SATURDAY, June 19, 2010
The magnificent sight of 2,000 cyclists and their bikes and knowing that each and every person is here to make a difference in the fight against MS was, for me, awe inspiring. I snapped a couple of pictures hoping to capture the energy of that scene while we waited for the tour to start. Everyone, including myself, was eager to get going and an old boy near me began to heckle the speakers in a loud and petulant voice. I found out he was nicknamed "Whitey" because of his white beard and he appeared to be quite an experienced tour participant judging from the number of MS stickers on his helmet.
I managed to leave in the first 300 - 400 riders and was quite pleased with myself until I realized that with approximately 1,500 cyclists behind me, I was bound to hear "On Your Left!" hundreds of times before reaching Camrose. I was just feeling warmed up when we turned south into a headwind that would plague us all the way to Westaskiwin where lunch was to be served.
Riding into the wind was no fun. I watched my cyclometer as my speed dropped down and down. Up ahead, I spied a cyclist the size of Herman Munster and the image was complete when I got closer and saw how large his feet were, how his legs were as thick as telephone poles. Even the bowtie perched on his collar appeared to me to be as large as a ribbon you might find on a gift of an automobile. What this meant for me was that I could tuck in behind his large frame and draft him all the way to lunch. Impressively, he was riding a fixie into the wind and I had to pedal hard just to stay within inches of his rear wheel. I was feeling so grateful that I hoped he would win a prize for "Best Dressed" at the banquet later that evening.
To be continued....
If you would like to sponsor me on this year's tour, please go to: http://msofs.mssociety.ca/2011bike/Sponsor.aspx?PID=1242881&L=2
Thank-you for sharing this story, if I decide to join this tour I would enjoy being part of your team!
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