And he’s off…in record-breaking heat

Ray started his ride at 7:30 this morning, hoping to beat at least some of the afternoon heat, with temperatures expected to reach 40 celsius with the humidity today.

When our article came out in the Globe & Mail, we didn’t expect it to increase donations, but we hoped it might reach someone who was going through something similar to what Nick went through. We were very touched when George reached out to us via the blog after reading the article. George has recently finished chemo treatments for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and is awaiting his PET scan to see how it worked. He and his wife Charlotte drove from north of Toronto to Sauble Beach (about a 2 and a half hour drive) and stayed nearby overnight so that they could see Ray off on his ride this morning. It was a kind and generous thing to do and it meant a lot to us. It reminded us that putting yourself out there into the world is how new connections are made. And connections are what it’s all about.

Ray’s step-sister Rose had coincidentally rented a cottage in Sauble Beach this week, so she and her husband and a couple of their friends also came out bright and early to see him off.

The original plan was that he’d camp along the route so he’d have more control over his schedule. That plan changed when he realized that between Warm Showers hosts, friends of friends, and family, he’d only need to camp a couple of nights, so he’s left his camp gear behind and booked accommodation for those nights. He’s still towing his cart, but with a little less weight in it.

Today’s ride was Sauble Beach to Lucknow. He cycled 128 kms and arrived at his Warm Showers destination around dinnertime. I just spoke to him and he said the ride was great all along the coast – scenic, lots of shady stretches and a nice breeze – but the Point Clark to Lucknow section was a killer. The heat, combined with a rather boring stretch of farmland, made that section very tough. He sounded extremely tired.

Tomorrow he’ll cycle to Brucefield and stay with another Warm Showers host. Day 3 ends at an AirBnB in St. Thomas, and then I’ll meet up with him again at the end of day four, near Port Rowan, where he’ll spend his first rest day and I’ll provide another update.

The entire route should take 13 days, with 11 cycling days and two rest days.

We spent a few days with family before Ray’s departure, starting with a visit to Ray’s mom in Georgetown.

When Ray first decided to do this ride, his step-nephew Chris offered us the use of his cottage, which was close to where Ray wanted to begin his ride. We took him up on the offer and it had the extra benefit of allowing us to spend an extended amount of time with Chris and his family, instead of the usual quick catch-ups at annual Christmas gatherings.

Josée and I paddled in another dragon boat festival last weekend. We didn’t place, but considering that our team is mostly made up of female retirees, and other teams were composed of muscle-bound young men, we were happy with our “had fun and tried our best” day. I mean, we were probably the only team who, when we got into our rain-soaked boat, had someone say, “Well, at least no one can tell if we have bladder leakage.” We laughed way too hard at that.

Speaking of getting older, Josée, Lorrie and I did another escape room to celebrate Lorrie’s birthday. This one was inside a church near Bath. We had a lot of fun, as always, but I learned that, while my analytical skills may be strong, my instincts about what information is relevant and what isn’t are way off.