong and pulled up to the medical team at the far end of the course.They told me to go back to the med-tent and the medics wuld be waiting for me.As I rode up to the medics with my crew chasing behind I blacked out for a second time,thankfully into the arms of my crew who had arrived in the nick of time.I was walked to the med tent and my b.p was taken which confirmed my fears,it was very low.I lay there for a few minutes and when I treid to sit up to get a drink my crew were offering me I passed out for the third time,this time with a violent shiver which lasted about ten seconds.Once I came to they told me that a ambulance had been called and that I would not be allowed back on the bike today.My race was done.I talked the ambulance guys out of taking me to the hospital as my b.p was starting rise again but they told me that my blood sugar was really low as well so they gave me some industrial strength gels to boost my sugar levels.They were also concerned about the volume of river water that I had consumed and left me with a warning that I should be prepared for some stomach problems in the next day or so.Man,were they ever to be proved right.I spend the rest of the night in a reclining lawn chair,wrapped in my sleeping bag, watching the race progress in between nap sessions and feeding times.It was fun to hang out with the crews but I was very sad to have not finished the first of my planned events for my trip.

The race continued though and the frantic early pace was beginning to take it's toll on the riders.Only Eric held firm as everyone else slowed into the nightime hours.Marcel was still holding onto second with Andreas not far behind in third.The rest of the field was just trying to stay upright as fatigue started to set in across the course.

Eric had a huge lead of over an hour by the time he hit the 42 lap run and really only had to hold it together for the win but Marcel and Andreas started the run realtively close together and raced for second place.During the run,as the day wore on the heat became an issue and one by one the athletes started to fall by the wayside.There ended up being a record 40% dnf rate for the event which translated to 12 of the 27 starters.That was great for Leslie Holton who remained the only female upright and a certainty for the world championship title.She deserved it as she put together a really solid and smart day for a winning time of 31:11:27 and a nice $2000 cheque.Others did not fare so well and my job for the day was to calculate who would be able to make the 30hr time limit for the men and 32 hrs for the women.Sadly many of them realised that they would not make it and stopped.

The cream did rise to the top and Eric held on to his comfotable lead to cross the line in a winning time of 21:49:40,well short of is record attempt but an awesome effort given the tough conditions.Andreas Karral managed to pass Marcel for second in 23:09:51 and ran almost the indetical time to Erics' 8:59:18.He told me later that if he had been closer to Eric at the start of the run he would have tried to catch him but gave Eric credit for being brave enough to keep up the pace on the bike all day when he had slowed to conserve his legs for the run.Marcel wasn't happy to finish third in 23:29:18 but by the time we were at Jerry's bbq the next day he was all smiles.

I didn't stay around for too long after the first half dozen people finished and figured Barb had seen enough of all the triathletes for one day so she drove us back to the apartments to hang out and relax a bit.The only pronlem is that as the night wore on I started to feel pretty sick.I was okay while I was chatting to everyone outside but as soon as I went to bed I felt the urge to throw up and that is exactly what I did.All night!!Six times I went back to the toilet and by the pre dawn hours I was a complete mess.God knows what it must have sounded like but it was loud as Harn Wei told me he could here me and he was on another floor.It was a really bad way to end what was really a great event all things considered.I just wanted to sleep though and couldn't bear to think of facing the next day.

Quebec City-part two

2008-07-22T13:55:00.000-07:00

I called Michel to find out the where's and when's of the registration process and he informed me that all the double iron athletes were to be housed in the college apartments for ease of transport to the race site on Friday.That was pretty cool I thought as usually they charge for this accomodation but this year it was free.He then amazed me even more by telling me that there was to be a free whale-watching trip for all the double iron racers the day after the awards ceremony.Is there no limit to what thes folks here in Quebec will do for the athletes.I did mention that I had a friend arriving to help me crew and he simply said"no problem,we will look after her.She can crew for you and we will feed her and her for free all weekend.Truly amazing!!

With that sorted I took off around the city one last time to get some photos taken of the race site from the high viewpoint of the citadel located directly across the river from transition.After that I checked out a couple of bands playing in one of the parks and watched some dancers rehearse routines for that nights show.From there it was back to the hostel to wait for news from Barb about her arrival time in Quebec.It was another great day in Quebec and I just hoped the favourable weather would continue for the weekend.Racing here in bad weather sucks the big one. I also took the opportunity to head down to the harbour and check out something that Mike had told me about.There was a ship arriving in port that day which has special significance in Canadian culture.The Bluenose 2 is a replica of the shp that is portrayed on the Canadian 10 cent piece.The original met it's maker on the high seas and so this one was commisioned to be built in Lunenburg just outside of Halifax.It tours Canadain cities all year and is quite the attraction.I got pretty close to her and I must say I was very impressed indeed.

I assumed my little position at the far end of the courtyard with my new mates Crazy Jean(who you met in the video in part one) and Ontario Mike,who was in town for three weeks checking out all the festivities.The three of us spent lots of time together talking crap mostly but laughing lot's,which was mainly at Jeans expence.That guy was on his laptop for hours chatting up and singing to girls all over the world,it was too funny. It was pretty good fun but the day was getting late and having spoken to Barb on the phone from across the river only an hour or so before I was beginning to wonder where she was.To remedy the situation I went and bought some beer not that it would help find her really but someone was looking after us as when I stepped out into the street from the beer shop two doors down from the hostel who should I spot but Barb.She was at the wheel of her huge blue van being escorted through the cobblestone streets of Quebec City by two bicycle cops.I'm not sure they knew what to make of me as I raised my hands and started waving my two cans of guiness around.Stupid bloody tourists was probrably foremost on their minds but they said goobye to Barb and were off.Barb parked the van in a narrow side street and I showed her to the hostel and introduced her to my crazy fellow inmates.As we both had to be in Levis on the other side of the river the next morning we had an early night.Barb slept in her van and I packed all my crap before going to sleep full of anticipation of seeing a bunch of old tri friends that I hadn't seen for four years.

The next morning(after filling up on another freebie breakfast)we loaded all my stuff into Barbs van and headed off to the ferry for the quick trip to Levis.I was so thankfull that Barb happened to be in the neighbourhood and could help me out for the event.She was on a cross-Canada driving trip and coincidenlty was close enough for her to make the trip from Ottawa to Levis for the weekend.This morning she would get to meet the other athletes as well as some of the people that would be helping as crew for me too.

We drove the short distance from the ferry at Levis to the college sports complex in Lauzon and found a huge group of skinny athlete types assembled in the foyer of the complex.It was like one great reunion for me as I scanned the room and spotted so many old friends that I hadn't had contact with for so long.The comeraderie of these ultra-triathlets never ceases to surprise me and somehow every time we meet up it's is like we were all hanging out just yesterday and not four years ago.It's is the smae at all the Ultras' I've done and many of the Ironmans as well.This morning was no different as I first met up with Jerry "the Llama farmer" Fassett who is a local and one of the real charachters of the sport.Then it was Harn Wei from Singapore,who I was glad to notice had all his facial features intact.He crashed heavily here a few years ago and the last time I saw him his face was beat up pretty bad>he is a tough guy though and it was no surprise to me to find out that he had signed up for the Deca-iron(38k swim-1800kbike-422krun)in Mexico later in the year.
It was a like old home week for all of us as we filed into the registration room for the pre race briefing and our blood tests(drug tests).I got to meet up with all the race organisers that had been so supportive of me over the years and said my hellos to Michel,Jean-Pierre and Jean-Guy.After saying hello to all the other athletes it was down to the boring business of meetings and admin stuff.I was glad to get out of there and head off to our apartment but not before being given a bike to use for the race by Jean-Guy.I don't now whose bike it was but I was very thankfull for the loan.
After settling in to the apartment which we shared with Montreal photographer Ben Beauchamp and his girlfriend Ninon it was off to the pre race dinner and one of the traditions in all big triathlon events, the fickin' food line-up!It was all good though and I enjoyed the evening a lot especially getting to meet the latest member of the Patent household.Melissa Patent and her family had served as my crew for every double iron I had done in Levis and this year would be no exception.It seemd every year I rolled up she was busy producing more crew members for future races.This year was no exception with a new kid for me to meet and one one the way for next years event.She assures me that this is the last but I don't know about that.Her role this year though was as crew co-ordinator for the event and so as Barb had shown up unexpectedly to crew, she passed the torch over to her younger brother Gabriel who as usual ended up doing a great job.We can't do these events without our crews and I'll always be thankful to the my Levis family for looking after me for four very long races.
It was time to go back to the apartment though and get ready for bed and an early morning the next day.After some chit-chat with Ben's brother Yves who was also racing it was time to bed down for the night and hopefully get some decent sleep in preparation for the huge day ahead.

Quebec City-part one

2008-07-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

I sat in the St Patrick's Pub for a couple of hours soaking up the atmosphere and filling my belly with some great pub food.What surpised me the most was the fact that everyone working there spoke really great English.Quebec has a really bad reputaion for not being very nice to anglaphones but apparently(according to my cute little French waitress),there had been a big push for everyone to learn English for the 400th anniversary clebrations that was beginning in a couple of days time.What was even more interesting was that they seemed to be able to sense on sight who could and could not speak French.It was actually pretty spooky but well done to them all I say.
Sitting in the pub also gave me a chance to connect to the internet as I had brought my laptop with me.The pub offered free wireless connection and so I set about contacting all my old friends from Levis.I sent a group email to all those I had met during my last three visits and gave them a quick idea of what I was up to and that if possible could someone find me a bike for the race as riding my MTB 360k didn't seem like a smart idea.I tell you it took less than half a pints drinking time for a response to come through from Michel Gagne (one of the race organisers and a great guy)telling me that he had organised a bike for me and it would be ready for me to pick it up at registration.I was amazed but not really surprised as the people associated with this event will seemingly do anything to make an athletes stay go off without a hitch.They haven't found me a girlfriend yet but I'll forgive them for that.

I was pretty tired after all the riding, emailing ,eating and my three pints and so I headed off to the hostel for another hot shower to stop my legs from hurting and it wasn't long before I was in bed,out cold and in a deep sleep.I think it was the earliest night I'd had for a long time.

The next morning though I was up bright and early and ready to take advantage of the free breakfast that was included in the $20 per night hostel fee.I mean really $20 a night to stay in downtown Quebec City during the hugest celebration in 400 years with breakfast thrown in as well.This joint was amazing!Breakfast was just cereal,toast,coffee and juice but considering I sat there and ate for three hours every day, socialising with everyone it was awesome value.You can only eat so much toast in three hours though but the free coffee took on epic proportions.

It was during those three hours that I met everyone in the hostel and I was loving it.No more days trying to have a conversation with my bike,no more days arguing with myself but mostly the chance to hang out and chat with other travellers.I did get pretty sad as I sat there chatting to the passing crowd that they were way more interested in my life than my friends and family who had known me for years.I sat there with my laptop open trying to get the motivation to write in this blog but I just couldn't.I'd check my emails and still there was no-one responding except the one or two regulars and of course my friend Barb from Penticton who by chance was going to be in the neighbourhood for the double iron weekend.I figured that I'd bail on the whole blog and fundraising thing as clearly nobody was really interested enough for me to spend the long hours typing text and editing photos of my trip.Instead I sat around the hostel and met some of the most interesting characters that I'd met in quite some time.It was great to be talking to people who were excited about every day and were so positive about life.Just what I needed to bring me out of my depressed funk.
Most of the next two days were spent walking around the streets of Quebec City taking in the sights and watching all the entertainment that the city was providing at various venues around town.I could quite happily live in this place as I just love the whole feel of the old town and the palpable history of the place.The two hundered and fifty thousand tourists crashing into each other everywhere I could do without but it is a tourist town so I guess that goes with the territory.There was always the hostel courtyard to retreat to and that was always pretty quite.My evenings were spent there drinking local micro-brew beer with some of the hostels funniest travellers swapping stories and generally laughing lot's before we all headed off to whatever evenings entertainment the city had provided each night.I almost forgot that I had a race to do in a couple of days.

DAY TEN-102K

2008-07-22T07:50:00.001-07:00

I headed off the next day with the weather pretty grim looking.I new that the prediction was that in Quebec City the sun was suposed to come out later today but for now it was just foggy and cold.The first few kilometers were pretty hard for my legs as they didn't want to get going but after about an hour I was back at it ticking off the miles at a sprightly 25kph.

The sun did start to shine through and I really enjoyed this days ride especially since I took a bit of time to check out a few of the tourist viewpoints along the way.After juts under two hour I saw my first road sign with Levis listed on it.Awesome,only 62k's away and I had hours of sunlight left.At this rate I would be in Quebec City just after lunchtime and finally the first part of my trip seemed almost at an end and I really looked forward to checking into a hostel and actually being around people again.

Slowly I began to recognise landmarks on and around the river and knew I was'nt far away but as if just to punish me for enjoying the day so much the wind started to blow in my face and the hills began to get bigger.Man the gods of cycle touring were going to make me earn my rest that was for damn sure!Thankfully it wasn't too long before I finally crested a long hill and saw the Quebec City skyline in the distance.I was so happy and the hot,windy ride into the Levis city limits was done with a great big smile on my face.

I rode through Lauzon and past the college where we would have our pre-race meeting in just a few short days.A couple of right turns off the highway and I was passing the college apartments that I had stayed in for my last three trips to the double iron.Now I was in familiar territory and happliy made the steep descent down the hill to the bike path by the river which would take me on the short ten minute ride to the ferry terminal in Levis.

It was really weird to hit the bike path and suddenly be surrounded by cyclists.The people of Levis and Quebec City go absolutely nuts for the whole outdoor thing during the summer and there are hundreds of cyclists,skaters,runners and walkers using this great shared path every day.I weaved my way through the crowd happily soaking up the atmosphere until I reached the ferry terminal where Iparked my rig against a fence opposite the hugely popular ice-cream stand by the terminal.The place was full of cyclists and families sitting on tables outside the cafes enjoying the summer sun and it wasn't long before I got myself an ice-cream and a coffee and joined the crowd.I must have looked pretty beaten up though as all the cyclists were staing at me like I was from another planet.I guess must have looked pretty dirty and worn out after my ten days on the road and I know my clothes were white from sweat-salt and they proprably didn't smell too good either.I didn't care I was a 1070k into my ride and all I did care about was the fact that for the next three days I didn't have to ride a bike anywhere.After another 102k that day,that thought made me happy.

I made a quick call to the hostel in Quebec City to make sure they had room for me and then rode over to the ferry for the quick trip to Quebec City.From the ferry terminal on the Quebec side it was a crazy ride through the insane holiday crowds and up the rediculously steep hill to the center of the old city where I went to the info center to find out where the Alberge de la Paix was.As luck would have it the landmark they gave me was an Irish Pub called St Patrick's(of course) and the hostel was two doors down the side of the adjacent building.An Irish pub next door,that was a good sign to me.I found the hostel and checked in wthout a hitch but getting all my crap through the front doors was not going to be fun.No problem though they let me through a side entrance and I wheeled my bike and trailer into the hostels back courtyard.

About an hour later I was showered,changed and all my gear was safely stowed under my bed with my bike locked to a lampost in the courtyard.Now it was time to enjoy Quebec City and prepare for Canada Day the next day.What better place to do it but with a nice cold pint of Guiness at St Patricks pub.My fun ten days in Quebec City had begun.

DAY NINE -85K

2008-07-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

I dragged my bike down the stairs of the motel after a nice 8am sleep-in,unsure of weather I would try to make it to Levis that day.The weather was no better and a thick fog enveloped the surrounding hills accompanied by a fine drizzle which did little to increase my enthusiasm for the days ride.I figured that I would probrably make it a two day trip as I was kind-of in taper mode for the double iron to be held in five days time.There would be no epic day today but I really hoped that it would not be a struggle against the wind. Thankfully as soon as I made the steep descent to the river and left onto route 132 I found myself being pushed along by a pretty strong tailwind.Not only did that brighten my day but it made me think that maybe I could get to Levis that day.I wasn't really sure how far it was but after riding 30k I passed a sign which informed me that I still had 168k to Quebec City.I was pretty sure that meant for the long trip around the river and across the bridge into Quebec and not via the ferry from Levis which I estimated to be 30k shorter.I couldn't be sure though.I really didn't want to ride 200k. I soon settled into my ride and found myself passing through village after village all of which had the same quaint French themes and architecture.I could spy each town from a distance as each one had a great big church with a spire towering over the town center.It was very cool and some of the homes were really pretty with beautiful flowerbeds and manicured lawns all around.I also figured that the B&B industry here must be just thriving as there were heaps of them everywhere.They were,no doubt,too rich for my blood but I would have liked to check a few of them out.I think this highway would make for a really great driving holiday for a weekend getaway. At one stage the road crossed paths with the freeway and I thought I'd give riding with the trucks a bit of a go.Surely the road surface would be better than the one I was on now so I turned onto the highway as the rain and wind started to increase.It wasn't long before my bike felt strange under me and I realised that I'd gotten the first flat tyre of the trip.Normally that wouldn't be a problem but when you take into account the cumbersome weight of my bike with loaded panniers, changing a back tube became an ordeal.I sought shelter under an overpass and unhooked my trailer while being rapidly chilled by the increasing wind.Riding with the wind had been fine but now standing there soaked and facing the wind I was having trouble with even the easiest of tasks.I did manage to fix the tyre and was eventually all hooked up and ready to go again,into the misty day. It wasn't long after that I really began to feel the cold and thoughts turned to the finishing point of the day.I hadn't really planned too far in advance where I would stop but as I passed through the village of Saint-Jean-Port-Joli it was like an autopilot had kicked in.One minute I was riding along happily and the next I found myself in the car-park of a really quaint motel right on the exit of the town center.It was wierd as I really don't recall making the decision to stop,I just did.Anyway I checked in and after a nice hot bath set about finding out about the pretty little village that after 85k on the road,would be my home for the night. I went for a little run around the village and found that they have a really cool pedestian cultural cicuit that you can follow and find out all about the history of the town.I finished my run and went out in search of a good place to start my little tour.Turns out that just across the road from my room was a big park full of statues and carvings that is a highlight of the tour.I wandered over and spent a bunch of time checking out all the statues and then followed the circuit to the river and then through the town cemetary and on to a really nice little park tucked away behind the tourist info center.The park was full of really cool carvings as well and also served as the local botanical gardens.Man they packed a lot into this little village but there was nothing little about the church which, in keeping with all the other churches I'd ridden past that day,dominated the city center. In all I spent a couple of hours wandering around and even spied a huge group of cyclists heading to a local restaurant in an attempt to get out of the weather.I figured that I mustn't be too far away from Levis if there were this many cyclists about and that thought brightened me up as I wandered back to my cozy motel room for the night.

DAY EIGHT-75k

2008-07-20T11:21:00.000-07:00

Yet another mountain confronted me when I left the motel in Cabano and the first half and hour or so was spent climbing.I was starting to think that I'd never get the hell out of these mountains but thankfully after an hour or so the streams on the side of the road started flowing in the opposite direction which told me that I had indeed crested the range and was now heading to the St Lawrence River valley.The huge tailwind that had sprung up was helping me along to a very easy descent toward Riviere-du-Loop and the point where I was to turn west ,upriver toward Levis.

The entry into Riviere-du-Loop was realy confusing and the distance markers were all over the place.By my reckoning I should have hit the river about an hour earlier but the road just kept on going and going until I found myself actually riding on the expressway which,here in Quebec,we cyclists are not allowed to do.So it seems I had completely missed the turn but at least I was heading in the right direction.

The only problem was that the rain had started to fall again and with that the temperature fell accordingly.I was really starting to get cold and the old legs were again starting to bug me which was becoming quite a concern given that I had to do the double iron in less than a week.I continued though and searched for the exit that would lead me to route 132 west which was the secondary highway that followed the river diectly into Levis.

It soon became apparent that the day wasn't going to get any better and the fog that was now beginning to envelope me didn't make for safe riding conditions and so as I exited the highway at the route 132 exit I stopped at a motel that thankfully just happened to be about 500meters off the highway.I rolled up and checked in for another afternoon of recouperation.It was still early though and as I still had about 8 hours of daylight left I decided to go for a run to test my legs out.

What I found was a really steep hill that leads down to the river plain which looked bleak.cold and windswept.Uninviting to say the least.The river itself looked huge and equally bleak as the surrounding countryside.I didn't fancy the though of swimming in it at the end of the week.I ran for about an hour and felt pretty good as I got back to my hotel room for a nice hot bath where I lay contemplating the rest of my trip.Right now all I wanted to do was get to Levis and be around some old friends.I was getting pretty sick of the cold,rain and wind and staying in these motels was the only saving grace for me.My enthusiasm for this trip was rapidly declining,not because of any hardships on the road but that the original purpose seemed to be a waste of time now.I decided to give myself until my stay in Montreal to decide what to do.That would be about two weeks away so maybe my mood would brighten before then.I hoped so.

DAY SEVEN-40k

2008-07-19T09:19:00.000-07:00

Early the next day I made my way back to the truck-stop and had a nice hot coffee and some pastries from the store to wake me up and give me some energy.I had slept really well and finding the tunnel was a real bonus as it really rained hard during the night.The weather that morning was gloomy but at least it wasn't raining so I figured I'd skip looking for a lift and head off in my quest to reach the St Lawrence River that day.I figured that it was an easy days ride away and from all the reports I had heard from my motorcycle friends,the worst of the hills were behind me.

I set off about 6am and was soon rolling along at a pretty good pace following the valley that headed north into the heart of Quebec.One thing I did notice straight away was the seriously shitty condition of the roads.After being spoiled by the awesome road surfaces in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick these Quebec roads were a joke.Pot-holes,deep cracks,tiny shoulders to ride on,I tell you if this was what I could expect from the whole province then riding through Quebec was going to be a chore. I though Aussie roads were bad but these were just crap!

Not long after starting ,the whole theory that there were no more hills was put to rest.I found the steepest hill of the ride so far and barely made it up the climb.All I can say is thanks for the MTB gears,I don't think I would have made it up otherwise.The hill also gave me a reality check on the state of my legs which four words could some up nicely "THEY REALLY BLOODY HURT"!!!It was not the kind of hurt that you get from a litle bit of fatigue but the kind you get when your muscles are damaged to the bone from days of hard work.Every minute or so of each climb I would have to stand up on the pedals to keep going.I was getting weaker all the time and the pain got worse and worse as I came across more and more hills in the approach to the lakeside town of Cabano.

My pace was just so slow that I started to hell at myself to harden up and keep going but in the end,as I passed through the constuction mess that leads to the little town I pulled over and sat down.It was around 8:30am and I'd only managed 40k since my 6am departure that morning.I was beaten and duly surrendered to the sanctuary of the motel that was behind me as I lay there on the side of the road.I couldn't go on and checked in for a days recouperation in the comfort of a hot bath and cozy bed.It was pure bliss to find myself an hour or so later warm clean and lying in bed watching cable t.v with a huge assortment of snacks spread out all over the covers. JUST AWESOME!!!

I spent the pretty much the whole day in bed either napping or watching t.v,with the occaisional trip back to the bath to soak my wearly legs.I did manage at one stage to hook myself up to the internet to check my emails to find out who had responded to the group emails I'd sent just before my departure from Halifax.Sadly, of the 145 people I had contacted about my ride only four people had responded.I could not believe it!I know people have lives and everything but really I thought that some of my "friends"might actually take the time to wish me luck,but no.I was also surprised not to find any comments from the Athletes in Kind people,that I don't understand.Not that I'm doing a very good job at raising money mind you.It seems that there are so many people doing charty rides this year that everyone is "charitied out"and I have not had a single response to my emails and phone messages to various media outlets along the way.Maybe it's me,I don't know,but it is all very sad.I have had lots of promises made to me regarding this trip and it looks like the novelty of what I'm doing has worn off,especially with my friends.I decided that I couldn't be bothered starting my trip blog or doing my daily interview that day.It was just too much work putting the blog together when clearly there were so few people interested.I went back to my room feeling pretty disheartened and lonely!

DAY SIX-145k

2008-07-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those really lousy days on the road where you are just trying get the job done without really noticing what the hell is going on around you.Idid manage to do what I had planned in that I did ride 145k and I did get myself into Quebec but my legs were really starting to hurt and it wasn't fun.The wind however did ease off toward the end of the day but I have to tell you some of the hills that I can across were just killers.

One hill in particular really tested me and that was the one leading up to the Irving truck-stop at Grand Falls.My god,why do they have to put every single truck stop at the top of a frickin' hill.That 3k(I measured it)climb involved two rest stops along the way.Man did I feel lame!!Once there though I will admit that the views were pretty nice.Views not only of nice scenery but of an ever increasing presence of hot looking girls.It became quite apparent to me that I must be nearing Quebec as the women started to look prettier, wore more make-up,were more well dressed and of course they all started to speak French.

I didn't realise that the people here in northern New Bunswick spoke so much French but I guess it's all part of that Acadian thing.What really surprised me was when I hit my last rest stop for the day at the town of Edmundston just south of the Quebec border.I was really hungry as I rode up to the town and spied a really,really big MacDonalds store on the side of the highway.I took the exit and rode in parking my bike near a big group of motorbike tourists.On entering Macca's I realised that everyone spoke French,it was wierd to suddenly be immersed into what is essentially a different culture so quickly.I was really tired and didn't feel like socialising so I just ordered my meal sat on the back patio and ate like it was the first meal I'd had in days.
It did the trick though as I quickly perked up and headed back out on the road toward Quebec.It didn't take long to approach the border and I soon spied the huge Quebec flag flapping in the breeze marking the end of New Brunswick and the beginning of the third province of my trip.The one other thing I spied was the storm that was about to hit as well.I made the sprint to the local gas station just in time as the heavens opened and dropped bucket-loads of the wet stuff all around me for the next 12 hours or so.

I spent the next four hours at the gas station waiting in vain for a break in the weather and my thoughts turned to the possibility of catching a lift with one of the many trucks that were at the huge truck-stop.I didn't get a ride in the end but I did spend some time with a few of the motorbike guys who were trying to keep out of the rain as well.We all sat together in the truck-stop diner drinking coffee dreading the thought of going out into the weather again.A couple of the guys had checked the weather networks and told me that there would be rain and cooler temps for the next few days-great!!
Two of the motorbike guys decided to book a room at the neighbouring motel but I was determined to try and get a little further up the highway and rode off into a light drizzle on the bike path next to the highway.I didn't last long as the heavens opened again and I thought I was going to get royally soaked for the night.Good fortune favoured me though as the bike path went through tunnel under the highway which provided me shelter.I figured that there was no point going on and decided to set up camp inside the tunnel.I thought that with this weather the chances of anyone being out and about to disturb me was minimal.Thankfully the wind had stopped so in the end it was a really great place to camp,mozzies and all.I had survived a pretty bad day,with really sore legs and lousy weather.I feared though, that tomorrow would just get worse and had an anxious and fitful nights sleep.

DAY FIVE-130k

2008-07-18T09:20:00.000-07:00

I woke up the next day feeling no ill effects from the long day on the road and was looking forward to trying to get some big miles in as the weather seemed pretty good.The sun was out and from where I was there didn't seem to be too much wind going on.That did change once I was out on the highway again.I rounded a corner about 5k into the days effort and was met with the same wind that had bugged me for the previous three days.It was then that I spotted a Petro Canada station just off the highway at the top of a hill.The wind had already sapped my enthusiasm for the day and I rode up for a morning coffee.

It was a very pretty location overlooking the surrounding hills and I sat myself in the sun and tried to summon up some positive enegy to get me back out and moving.In the end it was an old guy that came to cat to me that put everything in perspective.He was dressed in some kind of period outfit and I found out that he lives in a town nearby which is an 1860's period town based around the lives of the loyalists who fled here back in the day.I got a brief history lesson all about the Acadian community here in New Brunswick and how many communities to this day still cling to Acadian patriotism.His role in the historic community is working as the local cooper (barrel maker) and told me that he just loves living in that little community.He then went on to tell me more about the modern history of the region and suggested that I ride down the old highway which followed the river all the way to the town of Woodstock,which was my lunchtime destination.

I told him that I would love to visit all those places(including the town with the largest axe in the world) but as I was riding I couldn't really see everything there was to see on my way to Vancouver.There just wasn't time.He sat and had coffee with me for a good hour or so and I really loved the company as it gets pretty hard to be out there alone all the time.It is nice to be able to share stuff with people every now and then.All good things must come to and end though and at about 8am I headed back out onto the highway and turned northward,into the wind.

One big plus for the day were the views.I had ridden high up into the New Brunswick hills and the trees went on and on covering the rolling mountain tops as far as the eye could see.One cool thing that I did find were two Inukchuks perched atop a thirty foot cutting where the highway crested a big hill.It was really stange to see these cool "sculptures" out there in the middle of nowhere.God knows how long it took them to find a way up there to create them.Very cool though I thought.Every now and then I was treated to some glimpses of the river way below me and wondered if the road I didn't take was any easier than the hellishly hilly stip of tarmac that I was following.I mean really, it was starting to become a bit of a joke and I had resigned myself to a very slow day on the bike.It was sunny though and so I just decided to take my time and every half an hour of so I would find a nice scenic veiwpoint and have a little break for ten minutes or so.

I struggled at about 12kph all morning until finally at around 2pm I hit the outskirts of Woodstock and sought refuge in a Tim Hortons which was part of a huge truckstop on the highway.I stayed there for three hours alternating between lying on the grass and hanging out chatting to the Timmy's staff inside the store.I also was very sneaky as I washed my socks and bike pants in the washroom sink and hung them on my bike to dry in the sun.Five pm rolled around and I figured that I should get going again and so for the umpteenth time I found myself launching my rig into the wind for a few more hours of hell.

The afternoon ride went pretty well acutally and with a belly full of food I managed to tick the miles off pretty quickly.The wind did start to die down late in the afternoon and I made good time and managed to clock another 55k or so before I started to look for a campsite.I found a really cool place to camp on the top of an embankment just off the highway.I'm guessing that in winter the track I followed to my campsite was a snowmobile track but for me it was a path to a nice sheltered and level spot to put my tent.

The site was about twenty feet above the highway and provided excellent views of the line of wind generators which followed the ridgeline of a nearby mountain.Wind genterators,no bloody kidding hey!!!Actually the long line of propellers looked pretty cool spinning madly in the fading light of sunset.I had to take a picture.That was before I was driven to shelter by the sudden onslaught of,you guessed it,bloody mozzies!!Hundreds of the little fuckers all intent on draining me of as much blood as possible.I was pissed off cause it would have been really great to sit above to highway watching the sun set.Oh well back to the tent it was for me tired,happy and another 130k'ish closer to Quebec.

DAY FOUR-165k

2008-07-16T13:30:00.000-07:00

I woke up early again and went for a little 45min jog back down the highway to wake myself up and get some sort of run training in.After that is was a quick tin of beans for breakfast before once again hauling all my gear onto the highway to start another long day in the saddle.The funny thing about riding like this is that the average speeds that I am achieving are really pretty slow at around 22kph but when you take into account the amount of time I find myself sitting on the side of the road recovering from the wind it seems that I am travelling at a snails pace.That fact is brought home to me every kilometer as there are kilometer markers placed up and down the highways and no matter how much I try to tune myself out to the time I'm spending riding those damn markers keep reminding me of how far I still have to go to reach the Quebec border.Very frustrating!

The morning's ride was pretty good and after a brief shower the sun made an appearance and the temperature started to climb as did the surrounding counrtyside. I rode for a couple of hours before my short morning break on the side of the highway and was pretty surprised at how good I felt. It was another hard day after that though and with the ever increasing winds I was glad to have a three hour pit-stop at around 2pm in the army town of Oromocto.This time however my body was really craving some junk food.I felt pretty weak and the stuff on offer in the truck-stop didn't look to good so I headed to the airconditioned sanctuary of the golden arches-yes that's right Macca's.One large size Big Mac meal later and my belly was happy!

I spent a fair bit of time there chatting to a young army guy about my trip as he was keen to find out as much as he could about this bike touring thing.Seem's that he would be riding to the west in a months time and wanted to compare notes with someonewho had actually been on the road for some time.He was a nice bloke and bought me a coffee for my troubles.After my little conference I lay down in the shade for a nap.

With the afternoon sun beating down I hit the road again to see how far I could get that day.I'd already covered about 110k before my late lunch break and would have been happy to get another 40k or so down the highway.The wind was up so I would just have to try as best I could to keep going.What I didn't expect was that my MacDonalds meal would be a huge benefit as my best riding for the day was done that afternoon.I was even enjoying the riding and started to really appreciate where I was and how lovely the surrounding wilderness was.My appreciation was hightened by a pit-stop to check out a big beaver dam in a little pond on the side of the highway.It was pretty cool to see the little beaver hard at work doing whatever it is beavers do so I stopped to film him.The motorists on the highway must have though I was nuts.
Not long after leaving Oromocto I passed Fredericton and finaly felt like I was gaining some kind of headway with this trip.The highway would soon turn north and I would be in Quebec within a day of two and from there only about three days ride from Quebec City.Now if I could just do something about all those damn hills that just woudn't quit!

As the sun started to set I figure it was time to find myself somewhere to camp and after a wrong turn off the highway I found a really,really great campsite perched on the top of a little hill just off the highway,surrounded by trees.It was perfect and even though the ground was pretty rocky the lack of bugs made it seem like paradise.Finally I could walk around without being attacked so in some wierd form of celebration I took all my clothes off and poured the contents of one water bottle over myself in a sad attempt at have a shower.It was the best I had felt in days.The day itself was quite a moral booster for me as I managed to cover around 165k and was still feeling pretty good.Things were looking up in the fitness stakes and I went to bed a pretty happy camper.

DAY THREE-105k

2008-07-16T11:23:00.000-07:00

After a really good nights sleep I headed off nice and early into another fog-filled morning this time however I did have a little bit of a tailwind,not that it helped much as the roads were under contruction all over the place and my speed was kept to a minimum.I shouldn't complain though as any wind that isn't in my face is a welcome one,what wasn't welcome was the huge climb that I had to face after about 15k of riding.This climb was surreal!I was in my smallest gear just crawling up a hill about 5k in length, into a thick fog all the time trying to dodge all the construction debris littering the road.Once over the climb and onto the plateau the riding became a lot easier and I ticked off the k's happilly all morning. I didn't end up stopping in Moncton for my planned swim and shower as yet again I found that the towns,or should I say cities,are so far off the highway that it just isn't worth it to log all those extra miles riding in and out off the highway.I'll ave to go into the double iron without any swim training and just take it slowly.

The afternoon brought the wind again and at my lunch stop which was at the huge Irving truck stop, the wind started to just howl and of course,in the wrong direction!!!It was a nice place to hang out for a few hours though as I got to chat to heaps of interesting people who came over to check out my bike.I met all kinds of folks including a guy from the Okanagan Valley just north of Penticton who was delivering speed boats to Nova Scotia and a lady triathlete who stopped and gave me some sunscreen for my sun ravaged face.She had been driving by and figured I was in need of some help.When I told her I was on my way to do a double ironman she just thought I was nuts and drove off shaking her head.My biggest thrill was finding a one kilo banana loaf for sale for only $2.Man did I just live on that thing for a day or so-just awesome!!

I tried to wait out the wind but to no avail, it just wouldn't quit so I made the decision that today was going to be a short'ish day and I would head off down the road for another hour of so and find somewhere to camp for the night.

It wasn't long before my legs decided the pit-stop for me as one one very long and slow climb they just started to ache.I looked for a good spot to camp and found one on the other side of the split dual-carriage highway.It was a nice,sheltered,grassy area which,once the sun went down would be hard to see from a speeding car.I decided to stop and settle in for the night.The bugs loved having me visit but at least there were no mozzies.Something to be gratefull for I guess.I had ridden about 105k for the day and was just beat.Hope fully tomorrow would bring some better results.

DAY ONE and TWO-240k

2008-07-01T17:38:00.000-07:00

Day One:

So,after what seemed like way too long trying to get my bike ready to leave Halifax I was finally ready to go-six days after arriving.I had originally intended to leave on the Tuesday but what can you do,I had bike trouble.The real pain in the butt came after I had packed everything and was ready to go only to discover that my trailer had a flat tyre.Bloody hell!Not only was it flat,I found that the valve was faulty and I needed a new one.No figgin way,it would have to wait.I stole a little valve cap off an abandoned bike in a alley next to the hostel and stuck it on my valve.It worked,kind-of, I would have to stop every three hours or so to pump it up again.I didn't care, I was leaving and that was it!

It wasn't actually until about two o'clock that afternoon that I managed to head off up the road but I was confident that I could make it to the town of Truro about 100k away by sundown.The first obstacle I had to face was the huge bridge that spans Halifax narrows.Not only did I find myself on the wrong side of the bridge but when I did manage to negotiate the very scary bridge sidewalk I ws met by the traffic Nazi from hell.Apparently I wasn't supposed to ride on that side of the bridge and she was really pissed off.I told her just what I thought her and was then chased down by her and her workmate who would not let me get back on the road.The dicks!!Anyway I busted past them like a fugitive and made my escape up the road that led me to highway 102 north to Truro.The rest of my exit from Halifax went very smoothly and I soon found myself rolling along the highway at a pretty crisp pace thanks to a very strong tailwind.

After passing the airport some thirty kilometers from town I was seeing the best of Nova Scotia.Endless trees covering the earth all the way to the horizon with the occaisional break when I would pass one of the hundreds of lakes in the area.There was nothing difficult about the ride but I suspect that the rolling hills would have been a little more of a challenge if I didn't have the assistance of that killer tailwind.One thing the wind did bring though was a huge storm.I noticed to the west(my left)that the sky was rapidly turning black and before long I heard the first rumblings of thunder in the distance.That would have been okay but when the lighting started I knew I was about due for some nasty weather.As luck would have it,just as the first drops of rain began to fall I spied a brigde at the bottom of the long hill that I was descending.There was a road under the bridge and I figure there must be some way of getting down to it and thus find shelter.As I approached though there was no road but a small rocky track turning sharply downhill from the highway.I thanked my starts for choosing to ride an MTB and barrelled down the track with my trailer bouncing furiously behind me.Thank's also to the fact that I was using semi-slick tyres as well as I don't know how long I would have stayed upright with pure slicks on.The rain hit not long after I found shelter under the highway.It just poured and the lightning was something to behold.I was glad to be hiding like a troll under the bridge as there was no good to be found out there in that weather.

The storm lasted about an hour and I decided to head off again.Unfortunately it semed that I would have to ride down the side road where I had been hiding in order to get back to the highway as the track I had descended was now awash with mud.It didn't matter much though and after a detour of about twenty minutes I was back on my way to Truro.

The rest of the day went well with only one or two hitches.The first was that I learned the hard way that the towns in Nova Scotia are not on the highway and so when I rode into Truro it meant another longish detour through the sleepy little town only to find myself back on the highway a kilometer from where I ad left it.Note to self-do not leave the highway anymore!The second bit of bad luck happened as I s

at at a gas station having some supper before deciding which way I would ride toward New Brunswick.I was happily sitting next to my bike when the young attendant sarted to chat to me about my bike.He seemed really interested in my trip and offered me all kinds of adivce about which highway went where and and the bes places for me to possibly camp oer the next few days.What I didn't know and didn't discover until an hour or so later was that the little bugger stole my flag from my trailer as I rode off.I know it was there when I stopped and I know I didn't it any rough roads for it to be shaken loose but sure enough,as I turned onto a new highway I noticed that it wasn't there anymore.I was to tired to turn back and so dealt with it.It still sucks though!

I rode along for another half hour before deciding to make camp in a nicley ploughed field which seemd totally hidden from the highway and any buildings in the area.It was perfect.I set my tent up on the soft brown dirt and set about re-organising myself for the night.I did find that a bolt had come off one of my pannier-racks and so I fixed it with zip-ties before retiring for the night after a pretty eventfull fist 115k on the road.I was happy to have ridden so far given that I didn't start until 2pm but it would be less than a day before my enthusiasm would be brought back to reality as it was the tailwind and not any fitness that I had found which contributed to the afternoon's high mileage.The next day would be a different story.I settled in and after a quick meal I went to sleep wondering how my new hostel cycling mate,Bruno(pictured)was doing on his treck to Cape Breton a few hundred k's east of me.I wondered how many more trans-continental cyclists I would meet on my trip to Penticton.Time would tell but as theysay every journey begins with the first step-I had just taken mine.

Day Two:

I awoke the next day to find the world around me surrounded in an obscure grey haze.A thick fog had appeared overnight and visibility was down to just a few feet which I was actually glad about as it hid me from the world around,not that there would be too many people around at the ungodly hour of 5am but you never know with farmers.I went for a quick half hour run before packing all my stuff and dragging the bike and trailer back through the trees to the highway.

It had dawned on me that I had taken a wrong turn the night before and was on the wrong highway but luckily the detour was only about 5k and so I back-tracked my way to the correct turn and headed off into the gloom wodering if the fog would ever lift.

For the longest time I rode with little visibility and was thankfull that the highway was quiet.Mid you,the highways here are so well maintained with a really wide shoulder to ride on that I wasn't really worried about being hit by any vehicles at this stage.What did piss me off however,was the dampness that was invading every bit of clothing that I had on. The fog was so thick that I could see water droplets forming on my legs constantly and there was a steady stream flowing from my helmet over my glasses.That made it difficult to dress for.Either I took my raincoat off and got wet but cooled off or kept it on and got soaked from sweat from overheating.The hills that had begun to sping up didn't add any good news to my cause either and I started to struggle through the late morning as the endless rollers combined with the increasing headwind made their presence felt .

The sun did come out eventually but that provided little reliefor me as the comfort of being warm was negated by the huge hills that were in front of me at every turn.It seems that there was a mountain pass that nobody told me about and one that wasn't marked on my map.It was a long slow climb into an ever-increasing wind and it just sucked the life right out of me.I must have looked quite the sight to the passing motorists as I lay on the side of the road having my lunch break.Some stupid tourist in the middle of nowhere eating peanut butter and Nuttella sandwiches getting his head fried in the midday sun.What a sight!

One thing though,I did manage a milestone of sorts when I crossed into New Brunswick late in the afternoon.I had covered around 120k when I figured that I'd had enough and started my search for a camping sight just as I passed the town of Amherst.i did find a great spot off the highway on a little hill surrounded my small trees and shubs that would hide me very nicely.The spot though,did not hide me from the mozzies.Oh my god!I was attacked by swams of them.Even though it was a reall nice evening I couldn't stay outside of my tent for any time as I was under constant attack.It was brutal.No other option but to hunker down inside my tent,conduct an interview with myself(click on the tab below) and then go to sleep happy that even though the weather was making things hard,I had managed to make a fair bit or headway for the day.I just hoped the wind would calm down a bit the following day.

HALIFAX:Part two: Dustins birthday party

2008-06-20T14:51:00.001-07:00

One of the things I like the most about travelling the way I do is meeting so many really cool people along the way.This backpacker hostel thing is great and seven years at boarding school has made "institution life" quite tolerable.Actually when you have been out riding your bike and camping for a week or so the hostel is like a bloody palace with all that hot water and clean beds and stuff.This hostel is no different and there have een some real characters hanging around here for the last few days.I mentioned the Semester at Sea folk before and they were awesome.So too are those fellow inmates that stayed here after the college kids left.

I would go into detail of all the individuals but no doubt you would find that a bit boring,instead I'll show you some pics and videos of our little hostel group.To that end I'll invite you all to meet Dustin as it was his 21st birthday on Wednesday and there is no better excuse for a party than someones birthday. He is studying architecture at school in the U.S and is one of those bright young guys that actually gives you a sense of belief that that next genaration isn't going to be all screwed up.I like smart,interesting people and he is one of those.His love for architecture is part of his character and it is "who he is".In todays weird,conformist society it is refreshing to meet people who strike out on their own and stick to their guns.I really admired how he spent most of his time checking out the university and trying to make contact with a professor of two and a well knnow architect who had a office near the hostel.He is a cool young guy and I'm glad I met him.

On the opposite end of the scale is Sven,a real free spirit from Australia.He too is a real intellectual but in a different way.He plays god knows how many musical instruments,is an avid(and very good)photographer,is a conservationist who has worked with the National Parks and Wildlife Service and also is an adventre guide.Here is a guy who carries with him while backpacking, a laptop,camera gear,a flute,a volin and all kinds of other assorted surprises including wet-stone for sharpening knives(I know cause he sharpened all the knives in the hostel kitchen for fun-the pshyco!) .During Dustins party we had some complaints about the volume of his violin and recorder playing but it was early and we didn't pay much attention as the music he was playing is the sort of stuff you would pay good money for to any busker on the street.One cool thing was that during the night Svens fiance called the hostel and I happened to pick up the phone.The funny thing is that I knew who she was straight away as Sven had told me all about her.It seems she was also riding across Canada but going the other way and had just made it to Rogers Pass in B.C.(the highest piont of her trip).She was so surprised that I knew all about her trip and I said that I guessed she wanted to talk to Sven.She said of course but I told her that he was busy putting on a show for us.Bless her heart, she asked if she should call back later and I just laughed and told her not to be so silly.I went and got Sven.What a cool chick she must be.

We have Louise, the English girl who on route to Nth America had a layover in Iceland and liked it so much she stayed.Now those of you who have read my Epic Ride blog will know how worried I would be about meeting another Icelandic backpacker.Thankfully Louise didn't follow in the footsteps of the Icelandic Viking Princess and I was left in one piece.She does not have a drivers licence,does not believe in gathering material wealth "just for the sake of it" and lets the hand of fate decide where she travels.I think that is really cool.She told me that when she lived in the UK she would often go to the train station and catch a train to random towns just to check out what they were like.If only everyone had such interest in living life.

The list of my new friends could go on and on but travelling would not be called that if one stayed in the same place and so my time in Halifax must come to an end.I could stay longer but I am on a bit of a schedule so it's off toward Quebec for me.Time to get used to life on the road once again.

Below is a little video of Aussie Sven entertaining us all with a sample of his musical talents.Above is Dustin at the Propeller Brewery stocking up on beer.That's big bottle in is hand is called a "growler" and at $8.50 for 1.85lt I tell you the stuff is awesome.

This bottle is the root of all evil.It is commonly called a"growler" which is a term used for submerged ice in the oceans of both poles.A Growler can sink a ship in minutes just as this bottle can sink even the strongest of men.At $8:50 for 1.85Lt who cares!!

HALIFAX:Part one.

2008-06-19T03:04:00.000-07:00

That first night in the Halifax backpackers brought me back to a lifestyle that I love so much.Having the chance to meet a whole bunch of really interesting people from so many places is something that doesn't happen to the average guy who is living the "accepted"way of life.Working 50-60hrs a week surrounded by people who for the most part have lost the spark of life is not a place where I want to spend my time.Sadly,so many of us do.

What was great was the chance to spend some time with a group of Americans some of whom were participating in the Semester at Sea program and some of whom were here for their own reasons.It was an absolute pleasure to see that my favourable opinion of Americans was strengthened by this group of young, intelligent and welcoming embassadors of the Stars and Stripes.In many ways the Yanks get a pretty rough deal when it comes to world opinion but these guys and gals were great.They made me drink too much beer but I have wide shoulders and can bear such burdens when called upon.Who am I kidding?College girls and beer-what more motivation does a guy need to wander the streets of Halifax until 3am?Exellent!!!

The big night out for me had the added bonus of making sure that I had no problem sleeping and the short,alcohol induced coma was just the thing I needed after such a long trip.I was here though and ready to check out just what Nova Scotia's capital had to offer.With that in mind I took the 20 minute stroll to the downtwn core and immersed myself in the Maritime culture.

I like cities that make no pretence about the fact that they are a tourist town and Halifax is no doubt close to the top of the heap in that regard.From the scores of people ascending the slopes of the Citadel like an invading army to the unending line of tacky tourist shops fronting the waterfront this place is tourist central.The history of this city is palpable and the huge number of museums and exhibition buildings holding pride of place in the downtown core is evidence of local pride in Nova Scotias' heritage.

The city itself is small and very quiet but it cetainly has its charm.Being the weekend,my first foray into the Halifax way of life was to do combat with the crowds of tourists ambling around the waterfront.There were hundreds of them-hundreds!It was all good though and I decided that would spend a day or so just wandering around being a tourist and soaking in the atmosphere.I had five months to be an athlete so I left my bike in it's box under the bed and for a couple of days and was a backpacer, at least it would give me time to get used to the temperatures here on the east coast as, for me at least,they felt decidedly wintery.

As for the charity aspect of my ride I decided that it was time to shift focus from me having a great cycling "holiday" to doing all I could to raise the profile of the Athletes in Kind cause.That meant adjusting my expectations relating to where I would ride and what I would be able to see.I could just ride around the coast and do the Cabot Trail,Prince Edward Island and all that but while it would be a great experience for me, the chances of raising any money that way was pretty much nil.No,I would have to spend more time out meeting people and pushing "the cause" to everyone who would listen.It is pretty tough though to impress upon media outlets what you are trying to achieve when they are used to see so many people cycling across Canada every year in the name of some charty or other.

My decision to stay in Halifx was really taken out of my hands when on my second day of two-wheeled exploration my front brake failed.It was lucky for me that I was standing still when it happened as(for anyone who hasn't been to Halifax)the hills are pretty steep here and if I had lost my brakes at speed it would have been ugly.Not to worry though,I had checked out a couple of bike stores the day before and so headed,very,slowly to the more upmarket of the two bike shops that I'd seen.The first was a big,clean,modern affair with cool clothes,expensive equipment and the cleanest work station I'd ever seen in a bike store.I walked my little mtb into the store and asked if someone could have a look at my front brake while I checked out the selection of tyres the store had on offer.The guy asked what was wrong and I told him that the brake doesn't work and he then informed me that as the brakes were hydraulic he would need some time to figure out what was wrong.I told him that I though the brakes just needed bleeding but he told me that he would have to take it apart to be sure.I asked how long that would take.He didn't know but he did know that he couldn't book me in for two days.Two days for and appointment!!!Jesus,what was this place,a doctors office?I just wanted my brakes fixed not a plastic surgery consult.I took my bike off the workstand and said my goobyes.I wouldn't be bying anything from that store.

I rode into the city centre to the other bike store which couldn't be more different.This place is small,dirty and has no yuppy, overpriced bike parts hanging on shiny display cases.There were a few bikes hanging up on old racks and not that much in the way of stuff to buy.What they did have was a group of guys busy at doing what a real bikers bike shop does,fix bikes!One scruffy guy came up to me and asked what he could do for me.I told him my tale of woe and he said "no probem,leave it with us and you can pick it up later tonight".Awesome!!He gave me a price and asked if there was anything else I needed.I ordered two tyres and told them that I'd see them the next afternoon as I wanted to do some touristing in town before I rode to Quebec.Now that is my kind of bike shop!

That day and the next were museum days.The weather had changed for the worst and along with the low tempeatures there was a thick fog enveloping the city.I was doing exactly what I had intended by coming here three weeks before the Double Iron and that was getting used to the cold weather that had struck me down during all of my previous attempts in Levis.I may not be fit but at least I will not suffer because of the cold this year,it will be my sheer lazyness over the last six months that will come to haunt me come race day.Speaking of being lazy,in an atempt to at least pretend that I am an athlete I did begin doing some runs around the city.Thankfully the weather kept the streets pretty quiet and I'll tell you it was pretty surreal runing through the fog on a cold "summers" day.The Titanic graveyard was particularly scary to stumble upon on one foggy morning.Scary in a good way though as it is an amazing place.The Citadel grounds and the waterfront boardwalk all made for great running destinations and I felt like I was on an historical running tour of Nova Scoatia's maritime heritage.It is a really cool city full of sights and smells that just overwealm your senses and I wondered why I had never visited before.My delay here in Halifax, as with so many other unplanned hiccups in my travels over the years, proved that there is much to be gained from just accepting your fate and opening your eyes to the world around you.Let's see what the next couple of days in Haifax brings.

The long flight to Canada

2008-06-16T03:19:00.000-07:00

Okay,so I've done a bit of flying around the planet in my time and normally I don't have too much in the way of bad luck with schedules but this trip was different,very different.I left home in Cairns at the ungodly hour of 4am in order to get to the Qantas check-in desk before the staff get really cranky and start charging extra for everyones baggage.I had only two pieces of baggage to check in with the biggest being my bike, all my camping gear,panniers,wetsuit(who brings a wetsuit on a cross-continental ride??!!!),running gear,swim gear and god knows what else in my cardboard box.The other piece was my trailer which folds up and fits neatly into the bag which clips on to the trailer itself when on the road.Inside the bag along with my trailer was even more stuff like my computer stuff,bike lock,tools and more bike-clothes. I had no idea how much all this stuff weighed and was,as always,worried about how much I was going to be charged for all my excess baggage.

I decided to wear my airport work uniform in the hope that the Qantas rep would be nice to me and as luck would have it who would I find at the check-in desk none other than one of the ground services managers who I deal with every day on the tarmac.She made some smart comments to me about losing my bike and then without a worry she checked my 29 kilo bike box and 11 kilo trailer bag on the flight for free.I was 20 kilos overweight and for that flight and she checked my bags all the way to Vancouver a nice favour that ended up saving me a lot of money.

The first of my five flights was pretty uneventfull but after landing in Brisbane the fun started.I headed straight to the China Airlines check-in desk where I waited for two hours to be checked in.Bloody hell,I didn't even have any bags to give her!As our departure time closed in we were informed that our plane had been diverted to Sydney and we would have a delay of about three hours.That was good news as all the passengers weren't checked in by the scheduled departure time anyway.The bad news for everyone else though was that as the plane was full they were charging $75AUS per kilo for excess baggage-WTF!!!!!Thank god for my friend in Cairns is all I can say.After what seemed an eternity of sitting around in the hell-hole that is Brisbanes' excuse for an International airport I found myself sitting in my comfy aircraft seat with my personal little tv in front of me, ready for some serious marathon movie watching.

The next two legs of the fight went pretty well and after the longest Friday 13th I have ever experienced I found myself in Vancouver airport waiting for my flight to Halifax.The only problem with that fight was that it was the red-eye and by the time we got on our plane Vancouver airport seemed a very lonely place to be,not lonely enough that I really wanted to sit next to a woman with her newborn for the whole trip across the country AAAAAAAH!Onward and upward though and we taxied out on to the runway where our pilot told us there was a problem and we would be returning to the gate.No worries,only a thirty minute delay,even I could forgive that.Unfortunately one of the hosties(sorry,flight attendants) had other plans.Apparently she did some creative accounting in relation to her work schedule and figured out that she had now been on shift too long to make the flight to Toronto.The captain informed us that there would be a two hour delay as the airline tried to find an entire cabin crew to replace the one that had,by now,all exceeded their legal daily workload.Jesus frickin Christ!!!

Once that was sorted and the new crew arrived(two hours later) we were away again(this time without the mom and baby),off to Halifax via Toronto.I already knew that I would miss my connection but did not know how long I would be delayed in Toronto.That was until I got off the plane and was given the news that I would have to wait three hours for another flight.Now that sucked the big one but what really pissed me off was once I had settled in at Starbucks and was preparing for yet another wait I heard the final boarding call for a bloody flight to Halifax,again WTF!!!I was there,my bags were somewhere but the bloody plane that could be taking us together to Halifax left without us.Too close a connection for me to get on board apparently.GRRRR!! Another few hours later and another few dollars poorer,courtesy of the curse of airport food prices,I was on my way to Halifax,finally.

Halifax airport was a great site to behold as we flew in and I was beginning to get really excited now that I was so close to my final destination.I was happy as well to see that my bike and trailer had arrived as well and in one piece it seemed,now all I had to do was figure out how to get to my hostel in town some thirty kilometers away.A taxi was out of the question as the $53CDN fare was just extortion so that left me the airport shuttle at $18 and of course the $6 fee for my bike.How much money could I spend in one day trying to get to this part of the world?

Ticket bought and first in line for the bus half an hour later.The huge crowd of college kids waiting around the airport had other ideas though and as the bus departure time approached there were about twenty of us at the bus stop.The bus driver obviously had plans as to which hotels he goes to first and loads the bags accordingly,my bike however,didn't fit into his plans.By the time his efficient system had worked it's magic I was left at the bus stop with a young girl wondering if I was ever going to get to Halifax.We would have to wait for an hour for the next bus.By this stage I just didn't care.

The up side of that wait was that I got to meet Chelsea,a really nice college girl from Illinois.She was part of a huge group of 600 college students coming to Halifax to join a national program called Semester at Sea where and old cruise ship is used as a floating University for ten weeks of cruising and learning about other cultures.This lot were going to Europe and they were all very excited to be going part of a great adventure on the college version of the Love Boat.

Chelsea asked what I was up to and when I told her of my ride and the charity I was raising money for she told me that she thought it was awesome and that her father had died of cancer only three weeks prior.It was a sobering moment for me and I thought of how she must be feeling leaving her family for such a long time so soon after a tragedy like that.She is a class act and I'm glad I met her.We spent most of the next hour discussing the upcoming US elections and before we knew it we were back at the bus stop for our second try.No worries this time and we were on the bus with the promise of delivery to the door of the hostel some five blocks from the center of town.

We unloaded our stuff at the front door and checked in to a really cool little hostel which looked from the lobby more like a coffee shop/second hand bookstore than a backpackers.It is such a cool place and the vibe was very friendly especially when,after putting all my stuff away,I stumble upon the kitchen to find a bunch of half drunk college kids playing some ridiculous board game the rules of which seemed totally up to drunken interpretation.I set a new personal record for a hostel in that I was drinking my first beer within ten minutes of arriving,a beautiful dark beer brewed right in Halifax by a local micro-brewery.It just seemed the right thing to do.

We joined the group in the kitchen and hostel life took over my psyche once again.What a great place and what a great bunch of young nutters to share it with.After 47 hours of traveling I deserved to seriously unwind and soak in the local atmosphere and soak it in we did-until three in the morning.That however, is another story.

AN OLD FRIEND STEPS UP.

2008-06-06T17:53:00.000-07:00

During the last twenty-odd years of my triathlon travels I have met and made friends with a great many people who have turned up at various events I've entered.There was,for a time,a large group who I considered very good friends and people who would be part of my life for a long time.Sadly,it seems that as life progresses and priorities change many of those who I have shared so much with over the years have moved on and I am no longer considered a valuable part of their lives.I guess that is the way life is but for some of us who travel through life alone this revalation can come as quite a shock.
It has interested me no end that those who once held my opinions in high regard now choose to dismiss most of what I say as trivial bullshit.I don't know if it's because that some have moved on to supposed respectability and our shared history does not fit in with thier chosen evloutions in life.I was once told by someone in Penticton that the reason many of my old triathlon cohorts no longer wanted to have me around is that is simply I"know too much" about a past which doesn't jive with the present incarnations publicly portrayed by certain individuals who have now gained "respectability".
When a person is struggling to figure out if the next day is worth waking up for they sometimes need for someone to step out of their comfort zone and remind them that they are of value and that their shared history is part of their everyday memories.It doesn't take much.Maybe a phone call,maybe an email-something,anything to be reminded that those shared times were not a valueless and insignificant.I have one such friend and even though I have not seen him for about six years he does still contact me every now and then to see how things are going.
We met here in Cairns in 1991 and he, like me,was a triathlete who was hooked on the idea of travelling the world racing in Ironman events.He sold me his bike and trained me up on how to ride it.We travelled to Canada in 1991 to compete in my first Ironman together.He was on my crew when I won my first Ultraman event we and spent many years hanging out and racing all over the place.As our triathlon life became busier we drifted apart but always remained friends even through the odd argument and disagreement.
It seemed that every time I needed something he was there.In 1999 I needed a new bike for Ultraman and out of the blue he contacted me and had a new frame shipped to me in Penticton just in time for me to win my second Ultraman.Even though he wasn't there he was still part of that weekend.
The following year I was going through my first bout of severe depression and was in all kinds of trouble.I had chucked in my job and isolated myself in my apartment in Surfers Paradise speaking only to the guy at the gas staion on the corner where I bought all my food.It was not long before the money ran low and I was reduced to eating as little as possible in order to get through each day.I would go to the local grocery store and search for the food that they were about to throw out and ask if I could buy it at cheap prices.It wasn't long before they realised my plight and began to let me go through the boxes of vegetables that were about to be put into the dumpster and fill my backpack with food not considered fit for human consumption.
This continued for a couple of months and all purpose had left my life,except for one thing -my training!I trained every day swimming in the surf and running on the beach and those who know me know how much I hate to run.I began to get really,really fit and pushed myself more and more all the time realised finally that if I hurt every day then it meant I was still alive.It really hurt but finally I felt something.
One day I was on the verge of eviction with absolutely no money left and a couple of months behind in the rent.I didn't know what to do so I called my old friend.I didn't know why but something in my subconcious made me call this guy I hadn't spoken to in over a year.He asked what was up and I told him I needed help.I needed money right away.He didn't even stall for a second and asked for my bank details.The money was in the bank the next day,my life turned around.
A couple of years later my new girlfriend and I moved up to Cairns and at his request we moved into his apatment.Sadly he had been diagnosed with cancer the previous year and we arrived at the end of his final round of treatments.He looked a shocking sight and was nothing like the Ironman triathlete who had raced countless events with me over the years.He was sick,really sick.It got to the stage where he just said,"fuck it , no more treatments" and he took off to the UK to essentially die.The thing is he didn't,he thrived and survived his encounter with death.Truly amazing!
Now as I try to figure out if it is worth planning for a future past this season of events he has stepped up again.Like many people I know he has become interested in reading about my travels and was very sad to hear of my accident last year while I was riding to the Deca Ironman.He has emailed me many times telling me how much he thinks what I am doing is great(many of you do) and really hopes one day that his new wife will actually meet the guy he has talked about so much.He thinks my fundraising for Athletes in Kind is a great cause and supports me in my effort but it took an email conversation for me to realise a couple of things.Of all the people that I have met over the years,of all the people I have called friends and shared my life with,of all the people who know me personally,of all the people who tell me my trips are an inspiration, only one (thanks Dave Barstis)had actually donated one solitary cent to my Athletes in Kind cause.NOT ONE CENT!!!!!The eight people who have donated are people who have never met me but think what I'm trying to do is worthy and I thank them but really guys I'm not that much of an ass,bloody hell!!!!!
There are those who have gone above and beyond the call and without Steve and Maria Brown,Neil and Frank from Peach City Runners,my running girls from Penticton and Dave and Claire my year in Penticton last year would have been hell.The odd email from Mori keeps me laughing and in the game of life as well.They made me realise just what friends are worth.I have lost friends along the way and none pains me more than losing Dave Bullock as a confidant but we seem to have taken different paths.Luckily some paths take us back to our true friends and my old mate Lloyd Wallington has done it again.Out of the blue he has sponsored me in the first two events of my epic year this year.Without having to ask he has put forward just under $2,000US of his own money to pay for my entries into the Double Iron in Levis and Ultraman Canada in Penticton.His generosity is amazing and I am thankfull that he is able to show me that in a world that can be shrouded in darkness there are some bright lights out there to show me the way.
Thank you Lloyd,I'll try to make you proud.

THE TICKETS ARE BOUGHT!!

2008-04-05T19:50:00.000-07:00

Hi folks,just in case you were all wondering,I am in fact still alive.I've just been out training too much to spend time typing stuff.I don't have computer at home so it's a bit of an effort to go the one mile downtown to my internet cafe(I'm so lazy).Today though is Ironman Oz day and while I'm here checking the Ironman live coverage I thought I'd fill you all in on the latest news in my sad life.
March was a weird month for me as on the good side I have been out and about on my bike and have even started running and swimming.It has been great to get out and ride now that the weather is getting cooler and the rain has slowed.I even joined the gym which by the way,has way too many mirrors to remind me how fat I have become.All my running speedwork will be done on the treadmill as I've left it too late to get my legs used to the pounding of the road.My easy runs will still be done on the road but that doesn't hurt as much.Hopefully the fact that the run course in Quebec for the Double Iron is dead flat will help me survive.Horses for courses as they say and I'll worry about hill running after the Levis race.Ultras though are all about the bike and I plan on some silly-crazy miles between now and race day in July.I have been dragging my little trailer around the roads of Nth Queensland and am now getting stronger again.Thanfully!!!Swimming is swimming and it is all coming together okay.I will still be underdone for Levis but I plan on a P.B anyway and am gunning for an Australian record which isn't very quick at just over 26 hrs.If I am dilligent over the next couple of months that should be realistic.
The bad part of March was that my dad had a stroke and I had to go south to the Blue Mountains for ten days to make sure he was okay and to look after my mother who,after five open heart surgeries,needs full time care from my dad.I was going to do a bit of mountain running while I was down there but it was a full time job between looking after my mother and making trips to the hospital to visit dad.All is good now though as he was discharged.After a visit with a neurology professor in Sydney it was found that the likely cause was a weakening of the blood vessels in his brain due to his diabetes.His speech was slurred and he is a bit weak on his left side but both conditions are improving and he will be fine.He is back on deck looking after my mother who is a handfull at the best of times.
I flew back to Cairns and booked my ticket out to Canada in an effort to motivate myself.I will be arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia on June 14th and will spend two weeks riding around Canadas' Atlantic coast slowly making my way toward Levis where I should arrive about four days before the Double Iron.Hopefully that will be enough time to get used to riding in the colder conditions of Canada and also time to find myself a road bike to use in the race.I'll try to keep you all updated on April's training with some pics of my local training ground as I practise my photo and movie making skills before trying to make a mini documentary of this years trip.
Bye for now kids.

Feb was a complete waste of time!!

2008-02-29T17:28:00.000-08:00

So that was a month I would rather forget.Thanks to a great big kick in the butt from a couple of friends on the other side of the world I have raised enough motivation to start adding to my blog again.I have been laid a bit low with a chest cold for the last couple of weeks and have just got back into the pool again after a few weeks off.My motivation to train is slowly returning especially now that I'm having to lay down nearly $3500US in race entry fees for the five events that I have planned for this year.God it's no wonder I'm broke!!!Anyway all the race directors have been really nice and even North America Sports told me I could do a bunch of thier races as well but sadly I'm too poor to add those ones to my list.As it is I'll be without a road bike for the Double Iron in July unless I get there early and try to borrow one.Originally I was going to go to Penticton and pick up my road bike and do Ironman Couer d'Alene while I was there.The extra $1000US required for that pitspot will chew up too much cash that I want to put toward the Deca-Iron which will be a huge expence.
I have been getting out and about on my mtb though.As expected the local cyclists give me shit for training with my trailer attached to my bike but it's good for me to get used to the extra weight.As I told someone online recently,it's not the races I'm too worried about it's trying to ride my mtb from event to event across Nth America three times this summer that I'm training for.The races will look after themselves.
I would really like to thank those of you who have contacted me and given your support over what has been a really tough time for me.I'm hoping that I have turned a corner and life will improve a bit from here on.It's only four moths to go until the Double in Levis and so I have to get myself fitter than every other time I've raced there as I've always failed miserably at that race.Who knows I may just roll up to the US early and ride somewhere for a month beforehand.As I told English Ultradude Ian Mayhew recently, the only time I'm really happy these days is when I'm out there on the road.

DEPRESSION SETS IN!

2008-01-29T19:43:00.000-08:00

Okay so this isn't really the kind of post that I wanted to be writing but I promised to chronicle my year so here goes.Over the past two weeks I have done almost no training at all.My injured neck and back are causing me grief again and I have also managed to get myself a bit of a cough and amazingly sore lungs from all the hacking I have been doing during my sleepless nights.I also found out that I have hit 80 kilos(176lbs) for the first time ever and I am not a happy camper.To put that into perspective,last summer in Penticton I weighed in at around 68 kilos(150lbs) and was able to go for a run without my thighs rubbing together.Not so now!
The bouts of depression that have haunted me over the last eight years or so also returned leaving me without any real desire to anything except turn up for work on time.It is really hard to explain just what it is like when the black demons of depression strike but finding a reason to do anything is really hard.Mostly I just hide away in my little flat and sleep.ALL DAY!
I'm hoping that it will pass soon and I even went for a run yesterday which I liked so it's a start.We shall see.I have started to make arrangements for my trip though and am looking forward to the challenge so much it makes being here in Cairns unbearable.I will soldier on and try to get my shit together and my mind sorted out in Feb.

ULTRAMAN CANADA 1994 RACE REPORT

2008-01-17T05:41:00.000-08:00

Hi kids,I'm not a real stickler for jotting down all my training for the world to see as some of it is secret, most of it is boring.I'll update you all every couple of weeks on that side of things.What I would like to do is post some reports on some of the Ultra's and some special Irons that I have done over the last 22 years of my triathlon life.There are a bunch of newbie tri-geeks reading this blog and I'd just like to show then how we did it in the "good-old-days" before everyone got caught up on all the techno-geek gadjets and made our sport too serious.Hopefully you will see that you can achieve quite a lot on just plain old raw enthusiasm with a little bit of courage thrown in the mix.Here goes.
Ultraman 1994 was the first time I had ever done anything longer than an Ironman race.I had completed two Ironman Canada(1991+'93) races and had done the TripleM Iron Tri in Sydney 1992 with pretty good results finishing in 11:40ish in my first Ironman in Canada 1991.I was living in Penticton ,B.C at the time and was preparing for Ironman Canada 1994 at the end of August.My mate Mori,my girlfriend Leisa and I were preparing to crew for the second running of Ultraman Canada at the end of July as we had done the previous year for two time IMC winner Tom Price.Tom had won Ultraman in 93 with the three of us as his crew and Mori had used his comsumate sales skills in obtaining (scamming)a full sponsorship for Tom in the 1994 event.
We were all set to go crewing when, late on the Thursday night before the Saturday race start,Leisa and I staggered home after another awesome Margarita Thursday at Cheers(now Anthony's)our local Pub.I saw that there was a message on our machine and hit the button only to hear Moris' voice on the tape telling us that due to the huge fires that were surrounding Penticton Tom would not be able to race Ultraman and was pulling out of the event.I called Mori straight away and was told that Tom was worried that the smoke in the air would affect his asthma and he didn't want to risk it.Total bummer for us!!Then Mori pointed out that we already had the sponsorship,the van,and all the gear ready to go so maybe I could step in.WE could even get my Aussie mate Lloyd who was here for Ironman to join in as crew."No worries mate" I said in my most confident drunken Aussie accent."I'll do it!!"Stupid drunken fool,thirty hours before the start of Ultraman Canada 1994 I was a late entrant!!!!!!!
I rolled up to the race start at the Peach on Okanagan Lake to hear the race briefing.We had to change our race venue due to the fact that Skaha Lake was being used by the Mars water bombers fighting the fires in the district.Instead of swimming the 12k(11.8really)length of Skaha Lake we would swim six loops of the white marker bouys from the Peach to the Sicamous.We figured it would be close enough to 12 k's.All my mates thought it was just too funny that I would enter the race at the drop of the hat but I was Ironman fit and I figured that I had nothing to lose.I would just try to fill Tom's shoes as best I could and finish reasonably well.
The gun went off and I hit the lead from the start.I like swimming and was enjoying being in the water with my fellow Ultradudes.I had no idea of the time at all and could not really hear what my crew was saying to me at the end of each loop when I treaded water at the feed boat to eat something.Apparrently I was doing pretty well and after,what felt like a short 2hr 42min I exited the water in first place with a new swim record and 23min in front of my next competitor,one of the pre race favourites Berend Henckel.I couldn't believe it!!I was leading Ultraman,OH MY GOD!!!!!
After everyone got out of the water our crew decided to hang out with fellow Ultradude Ean Jackson who was an Ultra veteran and member of the Canadian national 100k running team.My mate Dave Bullock,whose' house we were living in was crewing for Ean and we all went off to the Front St Pasta Factory for dinner.I sat opposite Ean and it didn't take much prompting for me to get stuck into the beers and even a couple of shooters to celebrate my first stage win.Ean's wife began to worry about me as I had never done a multi-stage race before.She figured it wasn't in my best interest to get hammered when we had 200miles to ride the next day.Ean just bought me another beer and I had a ball hanging out with this Ultra-veteran.
The next day we all lined up for the 200miler and headed off at a stupid pace.I joked to a mate of mine(Lee Crockett-Fibonaccis owner for those who have been to Penticton)that I would take off quickly just to wind everyone up.Instead I was dropped like a bad habit.They went absolutely crazy on the bike from Skaha Beach down to Osoyoos.Apparently the first group got down there at an average of 39kph for the first 40k's.Stupid move lads!!!I rolled down there at a quieter pace and made the turn back to Okanagan Falls.Slowly but surely I started passing people and as I neared Oliver for the second time Lee drove by and gave me some smart remark as is his way.I asked him to flash his emergency lights if the guy I could see way in the distance was Berend.I could spot his orange Banesto shirt and was sure I was not meant to be so close to him at this stage of the ride.Lee's lights flashed!I slowly pulled up to him and he told me that his crew had stopped in O.K Falls for breakfast which meant that he had not recieved any nutrition for the first 80k of the ride.His day was done and he wished me well. I was sad to see him so upset as he is a great guy and is a friend to this day.It is so important in this type of racing that you ave organised and attentive crews to help you out.One false move like Berends crew made and your weekend can be ruined.My crew had the experience of helping Tom Price to victory the year before but I have to tell you that they were a gong show waiting to happen.Mori and Lloyd argued like an old married couple for the whole weekend.They are mates but putting them in the front seat of a vehicle for a couple of days was interesting to say the least.It's just as well that I knew the course 'cause asking those two for details on the bike a run course was useless.They did keep me fed and watered though which was the most important thing.
I rode on to O.K Falls and then to Green Lake Rd and the infamous Wall,a two k climb that on it's own isn't much but at 100k in to a ride with 220k to go it 'aint fun.I was very surprise to find at the top of the Wall I had caught up with the other race favourite Jim Brazil(Double Iron finisher and Male Model)and the legend himself, Steve-the voice of Ironman-King.I remember asking them if I could please take the lead for a minute just so I could tell everyone that I actually lead day two for a little while.They both laughed and my wish was granted.What I didn't plan on was that I contunued to pull away from them both as we rode the hills through White Lake and on to Twin Lakes.On the descent to Keremeous Jim caught me and we played cat and mouse for the next few hours all the way from the Bears Fruit Stand 80-odd k's to Princeton.
I nearly lost a crewmember in Keremeous when Mori and Lloyd decided to make a pit-stop at a fruit stand as we made the Keremeous turn.My girlfiend Leisa had worked until 5am that morning and was catching up on some sleep in the back of the car.For the first 150k she was happily snozing when, at the Bears fruit stand she woke up and had to go to the toilet.The boys were inside the Fruit stand buying food and when they had got their suplies they hopped back in the car and sped off after me.They were amazed that Leisa could sleep for so long and not far up the road they looked around to find the back seat empty.The fools had left her behind in Keremeous.Idiots!!!!They quickly turned around and sped back to pick her up.Thankfully I knew nothing of this until the end of the day but it does explain all the laughter coming from the vehicle for the last half of the ride.
It was at Princeton that I decided to make my move.On the long steep climb out of town on highway 5a towards Merritt I pushed hard and made my gap.Harder and harder I pushed on the 60k of climbing to the turn at Aspen Grove and much to everyones surprise I was well in front.The descent was hell as with every pedal stroke my feet hurt more and more.I coasted as often as I could but it made no difference so,with ten k's to go I pushed as hard as I could and crossed the finish line in first place in a time of 10hrs 33mins for the 320k(200miles).I had not only finished first but had taken 27 minutes of Tom Prices' record from the previous year.I couldn't be happier.If I could have danced I would have but the balls of my feet were so swollen that I couldn't even stand up.I figured my weekend was over and it was going to be a very sore and sorry double marathon the next day.Who cared though I had won two stages,set two records and was leading Ultraman Canada by 54 minutes over Jimmy Brazil.TOTALY AWESOME!!!!!!

After watching a few finishers we decided to head off to our motel to get ready for the dinner that was to be hosted in our honour by the Mayor of Princeton at the Bromley Station Pub that night.We did however get a little lost and ended up in the Princton Pub downing pitchers of beer to celebrate yet another great day on the road.The problem was we celebrated a little too hard and Mori,Leisa and myself got absolutely shitfaced and by the time we made out way to Bromley Station we had missed dinner,the speeches and all the other competitors and their crews.I will never forget the exchange we had when we walked into the bar only to bump into the Mayor and his mates.My mate Lloyd was sober and looked really fit from his IMC training.The three of us just looked plastered.We apologised for being late and the Mayor asked Lloyd how his race was going.He replied that he wasn't racing and pointed to myself swaying in my drunken stupor.The Mayors mate joked in a smartass way "So do you think you are going to win this thing?moking me with his tone.I simply replied "Maybe,I'm 54 mins in front right now, so who knows?".He couldn't believe that the drunken fool stumbling before him was in the lead of Canadas' longest stage race triathlon.All we wanted was something to eat and the pub owner gave us the run of the kitchen to make whatever we wanted.It was such a hoot!The next morning though was a different matter.

My hangover didn't last too long and really wasn't too bad.I guess all the beer I had drunk was just absorbed as nutrition lost on the 200 miler the day before.At the start line all eyes were on Steve King and Ean Jackson to win the day.They were both great Ultra runners and both had been on the nation 100k running team at the World 100k champs.I just wanted to try and defend my 54mins over Jim as well as hold off Ean and Steves 90min or so defecit.I told him at the start that I was going to run with him all day.He asked why and I simply replied "Well mate to get on the podium you will have to beat Steve and Ean and stay close to me.If I run with you,then you will end up pacing me to first place".Seemed like a simple plan to me and he realised that I was right.The gun went off and after about five minutes we never saw Steve and Ean again.Jimand I ran together for about 60k before we hit the huge hills at Trout Creek and his achilles tendon gave out.It was a bummer to leave him there so close to town when he had helped me so much but for the first time I was beginning to think I could actually win the whole thing.I ran and ran as best I could up and over the huge range that leads you to Faulder behind Summerland and continued to hurt all the way into the outskirts of Summerland.I needed to know how far in front the boys were but it was not until,with about five k's to go that Gerry Feenstra drove out and told me Steve had won by five mintue over Ean and that, even though they had taked an hour out of my overall lead,I was so close I couldn't lose that I started to walk.I needed to walk as I hurt so much.I made It to the finish line in 8:50ish and in third place with an overall time that put in first overall by 37 minutes.I had done it!I had won Ultraman Canada!I couldn't belive it then and I still can't to this day understand how it was possible.Even though I have won this race twice it was that first time that stands out as a defining moment in my life and is a shining example of just what an average Joe can achieve if he just has a little faith in himself and a little courage to face the unknown.

THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF HUMILITY.

2008-01-14T19:23:00.000-08:00

So it's all go for the 2008 season and I hit the road with all the enthusiasm that I could muster.It took me a couple of days to recover from my New Years Eve celebrations and so the 3rd of Jan was day one of my training.I took my MTB for an uphill ride in the hills behind Cairns.The out and back distance is 50-odd k's and there are some awesome views of Cairns and the Coral Sea as you climb toward the top before dropping down the other side of the mountain and on to Copperload Dam which serves as Cairns water supply.The road goes through some really thick rainforest and at this time of the year the heat is oppressive.I suffered a lot but was enjoying being on the bike again after such a long time being a lazy bastard.The uphill portion is about 16k but it felt like 100 as my zero fitness soon became apparent but if I an anything at all it is patient so I just spin my way to a slow ascent knowing that I would be treated to some great veiws and an awesome downhill coast back to town.
After getting home I (stupidly) decided to go for a run to test the old bike to run fitness.I parked my bike at home,slipped on the shoes and headed off down the Cairns Esplanade full of praise for myself for actually trying to run.My pride didn't last long as I could only manage one lap of the five kilometer cycle path that takes me downtown every day.With the humidity topping 90% I really began to suffer and limped home after a not so stellar 30min 5k.Lord I have a long way to go!!
The next few days I approached my training differently and just went out riding to various locations around the district(averaging 50k) during the morning followed by a short 2.5k swim session at my local pool.These swim sessions are all about getting used to being in the pool again and I spend a lot of time doing drills with my pull bouy,kick-board and fins.As has been the rule for all my swim training in the past I rarely ever stop between sets and use the kickboard and fins as active recovery instead of standing at the end of the pool chatting.I really love swimming and in the next few weeks will end up cranking out out about 25-30k a week.I'm going to spare you all the details of precisely what goes on at every session until probrably the end of Feb but if anyone wants to know what I'm up to just post a comment or email me and I'll let you in on my unconventional (read-old school)way of training.
My running is usually just a slowish trot around two laps of the flat 5kEsplanade loop followed by about half an hour of drills to get my legs used to a little bit of hard work.It is so hot here that I will soon restrict my running to late in the evening after I finish work.By the end of January I will beging to add some hills and we have an awesome trail here next to the botanical gardens where you can run heaps of stairs and rugged trails in some really dense rainforest.It's super humid in there but at least it's out of the sun.
For those of you who are into stats,the only ones I will be keeping are distance totals and some timing PR's.I'm not training with any powermeters or heart rate gear as one of the purposes of this whole year is to show that you don't need all that stuff to get fit and fast.I have no doubt that high end age-groupers and elite athletes will find the gadgets invaluable but the fact is ,in my opinion,beginners and slow to average ager's can do quite well without them.I have, in the last two weeks put in 8 rides,six runs and six swim sessions to help get my body used to the notion of training again.I'm sore and tired and I feel pretty pathetic but I made my own bed and instead of lying in it I'm going to get out and reverse the damage I have done.
Over the last three months I have managed to gain a staggering 25 pounds and that has translated to 5 extra inches around my belly as well as 2 inches growth around each thigh.At 5'7" that much weight means a lot and it is hard for me to go out and train in public as I feel like such a fat bugger.Stupid I know but we all have our vanity.There are bike clothes which I wore last season in Canada that I just can't get into right now.The up side is that I will be able to show you all that it is possible to lose weight and get in shape in half a year if you are willing to put the work in.There are no easy options in our sport.You can't buy speed!You can't buy fitness!You can't buy experience!All that is learnt and earnt out there on the roads, trails and in the pool and the gym.There is no substitute for plain hard work,dedication and sacrifice.Let's just hope I still have it in me!

FIRST RACE INVITATION RECIEVED.

2008-01-14T02:10:00.000-08:00

Hi all just before I post my first couple of weeks training I just wanted to let you all know that the good folks from the Rockman Tri (just outside Chicago) have invited me to race thier half iron in June.I figure that this race will give the Athletes in Kind ride across Canada a big kick start so I wll be there to race on June 8th.It does add a few hundred miles to my trip and my 2008 adventure will begin at Rockman before riding to Quebec for the World Double Iron four weeks later.Apart from a dose fo the flu all is going well in the first two weeks of my 2008 training.It was a shock to get out and ride so slowly and particularly to struggle up some hills that I normally find easy but I'm sure it will all come together.I have been asked to post a pic of my fat body in "before" mode for you all to laugh at and I will get around to that.It should be quite interesting to see how long it takes to get rid of the five extra inches I have accumulated around my waist since October.So far it's all pretty much go slowly and try not to get injured.Stay tuned.

A NEW YEAR DAWNS!

2008-01-05T21:50:00.000-08:00

Well ,all the holiday festivities are finally over and with six months to go until the World Double Iron Champs in Quebec I guess it's time to get out and start training.Santa dropped off a new MTB for me to train on and so it's all go here in the tropical far north of Australia.Since arriving back in Oz in October I have done minimal running almost no swimming and under one hundred kilometers on the bike.Instead ,I have eaten way too much crap food and drunk way too much holiday alcohol and have found myself about twenty pounds overweight and feeling very unfit.Not to worry though that makes it all the more interesting for you all to see how I transform myself from fat bastard to fast bastard in six short months.My injuries have,for the most part, healed and I am ready to embrace the hurt.
I will be doing the Rambo style of training which goes completely against the training principles of the modern day uptight triathlete.All my biking will be done on my MTB most of which will be huge hours(not miles)with my trailer attached.My trailer will be loaded with two ten liter water bags and various foodstuffs as well as my running and swimming gear should I feel like a dip or a trot on a nice isolated beach somewhere.This training is really more for my round the world bike trip more than Ironman but it should serve me well come race day.The daily grind will be about 6-8hrs worth of multisport activities and the specific speed/strength work will be kept to a minimum for the first four months as I build my base fitness.
For your inerest I will be capturing my training with my camera so you can check out the beautiful part of Australia in which I live.I will also be keeping a diary of my training for you all to check out and pick apart.As I said,this will be no ordinary six months of work.I will try to prove to you all that it is possible to make yourself a force to be reckoned with in the age group world of Ironmen without the need for all the bells,whistles and gadgets that seem to be thrust upon the average Ironman-Joe these days.I do request one thing from you all though.If you do read my blog,please take the time to make a comment(good or bad)as it gets quite frustrating putting in all this work when you don't know if anybody is actually reading it.
I will continue my fundraising for Athetes in Kind in 2008 and hope you will find it in your hearts to donate to this worthy cause.Please forward this blog to as many of your friends as possible so I can spread the word on the great work that is being done by Lorie Muller and her Athletes in Kind crew.
Stay tuned for the first weeks installment.

Back in Oz getting my shit together

2007-10-23T18:17:00.000-07:00

Hello all and a big I'm sorry for the long delay in posting an update.
I have been in Australia for a couple of weeks now and am in the process of settling in to life in the tropical far north of my country.After securing work and a new place to live I am now going about the business of getting my life in order before deciding on what my plans are for the next year.I have a large debt to pay off here but that should be taken care of in a couple or three months.From there it is trying to figure out a strategy to promote Athletes in Kind in Nth America next year.After 2008 I will not be training as a triathlete anymore but will lean toward the adventure cycling side of life.That is not to say I will never compete in tri's again it's just that there will be no huge amounts of time and money spent on preparing for them.The sport has changed too much and most of the fun has gone for me.
I do have to recover from my injuries though and as it stands right now I'm not able to do too much more than some very short runs and rides.My neck and shoulder are still injured and I am having trouble sleeping due to recurring headaches.I have a limited range of motion in my neck and there is a constant cracking in my neck when I turn it to the right.There is considerable deep tissue injuries through my neck and shoulder which wasn't helped by cracking my head open inside the cargo bay of a 727 at work at the airport the other day.I have a new scar forming but the impact has made my neck pain flare up again.Such is life and I have no doubt that I will be back in shape next year.
I will give you all weekly updates on my life here in Cairns and will start documenting my training in the next installment in the coming week.I plan to race the Double Iron Worlds,Ultraman Canada and possibly one other race next year.After that I will continue my travels south from Penticton to Southern Argentina in Stage one of what will be my Ride Around the World.
Thanks again to those who have shown thier continued support of myself and Athletes in Kind.I would like to be able to present them with a $10,000 check by Ultraman Canada next year so it looks like I'm in for the long haul.Stay tuned to see what happens.

Day Three:Disaster!

2007-10-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

The next morning I was up just before sunrise in order to get everthing ready for an early departure.It took a lot of time to pack everything up but as it was really cold and my fingers didn't want to work at all.I did eventually get it done and fed myself in the process.The only problem now was that the tyre I had fixed the night before had flatted again.I threw all my stuff over the fence into the parking lot to avoid more thorns and then set about finding the other thorn that did the damage and patched the tyre in the growing light.The good news was that there were lots of stars out and the trees were still.The promise of a sunny,wind free day cheered me up no end.I managed to ride off at about 7ish when I figured there was enough light so that even the sleepiest of drivers could see me.

I rode south for a short time before hitting the intersection of Hwys' 97 and 17 where I turned of the hwy and onto the quieter road toward Bridgeport.Without the wind buffeting me to a crawl the road seemed to race under my wheels and after stopping once to take in the view of Lake Pateros in the early morning light.Soon I was passing over that lake on a long scary bridge that provided a good view of the town of Bridgeport.I don't like crossing bridges with my trailer attached as I can't really use any pedestrian sidewalks and I always feel trapped and completely at the mercy of the traffic.Reaching the end of that bridge was a relief as there was very little traffic but on spying civilization I really felt like stopping at a gas station for a coffee to warm me up.I decided against it and pressd on.

The road turned eastward and away from the shelter of the valley walls which meant I was finally being warmed by the suns' rays.I even took off my wind breaker at that point as I was even starting to sweat a bit.That was something new for this trip.I continued heading into the sun for about fifteen miles before hitting another intersection.If I went straight on I would reach Coulee Dam,a right turn would take me south toward Moses Lake.I veered right and continued down Route 17.I was really getting into the mornings' ride now that I was warm and figured I would make up some of the time I had lost over the previous two days.Southward I continued but it wasn't too long before something happened that would change everything.

After years of cycling the roads of many different countries you develop the ability to sense certain things around you while you ride.Generally you can figure out the size of the vehicle that is about to pass you and just how close you think they are to actually hitting you.I've been hit several times in my years on the road and always brace myself for the worst.Today the worst nearly happened.I could here the approach of a vehicle which normally wouldn't be a problem.Drivers so far on my trip had done thier best to give me room and most even passed on the the other side of the road.This time I sensed something different.The sound of the vehicle just got louder and louder as it closed in behind me.Then in an instant I could see,out of the corner of my eye,the front of the vehicle passing my left shoulder only inches away from me.Reflexes took over and I swerved sharply right toward the edge of the road.The pick-up truck was now driving in what shoulder there was and that left me nowhere to go but off the edge of the road and out of control down a steep little hill into a ditch.

It was all so quick and I don't even remember seeing the pickup again and all I know was that it was black.There was no time for anything else but to try and survive the inevitable crash and crash I did.I was knocked off my bike by a tree branch on the way down and that may have helped my personal cause a bit.While my helmet shattered into bits at least I didn't follow my bike a trailer to the bottom of the ditch.I did hear it all happen below me as I slid to a halt on the bank.The sound of my bike hitting the rocks at the bottom and then taking the brunt of my heavily laden trailer was nothing I wanted to hear.After lying still and doing the usual body check for damage I figured that I had escaped without too much damage.Thankfully the weather had caused me to wear several layers of clothes and full gloves so they took the brunt and were suitably shredded.

I slid down the bank to check my gear for damage and the first thing I noticed was a front wheel that didn't look like a front wheel anymore.It was completly potato-chipped!Unhitching my trailer I realised that the rear axle was now bent and useless but the trailer was in good shape(gotta love German engineering).My bike however wasn't.The left brake lever and shifter were broken off,the forks were now facing the wrong way and the left fork was cracked.The rear droppout on the left where my trailer attached to the frame was bent inward and my left pedal didn't turn anymore(to be honest it was nearly toast before the ride).The worst was yet to come as the top tube was now bent and sporting a deep dent with a hole a little bigger than a dime in the middle.I guess the weight of the trailer really did it's worst and all I could do was sit down in the dirt and stare in disbelief and the carnage in front of me.WTF!!!!!

I sat there for quite some time absorbing what had happened and then the realisation hit that my trip was over.I knew that I couldn't afford to buy a new bike and there was no way this one could be fixed.I didn't know how much money was in the donation fund and had no way to check to see if any interest had grown at all among the triathlon community both in Penticton and abroad.I knew the only thing to do was to get back to Penticton and see if any sponsors had come on board.If they had ,I would fly down to Austin and base myself out of my brothers house,training like a madman until it was time to go to Monterrey for the Deca.

I dragged the bike up the hill to the road and then went back for my trailer.Once it was all back on the road I assessed it again and as I was doing that a little truck heading north pulled up and stopped opposite me.A sixtyish year old lady got out of the truck and asked if she could help.It seemed that my face had been cut as well and I was bleeding quite a bit.She asked if I had been hit by a car but I said no and told her my story.She asked if she could take me anywhere and all I could say was that I wanted to go to Canada.She told me that she lived about 25 miles north and she could take me either to Bridgeport to report my accident or to the main hwy to hitch a ride north.I told her where I had camped the night before and she then helped me load all my stuff in the back of her little truck and drove me the 28 miles or so back to where I started the day.

I don't know why I decided to go back to Monse but for some reason it just seemed a familiar place to go.I was very upset and equally confused.All I could do for the moment was to get my tarp out and lie down in the sun and sleep with all my gear spread around me.I woke up about an hour or so later and took stock of my situation.My bike was toast,I was broke and my trip was done.There was no reason to hang around really so I stripped what usefull things I could off my bike and then put it,along with all my torn and bloodied clothes, in the dumpster by the toilets.I then packed my trailer and pushed it to the highway and started hitching back to Penticton.

I was only on the side of the road for about twenty minutes before someone pulled over and offered me a lift to the border.The guy who picked me up was a scruffy guy in his late twenties and he was very sympathetic upon hearing my tales of woe.He tried to cheer me up and told me a little about himself.It was then that I realised how lucky I had been to survive my little crash as the guy who had picked me up was an ex US soldier.A vet of Afganistan and Iraq.He had been shot in Iraq, had been discharged ,and was now living on vets benefits.He told me what it was like to be shot in the back and how he couldn't move for weeks until the spinal surgery that he had enabled him to move again.His life was a constant struggle between trying to find work to support his family and dealing with a life, dependant on the drugs that kept the pain at bay.I was humbled and meeting him helped me put all my problems in perspective.He drove me right up to the border,wished me luck and was gone.Now for my next concern,getting back into Canada.

I had overstayed my visa this trip and had been in Canada illegally for the last ten months.It was such a relief to get out of the country three days earlier without the U.S guys catching on but now that I had to face the Canadian Customs guys I figured I was in trouble.As I was walking through the border I didn't bother waiting in line with all the vehicles and pushed my trailer straight to the front of the line and dropped it on the lawn in front of the first customs booth.The guy there just shook his head and waved me over to the front of the line and asked me what I was doing pushing the trailer through to Canada.I explained my tales of woe to him but all he did was fill out a form and told me I would have to go inside and speak to an Immigration Officer.Damn and double Damn!!
I went in to the immigration office with my tail between my legs hoping that they wouldn't figure out that I had been in the country ten months longer than my visa allowed.The ramafications of being deported were huge and could possibly negatively affect any further trips into Canada and the States for the next few years.I waited my turn and was soon being interviewed by a pretty cheerful immigration guy.He asked what I was up to and why I was going to Penticton. I told him that I was going back to Penticton to collect a bunch of stuff I had left there and to purchase ticket back to Oz.That's when he hit me with the question I didn't want to hear."How long were you in Canada before entering the U.S three days ago?"I nearly died!!"One year",I replied and then he shook his head slowly and blamed some ficticious immigration guy for not stamping my passport properly when I entered the country last.I didn't know what drugs he was on but it does seem that I do indeed have a horseshoe up my butt as after a quick mention that I would be having beers with one of his co-workers in Penticton that night,he stamped my passport for another six months.I actually didn't realise this fact until a couple of days later as I thogh he had only given me ten days.He did tell me that he would be informing the U.S border guys about my overstay and that it wasn't adviseable for me to try to go back through the border again on this trip.With that I breathed a huge sigh of relief and wheeled my trailer down the road and back into Canada.
I again stuck the old thumb out for a ride north to Penticton and thankfully,with the night closing in and the temperature dropping,I was picked up within ten minutes and driven all the way into Penticton where was delivered to Anthonys Pub and back to familiar company.I waited a short time for my mates Dave and Cindy to arrive for the usual Wednesday night chicken wing eating session during nwhich time I drowned my sorrows and entertained them both with my border crossing stories.They are both customs officers on the border and there was no way they though I would get into the States in the first place let alone back into Canada.I was,it seemed,very lucky indeed.After a few beers to dull the ever increasing head and neck pain caused by my crash they took me home and I then started to try to figure out what to do next.

Day Two:More wind!!

2007-10-07T15:49:00.000-07:00

I woke up a couple of times during the night and was pleased to hear absolutely nothing.No rustling of leaves and no gusting wind to pull at my tent.When my alarm went off at 5:30am though things were different.I dragged myself out of the tent,pulled on my running shoes and climbed the steep bank up to the road by the bridge.Once at road level I was met by a gust of frigid air that had me wishing I was back down the hill nice and warm inside my sleeping bag.However I had to run, so run I did.Nothing special mind you just an easy 45 mins out and back toward Loomis in the west.I had to run up a gentle hill which meant that most of the run back would be downhill and that's always a bonus.The extra bonus was being able to watch the sun rise over the hills on the eastern side of the valley.There were scattered clouds about but looking southward toward Omak I could see that is was considerably darker there than where I was.The wind, it seemed, was pushing that darkness north toward me.Damn!

Back in camp it was a quick breakfast followed by the chore of re-packing everthing.No doubt I would get used to it as I had on previous trips but for now it was a pain.That said ,I was on the road by about 7:45am and soon found myself in suffer-mode as I pedalled into a cold,ever-increasing wind.I was trying to figure out just how fast(or slow) I was going and as I don't have a computer on my bike I had to rely on the mile markers on the road.It was quite a shock when I found out that I was riding along at about ten miles per hour.Now I know it was windy but really,on a good day I can run that fast.It wasn't until my first rest stop when I saw a paper cup roll on by at speed that I realised just how strong the wind must be.Just sitting on the side of the road was an experience and as the cold crept in I had to put on another layer to keep my core temp warm.

Skies darkened and as I rolled through Riverside north of Omak it was evident that it was going to be a race into the wind to Omak if I was to beat the rain.The problem with that is there are a couple of rolling hills on the way through there and standing up to push up a hill is not a option when dragging a trailer.There is just too little control to power through anything.I solidiered on and as I began the descent into the commercial village outside Omak the skies started to break.I made it to the Shell station just in time.

I parked my rig outside and made my way inside the warm, and more importantly, dry truck stop.First thing I needed was coffee-hot and black!Bless the U.S of A, fifty odd cents for a 12oz coffee.What a country!!I settled into a booth and hung my jacket and gloves out to dry with more than one person eyeing me strangely.Seems lycra-tight wearing guys with funny accents aren't the norm around these parts.I held on to the coffee cup with hands still shaking from the cold and watched through the windows as the trees,buffeted by wind and rain, bent under the might of nature.This was going to be a long rest stop.

I struck up a conversation with a trucker who was eating at a nearby table.He laughed when I told him what I was doing but he expressed admiration for all cyclists who were able to get out there in the elements and ride cross-country.We discussed various routes that I might take and he gave me lots of clues about what to expect as I headed south.He even told me that if I wanted he would give a lift all the way to L.A.I mentioned that L.A was a little out of my way but I must say when he pointed out that at least it would be warm down there,I was tempted.We talked for about 40min or so and as he left he told the manager to put whatever I wanted to eat on his tab and then he wished me luck and was gone.Lunch was nice that day.

After eating,chatting to the waitresses and drinking more coffee it was time for me to head out.The rain had stopped for the moment and my next camp wasn't getting any closer with my sitting there so I put all my clothes back on,said my goodbyes and was off again-into the wind.

Being constantly cold is something I was used to when riding in the Andes last year,the difference now though was I was cold and wet.I was hoping that I'd seen the last of the rain for the day and that I would gradually dry off as I was blasted by the wind.It was not to be though.I was riding through a constant spitting for the next hour or so and after passing the hamlet of Mallot I could see another storm rolling up the highway toward me.I spied an heritage point of interest pullout complete with a shelter covering a picnic bench.I rode up and realised that a shelter is not really a shelter when the wind is blowing the rain horizontally.I grapped the tarp from the top of my trailer and wrapped myself up in it,sat on the bench of the picnic table and turned my back to the storm.It was actually a relief as I was warm again all wrapped up like that.The rain didn't last too long and I uncovered myself and headed off down the road again at a blistering ten miles an hour.

The day didn't get any worse and there was to be no more rain.I actually began to enjoy riding along and was now getting used to the slow pace and accepted it as part of the experience.The plan was to get as far south as possible each day but I was behind my schedule already and I wondered how far south I would get if these winds kept blowing for days.I knew my fitness would increase as the days went by so I wasn't really concerned.Timecould be made up later, one way or another.The only problem I was beginning to realise was that if I was to be on the road all day how was I to spread the word about Athlete is Kind.How was I supposed raise money for these guys if I didn't have the time to speak to anyone.The order of importance was always going to be;raise money for AIK(and for the trip);do the Deca Iron;ride to Mexico.If I spent all my time riding to Mexico then sure,I would be fit for the Deca but I wouldn't have the money to do anything afterward and AIK wouldn't have much more than a few hundred dollars to show for it.I would have to think about that at camp that night.

As the day wore on I decided to camp early and while approaching the township of Monse I saw a bridge crossing the river.I figure that where there is a bridge there would be some shelter so when I reached the intersection on the highway I turned off and rode onto the bridge.I stopped and checked out both banks of the river under the bridge.On the far bank I spotted a boat launch area and decided to check it out.It was great.A nice open area with an orchard on two sides,the bridge approach on the northern side and the river flowing slowly at the front.It even had a really clean toilet block ,which is always a good thing.

I spent some time figuring out where would be the best place to camp.There was a great big sign telling me that I was not allowed to camp there so I would have to be sneaky and find some hidden spot to put my tent and equipment for the night.I would also have to wait until just before sunset to do it.As it was still about an two hours before real darkness set in I found a spot on the riverbank ,under a tree and cooked myself some dinner.Pasta and cup of soup again.It was tasty and hot and it soon warmed me up as the light started to fade in the valley.While waiting for the last of the days light to fade I hid all my stuff and did my second run for the day-if you could call it that.I did a quick warm up by running the 800m or so out to the highway and did some drills and stuff on the way back.Once back at the boat launch I did ten hills reps back up to the bridge.Each one was only about 150 meters but at least I did something.
I decided to camp in a pretty secluded spot not far from the toilet block.It was a nice soft area surrounded by trees in a disused part of the orchard.The only problem was that I had to make my way though a whole bunch of vines with very sharp thorns on them.The bike made it through okay but the trailer wheel got a flat thanks to a pesky thorn.At least I would have something to do later that night.I quickly set up my tent and went about getting everything ready for bed and then fixed my flat trailer tyre.
After a bit of journal writing and about half an hour of map studying I decided that I would try for a longer day tomorrow to make up for the miles I was behind schedule right now.I figured I would use tomorrows ride as guide to see if I could make up time or if I would have to change my strategy a bit in order to have the time to raise funds,write on my blog and train for the Deca.I would not run in the morning but try to get away as soon as light permitted.With that I wrapped myself up again in my sleeping bag and fell into a deep sleep after covering 54 miles on another tough day on the road south to Mexico.

Day One:Into the wind.

2007-10-07T11:56:00.000-07:00

After getting all my banking stuff sorted out it was 11am and time for me to head out.I rode off from Peach City Runners in downtown Penticton and casually rolled along Lakeshore drive for a last look at Okanagan lake before heading down the river channel bike path south to the other end of town.I wasn't looking forward to the ride to the U.S border as I had ridden that road so many times in training over the last fourteen years of Ironman summers that I hated it.The wind that had blown in from the south didn't do anything for my enthusiasm either.
Turning down Skaha Lake the wind increased and I was passed by another cyclist out on a training ride.I thought "Oh lord it's going to be a long day" and braced myself against the cold wind.I began to question my fitness as I really struggled down the lake but after a few harsh words to myself and a mental re-adjustment from triathlete to adventure cyclist I settled into a nice slow rhythm and steadily made my way south,even passing that other cyclist in the process.I passed another couple of cyclists along the way and my mood improved somewhat and gave me a bit more faith in my fitness.The snow on the surrounding mountains,however made me realise that I should have left about ten days earlier.Who knows what sort of frigid weather I wouldbe in for once I hit the Rockies to the south.I hate cold weather!!!
Normally this section would take me just under two hours when out training but today it was three hours twenty minutes before I hit the Husky station which marks the turn up toward Richter pass on the Ironman Canada course.Very slow indeed.I guess riding my fendered mountain bike dragging my fully laden trailer was going to be a test of patience as long as the wind blew like that.
I pit stopped in the Husky and tried to spend the last of my Canadian dollars on extra treats to eat along the way.Next,it was a quick trip into Osoyoos to buy a small pot and cup to cook with.I would only cook at night and as it was only me I didn't need a big one.I also got a small notebook(for my journal),a pen,some batteries and two lighters which are essential if I wanted to light my little gas camp stove.With all that sorted it was off to the border and into the States.
The border crossing at Osoyoos was busy and I lined up behind the cars breathing in exhaust while awaiting my fate.Once at the front of the line my passport was scanned and I was ordered into the offices to ask for my ninety day visa.The immiragation guys were pretty nice about it all but really couldn't believe I was about to make the trip to the Mexican border.Upon learning that I have a brother who is a permanent US resident they seemed happy and than checked out my two Australian credit cards which, by the way, are totally useless as they were maxed out a very long time ago.I only got them for my Sth America trip and I still owe a lot of money on them.The immigration guys were not to know that and after paying my $6US visa charge they sent me on my way with a grand total of $9US in my pocket.Sometimes I even surprise myself at the stupidity of the situations I get myself into but then it wouldn't be an adventure if everything was organised and easy now would it?
Once through the border it was head down and into the ever increasing wind which was blowing straight up Hwy 97 from the south.Looking down at my gears I prayed that I wouldn't actually have to shift to my small chainring for the rest of the day.The trees bending over double along the side of the road made me think I might just have to.All I hoped was that the threat of rain was just that and I would manage to stay dry for the day.Thankfully I did.
My plan for the trip was to get up before sunrise and go for a easy 45-60min run.That would be followed by a quick breakfast of cold porridge mixed with IronFuel.I would then break camp and ride from about 8am until 5pm/ish with breaks when I would start to look for a suitable campsite for the night.Every other day I would throw in a second shorter but more intense run of intervals or hill reps.Every day I would do my swim training by using my swim bands that I had carried for years.Swimming isn't something I worry about and I knew I would be fine with just the dry land version with the occaisional trip to a pool along the way.
After about 90 mins of riding south of the border I decided that I had done enough riding into the wind.Day one was all about just getting into the States and I had managed it happily.It was time to find a camp and take stock of my situation.I happened upon a small hamlet called Ellisforde which is about 19miles past the border.I turned off the highway toward Loomis and within a couple of minutes happend upon a dirt road which headed off into wooded area next to a bridge spanning the Okanogan River(different spelling in the States).I followed it to it's end and found myself in the perfect little hidden campsite right by the river.Awesome!
I quickly unpacked my trailer and set up my little tent and ten set about covering the tent with my extra tarp.I had found,during a ride through the Canadian Rockies in July,that it was a smart idea to cover my tent with an extra layer as keeping dry was a huge priority.The storms I had survived dry while stuck on Rogers Pass and Kicking Horse Pass on consecutive nights last summer proved my theory correct.I always carry a spare tarp strapped to the outside of my trailer when I travel now.It makes for a great,instant shelter.
After setting up camp I spent some time on the riverbank cooking my pasta dinner while watching the sun set behind a small mountain in the distance on the other side of the river.It was a very peacefull place and I was excited to be on the road again living the life of a traveller.If I am to be alone in this world I want it to be living life and then sharing it with the world through my journals.Starting my journal was the last thing I did that night as I lay snug and warm inside my sleeping bag.I reflected on the day and wondered what fate would have in store for me over the coming weeks.I also thought about why I was out here in the first place.I really wanted to go to the Deca(have done for years) and was honoured to be able to do it in the name of a great charity.I just wondered if people would understand if I told of the real reason I am pushing myself like this.I doubted it, but one day I will write it down and maybe it will help others who are going through the same thing.For now,with about 59 miles behind me that day,I thought I'd just deal with the task at hand.So with the my watch chirping a seven o'clock reminder,I turned off my headlamp and closed my eyes on day one of my lastest adventure.

Preparation.Fundraising and other fun stuff.

2007-10-07T09:29:00.000-07:00

My planned Saturday departure from Penticton was delayed by a couple of days due to some admin work that had to be done.I had to be sure that all my bank accounts were linked to my new PayPal account and that my Canadian bank card would work in the States.This trip is being done on the most meager of budgets and it wouldn't do to be stuck in the States without access to any funds.As it was ,what money I do have came in the form of a cheque which covered the last five weeks or so of work in Penticton.That cheque would not be cleared for another few days leaving me with $15US in total to present the U.S immigration if asked to show funds.That was not a prospect I was looking forward to.

The budget for the ride was set at about $10US a day with an inevitable mini crisis along the way expected to drain all the reserves that I had($500US).The entry fee for the Deca is $1500US which was reduced for me by the race director to $1000US,so with my cheque clearing(hopefully) I would have enough for the entry and the trip itself.I had struck an agreement with Lorie Muller, the director of my chosen charity for this adventure(Athletes in Kind), that the first $1000US would go toward the entry fee as well as some expences.The remainder of funds raised for the rest of the year would go to A.I.K.That eased my worries a bit and I started the fundraising drive a week before my departure.

I launched my funraising on a couple of triathlon websites which have huge followings as well as spreading the word around Penticton and around the world via email to all my triathlon connections and friends.Donations were pretty quick to roll in via the Slowtwitch community but that was short-lived with only a half dozen or so people jumping on the bandwagon.By the time I left Penticton after my week of pushing the A.I.K cause the donation total was at a paltry $273US.I had,of course a lot of promises of cash to be sent at a later date and I was hopefull that a soon as I was underway the interest would grow.

I had received support from a few people in the triathlon community in the States and was very humbled to find the race director of the Rockman Half Ironman offering to send a sizeable donation to a friends bike store in Austin as well as giving a free entry into his 2008 Half Iron Triathlon for anyone who donated $200US or more.A triathlete from Albequerque also offered assistance in the form of a place to stay and a base where I could ship all my A.I.K gear which I would pick up along the way.It was great to be getting some support from the triathletes in the States and I thank Chip, a.k.a Record10Carbon and Adam, a.k.a IronLobo(both from Slowtwitch.com)for their interest and help.

So now it was time to ride.I packed my trailer with just the bare essentials as far as clothing and luxuries went and loaded it up with food.I have a nutrition sponsor for my races and I had a whole bunch of their product(IronFuel) left over from the summer.That IronFuel load amounted to just over 4kilos(9lbs) of powdered energy which I would mix at every day-time meal with ten grain porridge mix as well as trail mix and dried fruit.Dinner was to be pasta flavoured with different varieties of cup-of-soup.I had about 150 electrolyte tabs left over from summer so they would be a great help in keeping me going on my long trip south.Muslie bars would be treats along the way.I figured I had enough nutrition to get me about eight to ten days down the road where I would stock up again.This was certainly easier to plan for than the nutrition on my trip through St America the previous year.

With one last huge meal with my dear friends Steve and Maria Brown I loaded up my already growing belly and was set to ride out mid morning on Monday the 1st October.

A little history for you all.

2007-09-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

I often get asked why and more importantly how I go about doing all this Ultra stuff that I do.It seems that most people think it's crazy and will eventually lead to my early demise after some sort of physical breakdown.Now you all must understand that I,like the rest of the planet,thought that the whole Julie Moss at Ironman Hawaii thing,was just amazing and was truly inspired to one day reach that highest of highs and finish an Ironman.That was twenty five years ago when I saw the T.V coverage during one particularly boring afternoon shift working as a busboy in the public bar of the Sydney Hilton in Australia.I had run track and cross country at high school and was on the school swim team so I figured that this crazy event would be achievable for me.That was until I discovered girls and alcohol.Suffice it to say my athletic accomplishments were then confined to the chasing of various young females around numerous bars in Sydneys Kings Cross district.
Years passed and I moved on and up to the tropical city of Cairns in far north Australia where after one crazy trip down Austalias' east coast by bike I started competing with the local triathlon club.I remember the day I was able to ride for an hour at an average speed of 30kph(18.75mph).I was a legend in my own lunchtime!Little did I know that eight years later I would be able to hold that speed,and more,for two hundred miles while cruising toward my first Ultraman win.
It wasn't until 1991 that I made it to the start line of an Ironman.It was Ironman Canada and and Lloyd Wallington friend of mine had convinced me, eight weeks before the event, that I should go with him to Canada.He dragged my sorry ass all over the hills around Cairns in training and for seven weeks I suffered like a dog.Race day in Penticton arrived and I managed to cross the line in 11:48ish(I don't remember the exact time).That was all it took,I was an Ironman and I was hooked.
I returned to Penticton in 1993 and soon I was well and truly part of the Ironman fold thinking that I had reached the pinnacle of athletic achievement for an average Joe.That was until I met Tom Price.He was the two-time winner of Ironman Canada and had been invited to come up to Penticton to race Ultraman Canada.I,along with my girlfriend Leisa and best mate Mori, were asked to crew for him.What happened that weekend changed my view of what is humanly possible.We met Tom the day before the race and he was a very nice chap.Very intense but nice.He told us what he needed us to do and left us no doubt that we were not to stray from his instructions.He was so professional in how he went about that weekend it amazed me.History will show that Tom won Ultraman that year and we have remained friends to this day.His race plan and preparation have been the blueprint for evey race I have done since.
The following year Tom was supposed to return to defend his title and we were lined up to crew again but as result of the huge fires burning around the district Tom decided, for health reasons not to come.I was then asked, after a drunken Margarita Thursday at the local pub, if I would step in and race in his place.Stupidly I said "sure why not"!!We had all the sponsorship in place and so with 30 hours notice and with just my Ironman training behind me I lined up for my first Ultraman Canada Triathlon.I managed to win the whole thing that weekend but truth be known if local legend Steve King could swim at all he would have won.It is however a three sport event and he would have to settle for second place.He did kick my butt in the run though.Again my Ultraman experience found me another friend and mentor.Steve is never far from what I'm up to in the world of all things Ultra.
I started meeting all kinds of triathletes from all over the world and of all talent levels from the pros to the back of the pack guys.I also started meeting some guys who where into the long stuff.I mean,the really long stuff.I soon found out about Double Ironman,Triple Ironman,The Deca,RAAM and the Trans-America Footrace.I couldn't believe that it was possible but over the next few years I got to hang out with,drink with,train and race with some of the best Ultra-endurance athetes in the world.Suddenly Ironman wasn't the hardest thing in the world.There was more,way more.
My perception changed and I started reading every book I could find on Everest expeditions,Polar exploration and adventure travel and again the degree of suffering the human mind,body and spirit are capable of was shown to me in the pages of those books.I started to think that maybe I was one of those people and and after watching an English mate of mine train for and race the Deca Ironman in the mid '90s I decided that was one race I would have to do.He ended up breaking the world record for that race but was still fourth overall.His time still stands as the Great Britain record and he would go on to complete the Trans-Australia footrace,win the last ever held Trans America footrace and than run accross Europe.He only has to run from the Russian border to Singapore and he will have run around the world.His name is Bobby Brown and he is a dead set legend.
You can't help but be changed when you meet these people and that was evident when I was sitting in a lab at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver with Deca Ironman champ,Erik Seedhouse and Ultraman Canada and Hawaii champ Tracy Preston.We were talking about the extreme sport fad and Erik bluntly told us that is his opinion a sport is not extreme unlees you are standing at the startline without actually knowing whether you would live through it.Now that was cool.Again it was all about perception.He had risked life and limb climbing the highest peaks of the world and so to him it took a lot before his mind gave in to defeat.That was the one attutude that truly has stayed with me all these years.If your mind stays strong you can keep going when most would stop.
This is how I live now.I am not an elite athlete by any stretch of the imagination but what I am is strong.I love to hurt,I love to suffer and I love show others just what is possible if you only have a bit of faith in yourself and the courage to try.

A new adventure begins

2007-09-25T06:03:00.000-07:00

Greetings all.It's time once agagin for me to dust off the old MTB and hitch up the trailer for another adventure on the road.This time however there are a couple of differences to the last time I was out there doing what I do.The first difference is that I am really pressed for time.I have one month to ride from Penticton B.C to Leredo Texas in time to be picked up and taken to Monterrey in Mexico to compete in the Deca-Ironman World Challenge.The race begins on November 5th and is a ten Ironman stage race with an Iron distance race each day for ten days.The lowest accumulated time over the ten days wins.Sounds simple enough-yeah right!!
The distance I have to ride is about 4000k(2500miles) and I will be passing through the border just south of Penticton B.C and heading through Boise,Salt Lake City,Albuquerque,Austin and then Laredo.That works out to about 125k(78miles)a day for 32 days plus doing my run and swim training as well.All things being equal that shouldn't be a problem if riding was all I was doing.The other thing not as yet mentioned is that I also have to dedicate time toward the newest challenge in my life.My year as a charity fundraiser.
During the 2007 running of Ultraman Canada we were all introduced to a small charitable group called "Althetes in Kind".This group, based in Pitt Meadows just outside of Vancouver,raises money for the families of those who are affected by the huge financial burden of a family member fighting cancer.I was very impressed with "Team Athletes in Kind" and the charitys' founder Lorie Muller.After reading through the Athletes in Kind website I figured it was time that I actually got off my lazy butt and tried to do something worthwhile for a change.To that end I have promised Lorie that I would dedicate the next year to raising money for,and the profile of, Athletes in Kind.The road to the Deca-Iron and the event itself is the first stage of a whole year of trans-continental cycling and Ultra-triathlon competition ending with Ultraman Canada in 2008.
So sit back,relax and follow along as I head out for anothers of Nick's Ultra adventures.Keep your fingers crossed and you credit cards handy 'cause here we go again!