Day 32: Daily Photos

Day 32: Rest in Winnipeg!

Vanessa and I have finally reached a point in our trip where
describing the distance we've covered sounds absolutely ludicrous.
This morning we turned on our iphone and zoomed the map back far
enough to examine our route to date, start to finish. Seeing the line
we've travelled snake halfway across the country filled us both with a
mixed sense of awe and bewilderment. We've now travelled
approximately 2500 km to what geographically is roughly halfway across
the country. The irony is, with the route we've chosen, we still have
about two thirds of our distance to go.

Winnipeg like every place we've visited has been full of surprises.
We started our day with a visit to the Reh-Fit Centre where we held a
Q & A on our trip to date and were treated to a tour of the
facilities. Vanessa and I we're blown away by the facility itself,
but the careful thought that the staff and organizers put into their
rehab program was absoleutly inspiring. They have put a real emphasis
on creating a safe and pressure free environment where people can be
active, socialize and learn. The centre's focus on patient welfare
goes far enough to make a psychiatric assessment part of their
admission process.

After my heart surgery I volunteered at the Toronto General Hospital
visiting patients before and after cardiac surgery through a
mentorship program. One of the things we were advised to stress and
bring attention to is the mental toll surgery takes on patients. Many
understandably suffer through depression, feelings of inadequacy or
worse, as a result of surgery. I personally spent a lot of time after
my surgery dwelling on the unfairness of the situation and the effect
it would have on my life for years to come. To see this centre tackle
this issue so directly really stresses why Vanessa and I see these
programs as such an important part of recovery. They provide more
than than just physical rehabilitation. They offer mental and social
supports that are absolutely critical post surgery.

After our visit Vanessa and I ventured into the city itself and spent
the afternoon exploring the downtown. Much of our day was spent in
"The Forks" a farmers and artists market in the south east end on the
core. There we picked up some fresh veggies for the evening (which
we've been lacking) and treated ourselves to some frozen yogurt.
Winnipeg, like so many cities, is a vibrant collection of
neighbourhoods. Yesterday, as we rode into town from the west, it
almost felt as if we passed through a series of distinct towns on our
way to the core. We only wish we had the time to explore them all.

This evening Vanessa and I have enjoyed a rare 'three pan' meal in our
suite in The Place Louis Riel Hotel. They were nice enough to let us
stay for two nights where we have a king size bed that far surpasses
our air mattresses. Vanessa and I would like to take this opportunity
to say thank you for helping us take a much needed rest.

Looking to the road ahead we still have a long way to go, but our
confidence has really grown since our early days in British Columbia.
By taking our days one by one we are inching our way across the map.

Day 31: Daily Photo

Day 31: Portage La Prairie to Winnipeg, MB (90.46km)

WINNIPEG. Our prize at the end of a long wind tunnel. Alex says that the persistent headwinds we've been facing all week are just Manitoba not wanting us to leave. However, I've noted it was rejecting us long before as we approached from Saskatchewan. We've had a head- or crosswind for almost the entire stretch of the prairies, save for our one fabulous 170km ride and another light and brief boost one afternoon. Crosswinds, when strong as they have been, feel similar to swimming perpendicular to a strong current and they whip the bikes around on the road. Headwinds, of course, slow us down even more. While we can still keep a better pace than on a steep climb (around 15-19kmh on average against a strong wind), it is really mentally draining as all the distances feel so much farther away.

Because of these winds and our anticipation for arriving in Winnipeg, the kilometres we've cycled this week, have felt very, very long. Today it helped that we had a shorter distance to cover and that we'd reach Winnipeg by day's end. We kept our spirits up through the wind by singing the Weakerthans' 'One Great City', which has been playing in our heads for days (for those unfamiliar the song is an ode to Winnipeg). The city itself has been on our horizon for a month. It's technically the halfway point across Canada but because Ontario is so freakishly big, it isn't nearly halfway through our trip.

Regardless, we're both really excited to spend some time here and have a much needed break --again the mental rest is just as important as the physical. Both of those aspects will be nurtured during our stay here thanks to a two night sponsored stay at the Place Louis Riel in downtown Winnipeg! Our suite is gorgeous AND appointed with a full kitchen, which we've already made quick work on to prepare one of our rare and treasured home cooked meals. While camping, we eat one-pot pasta dinners everyday and use our fleeces for pillows so you can imagine how pleased we are to have this home base.

Tomorrow we have a visit with a Cardiac Rehab group in the morning and then an afternoon of meeting Winnipeg!

Day 30: Daily Photo

Day 30: Brandon to Portage Au Prairie (122.69 km)

Today should have been a simple, carefree ride. Like so many things, it didn't quite live up to expectations.

The day turned out to be more of a bicycle obstacle course, without the fun bits like goodie bags.

To start things out, we got nailed with a strong headwind for the majority of the day. This really did a number on our wrists as we tried to keep the bikes steady and it kept our speed around fifteen km/h on flats.

Slowing us down further was a train blocking the path into what we thought was the only town on route with a grocery store. We were afraid to go on without extra food, especially with the headwind and ended up waiting about forty minutes for the train to clear. It actually started to get a bit comical. About three or four times the train slowly advanced until the last car was halfway across the road, but then abruptly reversed and backed once again, over the road. Also, after spending a total of an hour detouring for overpriced food at a general store, we found a much more extensive grocery store just off the highway about twenty kilometers down the road.

The last challenge of the day was the roads themselves. For approximately twenty kilometers of the ride we were forced to ride in traffic due to a rough gravel shoulder. For the most part, this stretch of the ride has been quite nice but inexplicably the shoulder completely dropped off outside of Portage Au Prairie and earlier out of Brandon (our feelings toward the gravel are highlighted by Vanessa's thumbs down above).

Of course no day is all bad. Challenges are what a trip like this is all about. Also, the detours we took brought us into some pretty neat, small towns we would have totally missed otherwise. When all is said and done, we made it through fine and can be proud of that.

Regardless of what we hit tomorrow, the destination should be a lot of fun! Vanessa and I will be taking a rest day in Winnipeg and meeting with staff and past participants of a local rehab program.

Day 29: Daily Photo