Peddles are Optional

The peddle fell off 150 km from home, a kind farmer welded it back on, three hours later it clattered to the road, I lashed it back on with a bootlace. The next morning I made it to a hardware store and replaced the wobbly peddle with a five-inch long bolt, enabling me to finish my 1,947 km and eighteen day bike ride around Ontario and contribute $745 to the Great Cycle Challenge for Sick Kids cancer research.

The best moments of this adventure were camping wild under pine trees beside a lake or river. The most insightful happened along the Collingwood / Thornbury section, dense vegetation framed the road, bright hot sunshine, dusty gravel shoulder, opulent development – it was a déjà vu moment – I felt just like I had cycling out of any South American city; perhaps it really is all about the journey, not the destination. My top speed was 58 km on the hills around Denbigh. The last two days were the longest and the most distance travelled, both twelve-hour days covering 278 km. The funniest moment was at the ferry terminal at Tobermory – ferry tickets were only sold over the phone or online. My phone was dead, I plugged it into an outlet on the outside wall of the office building, the man inside at the desk ignores my window tapping and waving, not so the ticket booth lady, she leaves the booth and yells at me to get out of the flowerbed. By lying on the pavement with arms outstretched amongst the weeds I can just operate the phone as it comes alive with 2% battery. I quickly dial, then it dies. The ferry lady, in maritime uniform, runs out of the booth again and shouts at me across the parking not to use their power. I gesticulate my dilemma to her in fluent Mr. Bean to no avail.