The Lund family treated Elyse and I very well in Sault Ste. Marie. Brett Lund grew up with Elyse's dad and they are still great friends, so I think Elyse really enjoyed finally meeting them.
Brett put a good word in with the Northern Ontario CTV-Sault Ste. Marie crew & we woke up to an interview from Jairus who works for CTV. I am jacked that Brett took the time to get a crew member to share our story and Jairus created a nice awareness piece.
A very special part of this clip is when Jack shares his view of living with Parkinson's. Pleasure meeting you Jack!!
Video: http://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=736087&playlistId=1.822257&binId=1.817361...very
Highway 17 is known as one of Canada's most treacherous highways to cycle on and it lived up to its nasty reputation. I was actually forced onto the gravel shoulders 7 times and took a real nice fall. Luckily I escaped only with minor scrapes.
We camped in Thessalon and Massey and then caught the Chicheemaun Ferry a day early, due to winds that were up to 50km/h from my tail, so I surprised my family just south of Tobermory at my Uncle and Aunts cottages on Myles Bay.
I went back to Tobermory the next day because a good group of family, friends, and other supporters said they would be there to cheer me on. We were also joined by a town councillor named Ray!
"THE SWITCH" HAPPENED THIS WEEKEND"
Elyse has dedicated a huge chunk of her summer to Parkinson's Cycle of Hope and it wouldn't have been possible without the dedicated support of her and her family. Elyse is heading to Portugal for a vacation with her grandma and grandpa, so one of my great buddies, Rob Clare, has stepped up to taking over the role of support driver!
Thank you Elyse!
From Tobermory, Rob and I headed to Owen Sound, where we were staying the night at a friend's family cottage. Rob and I are super close with the Nisbet family, so we were both looking forward to spending some time at their cottage.
My neighbour's cousin, Carol, met me on my ride to Owen Sound and biked to city hall with me where we met Lucia from the Parkinson's Society, a dignitary from the city, and Bruce from the Owen Sound Parkinson's Support Group!
I stopped at a local automotive shop to inquire about a much needed oil change for the van, and we were surprised by a complimentary oil change from
Culp's Service Station Ltd.
Thank you!!!!
Marty and Gail cooked a fantastic fire-grilled meal that night, and we caught up on what we have missed over the summer. I also snuck back into town to meet Louise Parisotto, who had driven from Port Elgin to hook me up with some unreal Saucony shirts. Louise and her sister, Annette, are quite the athletes and I am super thankful that they are hooking me up with such great clothing.
Owen Sound to Cambridge is about 160 km's and I was expected there by three, so Rob and I woke up at 4:30am to make sure we would be there on time...The wind was on my side and I managed to get there a few hours early!
Today was a special day. Do you remember what you were doing when you were three? Well Lyncoln Peters is one special three year old who I have been looking forward to meeting for a few months now. Lyncoln's grandfather has Parkinson's disease and he has been involved in all kinds of fundraisers because he wants to help his grandpa. Here is a link to a great picture:http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10100323268999357&set=t.501365126&type=3&theater
Photo of Lyncoln, My dad, & I : http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10100323268999357&set=t.501365126&type=3&theater
I was lucky enough to be joined by Lyncoln and his dad today as we biked to Moose Winooski's with my dad, sister, and Don (my aunts mate)! The Waterloo Police gave us a great police escort to make sure everyone was safe from the busy Tri-City traffic!
We arrived to Moose Winooski's where fifty or so individuals were there for a Parkinson's Cycle of Hope BBQ, donated by the Kitchener Moose Winooski's!!!! Here is a link to Moose Winooski's and I can't thank Bill enough for donating this fantastic BBQ & $250!!! http://www.charcoalgroup.ca/main9.cfm#
Today's event was awesome! We had Tri-City dignitaries there, lots of Parkinson Society Workers, and people from various areas! Big thanks goes out to Shelley Ralf and Jessica Halls for organizing this event which raised some Parkinson's awareness, along with $695.76 for Parkinson's research.
Jennifer Robin Robles wrote an excellent awareness piece on her blog- Ingamer Sports Blog...Check it out! http://blog.ingamer.com/2012/08/cycle-of-hope-trip-of-lifetime.html
Rob and I stayed the night with Mrs. Chaplin-Leitl and her daughter, who were both very kind and hooked us up with great meals, conversation, and a good night's sleep!
Kitchener to Woodbridge
Back roads to Woodbridge treated me well, and then Rob and I met up with our hosts for the night in Bolton ON. Christina and Steve Moricz offered their home to us because Christina had previously worked for the Parkinson Society Southwestern Ontario, and PD was something near and dear to their hearts. Christina actually implemented a program called PEP, which was a manual that taught professionals how to better understand and work with individuals who have Parkinson's!
The Moricz were top notch like any of our previous hosts, and we even got to attend the Motorcycle night they run at St. Louis Bar and Grill in Bolton. The Motorcycle crew is called Hurt'N Old Guys and they were more than welcoming. They even donated to our cause!
Woodbridge to Bowmanville by far had the busiest roads I have seen, and I could do without ever having to go near that area again in my life...the drivers were AWFULLLL. I have nothing positive to say about today other than we were given a great complimentary stay at the Cedar Camp Resort, which was a very nice campground/resort, owned by extremely nice people. Here is a link to their website and I suggest you look them up...especially if you have children! http://www.cedarparkresort.ca/
Next stop, Trenton!
We met up with Robin and Jacque, who ride a tandem bicycle, and we were given a police escort by Constable Laylund (apologize if the spelling is incorrect).
We arrived at city hall, where we were greeted by LOTS of wonderful people who cheered us on and made Parkinson's Cycle of Hope very memorable. I was also given a certificate from a member of the Trenton dignitary for Parkinson's Cycle of Hope.
Trenton is a super nice town, and I enjoyed everything from time I entered the town to the time I left! We stayed with Mr. and Mrs. Brown, who hosted a gathering back at their home. These folks were all very kind and Mr. Brown was very knowledgeable about Parkinson's disease. He truly appeared to know the disease inside and out.
Something worth noting was a discussion I had with someone who had Parkinson's. He said, "Parkinson's is a lifelong commitment that you don't choose. You get chosen by luck of the draw...we don't know what causes it or why it chooses you, but one thing we know for sure is that it is a progressive disease without a cure."
One thing he also mentioned was that you may as well throw all schedules out the door because everything depends on how the medication reacts with your body.
Trenton to Kingston
We took highway 33 from Trenton to Kingston and it was a beautiful ride through vineyards and orchids along Lake Ontario. We are staying Saturday and Sunday with Elyse's friend Katherine.
While I was cycling towards Kingston, the Minielly family members were working hard in Wyoming ON. Today they held a Parkinson's Cycle of Hope BBQ in the Foodland Parking lot and their hard work raised $821!!!!! The Minielly family also donated $100 above that! Mr. & Mrs. Minielly thank you so much! I should also thank the owner of the Wyoming Foodland for surprising the Minielly family with donating all the products for the BBQ today. Unreal to see people coming together!
Actually, we only 15 days left! Can you believe this cross country ride is nearing the end. This week has been a week filled with great people, events, and memories that have helped us bring awareness to Parkinson's disease and bring us a little bit closer to our $50 000 goal. Check out the new total all you folks have helped reach: http://psc.r-esourcecenter.com/personalevent/Personal_Event.aspx?c=IXYOc3EPYEc9TVpo
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