People are like stained glass windows: they sparkle and shine when the
sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed
only if there is a light within. -Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, psychiatrist
and author (1926-2004)
Hi Pat, Good to hear from you! Sorry I haven’t replied earlier re Stephen’s holiday predicament but I wanted to gather people’s Beau Soleil dates before I gave you a head’s up.
Unfortunately Beau Soleil is going to be full to the gills for the first two and a bit weeks of September; we have Don and Anne’s two goils and their partners (plus maybe another travelling companion!) in residence for two weeks then when they go some other friends from Adelaide will be taking over! Please let Stephen know that if he can find other accommodation in the village he is more than welcome to join us for meals and conversation! I haven’t been able to access your blog for some time now – can you email me the full url?
All here are well – hope it is the same for your part of the world! Must away as Terry and Pauline are coming for dinner and I’ve been allocated the mashed spuds ( I can hear the chef shrieking from the kitchen as I write!).
Regards to all, Trevor Ps: We have just been hit with a massive storm – high winds, hail and a huge drop in temperature – hope we don’t get a power failure or the chef will really go tropo!!!! Greetings, Dear Reader!
Up reasonably early next morning. Wonderful sleep as it is so pleasantly
cool during the night that one can leave all the screened windows wide
open. Java, yogurt topped with more raspberries and three pieces of
toast and I was away to Oliver, Jugos Dom Atacama,
(Peter was just back from Chile, mine consultant that he is!), to one
of his weekly golf games.
Drove out of Penticton on Hwy 97 to OK Falls
and thence to Oliver, parking in my chosen spot just before 9:00 am. By
the time I'd unloaded my Trek and changed into
my cycling shoes I decided I'd use the washroom at the gas station
around the corner. Once my bladder was on empty I headed up Fairview
Road at about 9:10 am. Made for Sumac St, taking a left off FR as this
would take me to bottom of Old Golf Course Rd and the ascent
of Everest had begun! A very good huff and puff all the way up.
Nothing that isn't manageable with a bit of fortitude and slow grinding
BUT wonder how my legs and lungs will respond with about 115 km under my
belt by this time on Sunday.
First technical error as I crested back
onto Fairview Road. Shifting too quickly my chain came off and I was
forced to touch the Dreaded Burning Ground just after I made the turn
onto Willowbrook Rd. Cursing my inattentiveness, I didn't have much
trouble realigning the chain and was soon making my way north. Must say
that although there were two decent hills waiting for me, they certainly
were not nearly as challenging as the unrelieved climb on OGCR.
Heartened by my progress I even caught up to three riders I had noticed,
ahead of me, when I was forced to stop on account of my chain. All of
the chaps were from the Lower Mainland and have spent many holidays in
Oliver at the Lakeside resort on Tuc-el-Nuit Lake.
While they had not
entered the Granfondo they were more than regular cyclists and knew area
pretty well. We chatted amicably for about 5 km and then eldest, (72),
rider's chain came off so I waved goodbye, wanting to distance myself
from any possible Burning Ground contagion!
Really enjoyed the
rest of the ride, in spite of Technical Error #2: Crossing the first
cattle guard I encountered, to date, my water bottle was jostled out of
its holder as crossing the spaced bars almost rattles one's fillings!
Had to stop to collect it but since I'd already felt the DBG I chalked
this incident up as a valuable learning/training experience and
continued, relatively undaunted.
Next encounter was with a re-surfacing
crew, putting down and steamrolling patches on some of the potholes and
smaller rough/broken pavement sections. Waved through as traffic was
sparse and flagwoman at far end told me that work was for the coming
race. Nice to see and know, of course.
One long, exposed,
slightly uphill stretch, (sun was beginning to make itself felt when I
left trees behind), near yesterday's grass fire, (contained and out by
now), but after that was behind me the route takes one back through the
pine forest near St Andrews By The Lake, (Prather), and climb is just
about over.
After that a controlled swoop down to the intersection of
WLR and the Okanagan Hwy, encountering another pesky cattle guard just
before the short climb up to Hwy 97 itself. Negotiated this one without
incident but having to slow down I lost all the inertia which would have
helped me rocket up incline. Felt the push in my legs but soon forgot
this as I clocked 60 km/hr descending hill into OK Falls. Had never
ridden 97 out of OK Falls so decided to take a look as opposed to
following Oliver Ranch Rd since I didn't want to have to cross the busy
highway once ORR met 97.
Fairly easy going from here all the way
to Oliver but Technical Mistake #3: Didn't take Tuc-el-Nuit Rd about 5
km north of Oliver. Instead proceeded into town and dipsy doodled my way
around to finally end up on Black Sage Rd. Bit of climb, up a small,
fairly steep hill, just before Quinta Ferreira Estate Winery, (like many
of their reds!), but after that it is pretty much downhill for most of
the way, other than one very manageable, long ascent before one reaches
Road 22. Here you cross the valley and begin the slow, steady, slightly
uphill battle towards Oliver, not helped by the fairly strong headwind.
Still I plugged away, noting all the wineries we've visited over the
years, counting down the Road number, (21, 20, etc.), as I endured the
heat. One good thing about wind was that it actually cooled me down,
somewhat, as my perspiration soaked bamboo top wicked the water away and
I benefited from the evaporation process.
Pleased to see the
sign announcing Oliver and I made the intersection where I was parked
nearbye with 85 km on the clock so decided I'd look for Tuc-el-Nuit Rd
to scope it out. I thought I had a pretty good idea where it had to be,
relative to start of BSR and turned out to be just where I expected. Wind
was right in my face as I followed it north out of this part of
outskirts of Oliver and with the bit of uphill incline I could feel my
legs rebelling! Fortunately, I reached a turnaround spot, not far from
Jackson Triggs. Not wanting to taste there I made my way back to Oliver.
Going was much easier with the wind pushing me along now and slight
downhill grade was even more welcome. However, with about 95 km on the
odometre, both my thighs started to show symptoms of wanting to cramp
up! Technical Error #4: Although I was wearing my camel pack I'd also
taken my water bottle just to have as much liquid as possible available.
I usually exhaust bottle first as pack keeps my secret concoction
cooler longer. However, when I first tried to drink from the pack,
earlier in ride, just to see what latest vintage tasted like, I couldn't
manage to get but a drop from drinking tube. Try as I might, nothing
passed my lips. At this point I wasn't overly thirsty and most of
remaining ride was downhill so I thought I'd be okay, based on past
rides of this distance. I even imagined that the electrolyte crystals
had somehow clogged the valve from he bladder to the drinking tube or
that the tube itself was kinked. (Of course I couldn't stop to
investigate further, Dear Reader!) I would give the pack a punch or two,
every so often, to try and shake things up. Nothing worked! Again, I
thought I'd be fine but I suppose the heat combined with the exertion of
the ride finally took their toll on my leg muscles and I made it to my
car but very gingerly, standing up whenever I could, not pedaling at all
when terrain allowed. Stats for ride:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/537619248#.U7ysWOM73xs.email
Dismounting, back at the car, I had to remove
my cycling shoes very, very carefully as I was afraid any sudden
movement might cause a cramp. Loaded my bike onto the rack and then
turned my attention to camel pack. I had simply forgotten that I needed
to turn the nozzle in a clockwise fashion in order to allow the liquid
to flow into the tube and then into my parched mouth! This is a fairly
new pack and one I used in France needed a pull of the nozzle, much like
any sports water bottle, so my poor brain was already suffering from a
chemical imbalance. Drank greedily on way to Okanagan Falls as I wanted
to stop at a couple of wineries before making my way back to Naramata.
About half way to OK Falls, the unthinkable happened and my right thigh
started to cramp. Fortunately highway had a large grassy shoulder at
this point so I was able to pull off. getting out of the car was a
different matter as every time I tried to bend my leg to get out of
vehicle cramp worsened and very painfully so. Finally plucked up the
courage to almost hurl myself out the door, in bare feet, dancing on the
hot tarmac as both inner thighs were telling me, in spades, what a
fool I'd been! Whimpering at the unrelieved I managed to raise my
right leg onto the bike hitch and this provided a modicum of relief but
then the left leg would cramp.
And so it went. At one point the thought
of throwing myself under an oncoming semi even passed through my
tortured mind! Fortunatley, I was able to limp to the grassy verge and
walking about cramping dissipated. I knew getting back into driver's
seat was fraught with difficulty and even if I made it into vehicle I
still had a long way to go with the horrible possibility of another
renewed attack hanging dangerously over my head. Kept drinking once
cramoing stopped and once I felt a little more confident that worst was
over I climbed back into car and hurried towards OK Falls.
Took Oliver Ranch Road and was soon in parking lot at Stag's Hollow.
First thing I did was have a couple of glasses of water and then started
tasting. Needed the alcohol to calm my shattered nerves, Dear Reader!
Have always enjoyed their expression of Sauvignon Blanc and was duly
impressed this time as well. Wanted to try the Semillon but wasn't for
tasting so had to be content with the Riesling. Was very taken with the
Cabernet Franc so bought a bottle, (bit pricey at $28), but I wanted a
red for dinner as I'd been quaffing ones from my host's cellar. Two
young couples from Saskatoon so we shared latest flood stories from
Prairies before I made my way to Wild Goose, just up the road. My legs
seemed to have settled down so was pleased about that.
Have
always liked many of the Rieslings here so came away with six, three of
the Classic and three of the Stoney Slope, plus three of the Mystic
River Pinot Gris as well. Felt better and better with each taste so knew
I was on the mend, so to speak. Stowed my haul and made for OK Falls
Esso to fill up before zipping back to Penticton to stop at
Save-On-Foods for a few dinner fixings: pre-marinated Teriyaki sirloin
steaks, fresh corn-on-the cob and Breyer's Praline Ice-cream! Wasn't
back home until close to 5:00 pm so had a quick shower and then Petros
and I sipped a local IPA and watched the Germans shooting Brazilian fish
in a barrel.
After unprecedented soccer rout we started dinner
preparations. More correctly, I watched as Jugos bbq'd steaks and Lynne
boiled corn. Dom Atacama had put together an incredible potatoe salad
shortly after I arrived and we sat down to the scrumptious meal once
steaks and corn were ready. Lovely, lovely meal and must say that the
Cab Franc was delicious, loads of chocolate with a lingering, pleasantly
tannic finish. Everyone was so full that we decided to wait on dessert,
although Peter and I had enough room for a couple of drams of
Tullibardine Sovereign, a delicious Highland malt, 43%, which we sipped
while we chatted on the patio. The evening was magical, just the right
amount of coolness after the heat of the day, ranging somewhere between
24º C and 30ºC. Jugos seemed to have more room in his tummy, after the
first snort of malt, so he helped himself to a large bowl of ice-cream
and fruit while Lynne and I contented ourselves with watching him devour
the tasty dessert.
Had been a long day for everyone so we
repaired to bed, all of us to read, apparently, by 10:00 am. Once I'd
brushed and flossed I sent a few short messages and then laid down rather
carefully as my right leg had cramped up when I got up from the patio
couch when we were set to go inside for the night. Fortunately, not too,
too painful and knot in my thigh didn't last once I was able to raise
and stretch limb. Still, I was on tenterhooks until I turned out the
light and drifted off, dreaming of the troublesome cattle guards I'd
encountered and wondering if they would have a covering of some sort on
the day of the event.
Hello Everyone! Just a quick note to say that all goes well. Had a terrific "training ride" today. Stats:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/537619248#.U7ysWOM73xs.email
More
details to follow but I'm sleepy and off to read Istanbul Passage
before turning in for a reasonably early night. GranFondestos and Cheers
to one and all, Dad/Il Conduttore!
Pics: First two wineries.
Managed Stag's Hollow and Wild Goose today, after my ride. Fire off
White Lake Road yesterday afternoon, as I was scoping route,
water bombers and all! Drinks on patio before dinner yesterday evening.
Evening sky. Lovely and cool for sleeping. Front garden this evening
around 7:00 pm. Part of Peter's garden. From garden towards garage.
Peter's potatoe salad tonight, made with freshly dug spuds from his
garden! Maltage on the
deck after dinner. Bottle was from Prince Valiant
and was fabuloso!!!
Disappointed you were in the neighborhood and didn't drop by. Ryan
Hi Sweetie, how is the training going? Just was up at 70 wayne and Flamins new home for a glass of wine. Melanie was there from St. John's here in BC for 12 days.
Sad and worrying news is that Ryan's Megan has cervical cancer. She sees specialist in 2 weeks but they do not know what the outcome will be and obviously very up set.
We will bring a salmon and some sausages for dinner on Friday and Saturday nite, Wayne and Michele will not now be staying over on Sunday as Megan has asked them to stop in to visit her. Hope rides are going well, Love you, coralee
Hello Duhlink! As you will know if you are
still at your iPad, I just sent a message and then yours arrived. What a
terrible blow for Megan! Peter was asking about Ryan as we had a snort
of the malt he gave to Peter a a thank you. Never imagined I'd learn
what I did a few moments after sending a pretty happy emaill! Please ask
F/S to send along my best wishes and hopes that all goes as well as can
be expected, to both Megan and Ryan, as I suppose they will probably be
in touch before you three come up on Friday. I'll pass along menu and
fact that Sutherlands willnot be staying overnight on Sunday. Now it
really is time for bed so I'll say goodnight. Much warm love, Darling.
Patrizzio!
Glad you are alive and well. Please drink lots of water, sunscreen and all that that will keep u alive and well. Love you. Ride like the wind. xx Chloe Alexis
Hi all. Here is a message from Anne Piternick. I expect there will be something
about this in the local newspapers soon.
I just heard that Sam had died today. Could you please pass the word on to the retired librarians? Thank you. By the way – I don’t have any details. Anne
Your UBC parking permit has
been processed and is now active.Your permit is valid in parkades -
each time you visit a parkade a 'use' will be deducted from your total
uses.
Please keep track of your usage - if you run low on uses and would like
more please contact the Parking Office and we can arrange for more uses
to be added to your account. Thank you
No comments:
Post a Comment