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This is it! You know all that whinging we've been doing about that stupid-ass part that
keeps breaking on us? Well, whinge no more, because I'm holding in my hands the solution
to the problem. Ladies & Gentlemen, I give you... the Surly 16-Tooth Track Cog.
The last one we had was good for 14,000km (and have a look at its
condition by the time it finally died). Let's hope we don't have to test the limits of this one.
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We just got even more interactive!
chatting is the best medicine!
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Standard Cycling Questionnaire:
Start: Vancouver
End: St. Johns
Trip length: 3 Mths
Distance: 7021km
Per Day: 110km
Longest Day: 156km
Punctures: 4
Cycle-Friendliest Province: Quebec
Worst Hwys: Manitoba
Invited Home Most Often: New Brunswick
Nicest Guy Met: David, Rainy River
Words of Advice: We did it in three months, and that was way too short. The purpose of a bike trip is to enjoy the ride, not race to the next destination. Four months minimum, but six or more would be best.
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meet mardi beat
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Mardi's an Aussie who just finished cycling across Canada. She's never cycled around Oz, but I suppose that's fair, since we've never done Canada either. Let's compare notes.
Why would you do something stupid like cycle across Canada? I'm a dual citizen of Australia and Canada, and I lived in both Newfoundland and BC. My friend Robin (Canadian) and I were on a trip to Thailand and we started talking about it. By the time we came home, we'd had it all planned out.
What was it like travelling with a friend? The two of us have very different ideas about touring -- she's a "gotta do 100" kind of cyclist, where I like to slow down if I like a place. My recommendation is to make sure you know someone REALLY WELL before you set off to spend 3 months solid with them.
How was Canada's hospitality? You guys did well. Lots of people invited us home on rainy nights... in fact, one guy, we didn't even know his last name, and he just gave us the keys to his place and his car if we wanted to get around.
Any horror stories? Only one I can think of, when Robin got into a fight with a Gravel River cafe owner about the definition of a free coffee refill. We ended up getting kicked out of there.
Mardi's Top Five Spots in Canada
1. Serendipity Cafe,
Rossport ON
2. Tidal Bore, NB
3. Kaley's Cabins,
Badger, NFLD
4. Kicking Horse Pass, BC/AB
5. The Prairies
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What did you think of Thunder Bay? You know, Thunder Bay was really nice to us. We stayed in a Bed & Breakfast, went to that pancake place...
The Hoito? Yeah, that was it. You know, I'd have to say that one of my favourite rides was the North Shore of Lake Superior. Nice mountains you've got up there.
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It is my sad duty to inform the public of the untimely demise
of our beloved cast member, Mr. Skinnylegs.
As you may have noticed, his condition has been slowly deteriorating since he joined
our adventure back in Mintaro, SA. Though it was his wish to reach Brisbane, he sadly
became too weak to continue. With the loss of his right skinnyleg, his nipples, and
finally his head, his plucky spirit and enduring charm drew to a close.
As his strength ebbed away in his last hours, he managed to whisper these final words:
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All you people out there reading this site every week? Listen closely. Don't waste
your life in front of a computer. Get out there. Get out and see the world... like
I did. It made me a better person. It made me feel good about myself. The second
I left my home town of Mintaro and saw the world, I became a new monster. It's sad that
it took me a life of misery and inactivity before I finally realized that all it took
to change was to walk out my front door.
So, all of you! (cough) Grab on to life with both hands (wheeze) and hold on tight!
Don't let your life be ruled by the things you own, or they'll end up (gasp) they'll
end up owning you! Stop making excuses! Get outside (croak) your comfort zone. Do it now.
Stop reading about it, and do it. Because, my friends, pretty soon, you're years
older, your leg and nipples have fallen off, and you'll ask yourself, "Where did the
time go? I should have... I should have... I should have..."
And I reckon that (cough, wheeze) good people (cough cough hack) is crap. I love...
you... all....... (sigh).
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He breathed his last breath. Then we threw him in the bin.
Please send any condolences to his email address, mrskinnylegs@beimers.com.
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these are the people in our neighbourhood...
James & Angie
Again, a super big thanks to these two Terrigalians. We ate all of your wraps, most of
your smiley potatoes, and burnt chili to the bottom of your pot, but you kept us around
anyway. Now that's Aussie hospitality! Miss you already!
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James's Mates
Once a year, James and his buddies get together for a giant weekend of drinking, boozing,
and adventuring. This year they hired a 4x4 and headed out all over the sand dunes. Don't
worry, the drinking happened afterward. Party on, dudes!
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Snotty
Actually, his real name's Matthew, but we've known him as Snotty, Twinkie, Quirkie,
Smarmie, and pretty much any other name that ends with "ie". He signs all of his emails
from dwarves. That's kind of, um, Loopy.
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The Ferries
This week, we've been off with the ferries, and we owe them big time for their help. Without
them, we would have been on the freeway this whole time, but since we're just bikes, we
can take the short cuts! Enjoy the ride.
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wally's amazin' facts!
Jørn Utzon's architectural genius was inspired by an orange peel! If you cut an
orange into triangles, you can build your own little Sydney Opera House right on your
kitchen table! Ask mum to help with the knife!
This Week's Amazin' Fact: The Rugby World Cup was on last Saturday, which
ended with a gutwrenching 3-point loss to England. In the long run, I guess it wasn't so bad since the largest
winning margin in test rugby was 152 points! The heaviest player in test
rugby was Joeli Veitayaki from Fiji, weighing in at 130kg! The tallest
was Luke Gross a USA player looking down from 206cm, and the smallest
was a Scot, Graham Beveridge, 168cm, 76kg. And here's a wildcard for you... Pope
John Paul II once played rugby for Poland!
By the way, anyone out there know where rugby was invented?
Don't forget to look for Wally this week!
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| Distance this week: 152km | Distance since Day 1: 15356km |
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What is Bikeabout? Click here to find out!
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Day 429: Smile like a potato!
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0.0km
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23°
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James & Angie's
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 immigration day, yay!
It's that time again! The time when we get all dressed up, lick the tips of our blue or black pens, and cross our fingers. That's right kids, it's immigration day! There's nothing we like better than posting off our passports, signing over our credit cards and getting our photos taken at the Kwikie-Mart.
Last time we worked with the immigration services, it took a 17-page document to convince them of our worthiness (or should I say, circumstances of exceptionalness?). I wonder what fun requests New Zealand Immigration will come up with...
"I admired the way Kev dove in, like a true Aussie. He runs up behind Aimee, gives her a 'how ya going mate', then straight
into the waves with a 'HO HOOOOOOH!' and down he went."
- James.
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Day 431: Stomache Virus
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James & Angie's
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 mishap day
First we're forced to wait for a part from America, then our credit card is reported stolen, now our computer has decided to conk out from an unknown virus. Could the week get any better? This was supposed to be a work day, but instead it's just a hassle day.
Oh, I haven't told you the story about the credit card? Well, there we were, trying to book our tickets to New Zealand, when the card comes back Negative. So we phone the airline, and they tell me it's flagged as Code 155X - Card Reported Lost Or Stolen. Of course, as the Monday Quote of the Day stated, Kev was holding it in his hand. Turns out the company just suddenly decided to swap itself over from Visa to Mastercard, so they recalled all the Visas and mailed out new Mastercards. Kev's was mailed to Canada, where it does him zero good. And, of course, there's nothing better than trying to call an American credit card company from Australia and explain the situation to snarky rude customer service reps who are docked for spending too long on the phone. Unless it's trying to make a collect call to the Visa hotline from Australia, but that's a whole other hassle.
Kevin: "I just need to borrow a vice, a lock nut, and the biggest adjustable spanner you have."
Bike shop guy: "...right..."
Kevin: "Yeah, gee, my wife and I have been riding all the way around Australia!"
Bike shop guy: ".........uh huh..."
Kevin: "Yeah, and, um... yeah 15,000km!"
Bike shop guy: "........................"
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Day 432: Here's me!
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Mardi's, Terrigal
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 my trip to sydney
So the boys at FedEx inform me yesterday that the package is in the country. In fact, the package is in the city. Two gleaming silver Surly 16-Tooth track cogs within arms reach, and they tell me I can't have them until Monday. Why? Because the plane landed about 10 minutes after closing, nobody was around in the office to check the little red box, and by the time anyone did come back in the office, the Friday trucks would have already left. I had two choices: sit around in Terrigal with my thumb up my ass, or come in and get it myself. Since I was already into my fourth day of ass-thumbing, I chose number two.
It wasn't so bad. In fact, it was nice to get out of the house. I got a 45 train ride, and one last chance to tour around the Parliament House Grounds, the Botanical Gardens, and a neat display at the Opera House about the building of the Opera House. Oh, and of course the FedEx Sydney Central Office. And I made it home in time for supper. What a great day!
"Smile like you like your job! Okay, this time smile like you're quitting! That's better."
- Kevin.
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james from terrigal and snake from degrassi
...separated at birth?
 
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jaffle:
(n.) technique for making sandwiches or pies in a waffle-iron-like press. Build the sandwich/pie,
place it in the jaffle iron, and squash it down. Just think of it as the George Foreman of pie makers.
come on, bombers!
see ya later, hot pertater
little gal, little bike
waaay off course
