I have some amazing friends
When my bike club colleague Jack convinced me to do the 7 Days Ride for Pancreatic Cancer this year in May, I had two concerns:
- Could I ramp up my fitness early enough in the year to handle 1100 kms of riding over 7 days in late May, including 2 days of over 2000 m of elevation?
- Could I manage fundraising for both events?
I knew that if I could get my fitness ready for May, that I would be fine for the 401 Bike Challenge in August because it would simply be a matter of maintaining what I had already built. I figured that if I committed to one long ride a week (I consider a long ride to be 160 km) and filled in with other shorter rides that I'd be ready - and I was right. Getting to fitness in late May amounted to:
- Some long virtual rides on my basement indoor trainer, ugh
- Some strange and highly beneficial (for riding) weather that allowed for some February road rides in Ottawa, which is unheard of
In retrospect, despite the boredom of 4+ hour training rides on Zwift, being fit early in the riding season is awesome. I managed to start the 401 Bike Challenge with 8000 km under my belt, which is a first for me in mid August. I might even be able to hit 10000 km for the year, a soft goal that I've had for a while now
The fundraising was a different story though. How was I going to raise donations for both events? And how was I going to achieve the minimum $3500 for the 401 Bike Challenge after raising money for the 7 Days Ride for Pancreatic Cancer? The 7 Days Ride doesn't have a minimum fundraising target, although $1500 is suggested. I thought that was low. So I figured I should aim for the same amount that I had successfully exceeded in prior years for the 401 Bike Challenge - $3500. I went about the fundraising in the same way that I usually do - mostly via direct email to my contact list, as well as mentions of the ride in my bike club newsletters, all supported by these blog entries to provide some mild amusement and context. So, when the plethora of donations came in for the 7 Days ride over April and May, I blew past my target and raised over $5300. Fantastic! But now I had a problem - who was I going to ask for donations to get to my $3500 for the 401 Bike Challenge?
Well, because I'm unimaginative and a creature of habit, I figured I would just ask everyone again who had not contributed to the 7 Days Ride. I was super worried that I'd fall short of the target and I contacted the organizers of the 401 Bike Challenge in June to let them know of my situation. They assured me that wanted me at the event and that they'd figure out a way to make sure that the minimum wasn't an issue. I went about the 2nd round of solicitation. In the end, I still fell short of my target by less than $350 (achieving 90%) but I was amazed at the generosity, especially from some friends who donated to both causes! (You Kanata-Nepean Bicycle Club and Excellent Tuesday Adventure members know who you are!) Once again, I feel humbled
This year, there were only 2 people from Ottawa riding the 3 days from Toronto to Montreal - me and my friend Gustavo who was attempting this for the first time after having ridden the 3rd leg from Cornwall several times before. Logistically, it made more sense for me to travel directly to Toronto rather than going to Montreal and then flying to Toronto with the Montreal riders. So I took VIA rail the day prior to our departure from Sick Kids hospital. My bike however, had to be transported to the Chelsea hotel and doing so using VIA was not a good option. So my friend Rob from Montreal generously agreed to meet Gustavo mid way betweeen Ottawa and Montreal to do a handoff the weekend prior. Our bikes were then carefully packed in the large trailer that accompanies our mobile bike shop and Sylvain, our 401 Bike Challenge mechanic, drove them the 6+ hours to Toronto the day before
Once again, my eldest daughter Julie met me at Sick Kids on Wednesday morning - so great to have family see you off and at the finish. Tiya, a 15 year old patient of Sick Kids described her journey through treatment and recovery, including the day she rang the bell declaring herself cancer free. She's now 2 years free and looking forward to her 5 year anniversary. I'm always amazed at the maturity and eloquence of the youth patients - they need to grow up fast when confronted with a potentially deadly prognosis. Various TV crews were present and members of the organizing committee gave interviews outlining the cause and event
To get us out of the downtown, we once again employed a Toronto Police Services motorcycle escort. But this time it was different. In previous years, the escort crew would block intersections when the lights were changing from green to yellow to red to allow the whole group of riders to go through together. It made for one of the highlights of the 3 days - going through Toronto rush hour traffic and for once, having cyclists prioritized over cars. It highlighted the importance of the event to raise awareness and it was sure fun watching the traffic stop. This year, however, we were assembled pre ride by one of the officers, who proceeded to give us what I can only describe as a lecture. It could have been due to an increased focus on safety or maybe as a reduction of the number of motorcycles that were available, but the officer told us that even if a light was green, he might have us stop to ensure that we weren't spread out and that we could all make it through the intersection before the light changed to yellow. Fair enough. But once we started down University Ave, it seemed to me that they were just trying to make a point - a point that we were disrupting rush hour traffic. In some cases, the officer stopped us on greens where the pedestrian countdown had over 20 seconds remaining! We all stopped and waited for a complete light cycle until it turned green again. This happened again and again all the way down University and on Lakeshore Blvd. Instead of enjoying the ride out, many of the riders including myself were getting annoyed. The stop/start continued for 27 km all the way to where Kingston Road (Highway 2 - the road that most of the ride follows) crosses north of the 401 just east of Scarborough. It took us over 1:20 minutes and we averaged 20 km/hr. Not a fun start to a day of 190 km of riding to Belleville. Never thought I'd be so glad to get rid of a police escort
The rest of day 1 continued as in previous years with stops in Whitby (52 km), Newcastle (80 km), Cobourg beach for lunch (118 km), Brighton (155 km) and finally Belleville (191 km). At our first rest stop we organized into speed groups. There was fast group (> 30 km/hr average speed) and 2 other groups. There seemed to be some confusion whether the remaining 2 groups were going to be the same speed or slightly different. As a result, there was also some debate over what to call them - group 2 and 3 or group 2a and 2b. All very amusing. Regardless of the name, I decided to ride in the group leaving last. This was because despite all my riding, I was still a bit hesitant given what had happened in group 2 in 2023 and also I wanted to ride with my friend Rob, who I rarely had had a chance to ride with because we were never in the same group
At rest stop 2 in Whitby, Tim needed to resecure his water bottle which had come loose. I guess he wasn't carrying his tool kit (many riders don't since we have the mobile bike shop behind us) and asked me if I had one, which I did. I opened my saddle bag and handed him the allen key multi tool. He gave it back and I attempted to re-insert it into my saddle bag, but the zipper was now stuck and it seemed at risk of tearing off. I was also drinking a can of Bubly (pineapple flavor FTW - thanks support crew!) which I had put on the ground. At that point the driver for the support vehicle for group 2 yelled out that it was time to go - they proceeded to leave. I started to panic a bit and Tim suggested to take off the saddle bag and hand it over to the someone in the support vehicle and deal with the zipper later. Good idea! Except now the support SUV was heading back up to Kingston Road and I could see the group ahead of it several hundred meters away. Oops, better get moving. So I took off, with a crushed can of Bubly in one hand and my saddle tool kit bag in the other and of course, the first portion of road was uphill. I couldn't really change gears with my hands occupied. So I stayed in a smaller gear, spun it out and pushed it and eventually caught the SUV a couple of kilometers down the road. I handed them the can and the bag and then realized, that I had been chasing the wrong group/vehicle the whole time! The group nomenclature screwed me up and I thought I was in group 2 (b) even though I was in the last group. Oh well, so I waited at the side of the road for several minutes until group 3/2b/whatever-you-want-to-call-it arrived
Because of my unrequired sprint to relieve myself of these foreign objects and the now rising midday temperature I found myself struggling a bit on the hills leading out of Oshawa towards our next stop in Newcastle. I was quite relieved to cool off and reset at stop #3. I was fine after that for the rest of the day. As it turns out, yes group 3/2b was slower than group 2 - not by a lot, but the difference is that everyone in group 2 kept together whereas we had a couple of riders who kept dropping off the back and so we had to wait for them. I ended up spending a good amount of time on the front, but everyone got in safely to the hotel. After dinner at Shoeless Joe's across the street, I suggested we go for ice cream dessert at Marble Slab about a block away from the hotel, which turned out to be a really good idea both as a day wrap up and also a bit of a leg stretch. Grape soda flavor ice cream is awesome!
Ah yes, the dreaded day 2. 263 kms from Belleville to Cornwall - including about 5 extra kms added this year due to the LaSalle Causeway bascule bridge on highway 2 being replaced (to be fair, it was 107 years old) . The very good news is that the fantastic weather we had on day 1 was going to hold and there was no forecast threat of thunderstorms or rain in the afternoon or early evening. We even had a favorable tail wind to start us out. There was only one issue - we started a bit late. As long as we kept our rest stop time to the minimum we should be okay and get into Cornwall before dark
As in previous years we made good time to Napanee (41 km) and then slowed a bit onto Kingston (81 km). In Kingston, I sustained my injury of the day - no not cycling; I bumped my head on a tree branch under which my bike was carefully placed. Rob and the support crew supplied the "first aid" - sanitary wipe covered with a band aid. I think they were hoping that the butterfly shaped band aid would appear as a tan line under my helmet, but were disappointed when I showed them it went under my cycling cap. Unfortunately, I do not have a picture
Unlike last year, by the time we got to Gananoque (117 km) the temperature was warm but still reasonable. I did find myself with a craving for a Timmy's ice cap and an apple crueller so I eagerly downed those at the stop. The next section is one of the best of the 3 days - the Thousands Islands Pathway - 35 km of (almost) traffic free separated pavement. It was another 30 km to our lunch stop at Mallorytown Landing (147 km)
Once we were on the pathway, I was itching to ride at my own pace for a while. For the ride out from Belleville we needed to stay together as a group which found me on the front a lot and also soft pedaling while waiting for riders to catch up. Day 2 is long and we all must be patient. But once on the pathway and away from traffic, I figured if there was a chance for me to ride without slowing, this would be it. It was a bit of a risk as my ride into Mallorytown Landing is what did me in in 2023. But I wouldn't be having to keep up with a slightly faster group this time and could go at my own pace. So I did for about 25 km. It was the best - some parts of the pathway are like a roller coaster and I pushed to hit the short rollers as fast as I could - I was even prepared to take some air (on my road bike lol) but it didn't happen. Once at the lunch stop I waited for the rest of the group, who were only a few minutes behind
The ride in from the lunch stop gets progressively tougher as both fatigue and time in saddle set in. A couple of the riders decided to get in the support vehicle for a bit. Like last year, the size of the group dropped as the day progressed. We stopped at Prescott (187 km) and riders were now laying down on the grass in the shade instead of conversing. On to our final stop in Morrisburg (224 km). I admitted I was tired to one of the other riders. By this time, it was clear that we might just make it in before it got dark, barring any delays. Surprisingly, we managed to maintain a 31 km/hr pace in to Cornwall for the final 38 kms, aided with a nice tailwind. Highway 2 west of Cornwall is and will always be a piece of sh*t and although the transition wasn't the smoothest, our motorcycle escort crew managed to redirect us onto the multi use pathway for 2 kms near the end, allowing the backed up traffic to pass. Even with the motorcycle and support SUV, riding without a shoulder with 18 wheelers whizzing by near 8 pm is not enjoyable. The celebration after day 2 is always special as the riders know that the most difficult portion is behind them. This is also the night when the organizers get to address the riders and volunteers directly, thanking us for our efforts. This year Gene, the founder, donned Colin's "incognito" bucket hat and mirror sunglasses and jokingly beraded whoever forgot to include regular Gatorade (or "G" - the one with sugar and no artificial sweeteners) in the support vehicle's provisions. I wholeheartedly supported him. (The volunteers were stellar though as they had purchased a case mid ride on day 2 once they heard that some riders like myself won't drink "G2" or "Zero" and distributed them to the 3 support vehicles)
So great to wake up on day 3 with a good night's sleep and an appetite unlike last year. Once again the weather was looking stellar for our trip into Sainte Anne de Bellevue and onto Children's Hospital. With new riders on board for day 3, I switched to a larger group 2 to accomodate them in group 3. I thought about maybe trying group 1 to see how long I could hang on, but figured I would just burn myself out. Group 2 was so much more organized than group 3 - everyone rode at the same pace. There was no rotation though, as two of the riders were quite happy sharing the front for the duration. I was quite happy to not be on the front and just enjoy the scenery. Our route into John Abbott College in Sainte Anne for once did not involve any road construction detours
At lunch we picked up some more riders and also our police escort into Montreal. As in previous years, the Montreal police did a stellar job getting us into the hospital, especially through what was basically a construction hellscape - both a bit in Pointe Claire and then again once we got turned up Rue Saint Jacques through Ville Saint Pierre. Some of the drivers stuck in traffic control were definitely not happy when the road crews gave priority to the police escort. We got to hear a few choice Quebecois expletives directed our way as we smiled and waved
The approach into the hospital is always special. Desa and her sister Tina were there to greet me. A string quintet was set up in the P.K. Subban pavilion to greet us and one of the teenage players was a graduate of the treatment program who very nervously told the 150 people present how he used music to get him through his treatment - another great success story partly due to our fundraising efforts. I got to talk briefly with Dr. David Mitchell, who is a specialist at the hospital and who in past years had ridden the 401 Bike Challenge and treated some of the children of other riders. Of course I also got to say goodbye to my friend Gerry for another year. Gerry has ridden most of the 19 years that the Bike Challenge has been fundraising. He is one of the largest fundraisers and he's also 83 years young. This year, Gerry didn't ride all of day 2, but he rode day 1 and 3 and still rode over 100 kms on day 2. He's one of my (and all the riders') personal fitness heros and his general postive attitude towards life is contagious (it helps that his profession was psychiatry/psychology)
This year, the ride raised $185 thousand, bringing the total over the years to $3 million. In 2025, the organizing committee is planning something special for the 20th ride anniversary. I have no idea what the means but I'm waiting with interest
Finally, once again a big thank you to all of you who contributed to my fundraising, supported me with encouragement and shared rides with me. I had to plan and dedicate a significant amount of time to both the fundraising rides that I took part in this year, but in the end I feel exhilarated and proud that I could do a small part to help the lives of those less fortunate than myself or my family
Take care,
Dan
Lasalle Bascule Bridge photo courtesy Kingstonist News
Help kids undergoing cancer treatments and their families by supporting the ACV 401 Bike Challenge. You can donate to my ride via Dan's donation page
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