Catherine Pickup

Day 10 June 22nd: Repentigny, Quebec to Place Laurier, Quebec City

On our way to Repentigny, Quebec, we made a quick stop at MacDonald’s, which was definitely not my first choice of places to eat.  In fact, I haven`t set foot inside a MacDonald’s in about 10 years.  However, I was so hungry that I was willing to forgo the self-imposed boycott in order to prevent my stomach from starting world war three.  It needed food and I wasn’t going to stand in its way (I use the word `food` loosely when referring to MacDonald`s).  As I was eating I couldn`t let myself to think of what I was putting in my stomach or risk having it give a repeat performance.  

Again, we spent the night in a Sears’s parking lot in the Bunk Truck, and we used the store’s facilities in the morning to get ready.  When I was in the washroom, two male caretakers came in, and at first I thought it may have been other riders, but when I stepped out of the stall I realized I had no clue of who they were.  One started talking to me in French, but I have only a very mediocre grasp of the language and I told him I couldn`t understand.  He only spoke French, but the other caretaker could speak English and he asked me questions about the ride—like what the furthest distance we had been so far.   I told him and he said the farthest he had ridden was 50 km.

We had an early start today—7 am—since we had a 250 km ride and we had to fight wicked head/cross winds again.  The route took us from Repentigny through Berthierville, Louiseville, Trois Rivieres, Port Neuf to Quebec City on hwy 138 (The King’s Road) and hwy 343 (Montee de Sulspice).  The King’s Road (Chemin du Roy) is the oldest roadway in Canada. From 1737, it linked New France’s three largest cities: Montréal, Trois-Rivières and Québec City. Nowadays, a marked itinerary allows you to discover the rich heritage of the Québec City and Area, the Mauricie and the Lanaudière regions. This route runs for the most part along the St. Lawrence, and several sections are part of the Route Verte (green route) bikeway.  

The infrastructure was in such horrible condition, and in such desperate need of repair, that not only were the roads full of potholes and gaping wide holes, but huge trenches that would surely be disastrous for the cyclist that got his wheel stuck in one.  It was so bad that it made more sense to call out where the road was undamaged as opposed to where the potholes were.  We would have had better luck riding on mountain bikes; the rough terrain made our brains rattle inside our skulls and our teeth clatter together.  The pain that vibrated up my spine was excruciating and I wondered how long my back would hold out.  Jamie suggested that maybe I should consider going in the RV, but I told him the only way I was getting in that RV was if someone knocked me unconscious and dragged me there. 

It was slow going to Trois Rivieres where we stopped for a spaghetti lunch outside the Sears store.  There was a stage set up and a strange mix of music was playing through the loud speakers.  An aerobics instructor was there, and he directed the people that gathered into various exercises.  Debbie, Kathy, Jen and I took one look and decided to join them, cycling cleats and all.  I couldn`t understand a word as it was all in French, but it was easy enough to follow and we had a great, if not cheesy time. 

We made great time to our next stop in Port Neuf at the city hall where the Mayor greeted us and we were fed once again. Then, on our way to Quebec City, approximately 5 km away from Place Laurier, we faced a 14% grade hill to climb.  Unfortunately we were stopped at a red light part way up and had to unclip.  When the light turned green I had trouble clipping back in, given the awful condition my body was in.   Next thing I knew, I was a Nascar driver in the Indy 500 with the pit crew running to my aid.  They held onto my bike while I clipped in and then gave me a push for good measure. 

At Place Laurier we were greeted enthusiastically by Sears’ employees, and local people.  A guitar and voice duo was there to perform for us and a clown was there making balloon hats.  I asked if he could make me a bike, but he admitted he wasn`t very good at them, but would make me something equally spectacular.  He made me a balloon hat with a sunflower.  The food was subs and salad and some great desserts.  13 year old Maria Metivier made a beautiful speech about her journey with Leukemia in French which was translated my Monique.  Monique also made a speech in French on behalf of the Sears National Kids Cancer Ride.

I was in so much pain when I got to our final destination that I was given a hot pack for my neck to ease some of the pain, and drugs to knock me out in order for my body to heal.

We rode 250km today.

Day 9 June 21st: Pickering, ON to Belleville, ON

How our drivers managed it, I’ll never know, but they got lost in the Pickering Town Centre Parking lot, while trying to find where the Sears store was.  After a phone call from the other RV driver (who was watching us circle the parking lot), we finally rolled into the place where we would sleep the night.  We were once again on our own, the other two teams having gone to their respective start locations.  We ate at East Side Mario’s where I ordered a large Caesar Salad and a cold pint of Kilkenny and I had my first full night sleep in the bunk truck since beginning this journey.  Apparently we had a visitor in the middle of the night, a drunken vagabond looking for a party, but I was so tired I slept right through it. 

 We had a community breakfast and a ride along with local riders that was scheduled for 9:00am. The Sears store had prepared another warm breakfast for us and I ate bacon, pancakes, fresh fruit and a lot of maple syrup.  There was no coffee however, as the coffee machine broke, so one of the ride along participants took pity on me and bought me a coffee from Starbucks.  It was much appreciated! 

We were provided with water hoses, soapy buckets of water and degreaser to wash the layers of filth and grit that accumulated on our bikes from riding in the rain the day before.  Volunteers offered to clean and lube our bikes, but I politely refused as I like to use cleaning as a means to check for any damage or problems with my bike.  I also enjoy the process of cleaning it. 

Jamie let me borrow his wheels today.   I had been using spare wheels that were non-compatible with my bike since about day four.  We were riding through a section of road, scattered with debris that would ricochet off one bike and hit another bike.  It was like playing a game of ping-pong with our bikes.  Unfortunately, one of these large stones hit the spoke on my back wheel, making a loud bang as it made impact, breaking the spoke instantly.  Greg, the mechanic, was unable to fix it because he didn’t have the tool required for Reynolds Wheels and he was unable to find one (remember, we were in the middle of nowhere).  Another teammate lent me his wheel until I could borrow the spare wheel that was provided by Coast to Coast.  That in itself wouldn’t have been an issue, but the wheels weren’t Campanello compatible, they were Shimano.   Campi and Shimano do not get along!  In fact, you could say they fight like cats and dogs.  While I was riding they would show their displeasure at being forced to work together by occasionally locking, and I would be unable to turn the crank; and every time I would change gears they would whine and screech in protest.   By day seven, I had to use the matching spare front wheel as mine was no longer “true” from riding on rough terrain.  When Jamie offered to lend me his wheels I was ecstatic.  And they were fast!

I had the pleasure of riding with Ron Mitchell and Anne Sauve for part of the distance.  Our journey took us through Oshawa, New Castle, Coburg, and Brighton and to our final destination, Belleville.   There was no sign of the downpour that nearly drowned us yesterday and the sun was shining brightly over us.  We rode mostly on beautiful country roads, which also meant we had to deal with a lot of pollen.  Ever since my asthma attack a few days back, I had been taking an antihistamine every morning along with my inhaler, so, thankfully that prevented any major issues. 

Our rest stop snacks were far from nutritious today!  They ranged from slushies and ice cream to an assortment of bakery items (butter tarts, brownies, cookies).   All that careful consuming of only low glycemic foods didn`t seem to actually apply while on the tour!  I remember prior to going on the ride I was a little worried about losing weight, but now I think we had to worry about gaining it!

The pace was fast (lucky I had Jamie’s wheels)—rolling about 40-45km/h.  We had a lot of fresh legs from the ride along participants and they were in the mood to play.  It was harder for the rest of us however, as we were 9 days into the ride and some were fighting injuries, and exhaustion.  Eventually the pace slowed, and we arrived in Belleville feeling pretty good where we received an enthusiastic reception by Sears’s employees, friends, family and supporters of the cause.  New York Fries provided a BBQ, while other volunteers prepared lasagne, an assortment of salads, fresh fruit and veggies.  We also had ice cream and freezies.  Speeches were made, cheques given away and ambassador child Hanna’s mom spoke of her fight with cancer. 

 We showered in the facilities provided and prepared for our long RV ride to Repentigny Quebec.

We cycled 188 km today.

Day 8 June 20th: Woodstock, ON to Sick Kids, Toronto, ON.

Plink.  Plink.  Plink.  Plink.  Wearily I opened an eye and gazed outside the bunk truck door.  Great.  Rain.  And it didn’t look like the kind of rain that would stop anytime soon.  The sky was grey and cloudy, and I felt a cool breeze wafting through the screen door.  Welcome to Southern Ontario!    I hoped the rain wouldn’t discourage people from coming out and riding with us—not everyone shares my opinion of riding in the rain.

I sighed while hauling my butt out of bed.  It was 6am, and we weren’t scheduled to leave until 9 am, but there were only two washrooms in the nearby Tim Horton’s and there were a lot of people who needed to use them—and I was definitely one of them.

We arrived at Woodstock around 11pm last night where all three teams and crew were reunited.  It was nice to see my Toronto riding buddies again and we traded our experiences of the ride so far.  I stayed up later than I should have, but my body was so used to going on little or no sleep it rebelled at the chance of a full night’s sleep. 

After getting a medium double/double from Timmies, I went to see what kind of breakfast they were serving us this morning.  Usually breakfast consisted of bagels and peanut butter, porridge or scrambled eggs, but this morning we lucked out as the Sears store had staff and volunteers make us a hot meal of pancakes and sausages.  We huddled under the awning while digging into our feast in hope of avoiding getting wet sooner than we needed to.  As I was polishing up my grub, a friend of mine, Josh, surprised me by meeting me there and we caught up a little before the ceremonies.

We had ride-alongs and events planned as we cycled through Woodstock, Brantford, Mapleview Centre in Burlington, Oakville Place, Sherway Gardens and Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto.   Even though the weather was far from ideal, it didn’t stop riders from coming out and participating.  However, the rain made stopping a very cold experience and you could see many cyclists’ teeth chattering as they fought to stay warm.  I had the opportunity to ride with many friends from the area:  Ron Mitchell, a mentor of mine that I met on my first Tour for kids who taught me a lot about cycling; Team Axel who were riding in memory of Alex, a child who lost his life to cancer several months ago, and; some members of The Village Idiots.   When we arrived at Sherway Gardens, my friends Nicole, Richard and their daughter Cypress met me, as well as my friend Mary and her daughter Julia.  It was nice to see familiar faces!

Unfortunately, there was one incident that happened on our way to Mapleview Centre in Burlington.   Jeff Rushton , who was leading the peleton, made a wrong turn, unbeknownst to about a dozen of us, who we followed like sheep.  I only realized we were going the wrong way when I heard voices yelling, “You’re going the wrong way!”  I waited to see what Jeff’s plan of action was when I noticed he was talking into his headset.   However, without a word to any of us, he turned around and hammered in the opposite direction.  Gobsmacked, I watched for a minute before I realized I had better follow him.

 I rode alone for a while, pedalling hard and passing the odd cyclist, before I met a group of riders.  We decided that it would be best for us to work together, pulling no more than 2 minutes each to catch the main group.  It was raining hard now, making the roads slick.  We were flying, going approximately 40km/h, when my wheel hit a tar strip and my back wheel skidded.  I tried desperately to gain back some control, but it was a losing battle.  I hit the wheel in front of me, hit the wheel to the left of him, and then I lost all control and knew I was going down.  I braced myself for the fall as I crashed on my left side, managing to protect my head.  I tucked into a small position while the cyclist behind me flew over top and the other riders narrowly avoided hitting me.   At first I didn’t move as I was totally numb and had to wait for the feeling to come back before I could do inventory of what was injured.  Within seconds of me falling, Kelly, the medic from team three was by my side assessing my injuries.   I heard people yelling, “call 911,” and both Kelly and I yelled in unison, “Don’t do that.”  I knew by this point my injuries weren’t severe and the last thing I needed was unnecessary attention drawn to me. 

Once the assessment was finished I was helped up, only to be told by someone that I need to go to the hospital.  I hurt like hell, that’s true enough, but I didn’t need a hospital.  I had road rash all down my left leg, an interesting cut on my elbow, along with a big bruise on my hip and shoulder and many on my back, but no broken bones.  I wanted to get back on my bike, not only because I had more adrenaline than I knew what to do with, but also because I knew if I didn’t I would stiffen up worse that a rusty hinge left out in the rain. People were worried I hit my head, so I told them to check my helmet which was undamaged.  Satisfied, I was allowed to get back on my bike which Darren (the bike mechanic from team 3) made minor adjustments to, to make it rideable. 

By the time I arrived at Mapleview centre, the rumours were flying; reminding me of the childhood game ‘telephone’, only on steroids.  The story was:  I was hit by a car, had two broken legs and was airlifted to the hospital.  By the end of the day the tale had been exaggerated even further and I was also pregnant. 

Before this ride I have never crashed before, but in 8 days I have crashed twice.  I started to think of what the difference was between this ride and others I have been on and it suddenly occurs to me— I’m wearing my Granddad’s 1931 cycling medal.  That in itself isn’t alarming, but the fact that he was known as Crasher Clarke is.  He was notorious for his frequent crashing—buses, brick walls, fences.  I believe I might have summoned a little more of my granddad than what I had originally intended.  So now, I have not only inherited my Granddad’s passion for cycling, but also his nickname ‘Crash.’  He would be proud.

The ambassador children were out in full force today.  In Woodstock, Melodie MacDonald talked about her 8 year old daughter Rachel, who is fighting brain cancer/ medulloblastoma.    She has had many complications to her health as a result of her cancer, but was there to cut the ribbon and see us off.  

Josh Nelson spoke at Mapleview Centre in Burlington.   Josh, who is 15 years old, was diagnosed with a brain tumour 6 years ago.  In his speech he said, “Ride for the kids who are battling cancer now. Ride for those who will be diagnosed in the future; and ride for me until I can ride with you.” He has beaten all odds and is walking with a walker; he is able to speak and is determined to get back on his bike. 

We met 16 year old Kathryn Peeters of Omemee at Sherway Gardens.  Kathryn was diagnosed with a massive brain tumour in June 1997 at the age of 4. After over eight hours of surgery, she faced a long recuperation with many challenges. Ten months to the day of her first surgery, Kathryn had a second surgery to remove two additional tumours. Six weeks later, in a routine post-operative MRI, three more tumours were found. Kathryn underwent six weeks of radiation therapy to try to slow or stop the tumour’s progression. As a result of her first tumour and surgery, Kathryn is legally blind. She has not let this challenge crush her creativity as she is an accomplished artist with five limited editions to her credit. Her paintings have sold around the world.

At Sick Kids, Adam Fedosoff’s mom spoke of her son’s relapse of High Risk ALL, where the cancer has entered the central nervous system and brain.  Adam, 14, is at Sick Kids currently undergoing treatment and is the lead guitarist in the band Tantrum.  Madison Scott, 10 years of age, spoke of her battle with ALL and her determination to get back on the stage.  She is currently in remission and will be on stage next year in the Sound of Music.  I also had the opportunity to meet Erika Scarff who is 12 ½ years old and was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma (bone cancer) in September 2008 after breaking her leg in gymnastics while running towards the vault.  Since then she has had chemotherapy and a modified amputation in January.  She was fitted with a prosthetic in April. 

We arrived at Sick Kids to hundreds of people cheering and clapping and yelling our names.  Many cyclists and volunteers were reunited with their loved ones and there were tears of both sadness and joy.  We enjoyed a BBQ, provided by New York Fries, before we headed to George Brown College where we showered.  From there we drove a short distance to Pickering Mall where we would start the next morning.

We rode 172 km today.

Day 7 June 19th: Espanola to Owen Sound

We travelled all night, catching the occasional blink of sleep in between the EPS’ annoying voice  informing us that she’s  “recalculating…recalculating…” and the loud, obnoxious sound of driving over the rumble strip.  We got attacked by the late night munchies, so we stopped briefly at Boston Pizza where Drew and Jim ordered pizza and shared a few beers while soliciting $100 worth of donations while waiting for their order.  We never made it to the bunk trucks and woke up in Espanola at 6 am still in the RV, and in consequence, had to run around madly to get ourselves ready to leave by 6:30am.  We had a long ride ahead of us to the Ferry Docks in South Baymouth and couldn’t be late as we were scheduled to catch the Chi-Cheeman Ferry at 11:30 am.   I was very thankful there was a Tim Horton’s nearby so that I could grab a breakfast for champions—medium double/double and a hot breakfast sandwich.

It was a pleasant 110km ride to South Baymouth.  It was warm and sunny, although we did have to battle head winds again.  We arrived a little early so we took the time to explore the area before we had to board the Ferry.  I was amazed at the size of the watercraft and how a transport truck seemed much diminished in size by comparison.  The Chi-Cheemaun is the largest ship of its kind on the Great Lakes, 365 feet in length at a weight of nearly 7,000 tons.  In operation since 1974, the Chi-Cheemaun, meaning ‘Big Canoe’, can carry 143 cars and 638 passengers between Tobermory and South Baymouth. The ferry can make the 30-mile trip in less than two hours at an average speed of 18 miles per hour.  I would like to point out that I can cycle faster than this, but as I cannot cycle across water (yet), the Ferry was the way to go.  Plus it meant we had two hours of down time!

Since beginning this wonderful, but hectic journey, this was our first chance to “put up our feet.”  We had two hours to do whatever we wanted.  At first I was at a loss of what to do with my new found freedom, but that was soon solved when Jamie and Eric brought out the lunch trays.  After filling our bellies with delicious sandwiches, fresh fruit and veggies, we went our own ways, with most of my teammates going up on deck to catch up on some much needed sleep.    I don’t like to nap in the afternoon if I can help it as it leaves me groggy and miserable, so I went around taking pictures of people sleeping instead. 

Once the Ferry docked in Tobermory, we got ourselves organised for the 110 km ride to Owen Sound.  Kathy is a resident there and she set up an event at the Sears store and an interview with someone from the local radio station who met us at the dock.  After the interview we saddled up and he followed us, covering our journey live on the air, telling people to come and meet us at the Sears parking lot in Owen Sound.  40km outside of our final destination we got a police escort and he used his siren and lights as we cruised through Weirton.  People waved and cheered along the side of the road. 

For the last part of the ride Kathy, Debbie, Monique and I were put on the front of the peloton.  After a brief visit to Kathy’s house, we rode into Owen Sound where the local police met us and took over the escort.   Unfortunately the cop made a quick stop to talk to another cop and we had to brake really fast in order not to crash into them or each other.  Luckily everyone reacted quickly enough and avoided what would have been a really embarrassing crash in downtown Owen Sound in front of many people. 

Just before we turned to go into the Sears parking lot we had a 14% grade hill to climb.  I love the steep, short climbs, even if they happen to be at the very end of a long ride!  Once we arrived we were met by many local people, mostly friends and family of Kathy, but also people who were there for the cause.  I talked to a father whose young son was recently diagnosed with cancer and gave each of them a dog tag.  The father thanked me for what we were doing and we chatted about the ride and the cause and why I chose to get involved.   We then enjoyed a great barbeque dinner with pie and ice cream for dessert, showered at Kathy’s gym and enjoyed a quick beer before getting in the RV.  I was fried again from the sun and my ears were so bad they were blistered so Jamie gave me some cream to ease the soreness.

We only had a three hour RV trip to Woodstock, tomorrows starting point.  This meant we would finally have a full night sleep in the Bunk Truck! 

We cycled a total of 220 km today.

Day 6, June 18th: Terrace Bay, ON to Wawa, ON

Thick, pea soup.  That’s what comes to mind as I climb down from the RV and look around.  A heavy, thick fog is drifting off Lake Superior, making it almost impossible to see anything farther than 5 feet in front of me.  I make my way to the community centre where Eric and Jamie are serving breakfast and I help myself to a serving of porridge.  The fog is on everyone’s mind as we eat, and we discuss whether it will be safe enough to ride in.  After much thought, we come to the conclusion that if we wear reflective vests we will be visible enough to the traffic. 

As we began our journey, the weather was cool, but soon warmed until temperatures became so hot they were almost unbearable.  The air was thick and damp, making it difficult to breathe and within 10 km of the ride I have an asthma attack.  I cough uncontrollably, my body trying in vain to expel the thick, sticky mucous from my lungs, but because my airways were compromised I began to choke, gag and wheeze.   As soon as I could, I pulled over, grabbed my inhaler from my Bento Box which sits on the frame of my bike, and managed to get the medicine into me.   Within seconds I could breathe again and returned to my bike and continued on my way.   I hadn’t had any problems in BC or the Prairies, but as soon as I got back to Ontario all my symptoms returned. 

Stephanie and Roger, from Ride Along Team 2, joined us for the first part of the ride.  We had strong head winds again, and long, rolling hills, equal to those in BC.  I love to climb, love to descend more, and throw in cornering with descending and I’m like a kid in a candy store!   The route was amazing, and I was constantly in awe of the breathtaking view all around me.  We cycled along Lake Superior and there were beautiful trees and wildlife all around us.  It was awesome. 

We stopped for a pasta lunch in Marathon, but shortly afterwards we ran into some trouble with the roads—they were blasting with dynamite –so we had to stop for a short time before we were able to pass by.  The traffic wasn’t as friendly as it had been out west and the cars and trucks would just zoom by us, with little thought to our safety.  Because of this we had to spend most of our time riding in single file. 

We arrived in White River for a wonderful supper of homemade stew, chickpea salad, fruit, veggies and homemade banana bread.  It was amazing the care that the smaller communities went to when feeding us.

Our final destination of the Day was Wawa, ON where Child Ambassador, 18 year old Gary Creighton, died of cancer two days previously.  His parents had requested that we attend the Wake, so we shuttled forward 60km in order to arrive by 7pm, and then rode the rest of the way.  We entered the small community funeral home in our SNKCR cycling gear where we met many of his friends and family.  In this incredibly sad time of their lives they welcomed us with open arms, thanking us for taking the time out of our busy schedule.  People slipped us donations, hugged us and thanked us for what we are doing. But to me and everyone else on the team, we felt that we were the ones who should be thanking them, for allowing us to share such a private and personal moment.  As each day went by, it became clearer to me that this journey is not about the bike.  It’s about the children and their families that are affected by cancer and if it means we have to shuttle forward 60km instead of riding in order make an appearance at a child’s funeral, then we will do it.  Gary and his family are what matters, not how many kilometres we cycled that day. 

After we had showers at the community centre, the Mayor and a representative from Sears presented us with a sculpture depicting a rabbit and a goose.  We also learned a little boy, around 8 years of age, saved up $20 and donated it to the foundation.  We gave him a round of applause and made sure he got a dog tag and other SNKCR paraphernalia. 

Once again we climbed into the RV’s and headed to Espanola, our starting point the next day.  On our way we stopped at Old Woman Bay where we enjoyed a beautiful view of Lake Superior, while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. 

We rode a total of 175km today.