Ajax to Bowmanville

51% of women in Canada have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16

Eastbound out of Ajax at 7:10 a.m.

My good friend, and cycling buddy Tom joined us as we left the office and immediately took up position in front of me to set the pace and sheild me from the wind. The three of us made fantastic time along Hwy #2 through Ajax, the town of Whitby and arrived in Oshawa more than 10 minutes ahead of schedule!

Tom setting the tempo

Oshawa was not a planned 'rest point' but I was stopping there to meet with the City's Mayor, John Gray who had also agreed to come out and show support for my fundraising initiative. After a media interview to get word out about the Shelter Foundation, I was back on the road heading eastward to Bowmanville and my first official 'rest stop' of the day. This first 30 kilometre stretch it should be noted, was also the flattest of the entire route. From Bowmanville on I was in for some substantial climbs.

Chatting with Oshawa Mayor John Gray

Local media interiew about Cycle for Shelter

I should also mention that at no point during the entire day was I ever completely alone. Although I cycled over 90 kms solo during the ride, I was always accompanied by a support vehicle with my husband (and for the first half of the day both my sons and a good friend) for safety reasons. Complete with a Shelter Foundation Banner across the back of the van, Kyle drove between 20-60km/hr behind me all day. At the wave of my arm he would pull up beside me as I rode, ready to pass me a tissue (did I mention I was sick?!?) a water bottle, an energy bar or to tell me we had made a wrong turn and needed to turn back. Yeah...that was a fun conversation. It happened twice that day.

Breaking the Cycle....Ride Day

On Saturday September 18th, 2010 I embarked on a journey to set the record for the longest one day bike ride in Durham region for a charity. My goal was to cycle more than 200 kilometres, through all eight municipalities in Durham in order to raise funds and awareness for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation.
My fundraising target was an ambitious $3,000 and I wanted to have it raised by the 18th. The following is a summary of my ride that day.

1. Dawn

The sky was inky black at 5:30 a.m.. It was that calm peaceful time before dawn, except in my house. I was up showered and trying to eat oatmeal, peanut butter and blueberries while racing around making sure I had all my supplies. Despite the checklists, the hours spent organizing and reorganizing everything, the hour before we left the house was pure chaos. There is nothing like misplacing one's car keys just prior to leaving to add  that extra shot of tension to an already exciting day.

I had been training since June for this ride, cycling several times a week, spinning, and heading out for longer rides on the weekend with local riding groups whenever time permitted. As a recreational cyclist the most I had ever ridden in one day was 125 kms and that was only a few weeks prior to my Cycle for Shelter date. Despite a nasty (and by all accounts quite spectacular) crash at the beginning of that day, combined with unbearable heat and humidity, I completed the route, but I was not filled with confidence. While in my head I knew I was going to achieve my goal, to say I was at ease with the mileage was grossly inaccurate. Regardless, I was determined to get through it, and as we pulled away from my house that morning on the way to the start point, my focus was entirely on getting to the end of the day.

Sandra, Sharon & Kira were all there at 6:30am to see me off.

Saturday dawned crisp and clear and as the sun was rising I was met at the brokerage (my start and end point for the ride)  by a wonderful group of supporters including my Broker, Kira, Sharon Promm from RLP head office, and Sandra Diaz, Executive Director of the Shelter Foundation.

Talking about the Cycle for Shelter with Mayor Parish

Ajax Mayor Steve Parish was also there to show support and had agreed to ride the first leg of the journey with me.  My mind already focused on the road ahead, and with the sun lightening the morning sky, I said my goodbyes to family and friends and was on my way.

Did someone mention the Tim Horton's Drive thru?

On my way