Tour de Friends/Spin for Limbs

In 2009-2010 and again in 2012, I worked as the head mechanic at Neworld Cycle, a high-end road and tri bike shop in the quiet Toronto suburbs of Burlington, Ontario. During those years, I spent many hours riding the empty farm roads north of B-Town with the Neworld Club, a strong group of dedicated roadies. The owner, Jeff, invited me to join the club for Sunday’s annual Tour de Friends, a one hundred mile road ride that also serves as an awareness and fund-raising event for Spin For Limbs. Club member and all around great guy, Steve, and his wife, Jennifer, found themselves thrust into the world of paediatric orthopaedics when their daughter Ellen was born with fibular hemimelia. A great event on a hot, humid Sunday in July. Sounds perfect for a long bike ride.

While the day was hot, so too was the pace. We knocked out those 160kms in just about 5 1/2 hours plus a thirty minute break to enjoy cold Gatorade, fruit, fig bars and other snacks supplied by Jeff’s wife, Martina. Traffic was minimal, though, we did have to get off and walk through a section of road closed due to construction.

I felt strong nearly all day, putting forth several really hard pulls. On one of those Jeff wanted to quieten the group after a water break. He summoned me to the front and we amped up the pace. Heads were down, the pack was silent, Jeff was satisfied. I rolled to the back of the pack for my time to recover. With another couple of late, hard pulls, I could feel that I was getting tired. At 140kms, sitting next to strong man–and little Ellen’s orthopaedic surgeon–Simon, I confided that I didn’t have much of a pull left in my legs. “No worries” Simon chirped. Seconds later, I pulled to the side of the group, stopped pedalling and shot to the back of the pack and beyond. There was nothing I could do, I had popped, totally incapable of maintaining the intensity of the peleton. My legs were starting to quiver and quake with cramps in my quads and calves. Within seconds I was two hundred metres off the back and feeling wasted. A few turns later, I saw Jeff up ahead circling in the middle of the road, waiting to pull me back to the group. It was demoralizing, knowing that someone had to come and get me. I was also thankful for Jeff’s friendship, not wanting me to ride home alone. Thanks Jeff.

Back at the bike shop, pictures were taken, hands were shaken and many thanks given. Several of us then rolled over to Steve, Jennifer and Ellen’s house for burgers and refreshments. A perfect ending to a wonderful–though painful–day on the saddle.

It was so enjoyable to ride familiar routes with old friend Jeff, Terry, Keith, Kirk and others. Equally, I was shown a few new turns while meeting Simon, Jason and several more. Yup, another grand day on the bike.
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