Saturday morning, July 12 2014, I waited for Kristian and friends at McDonald on Lake Shore Rd. and Cawthra in Mississauga. Send text msg to Kristian that we were already at McDonald.While waiting and having coffee with Theresia and Edward, I played around with my Nexus7 and the 'ridewithgps' app. The weather was nice, temperature 21C with a high of 28C fore casted, the sun was shining and the wind moderate.
One month earlier, Kristian informed me that Clayton was organising a bicycle ride from Toronto to Niagara Falls and asked me if I would like to join them. I cycled with them two years ago, it was fun. So naturally I signed up, besides this time the route will be slightly different.
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| Start from Mississauga to Niagara Falls - 138 km. |
At 8:08 AM, Clayton and friends, minus Kristian arrived at McDonald; they cycled from Toronto. Clayton informed me that Kristian was late and was about 10 minutes behind them, he asked if I would cycle with them to the next rest stop in Burlington or wait for Kristian. I decided to wait, so they continued to Burlington without me. Thanks for stopping by, guys.
Lake Shore Rd. and Cawthra Rd. was the starting point I choose for this ride because it was much easier for Theresia to drop me off compared to Port Colborne, Toronto, where every one else started.. About 20 minutes later, Kristian arrived; by this time I was already waiting for him at the side of the road, so without waisting any time we took off. I was a bit anxious to catch up with the others; repeatedly I reminded myself not to cycle too fast, to pace myself so that I could cycle the distance. The others were enjoying their rest as we arrived at the Lakeshore Coffee House in Burlington.
At this point Kristian had cycled close to 75 km without rest, drink or washroom break; it was a new personal record for him. He started from his house at Finch and Yonge St. After a washroom break and a short rest we all continued our ride together. There were eight of us. Clayton lead the way.
The next planned rest stop was Port Dalhousie which is about 75 km from Burlington. The group pace was faster than I was comfortable with. I kept my own pace, if I tried to keep up with the group I might not be able to ride the whole distance to Niagara Falls. Soon they were out of my sight. I was not worried, Kristian stayed with me and I had printed cue sheets for the route. The turn by turn navigation from 'ridewithgps' had stopped working, so I just put my Nexus7 away.
As we reached Beamsville, I was going to tell Kristian that I needed a washroom break when I saw Clayton and friends stopping on the side of the road. Some one, I think it was Michael, had a tire puncture and needed to replace his inner tube. We took this opportunity to take a short rest and washroom break at a nearby Tim Horton's.
Port Dalhousie was now about 25 to 30 km ahead of us. It was 12:30 PM, we decided to continue on and have lunch at one of the restaurants on Lock St. in Port Dalhousie. As I turned the corner from Main to Lock St., I heard someone called my name, Clayton and friends were seated at the restaurant outdoor patio and were ordering their food.
I had a bowl of chili with taco chips for lunch. After lunch, washroom break and water bottle refill, we cycled to our final destination - Niagara Falls; 40 km to go.
With my slower pace, I was again behind the main group. We made a left turn to Queenston St., by this time I had cycled for 124 km, Kristian warned me about a very steep hill just ahead. Great. Wished it was in the middle or better in the beginning of the ride. Using Shadow's granny gear, I pedalled slowly and steadily up the hill; managed to climbed it without walking. At the top of the hill we met the main group again. Larry had some mechanical problem with his bicycle.
We climbed another hill, this one was just as steep but much shorter than the first one. Our final destination, The Falls, was now just 12 km ahead. We cycled along the Niagara Parkway recreational trail. A couple times we had to cross the Niagara Parkway and waited for the traffic to clear. As usual, especially in the week end, many tourist walked around the Falls area. As we walked our bikes to cross Cliffton Hill, we saw the main group resting across the street and enjoying the view of the Falls. Hooray! We reached our destination. We took a group picture, then walked our bicycles to the Secret Garden Restaurant.
It was about 5:00 PM, we sat at the restaurant's outdoor patio and rewarded our-selves with cold beer, ice creams and other treats. After a while, Clayton and Eric left us to join their wives at the hotel; they are staying overnight. At about 6:30 PM, the rest of us cycled to the train station to catch the 7:20 PM train back to Toronto. I got off at the Port Credit station where Theresia picked me up.
Thanks to Clayton for organising the ride. Thanks to Kristian for inviting me and for staying with me through the ride. I had a great time. We all enjoyed the ride. I am looking forward for next year ride. End.
At this point Kristian had cycled close to 75 km without rest, drink or washroom break; it was a new personal record for him. He started from his house at Finch and Yonge St. After a washroom break and a short rest we all continued our ride together. There were eight of us. Clayton lead the way.
The next planned rest stop was Port Dalhousie which is about 75 km from Burlington. The group pace was faster than I was comfortable with. I kept my own pace, if I tried to keep up with the group I might not be able to ride the whole distance to Niagara Falls. Soon they were out of my sight. I was not worried, Kristian stayed with me and I had printed cue sheets for the route. The turn by turn navigation from 'ridewithgps' had stopped working, so I just put my Nexus7 away.
As we reached Beamsville, I was going to tell Kristian that I needed a washroom break when I saw Clayton and friends stopping on the side of the road. Some one, I think it was Michael, had a tire puncture and needed to replace his inner tube. We took this opportunity to take a short rest and washroom break at a nearby Tim Horton's.
Port Dalhousie was now about 25 to 30 km ahead of us. It was 12:30 PM, we decided to continue on and have lunch at one of the restaurants on Lock St. in Port Dalhousie. As I turned the corner from Main to Lock St., I heard someone called my name, Clayton and friends were seated at the restaurant outdoor patio and were ordering their food.
I had a bowl of chili with taco chips for lunch. After lunch, washroom break and water bottle refill, we cycled to our final destination - Niagara Falls; 40 km to go.
With my slower pace, I was again behind the main group. We made a left turn to Queenston St., by this time I had cycled for 124 km, Kristian warned me about a very steep hill just ahead. Great. Wished it was in the middle or better in the beginning of the ride. Using Shadow's granny gear, I pedalled slowly and steadily up the hill; managed to climbed it without walking. At the top of the hill we met the main group again. Larry had some mechanical problem with his bicycle.
We climbed another hill, this one was just as steep but much shorter than the first one. Our final destination, The Falls, was now just 12 km ahead. We cycled along the Niagara Parkway recreational trail. A couple times we had to cross the Niagara Parkway and waited for the traffic to clear. As usual, especially in the week end, many tourist walked around the Falls area. As we walked our bikes to cross Cliffton Hill, we saw the main group resting across the street and enjoying the view of the Falls. Hooray! We reached our destination. We took a group picture, then walked our bicycles to the Secret Garden Restaurant.
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| Michael, Budi, Adri, Eddie, Larry, Eric, Clayton , Kristian. Photo from Michael. |
It was about 5:00 PM, we sat at the restaurant's outdoor patio and rewarded our-selves with cold beer, ice creams and other treats. After a while, Clayton and Eric left us to join their wives at the hotel; they are staying overnight. At about 6:30 PM, the rest of us cycled to the train station to catch the 7:20 PM train back to Toronto. I got off at the Port Credit station where Theresia picked me up.
Thanks to Clayton for organising the ride. Thanks to Kristian for inviting me and for staying with me through the ride. I had a great time. We all enjoyed the ride. I am looking forward for next year ride. End.
...not many seniors can do what you did Bud
ReplyDeleteNice and kind of Kristian for tagging closely together.
Looks u r ready for Lake Erie eeeh?
ian
Thanks, Ian.....just put your mind and will into whatever you like to do.
DeletePreparation for lake Erie ride is progressing nicely.