To Thunder Bay.

After a marathon night of t.v watching I woke up and started the search for my passport.I went through every bag I have,looked under every bit furniture,and tore the garage apart to no avail.It wasn't until I was walking past the back of the hotel an hour or so later that I noticed a housekeeping trolley and went over to investigate.Well what do you know,there it was neatly tucked away with all the hotel brochures.WTF!!!!At least I didn't have to go through the pain of trying to get a new one.So what to do next then?

I decided that I would continue the ride but in order to make up for lost time I was going to catch a bus 1600k from Ottawa to Thunder Bay and continue the ride from there.I had checked the weather forecasts and it seemed that I would at least get away from all the seriously shitty weather and put myself back on schedule.I booked my bus to Thunder Bay for the next morning and spent the remainer of the day checking out the bike paths and sights of Gatineau and Hull.I tell you there are a few city's around the world that could learn a thing or two about being bike friendly from the folks over here.I think I ended up riding about 70k that afternoon all around the river front and through countless parks.Mind you it was pretty easy to ride without all the weight of my panniers and trailer.


Bright and early the next morning it was off to the bus terminal to pack up the bike and get ready for the 23hr trip to Thunder Bay.I was actually really looking forward to the trip as I am one of those rare people who can quite happily sit and stare at the passing countryside for hours on end.I love it and I really like the nights when all you can see are the running lights of the semi-trailers as they thunder past.I loaded everything into the bus and it was off to Ottawa for an hour before being loaded onto the crammed Greyhound heading west.

The next day came and went without too much excitement considering what we were all to learn about Greyhound buses the next day(more on that later).I sat quietly taking some photos of the passing countryside and testing my action cam.As the trip wore on I got to meet a few of the people sitting around me and we became a bit of a travelling community.Thankfully after stopping at North Bay the bus emptied and we all had a couple of seats to ourselves.That didn't stop the social aspect of our trip and it wasn't long before we were all swapping life stories and sharing jokes in between coffee stops at isolated communities along the way.





A couple of the people on the bus were pretty interesting.Brian.is a 24 year-old guy from Lethbridge, Alberta who was on an epic four week trip to New Brunswick to attend four party's.Three were family related and one was a Facebook party.You have to be pretty keen to travel for six days across the country only to spend a week there before heading back again.The cool thing about him was that he is something of an artist and the return trip was spent getting off at randon small towns along the way to sketch whatever he found to be interesting.He also asked people to try a sketch of their own in is book and sign them.It was pretty cool actually.The down side of his character was the sleazy side which reared its ugly head late in the night when he started making out with a young 19 year old girl from Calgary.I though it was pretty funny actually to hear this girl carry on about her great boyfriend back home while playing tonsil-hockey with Brian. He started giving her the lines about her being so special and all that crap.She soon got sick of teasing Brian and dismissed him to the other side of the bus once things started to heat up.Women-I'll never understand them!!!!

Others on the bus had figured out that they were all ending up in Calgary together so there was quite the community forming.I kept to mainly to myself but at one of the early morning stops a couple of them started asking questions about me and what I was up to.Apparently more than one of them wanted to know what the weird contraption was that I had carried onto the bus.I explained that it was my bike trailer and that even though clearly,I wasn't doing a very good job of it,I was riding across the country trying to raise the profile of my chosen charity(even less success there).They were all suitably impressed and the next few hours were spent chatting away with everyone about the trials and tribulations of life on the road.It was great.
We would learn,the next day,about the tragic murder and beheading of a Greyhound passenger 1000k up the highway and which would certainly put a halt to too much over-friendliness on the buses for the next few weeks.

After watching a beautiful sunrise from the window of the bus we soon descended under the clear blueOntario sky, into the lakeside city of Thunder Bay.I didn't really have too many pre-conceptions of this place as I'd never met anyone who had spent time there.I quickly realised that all good plans can be dramatically changed,usually as a result of bad luck.My plans would change because of a serious dose of way too much as originally going to stay at a hostel a little way up the highway but Greyhound would not deliver my bike there so I booked into the Sleeping Giant guest-house which was not too far away from the bus terminal and even closer to town.My bike didn't arrive with me(no surprise there)so I hopped a cab and headed off to the hostel for what was supposed to be a two night stay.

DAY FOURTEEN-157K

Wet is the only way I could describe my nights sleep that night.With the rain pouring down outside and my body heat creating all kinds of condensation on the inside of my tent it was impossible to stay dry.Thankfully the contents of all my bags were dry so that was something I s'pose.I was really reluctant to get out of bed but once I did I realised that it was going to be a foggy old morning once again.No point bitching about the dampness though as I pulled on all my wet clothes and readied myself for another uncomfortable mornings ride.

It was so dark in the forest were I had made camp that I had to wait a little while until it was bright enough to hit the road.Once I did though I settled into a nice pace and was clicking off the kilometers pretty quickly.I figured I'd be in Gatineau by lunchtime and then be ablt to ride another 40 k or so on the other side of the city before I booked it for the night.

There were, as I had come to expect here in Quebec,lots of cute little villages which were at regular intervals along the highway.I didn't stop at any this time but did manage to have a long chat with a guy named Patrick who was stopped at a roadside pullout.He was really interested in my trip and we sat down at a table near a huge crucifix and talked all about travelling and bike riding.It was pretty cool to chat for a while with someone who appreciated being out on the road and all that goes with it.

I continued along the flat farmland of the river valley for a few more hours and as predicted arrived on the outskirts of Gatineau around mid-day.Getting into the city however,took a long time.The highway that I was following suddenly joined the expressway that led into the center of the city and I got stuck riding with all the trucks flying by at breakneck speed.That didn't last long though as I soon heard the unmistakeable sound of a police siren and was pulled over by a traffic cop who wasn't too happy with me being on the expressway.He told me off and then gave me some really bad directions for an alternate route into town.By some fluke I managed to find a cycle path that followed the river and I figured if I followed it I would evntually find the city.
As luck would have it,while I was stopped and studying a map of the park system,another cyclist stopped and asked me where I was going.I told him that I was trying to get through Gatineau and Hull to join the 148 on the other side of the city.He started giving me directions and then decide to ride with me himelf and show me the way.That was really nice I thought.We rode for about half and hour chatting as we went and finally came upon another bike path which he told me would take me all the way to hwy 148.I thanked him and rode off down yet another of the city's amazing bike paths until I decided to have a little rest by the river overlooking some really cool rapids on the Ottawa River.I sat there for about an hour and then headed off again to find the highway.

Along the way I met a lady who was riding by and upon hearing of my plans warned me against riding the 148.She told me that she lived on that road and that it was a very dangerous place to be on a bike during the afternoon rush hour out of the city.I really had no choice so off I went,yet again into a rain storm.The rush hour warning was spot on and I was soon being bullied off the road by some really crazy drivers in between dodging some huge potholes that were just everywhere.As another storm system approached I ducked into a gas station and had a coffee to wait out the rain.A young guy told me that I was looking to get killed if I rode that highway in the aternoon but again there was no other way so on I went.

Ten minutes later during a huge,huge,huge storm I hit a flooded pothole and it threw me off my bike and into the middle of the highway.My bike,trailer and myself were now strewn all over the road but thankfully relatively unhurt.It was the 4x4 with speedboat in tow that became my next comcern.As I crashed the driver hit his brakes hard but in the cyclonic conditions his truck and trailer aquaplaned and jack-knifed with the truck passing me on one side and the trailer passing me on the other.The trailer stopped just as the wheels bumped up against me and thankfully no-one was hurt.I was done for the day though and pretty much over this whole riding on shitty Quebec roads in the fucking rain.I turned around and headed back toward Gatineau and the bike paths I had been on a couple of hours earlier.

I found a motel by a nice beach not far from where I'd had my afternoon break and checked in for two nights to figure out what to do.Really I was over it and after having such a great time in Montreal my heart was not into this ride anymore.I didn't want to be a triathlete,I didn't want to be on the road,I just wanted to hang out with some friends and have some fun!To make matters worse I had lost my passport as well.Somewhere between checking in,storing my bike and having a shower I'd lost it.We searched and searched to no avail and now I was thinking that someone had found it and kept the damn thing.Great,now there was the possibility that I'd have to stay in Ottawa for a few days until I got another one.Bloody hell what was a guy to do but go to the store and buy some shit food and some Guiness to go with it.With that I set mysef up in my room and veged out in front of the television for the night.With 157k done that day I had actually had a great day riding,pity the rest went all to hell.I left it to the next day to make any decisions as if I was made to choose right there and then I would have hopped a plane and flown to Penticton the next day.

DAY THIRTEEN-123K

So, after finally deciding to get my lazy ass out of Montreal I packed my stuff and rolled out of my sisters place at about 1pm on a sunny Sunday afternoon.I had been in Montreal for fifteen days instead of the five that I had planned but to be perfectly honest I could have stayed a lot longer.The only problem was that now I was so far behind my ride schedule that I feared I would not be able to make it to Penticton at all.My attitude toward the ride had been lifted by a couple of old friends who had contacted me and told me that they would be contributing toward the Athletes in Kind cause.My old mate Lloyd also so told me that he and his wife Ead had decided to put another $2000US into an account for me should I need it.That was really all the motivation that I needed to get me on the road again and so the long trip through the city of Montreal was begun.


It was actually a lot easier to get out of town than I thought it would be but it wasn't all plain sailing as I did find myself hoplessly lost in Laval for about 40 minutes during which time I ended up having a nice tour of some really beautiful riverfront properties.Once I figured out where I was it was pretty plain sailing out along hwy 148 toward the city of Gatineau.




My target for the afternoon was to try and reach the town of Lachute some 80-odd kilometers from Montreal.I figured that would be a nice ride to get me used to being on the road again after my long break in the big city.It was great to be out and about again physically but mentally my head wasn't really in the game.I don't know why but even though it was pretty easy riding there was something that made me think I could be doing something way more constructive with my life. I did manage to hit Lachute in the early evening and after a promising entry into what I thought might be a nice town I found myself in one shithole of a place.I have heard joking remarks about some serious inbreeding in Quebec and I swear if those rumours are true then Lachute must be the inbreds capital of the province.Sitting outside a gas station sipping coffee I was amazed at the cast of weird characters that passed me by each slightly more eccentric than the next.I mean talking to yourself isn't really such a crime but arguing with yourself should be.I saw more than one guy do that.I also saw more redneck drivers racing around the streets of Lachute than I had seem anywhere else.It was very scary being on the road with them as I took off after my short stop.

I was pretty glad to be out of that town and was happy that I was going to far exceed my days planned 80k.It was only the fact that the weather closed in(yet again) that I started to look for somewhere to sleep that night.I was happily barrelling down the highway when I realsed that everyone had their headlights on and that it was getting really dark,really quickly.It was about then that the lightning started and the thunder rolled overhead!Damn it,I did not want to spend another wet night outside so I really started to look in earnest for a campsite.I found one by the side of the highway just over the bridge that spans the Riviere Rouge(red river).It was literally ten feet off the highway but was quite a bit below it and was hidden quite well.



As I wheeled my bike down the track along the road I realised that there must have been some huge weather here over the last day or so as the ground was soaked and there was evidence of a nice stream that must have flowed strong with the run-off from the highway.Luckily the campsite I chose was slightly elevated and I was pretty sure I wouldn't get flooded out.Getting rained on was something that I couldn't control.Just as I was setting the tent up the heaven opened and I had to cover my exposed tent with my tarp and hide under it until the rain let up.

Fifteen minutes later it stopped raining and I was able to set up camp and put all my stuff under cover.I did get caught myself though and by the time I crawled into my tent I was soaked yet again.There was not much I could do about it and after removing the outer layers of clothes I got into my damp sleeping bag wearing my wet under shirt and bike pants.I would be wet all night but at least I was warm and thanked my lucky starts for the tarp that covered me as the deluge that hit didn't add to the damp misery that I experienced for the next seven hours.After settlling in I ate a can of beans,did my daily report and tried as best I could to go to sleep.This was not fun at all!!

DAY 12-172K

I had a really sound sleep that night and woke up feeling great and ready to ride myself to Montreal to spend a week or so with my sister.I hadn't seem her for four years and so I was really looking forward to doing nothing but hang with her and her friends for a while and forget about everything to do with the road and trying to raise enough money not only for Athletes in Kind but for my own trip.First things first though,I still had to cover the 140k or so to Quebecs' largest city before I could start to enjoy anything.

The roads were pretty quiet that morning so I decided to ride the main highway for a while.I would also ride again on the 132 today instead of riding the 138 on the northern bank of the river as by doing that I would save a few kilometers that the 138 had in detours.The roads would meet up again after about ten ks so I figure that I would risk it.Man what a difference riding on the expressway.That road surface was awesome,unlike the potholed excuse for a highway that I had been riding for the last 500k.All good things must come to an end though and I was soon back on the dodgy 132 winding my way through the Quebec countryside once again.This time without the wind.


It was a great mornings ride and I was thinking that I may be able to get into Montreal at about 2'ish but the roads really started to deteriorate and I had to slow down to a crawl at some stages as there was just no room for me to ride on the tarmac,I had to ride on the dirt by the side of the road.Trust me,with all the weight I had to pull along that made for a really tough few hours and my fatigue levels started to rise.It was pretty mind numbing work not to mention the fact that my hands and feet were starting to lose feeling.All that shaking around started to loosen some bits on my bike as well and I found out one cause of my problems with being not so comfortable on my bike.My saddle had shifted way back and was now in the totally wrong position for me to ride properly.No wonder my legs and ass were sore,they had been trying to get used to a new position on the bike.That never goes very well!

I made it to the large town of Sorel-Tracy and sat outside a gas station wondering why todays ride was feeling so hard.I mean,my legs didn't hurt at all but I was suffering.I guessed that the effort of 1ook into the wind the day before was taking it's toll but I was confident that I could still make Montreal today.Maybe not as early as I first thought but I'd get there if it killed me.A lady at the gas station wasn't so convinced when she asked me where I was going and I told her that Montreal was my destination for the day.She looked at her watch and shook her head. "Today" she said "I don't think so".I just laughed and assured her that there was still about nine hours of sunlight left and that would give me plenty of time to make it.She wished me well and drove off,no doubt while telling her husband what an idiot I was.


I didn't take long for my enthusiasm for the whole day to leave me.I was really suffering and figured that I may actually have to try and hitch a ride to Montreal.Which ,after another horrible hour of riding in the dirt ,I tried to do.I had made it to the town of Varennes which really isn't that far from the city but I just didn't want to ride anymore.It was weird but I stood on the side of the road for a while thumbing a ride without much enthusiasm.I figured it was my minds way of demanding a long rest stop.I really knew that nobody would pick me up but at least I wasn't on that damn saddle anymore. After a while I decided to stop acting like a little girl and got back on the road for the last long push to the city.


As seems to the be the norm for me out of nowhere my pace picked up late in the afternoon.All through this trip I have had some really bad mornings followed by awesome afternoons.Don't know why.Maybe it was the change in road surface as the closer I got to Montreal the better it got.It wasn't long before I was riding on a beautiful bike path through some really pretty outer suburbs of the city.Some of the houses on the river were amazing and at less than 40 from the city I think I could quite easily live here.Don't think they would like me pitching a tent in their neighbourhood though.

One thing that did perplex me was the fact that I knew I was really close to a big city but I still couldn't see it or any signs that there may be a city anywhere in the distance.It took about two hours of wondering before I finally saw the Montreal skyline in the distance.God was I ever happy about that.My pace quickend again and I raced down the streets to the outskirts of Longueuil which sits on the opposite bank of the St Lawrence from Montreal.I followed the roads along the expressway and soon found myself in the middle of a huge street party which was part of the Longueuil summer festival.There were bands ,playing and street performers doing their thing while thousands of people crowded the bars and spilled out into the streets right where I wanted to go.I was too tired to find a detour and wheeled my rig into the throng,much to the dismay of the security people manning the road block that I totally ignored.

After explaining to them that I had just ridden from Quebec City and that I was just trying to get to Montreal before I was too tired to move they let me through and even gave me directions and hints about riding the Jacques Cartier bridge.I must have looked an absloute mess as so many people just stared at me as I walked my rig through the crowds to the other end of the festial precinct. With that done it was a simple task to find the bridge and start the long climb into space.I thnought I'dbe really freaked out but the barriers are really high so I didn't feel the affects of my vertigo tis time-thankfully!

The rest of the trip through Montreal to my sisters place was easy as well.I had a map of the city with me and after about 20 minutes I found her street and pulled in for a week of R&R and more importantly a great family reunion.

DAY 11-138K

So after getting off the ferry in Levis I turned west and followed the bike path along the river stright throung the now peacefull park that had served as our race transition.I continued on along the bike course and then hit new ground as I quickly left Levis behind.I did stop in at a local bike shop at the end of the bike path to see if they could help me with a spare tube for my trailer tyre.I still hadn't fixed it and the slow leaking valve meant that I had to pump it up every four hours or so.They didn't have a tube that size so on i went and rejoined route 132 which had brought me to Levis some ten days earlier.

I was headed away though and once I negotiated the traffic out of Levis and ducked under the huge bridges that lead to Quebec City I was on quite country roads again.The only problem was that this section of highway 132 was just terrible.There were pothole everywhere and almost no shoulder for me to ride on.I swear,it would be safer to ride on the damn expressway.At least there I would have a huge lane to myself insdead of waiting to be hit from behind by a vehicle on this narrow secondary road. There was noting I could do but suck it up and continue.

After about ten kilometers I stopped to take some photos of the river which could be seem for the first time since the bridges.While I was taking the pictures a guy wandered over and started asking me questions about my bike and the trip.He was really interested and asked if I was hungry.He then mentioned that his family were about to have brunch and I was welcome to join them at their house across the street.It was then that I looked over to his place and saw two really nice mtb's on the top of his car.Obviously this guy was a mountain biker and by the numbers on the bikes I figured that he raced as well.Sadly I had to turn his offer down as I was on a bit of a schedule and I knew that if I stopped now I may not get started again.I really did have to get to Montreal to visit my sister and I had promised her that I would be there the next day.I made a mental note to make sure I didn't force any time limits on myself for the rest of the ride after Montreal.

Not long after,the wind started to pick up and I found myself struggling into the strongest wind of the trip so far.It was brutal!Thankfully there wasn't a lot of rain associated with it but there were the occaisional rain cells that did dump their load a couple of times.Luckily for me I was near shelter both times and was able to hide out in an info center for the first storm and in a gas station for the other.The rest of the trip was relatively dry but the wind did give me something to complain to myself about.There was nothing to complain about regarding the scenery though as there were plenty of nice views of the river and surrounding farmland to keep my fully appreciative of where I was.

Ever so slowly I plugged along the road getting closer and closer to my intended destination of Trois Rivieres.I figured if I could make it there(or close enough) then maybe I could cross the river and ride into Montreal on the higway on the other side.I was a bit worried about crossing the bridges in the city as they are really high and I do suffer a little bit from a fear of heights.I did not relish the thought of riding over those bridges at all,especially if the wind was blowing.

Hour by hour I fought my losing battle with the wind and decided to just cruise along until I had covered about 140k.According to my map that would be about half way and in my mind that would be enough for the day so i put myself in cruise mode and even tok the time to stop at some nice veiwpoints overlooking the river and take in some of the scenery.Even though it was windy I was kind of enjoying the day.The rest in Levis had done my legs the world of good.

By late afternoon I had seen enough of the highway for the day and started thinking about a place to stay for the night.I was getting tired and decided that I would spoil myself one more time and stay in a motel if I could find one in the next half hour or so.Just as I was thnking about it I saw a sign on the highway advertising lodging in a hamlet just outside of the town of Becancour a little ways off the highway. I took that as a hint and followed the signs through the streets until I came upon a really nice and very new looking motel.Sitting outside the reception was a burly looking guy with a full beard and coveralle that looked like they had seem a full day on a worksite.I rolled up and said hello and he asked if I needed a room.Turns out he is not only the owner of the motel but he built the damn thing from scratch.

He organised my check-in and then told me he had somewhere safe for my bike as he didn't want it in the rooms.Fair enough I thought and so I took what I needed from my panniers and then he showed me around the back of the motel where he locked my bike in an unfinished room.He then gave me a quick tour of his motel and told ma all about how it had taken him two years to get to this point and that the last rooms should be ready in a month or so.he was obviously very proud of what he had done and if the condition of my room was any guide he should be proud as well.The room was really nice,easily the nicest place I had stayed in Canada thus far.I was very impressed.

After a quick shower it was off to the store a short few blocks away to buy some food for the night and then it was back to the room to call my sister and lie in the comfy bed watching t.v.It had been a pretty good dayreally, even with the wind in my face for hours.I was happy and confident that I would make Montreal without too much trouble the next day.

Quebec City-part three

So it was up early again and feeling great after a long sleep.I headed downstairs for breakfast and realised that my stomach was much better and even though I felt a little weak it was all good and I settled in for another long breakfast shift.

I caught up with Ontario Mike and he was pretty sad about my tales of woe as he had been really interested in the whole ultra-triathlon thing.As we sat chatting a few of the other hostellers came up and asked me how it all went.It's great to be around people who are so interested in peoples lives.That's what I like about hanging in hostels,you very rarely meet negative people and generally everyone is upbeat and positive about life.I was sharing a room with four Canadian girls who had been in town for ten days on a conference and they were so into the thought of crossing their country by bike and asked me all kinds of questions about the trip.One of them bike races for a team in Ottawa and she was all over my bike like a groupie,it was pretty funny.

I also was given by another lady,the remaining weeks worth of passes to the 400th anniversary celebrations.That was huge and even when I told her I would only be in town for a day of so she just told be to pass it forward and that's just what I did,to another cyclist who had just arrived in town after cycling from Whitehorse in the far northwest of Canada.He was from Ontario and after two months on the road was only a couple of weeks ride from finishing his cross Canada trek in Halifax.It was great to meet another adventure-cyclist and chat for a while as he inspired me a to get back out there and it confirmed what I had told Mike the week before.Lot's of people get out there and ride cross country,it's hard yes but you don't have to be a super athlete to do it,you just need a little bit of courage to start and a lot of patience to keep going.

I did stay an extra day in Quebec City though as I wanted to make sure that I was all better and also because I was really having a great time.This week I noticed the streets were a lot quieter than the previous one and it seemed that the crowds were thinning quite a bit.That was great for me as I was a bit over having to battle so many people on the street all day.It made being a tourist a little easier.I did have to make the decision to head off though and after a long breakfast chatting to Mike and my new cyclist comrade I did eventually load up the bike,hitch the trailer and ride my rig down through the narrow streets back down to the ferry for the trip across to Levis where I wold start what I'd hoped would be a two day, 270k ride to Montreal.

The aftermath and some fun as well.

The fire pit at Jerry's b.b.q.What a great night yet again.

The English and Singaporean reps right and the Grems below

So after a pretty shocking night of throwing up six times the morning rolled around and it was time to head off to the awards brunch.I just couldn't make it and told Barb to go ahead without me.I really just wanted to sleep some more and maybe I would be well enough to go to Jerry's place for one of his famous post race barbeques.They are just one of the highlights of any trip to this event and the look on the faces of those who have not seen the llama farm is priceless.

I did ,in the end start to feel better and that evening headed off with Barb to to the party just outside of Levis.We did get a little lost though but eventually made it to the llama farm and met up with most of the athletes and crews.I guess 55 people in all turned up and it was a great night as usual.I was carefull and only had one glass of wine and some really nice food which made me feel much better and confident that I would be able to make the next days whale watching tour.Normally saying goodbye at Jerrys place is a sad thing as we generally go our separate ways after that but most of us were heading off together touring the next day so the goodbyes were kept to a minimum as only those from Montreal were leaving before the next days trip(something do do with having to work the next day).It was to be an 8am start though so I had to drag myself and a few of the others away from the campfire and off to Levis to get to bed .

Barb decide that she wanted to head off and continue with her cross -Canada tour.I tried to cnvince her to do the tour with us but to no avail.Thankfully she agreed to take a whole bunch of stuff off my hands and take it back to Penticton for me.I handed her a bag with about 8 kilos worth of stuff in it that I would not need until I was lining up for Ultraman at the end of August.With that we went over to the meeting point for our tour and she said her goodbyes to everyone and was off.I'm very grateful to her for coming over and helping out for the weekend,she has been a great friend and true to form, just before she left, she handed me two $50 Petro Canada gift cards to use on my trip west.She is a class act..It's not easy crewing through the night like that and both her and Melissas whole family could not have been of greater help during what was a disappointing result for me.

So it was then off on a whale watching adventure a couple of hundred kilometers down river from Quebec City.Twenty two of us all headed off in a little convoy of mini vans and toured the beautiful scenery of the St Lawrences' northern bank.Thankfully I had ridden in on the southern side as the road we were on that day was hilly with a capital H.It was really nice driving through the counrtyside and after a few rest stops we arrived at our destination not far from the mouth of the Saguenay River.We were promtly fed our lunch and then were given some really sturdy wet-weather gear.I figured that we were in for a rough ride on the river of we needed this much protection but when I saw the size of the boat I realised it was more for protection from the spray than for any inclement weather that we may have to face.





The trip itself was great.The river is amazing and for today anyway was full of whales for all to see.I stood at the back of the boat with Michel and Jean-Guy and we had to laugh as those at the front of the boat got absolutely soaked while we stayed pretty dry throughout the three hour tour(yes Gilligans theme played in my mind too).I loved it and still marvel at the sheer size and ower of that huge river.

After the boat-ride it was off again to do some more sightseeing and some dinner on the way home but not before we all stood on the cliffs of the entrance to the Saguenay Fijord and held the world rock throwing competition.Very juvinile but excellent fun as the assembled internationals tried to outdistance the Canadain contingent by throwing rocks into the Saguenay river.The Canadians won.




We stopped for dinner on the way home in the town of Baie Saint-Paul and invaded an already busy restaurant for gourmet burgers and beer.It was excellent and a really nice end ing to a great day.The trip home tok us into the night and by the time I arrived back at the apartments I was already feeling the effects of the rich food I had eaten earlier.I got sick again but this time out of the other end and sat on the toilet for most of the night.By the time the morning rolled around all I wanted to do was sleep but I had to vacate the apartments as the cleaners were already there tending to all the now empty rooms.It was a reall struggle for my to pack all my stuff and ride back to Quebec City when I felt so weak but once I was back in the hostel I started to feel much better.How long I would stay I didn't know but I thought it would be to chill out in Quebec City for a day or two at least to get rid of what was ailing me.Funny thing these hostels,I felt at home straight away.

THE DOUBLE IRON

So it was up early the next day for all everyone and after a quick breakfast and scout around my room to make sure I hadn't left anything behind,we headed off down to the race site.All in all the weekend went very well with all eight of the scheduled events going off without a hitch.The double iron had it's problems though,not with the event organisation,but with the weather.It is pretty hard for me to describe this course as tough since it is pretty much dead flat but as we all know,if you throw in some wind,everything can go to hell,especially when you are trying to ride 360k.For me though the thought of doing my fourth double here in Levis left me unconcerned as it was really just a "training day" and not a race.I would be worrying about other events in the year and this weekend I just wanted to get the job done and hang out with all my mates fom Quebec.


The swim was held in a small cove just off the mighty St Lawrence River opposite the imposing citadel in old Quebec City.It was a 12 loop,7.6k crowd free affair with the 27 athletes(24men and three women) having lots of room to splash around without getting in each others way.Due to the huge tides that occur on this river the swim start changes every year to allow us to swim in the calmest water possible and for the first couple of hours everything was going to plan.My swim was always going to be slowish as I had only done a handfull of swims in training this year.I just wanted to get around in about 2hrs 30ish and I would be happy which is what was happening until the last three laps when the current started to take control.

That didn't worry the swim leader Itallian,Frabrizio Botanica(what a great name)who had a speedy 1:57:08 to exit the water eight minutes in front of defending champ and Gatineau,Quebec native Eric Deshaies.Daylight was third as Eric Colbert hit dry land next,some 18 minutes later.They were all way in front of me but I was happy with my 2:37 as I had bluffed my way through another swim in tenth place,unhurt but full of St Lawrence River water.I wandered the 200meters to transition slowly changing into my bike clothes as I went and hit the bike course with 2:47 on the clock.

By the time I got on the bike the pace of the other nine athletes was furious,as was the intensity of the wind.They were all head down and going hard at what to me seemed a near suicidal pace for the start of a 360k ride,especially with a 25kph wind bearing down on us.Eric was going really hard and was ticking off laps at 34kph while German,Marcel Henning and Austrian,Andreas Karral began their long dogfight for the minor places on the podum.I had asked Eric the day before if he was going for the sub 20hr holy grail of the Double Iron and he told me that was indeed his plan but it would depend on the wind.Todays 92x1.92 repeats into the wind would not help his cause one bit.

For my part I was just tooling around on my brrowed bike at a more sedate 29kph just planning to finish in the 12:30-12:45hr range.It was very interesting to check out the boys as they lapped me(which they did regularly) as only Eric seemed able to handle the tough conditions well.I spoke to Andreas briefly and he commented on the tough conditions as he started to slow down in his chase of Eric to concentrate more on staying with Marcel.Fabrizio,the studly Itallian B&B owner seemed on the same program as I and rode up to my only to say " Nick,there are so many beautiful girls here to look at,I don't want to do this anymore".Spoken like a true Itallian and he was right,the endless supply of bikini-cald Quebecers,walking,jogging,skating,riding and sunbathing all around the course was a real treat for the eyes but a even greater distraction for a bunch of guys with their blood already up.

At about 100k I hit pit lane for a food stop.The stuff I had on my bike wasn't cutting it and I craved real food so I pulled in for a hot cup of soup and sat down for five minutes to hang with the crews.I just wanted to finish and had planned to stop three times during the bike to eat and socialise.Little did I know that I would get more than my wish.About 40k after my first stop a huge thunderstorm hit and I just made it back to pit lane in time to avoid the worst of the rain.I knew it would be a brief storm and so waited it out with legendary eight-time Deca-iron finisher Guy Rossi and mutiple world Ultra-tri champ Pascal Joli.While everyone else was getting soaked we stayed dry and headed back out on the course only losing a few mintues.From there ,however things began to go south for me.

My eyesight had statred to go blurry and I was experiencing dizzy spells from time to time.At first I didn't think much of it but they became more frequent and I stated to get a chill before each episode.I continued though and ordered a coke from my crew as I passed thinking that it might wake me up.It didn't.A couple of laps later I blacked out for a second and hit a traffic cone which threw me onto a concrete garbage bin.Thankfully my leg took the brunt of the impact and I managed to stay upright without scatching my borrowed bike.I knew somthing was wrong and pulled up to the medical team at the far end of the course.They told me to go back to the med-tent and the medics wuld be waiting for me.As I rode up to the medics with my crew chasing behind I blacked out for a second time,thankfully into the arms of my crew who had arrived in the nick of time.I was walked to the med tent and my b.p was taken which confirmed my fears,it was very low.I lay there for a few minutes and when I treid to sit up to get a drink my crew were offering me I passed out for the third time,this time with a violent shiver which lasted about ten seconds.Once I came to they told me that a ambulance had been called and that I would not be allowed back on the bike today.My race was done.I talked the ambulance guys out of taking me to the hospital as my b.p was starting rise again but they told me that my blood sugar was really low as well so they gave me some industrial strength gels to boost my sugar levels.They were also concerned about the volume of river water that I had consumed and left me with a warning that I should be prepared for some stomach problems in the next day or so.Man,were they ever to be proved right.I spend the rest of the night in a reclining lawn chair,wrapped in my sleeping bag, watching the race progress in between nap sessions and feeding times.It was fun to hang out with the crews but I was very sad to have not finished the first of my planned events for my trip.

The race continued though and the frantic early pace was beginning to take it's toll on the riders.Only Eric held firm as everyone else slowed into the nightime hours.Marcel was still holding onto second with Andreas not far behind in third.The rest of the field was just trying to stay upright as fatigue started to set in across the course.

Eric had a huge lead of over an hour by the time he hit the 42 lap run and really only had to hold it together for the win but Marcel and Andreas started the run realtively close together and raced for second place.During the run,as the day wore on the heat became an issue and one by one the athletes started to fall by the wayside.There ended up being a record 40% dnf rate for the event which translated to 12 of the 27 starters.That was great for Leslie Holton who remained the only female upright and a certainty for the world championship title.She deserved it as she put together a really solid and smart day for a winning time of 31:11:27 and a nice $2000 cheque.Others did not fare so well and my job for the day was to calculate who would be able to make the 30hr time limit for the men and 32 hrs for the women.Sadly many of them realised that they would not make it and stopped.

The cream did rise to the top and Eric held on to his comfotable lead to cross the line in a winning time of 21:49:40,well short of is record attempt but an awesome effort given the tough conditions.Andreas Karral managed to pass Marcel for second in 23:09:51 and ran almost the indetical time to Erics' 8:59:18.He told me later that if he had been closer to Eric at the start of the run he would have tried to catch him but gave Eric credit for being brave enough to keep up the pace on the bike all day when he had slowed to conserve his legs for the run.Marcel wasn't happy to finish third in 23:29:18 but by the time we were at Jerry's bbq the next day he was all smiles.

I didn't stay around for too long after the first half dozen people finished and figured Barb had seen enough of all the triathletes for one day so she drove us back to the apartments to hang out and relax a bit.The only pronlem is that as the night wore on I started to feel pretty sick.I was okay while I was chatting to everyone outside but as soon as I went to bed I felt the urge to throw up and that is exactly what I did.All night!!Six times I went back to the toilet and by the pre dawn hours I was a complete mess.God knows what it must have sounded like but it was loud as Harn Wei told me he could here me and he was on another floor.It was a really bad way to end what was really a great event all things considered.I just wanted to sleep though and couldn't bear to think of facing the next day.

Quebec City-part two

I called Michel to find out the where's and when's of the registration process and he informed me that all the double iron athletes were to be housed in the college apartments for ease of transport to the race site on Friday.That was pretty cool I thought as usually they charge for this accomodation but this year it was free.He then amazed me even more by telling me that there was to be a free whale-watching trip for all the double iron racers the day after the awards ceremony.Is there no limit to what thes folks here in Quebec will do for the athletes.I did mention that I had a friend arriving to help me crew and he simply said"no problem,we will look after her.She can crew for you and we will feed her and her for free all weekend.Truly amazing!!

With that sorted I took off around the city one last time to get some photos taken of the race site from the high viewpoint of the citadel located directly across the river from transition.After that I checked out a couple of bands playing in one of the parks and watched some dancers rehearse routines for that nights show.From there it was back to the hostel to wait for news from Barb about her arrival time in Quebec.It was another great day in Quebec and I just hoped the favourable weather would continue for the weekend.Racing here in bad weather sucks the big one. I also took the opportunity to head down to the harbour and check out something that Mike had told me about.There was a ship arriving in port that day which has special significance in Canadian culture.The Bluenose 2 is a replica of the shp that is portrayed on the Canadian 10 cent piece.The original met it's maker on the high seas and so this one was commisioned to be built in Lunenburg just outside of Halifax.It tours Canadain cities all year and is quite the attraction.I got pretty close to her and I must say I was very impressed indeed.

I assumed my little position at the far end of the courtyard with my new mates Crazy Jean(who you met in the video in part one) and Ontario Mike,who was in town for three weeks checking out all the festivities.The three of us spent lots of time together talking crap mostly but laughing lot's,which was mainly at Jeans expence.That guy was on his laptop for hours chatting up and singing to girls all over the world,it was too funny. It was pretty good fun but the day was getting late and having spoken to Barb on the phone from across the river only an hour or so before I was beginning to wonder where she was.To remedy the situation I went and bought some beer not that it would help find her really but someone was looking after us as when I stepped out into the street from the beer shop two doors down from the hostel who should I spot but Barb.She was at the wheel of her huge blue van being escorted through the cobblestone streets of Quebec City by two bicycle cops.I'm not sure they knew what to make of me as I raised my hands and started waving my two cans of guiness around.Stupid bloody tourists was probrably foremost on their minds but they said goobye to Barb and were off.Barb parked the van in a narrow side street and I showed her to the hostel and introduced her to my crazy fellow inmates.As we both had to be in Levis on the other side of the river the next morning we had an early night.Barb slept in her van and I packed all my crap before going to sleep full of anticipation of seeing a bunch of old tri friends that I hadn't seen for four years.

The next morning(after filling up on another freebie breakfast)we loaded all my stuff into Barbs van and headed off to the ferry for the quick trip to Levis.I was so thankfull that Barb happened to be in the neighbourhood and could help me out for the event.She was on a cross-Canada driving trip and coincidenlty was close enough for her to make the trip from Ottawa to Levis for the weekend.This morning she would get to meet the other athletes as well as some of the people that would be helping as crew for me too.


We drove the short distance from the ferry at Levis to the college sports complex in Lauzon and found a huge group of skinny athlete types assembled in the foyer of the complex.It was like one great reunion for me as I scanned the room and spotted so many old friends that I hadn't had contact with for so long.The comeraderie of these ultra-triathlets never ceases to surprise me and somehow every time we meet up it's is like we were all hanging out just yesterday and not four years ago.It's is the smae at all the Ultras' I've done and many of the Ironmans as well.This morning was no different as I first met up with Jerry "the Llama farmer" Fassett who is a local and one of the real charachters of the sport.Then it was Harn Wei from Singapore,who I was glad to notice had all his facial features intact.He crashed heavily here a few years ago and the last time I saw him his face was beat up pretty bad>he is a tough guy though and it was no surprise to me to find out that he had signed up for the Deca-iron(38k swim-1800kbike-422krun)in Mexico later in the year.
It was a like old home week for all of us as we filed into the registration room for the pre race briefing and our blood tests(drug tests).I got to meet up with all the race organisers that had been so supportive of me over the years and said my hellos to Michel,Jean-Pierre and Jean-Guy.After saying hello to all the other athletes it was down to the boring business of meetings and admin stuff.I was glad to get out of there and head off to our apartment but not before being given a bike to use for the race by Jean-Guy.I don't now whose bike it was but I was very thankfull for the loan.
After settling in to the apartment which we shared with Montreal photographer Ben Beauchamp and his girlfriend Ninon it was off to the pre race dinner and one of the traditions in all big triathlon events, the fickin' food line-up!It was all good though and I enjoyed the evening a lot especially getting to meet the latest member of the Patent household.Melissa Patent and her family had served as my crew for every double iron I had done in Levis and this year would be no exception.It seemd every year I rolled up she was busy producing more crew members for future races.This year was no exception with a new kid for me to meet and one one the way for next years event.She assures me that this is the last but I don't know about that.Her role this year though was as crew co-ordinator for the event and so as Barb had shown up unexpectedly to crew, she passed the torch over to her younger brother Gabriel who as usual ended up doing a great job.We can't do these events without our crews and I'll always be thankful to the my Levis family for looking after me for four very long races.
It was time to go back to the apartment though and get ready for bed and an early morning the next day.After some chit-chat with Ben's brother Yves who was also racing it was time to bed down for the night and hopefully get some decent sleep in preparation for the huge day ahead.