Our room at the Imperial Hotel, Bassano When the alarm rang at 7:15AM, Cam was not ready to go. Having ridden 100 miles the day before, a rainy gray sky, and another 100 mile day ahead, he just didn't seem to have the drive to get out of bed to face it. 2 snooze buttons later, he felt the same way... As he thought about this later, he thinks that what was dragging him down was a "home rest day hangover". While the first 9 days of riding had the home rest day as a carrot, getting up on Day 12 with 49 days ahead seemed overwhelming without a similar carrot. However, as he lay in bed, he recalled a quote Ken had come across on another cycle touring website, "You don't have to be a super athlete (to ride across the country), you just have to be willing to get on the bike again the next day." Recalling this, he realized that there were going to be many more days where he was going to feel this way, but that he would need to learn to just get over it and get out of bed and onto his bike...and so he did.
A gray, rainy, dreary day... Neither Cam, nor Ken moved too quickly this morning and it was 9:30AM before they were set to start the ride after a good breakfast at Rosie's Roadside Diner. Outside of the gas station, the boys met a 70 year old man from Calgary who was cycling to Maine, USA. Unfortunately, they didn't get a picture, but meeting this man, as well as the 71 year old Mr. Otsikawa from Japan the day before, was inspiring to them - they hope they will be as energetic when they reach their 70s!
They started to pound out the mileage but it was really tough to get into the zone on this dreary day. After some difficult miles, Cam admitted to Ken that he felt very "somber" with 150+ kms ahead of them. Ken replied that it was Cam's prerogative to feel that way, but inside he was also having a challenge getting going this morning. Ken took a short break to get some rain gear together, and while he did, he checked his email and read a comment that had come in on yesterday's blog from his sister-in-law Donna, a grade 4 teacher in Edmonton. His face broke into a smile and his heart was warmed as he read the comments forwarded by Donna from her class. He got back on his bike and raced to catch up to Cam. While they rode in the rain, he relayed the comments and broke down reciting the final message from a boy in Donna's class named Noah: "Thanks for letting us share your dream. Makes me want to dream big." These wonderful words from Donna's grade 4 class were just what they needed this morning - from that point on, it was like the sun had come out and their day turned out to be awesome. Thank you to Donna and to each of the student's in your class - your messages to us today were perfectly timed!
The comment that Donna sent is below:
"Good morning guys! My wonderful 27 grade 4's have eagerly awaited each day's blogs and have a few words to share:
"You are doing an amazing job!" Jameson
"Way to go Ken and Cam!" Natalie
"You are awesome! Keep on riding!" Cari
"Good luck and stay healthy." Suzanne
"I hope you continue to have fun and be safe on your trip." Keith
"You are inspiring!" Naa-Larteley
"Good for you. I'd never make it that far." Ghuntas
"Come home safely. You are very brave." Haasna & Morgan
"Thanks for letting us share your dream. Makes me want to dream big." Noah
From Donna Fauser"
The comment that Donna sent is below:
"Good morning guys! My wonderful 27 grade 4's have eagerly awaited each day's blogs and have a few words to share:
"You are doing an amazing job!" Jameson
"Way to go Ken and Cam!" Natalie
"You are awesome! Keep on riding!" Cari
"Good luck and stay healthy." Suzanne
"I hope you continue to have fun and be safe on your trip." Keith
"You are inspiring!" Naa-Larteley
"Good for you. I'd never make it that far." Ghuntas
"Come home safely. You are very brave." Haasna & Morgan
"Thanks for letting us share your dream. Makes me want to dream big." Noah
From Donna Fauser"
Goodbye Mr. Otsikawa! After this, they rode on feeling much better. Soon they saw a rider in the distance and as they caught up to him, realized that it was Mr. Otsikawa! Ken was careful not to frighten him into the ditch this time, and we caught up on how his evening had gone the night before. He had chosen the more economical Prairie Schooner Motel. He would have gotten along well with Harry, but unfortunately, he never made it that far into town. His destination today was Brooks, which was about 1/3 of the distance the boys were planning for the day. They didn't expect that they would run into him again and so they waved goodbye after he took a picture for his blog...!
The "First" Lunch... They had their first lunch at McDonalds in Brooks, but with 112 kms to go, packed their panniers with rations for a second lunch. As they rode away from McDonalds, Cam advised Ken that they had 112 kms to go to get to Medicine Hat. Ken replied that was do-able, but Cam wasn't buying it given that it was already 12:30PM and the rain was getting heavier. However, they soon noticed that the tailwind had strengthened considerably from the morning and they cruised for an hour averaging better than 30 kms/hour - in spite of the rain. Perhaps Medicine Hat was do-able!?! After about 50 kms, they stopped to enjoy their "second lunch" at a rest stop and learned that the first natural gas discovery in Alberta was found a short distance away by the Canadian Pacific Railway while drilling for water - explaining why Medicine Hat is nicknamed "The Gas City".
After lunch, the kilometres melted away quickly as the tailwind continued, although not quite as strong as before the second lunch. The boys were amazed to find themselves rolling into Medicine Hat at 5:00PM with the sun starting to shine and they pulled up to the Imperial Inn having clocked 162.5 kms - or 101 miles! They both felt great and were amazed to have had such an awesome day after such a rough start. Thanks again to the 4th Graders in Donna's class!
Ride Details:
- Distance: 162.5 kms
- Riding Time: 6 hours, 52 minutes
- Average Speed: 23.7 kms
- Wind: Northwest
For more ride details, see Strava and see more photos in the Photo Gallery.
Interestingly, Cam entered a challenge on Strava called the "Junedoggle" where participants see who can ride the most miles in the month of June. As of the end of today, Cam is in 55th place out of 75,436 participants! Not too bad!
After lunch, the kilometres melted away quickly as the tailwind continued, although not quite as strong as before the second lunch. The boys were amazed to find themselves rolling into Medicine Hat at 5:00PM with the sun starting to shine and they pulled up to the Imperial Inn having clocked 162.5 kms - or 101 miles! They both felt great and were amazed to have had such an awesome day after such a rough start. Thanks again to the 4th Graders in Donna's class!
Ride Details:
- Distance: 162.5 kms
- Riding Time: 6 hours, 52 minutes
- Average Speed: 23.7 kms
- Wind: Northwest
For more ride details, see Strava and see more photos in the Photo Gallery.
Interestingly, Cam entered a challenge on Strava called the "Junedoggle" where participants see who can ride the most miles in the month of June. As of the end of today, Cam is in 55th place out of 75,436 participants! Not too bad!