Doing the obvious-fixing a flat and having a good time doing so!
These poor riders already look tired and they have about 153.2 km to go before day's end!
This day was the second early start in a row, the back end of twin 100 mile (165 km) days for the riders. The so-called century ride is spoken of with great reverence among cyclists. I have only done it once in the 17 years that I have been riding. I have come close a couple times, like ten years ago with the B4B Centennial Ride, when I rode 155 km or so on consecutive days through the high Rocky Mountain passes called Rogers Pass and Kicking Horse Pass.
Even on a long, flat ride like today's with good weather, and good if not excellent fitness, a 100 mile ride will kick your butt! But it will also leave you with a terrific sense of accomplishment and achievement. So kudos to every cyclist on the B4B Vancouver Island & Sunshine Coast tour, because you did two 100 mile rides on consecutive days; not only that, but the first day also included a couple thousand feet of climbing!
Cindy & Judith, two great roadies & even better people! Young Judith isn't quite awake yet...
I started out Day 3 as a driver, with Judith and Cindy as my side-kicks. However, at one of the first stops, Cindy said to me, "Daniel, since you are the photographer why don't you sit in the back seat and Judith can be my navigator." I replied , "Oh sure, that's just a polite way of kicking the only male in the vehicle into the back!" But I said it with a grin, because I was happy to sit in the back and shoot photographs all day.
Despite the early morning that comes with a 165 km day, the three of us were in good spirits going through the sleepy, pretty fishing town of the Chemainus, and unaware of the events that were about to unfold over the next few hours...
Despite the early morning that comes with a 165 km day, the three of us were in good spirits going through the sleepy, pretty fishing town of the Chemainus, and unaware of the events that were about to unfold over the next few hours...
My Grandfather was a railwayman from about 1950 to 1991, but I think this old-time steam engine was well before his time!
Today started off well but descended into chaos as we approached the City of Nanaimo. Cindy and Judith dropped me off at a scheduled turn off of the highway with some signs and water and food to replenish the bikers and then headed into town to get some supplies. After realizing that there was an error on our maps, they returned to retrieve yours truly. By this point we had not seen a single cyclist, or the other roadies for that matter, for quite some time. This was about 45 km into the day's tour. We continued up the highway to Nanaimo and found the next scheduled stop, a rest stop at a mall just off the highway, and settled in to wait for the peloton to fly by. I would get them off the highway, and then Cindy would flag them at the first intersection into the mall parking lot.
The turn into Nanaimo, British Columbia, on Vancouver Island's east coast.
This was the turn-off into Nanaimo for a scheduled rest stop. I set up shop at this intersection to await the cyclists.
At 9:30 in the morning, the temperature was climbing beyond 25°C. I took a seat on this little island and stretched out to bake while waiting for everyone. (Note to self: don't take a seat on the island of a busy highway!)
After a long period of time, I was slowly realizing that I should wait in the meager shade of two little trees across the off-ramp, but I had not yet acted on this thought since I was pondering what was delaying the bicyclists.
At 9:30 in the morning, the temperature was climbing beyond 25°C. I took a seat on this little island and stretched out to bake while waiting for everyone. (Note to self: don't take a seat on the island of a busy highway!)
After a long period of time, I was slowly realizing that I should wait in the meager shade of two little trees across the off-ramp, but I had not yet acted on this thought since I was pondering what was delaying the bicyclists.
Suddenly, I noticed blue smoke hanging out above the white line of the ramp and heard a loud tire-squealing, and there was a beat-up black compact vehicle in the off-lane already to my left. An SUV had just gone through but had not yet merged with the traffic into town, and the car swerved right to avoid the SUV, onto the curb of the roadside, hitting a small tree. He bounced off, did a 360 around the tree and sped off into Nanaimo. A few seconds later, by which time I was on my feet and still processing the scene, a police cruiser came flying into the corner at nearly the same speed, saw me and slowed down to open his window and ask which way the car went. I pointed into town and off he went. The officer had his vehicle under total control, even though he came down the ramp at nearly the same speed.
Two items of note here: A) common sense dictated that I should have been hanging out under one of two little trees on the roadside. B) the riders should have been coming down this stretch of highway and making this corner and continuing on to a nearby scheduled rest stop during the time of this incident. Instead, they were scattered around the area of Nanaimo. Regarding point A, I don't know which of the two trees I would have been hanging out by, and I doubt that my reflexes were fast enough to jump out of the way of the car as it came over the curb and hit the tree.
Regarding point B, according to one of our long-time riders, this was the first time in the 7 years that he has been riding with this group that a rest stop for the riders had been missed. If everything had gone according to plan, they would have been travelling the highway while a high-speed car chase was happening and then any number of things could have happened of which none of them was good. I like to call experiences such as these a 'supernatural coincidence,' because I believe that God turned a frustrating situation into a potentially life-saving diversion, and not for the first or last time either.
Two items of note here: A) common sense dictated that I should have been hanging out under one of two little trees on the roadside. B) the riders should have been coming down this stretch of highway and making this corner and continuing on to a nearby scheduled rest stop during the time of this incident. Instead, they were scattered around the area of Nanaimo. Regarding point A, I don't know which of the two trees I would have been hanging out by, and I doubt that my reflexes were fast enough to jump out of the way of the car as it came over the curb and hit the tree.
Regarding point B, according to one of our long-time riders, this was the first time in the 7 years that he has been riding with this group that a rest stop for the riders had been missed. If everything had gone according to plan, they would have been travelling the highway while a high-speed car chase was happening and then any number of things could have happened of which none of them was good. I like to call experiences such as these a 'supernatural coincidence,' because I believe that God turned a frustrating situation into a potentially life-saving diversion, and not for the first or last time either.
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