Why am I finding excuses not to ride? When I know I have a day off from work (it is not always the same day each week), I plan my day: go for a ride, clean the condo, do the washing, update the blog, tidy the garden, go shopping and sometimes do some work for my little administrative business. Increasingly I am finding that I am making excuses not to ride. It is too hot, it is too cold, it is too windy, I have work to do blah blah blah.

We have a tiny condo, it takes about an hour to clean. The garden takes me about half an hour. The same with other menial tasks I need to do around the condo, I have plenty of time to ride. Why am I not riding?

I love riding but I think for me I have to be going somewhere. The out and back training rides, head down and go rides are not for me any more. Especially cycling on my own which is more often the case as Ralf and I often are working at different times. Ralf has the week-ends off and I work most week-ends.

I have always loved riding my bike to work, my bike has always been a great mode of transportation for me. It is away to prepare myself for the day and unwind on my way home. However, if I am on the late shift – I do not ride. At closing all the staff wants to do is get out of there. They don’t want too have to wait for me to get changed and load the bike. I think that will have to change, as more of my shifts are on the late shifts. I will cycle home in my work gear so that I can ride to work more often.

Well I have to get my fat arse in gear soon as I am now planning the next part of the Grand Adventure.

My work at the Greenhouse will end the middle of December and Ralf’s contract at The Source, will end the first week in January and then we will be flying away to sunnier climes – Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, S. Korea and Japan. The planning is easier because we will not be taking camping gear, we will be staying in hostels and guest houses and of course warmshowers hosts again.

I need to get on the bike to train to do the distances again, although I have realistically set our distances at 60 kms a day. So much to see in these countries and the roads may not be as good as we experienced on the Grand Adventure Part One.

The weather is changing in Ontario, cooler mornings and more rain-showers. We will soon have to get our bikes set up on the trainers, so that I can stay motivated and train indoors to keep the muscles and body toned.

Finally Ralf and I have a day off together. I was working on the week-end, but had Monday the Labour Day holiday off. I had looked at the weather forecast and knew it was going to be a great day to go for a ride.

My mileage for this summer has been appalling – the lowest since records have been kept. This working really interferes with the cycling!! It has to change.

Because of my low mileage and shorter distances that I had ridden this summer, I was realistic in how far I could or should ride.

I decided that heading out on one of our favorite routes would be perfect – Carthew Bay and Oro-Medonte. It is relatively flat and a lovely route.

We headed out down the hill to Kempenfelt Bay, it was fairly busy with people enjoying the beach and the warm weather. We followed Kempenfelt Drive and then onto Ridge Road.

Oro-Medonte is one of our favorite areas to cycle and is very popular with other cyclists. The roads are fairly narrow but the speed limit is lower (supposedly). For the most part the car drivers are used to seeing cyclists on this road and are very patient and respectful. We saw a lot of cyclists out enjoying the day, everyone giving us a little wave and a big smile.

When we got to Carthew Bay, we stopped for an ice-cream and then headed home. On the return trip we usually hug the lakeshore as much as we can and check out the expensive houses along the Lakeshore to see how many are for sale at the end of the season. If we win the lottery this would be a nice place to buy.

Of course, our ride now always finishes with us coming up one of three hills. Although I have to cycle up the hill to get home and I have got better at it, Ralf is still a lot faster than I am. I told Ralf to go and he took of as if he hadn’t just finished cycling 70 kms. I puffed my way up the hill but still had a big grin on my face when I turned into the driveway of our condo block. It feels so good to be out on the bike. I really have to start planning the Grand Adventure Part Two

A lovely ride and great to ride with Ralf.

August 24, 2016

Other than cycling to work, I don’t often ride on my own anymore. Before we left on our Grand Adventure I would often add kilometres after my days work. Now I am working at the Greenhouse, I am physically tired at the end of the day. Consequently, I ride straight home – uphill admittedly, but no extra kilometres.

Ralf has started his new job and is working Monday to Friday and I am working most week-ends, we don’t get to ride together very often.

Ralf is far more dedicated and focussed than I am when it comes to getting out on his own and going for a ride. I knew I had to get out and do some distances. However, I often have things that I want to get done on my days off. I created a hill training ride, which is short but incorporated three hills.  This enables me to get out for a ride, but still get the other \”stuff\” done.

The ride is only 17 ks but the three hills have a total elevation gain of 365 metres.

Today, I was really enjoying my ride and after I had finished my second hill and heading down again ready to the third hill, I realized I was really enjoying being on the bike.

I decided not to head back up the last hill and carried along the beautiful Kempenfelt Bay. It was a relaxing ride for this section. After I had cycled through the downtown and along Kempenfelt Drive I turned around and headed back along the lakeshore and followed the cycle path to the end at Minets Point. This used to be my ride home and it was always a great way to unwind at the end of the day.

I headed up Hurst Drive and decided to carry on down the hill on Big Bay Point Road and with the momentum from the downhill I got to the top without too much effort. I was really enjoying this ride, then a stupid car drive spoiled it for me. We were coming to a set of traffic lights and the lights were on green, we were within 10 yards of the intersection, I was going straight through. She came along side of me with her right indicator flashing, I looked at her and her passenger and indicated that I was going straight through. She had to stop to let me carry on through the intersection, why did she even come along side me – what was she thinking?

The rest of the ride was uneventful and enjoyable. There were road-works on Mapleview and I kept up with the slowing car drivers, the big pick-up behind me stayed behind me and gave me a little wave as he passed me when the road widened out. There are always idiots on the road, but there are also good considerate car drivers, the good drivers far out weight the idiots.

It was a lovely ride that was supposed to be 17 kms but ended up at 42 kms – lovely.

July 31, 2016

Over the years we have had some great neighbours.

I remember Frau Devan in Germany at our first apartment. Frau Devan knew Ralf’s work schedule and was commonly referred to as a Café Clatcher or a net twitcher. Frau Devan knew the comings and goings of the apartment block that we lived in. Some people saw her as annoying old lady, but when it was raining and she knew we were out for the day, our laundry would be taken off the communal washing line and folded neatly in a laundry basket in front of our door.

Our first neighbour\’s in our new house in Barrie were Norman and Edith again a lovely old couple who often stopped for a chat. They would always look out for me when Ralf was on the road. When I had to fly to England when my Dad was sick they came around with supper for Ralf and plenty of cake to make sure he would survive without me.

Cindy and Randy in Shanty Bay looked after our cat while we were on holiday even though they were allergic to cats.

Cathy and Eric and Charlotte who looked after the cat while we were on holiday. Mark who would snow blow the drive-way if he knew I was on my own.

I could go on with the great neighbours and people we have met over the years. We now live in a condo townhouse complex and most people keep themselves to themselves. We (o.k. mostly me) will chat to anyone and I guess I am becoming quite the curtain twitcher. However, being the nosy neighbour and the chatty one came in very handy for Walter this week-end.

Sandra and Walter live next door, I have chatted to them as I passed on my way to the mail-box and noticed Walter had some medical issues (Parkinsons).

On Friday morning we were up early ready for Ralf to ride out with our warmshowers guest. We noticed the fire department and the ambulance arrive at our neighbours. The Fire Chief knocked at our door and asked if we knew our neighbours. I said that we had chatted occasionally. Sandra was being transported to hospital after a fall in the night and someone needed to stay with Walter until family could come up from Bolton. Of course I would sit with him.

Of all the good neighbours that we have had in the past – thank-you for your kindness.

Get to know your neighbours, you might even like them. The best neighbours are those that say Hi have a quick chat and then leave you to your own devices, but . . . you know they are there for you when you need them.

End of July, 2016

My ride to work takes me about 15 minutes – depending on the traffic lights. It is all down hill and is a very easy ride, I often hit over 50kms an hour going down the hill. I get to see some wildlife, deer, turtles and lots of gold finches. It is a pleasant ride to work. However, my ride home is all uphill, a short, steep hill. After working on your feet for 7.5 hours it can be a bit of a grind going home, but it does exercise different muscles and I am working on the hill training!.

I work with a great bunch of people, we all have a laugh when we are on our breaks. Most often we comment on members of the public and some of the questions they ask us. The initial interaction with members of the public almost always starts with, “I don’t know the name of this plant/flower but …..” and next follows a description of a plant. Some of the descriptions can be very funny – it looks like a Spanish lady with a hula hoop! – Guess what that one was – a canna lily.

My first interaction with a lady told me she was looking for a green plant with white flowers!! I took her to every white flowered plant we had – she eventually pointed to one of the hanging baskets and said that is it – Euphorbia!

However, one of my colleagues (Meagan) had the funniest story. A lady came in and described a plant – “green and purple leaves, quite big, with a thick stem and has small purple flowers, my neighbour has one”.  I recognized the description as Meagan was telling the story – “Wandering Jew”

Meagan was taking the lady to the plant when the lady exclaimed “I remember what it is called now – Escaping Jews”!! Meagan took her to the Wandering Jew and told her the correct name.

Ralf came to pick me up from work and surprised me while I was working in the indoor greenhouse.

Before my vacation I was asked by the store manager (Kevin) if I would like to move to the perennial section. The annual section starts to slow down by the end of June and they start letting people go. I guess they like the work I do and want me to stay until the end of the season. I told him I would be happy to move into the perennial section, but I know nothing about trees and shrubs.

On returning to work after my week in Ohio, I had been “traded” to the perennial section. I was really surprised to see how empty the ‘annual’ greenhouses were.

I asked what my trade fee would be. I got a pair of gardening gloves and a walkie-talkie. I treated myself to a pair of pruners as I tend to do more deadheading and pruning in this area than I did in the annual section.

They must like the work I do as I was nominated for Employee of the Month in July!  It was noted that \”Jacqueline always work hard and keeps a positive attitude (Yes, you have fooled us all!!)\”

I enjoy working at the greenhouse, I do not have much of a garden at the condo. I keep seeing plants that I would have added to my old garden, but at the condo there is not enough room. I bought a couple of roses – one of them is called Garden Party, in memory of my Mum and Dad. Mum liked gardening and Dad went to the Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace a few years ago.

Saturday June 25, 2016

We said our farewells before leaving the school on the last days ride. Sometimes we see people at the end of the ride other times we don’t. The last day and it was a head down and go ride. It was a hilly ride but the wind was good to us. The last couple of hills were brutal. I thought I wasn’t going to make it up the last one – a 15% grade. I was about to clip out of my pedals, I looked to my right and a young woman was getting off her bike, I had someone right behind me and someone else was passing on my left, I had no opportunity to clip out. I put my head down and pressed down hard on the pedals. I made it, thighs burning, heart pounding and with a big grin on my face, another hill I conquered. Ralf, of course, was waiting for me at the top. Well done he said you are getting better and not far behind me on that one.

It was a good last days ride.

We had a shower and left Ohio at about 12:30. We stopped once on the way home for lunch and got to Ralf’s Dads place at about 8:00 p.m.

We had a nice visit with them and a good nights sleep. The end of another GOBA.

Final Words on GOBA

We really enjoy riding GOBA and joining the Dayton Cycling Club.

Why do we pay extra for joining the Dayton Cycling Club to transport our bags when we have already paid through GOBA?

Well. . .   on this years GOBA there were approximately 1,500 participants. Each participant can bring two bags, which means at the end of the days ride you could be searching for your two bags out of 3,000 bags.

Dayton allows us to bring two bags and two chairs and we only have approximately 100 bags to find ours.

We always meet lots of interesting people to talk to at the end of day, while sitting under a canopy drinking cold drinks and eating snacks, that are provided for by the Dayton Cycling Club. They provide chargers for us to charge our electronics

and occasionally entertain us with music.

Thanks Dayton Cycling Club and especially the Minardi’s who organize the SAG.

Friday June 24, 2016

The alarm went off for Ralf at 5:15. “I came here to ride”. I heard other people moving around at 6:30 and the sun was warming the tent, I got up at 7:00 and headed for the shower trucks.

I picked up a coffee and Mark (Minardi) told me about the Brexit vote. The Brits have voted out of being in the EU – 52 to 48. OMG. What changes will happen to the pound and Euro and the financial situation in Europe. France and Germany cannot financially support the rest of Europe. I wonder how this will affect expats living and working in Europe. As far as Schengen and ease of travel for British Passport holders, I guess it will mean more restrictions. I can see there being a huge backlash from the main European countries on this vote. Interesting times.

I met Deb and Sue and Sue’s sister Pat and we headed out for breakfast. While we were having breakfast, Anne and Barry (the two people who introduced us to GOBA and the Dayton Cycling Club) were at the school hoping to see us. We headed back to the school to meet them, but they had already headed home. It’s a shame we couldn’t have got to see them again, as we really appreciate them telling us about GOBA. We have met some really nice people on this ride.

We headed out once again to the Indian Mound. The Mound is 65 feet tall and 800 feet in circumference. It rests atop a 100 foot ridge above the Great Miami River. The Mound is a reminder of the American Indians who once lived in Ohio over 2,000 years ago. The Mound was a burial mound and had been excavated in the late 1800s.

After climbing the steps to the top of the mound and chatting to one of the historians from Ohio History Connection we headed downtown. Deb hadn’t heard of Merino wool before and the excellent ‘no stink’ properties of the wool. Both Deb and Sue bought a couple of t.shirts that were on sale.

Ralf enjoyed his ride, although he got two flat tires and had to buy a new tire.  The ride took him along the river trail towards Dayton.

He passed the Dayton Air Force Base Museum and stopped to take some photos of the planes that were on display.

Later in the day after Ralf had an afternoon ‘nap’ we headed downtown with Dick.

The angel wings are painted on the wall next to the Art Downtown shop. All of us had our photos taken.

As you can see my wings are a little too big, Dick’s halo is a little off-kilter and surprisingly Ralf’s wings seem to fit perfectly.

Dick told us about the flood of 1913, he wasn\’t here to witness it!

We had a beer and a big sandwich with fries for a late lunch/early dinner – thanks Dick.

On the last night of GOBA there is a song contest where participants write their own lyrics to popular tunes. The songs are about GOBA and can be quite funny. We opted to stay at the school and have an early night.

Thursday June 23, 2016

At 1:49 a.m. the Fire Department announced that severe winds and thunder storms were tracking our way. A few people evacuated to the on-site buildings. Sue said she wasn’t moving, Ralf stayed in the tent. Although I was a little concerned, I went back to the tent and went straight to sleep. At 2:45 the thunderstorms started and really heavy winds blew all around us. The tent stayed upright and did not leak. By 3:13 the storm had blown over and we were safe and sound. I slept really well until the alarm went off at 5:30. We didn’t get up straight away as there was another small thunderstorm going through.

I was surprised to see that most of the tents were still standing, only one seemed to have broken poles. Incredibly the two tents that I assisted in erecting were still standing and the owners survived the night.

The five porta potties did not survive! As I was standing in line for the one loo, I wondered in my sleepy state why they had removed four potties in the night, when I realized I was looking at the upended bottoms of the potties.  I wanted to get a photo of the upended porta potties, but a couple of the guys stood them back up – yuck not sure that was a good idea.

After a very interesting night, we put away the wet tent and headed out later than usual at 7:35. We had a great breakfast provided by the “Pink Ribbon Girls” – supporting Breast Cancer Research. Five items for $5.00 choice of a piece of fruit, bagel or donut, boiled egg, yogurt, coffee or juice. They had so many bananas they were giving everyone two instead of one.

Today was a head down and go ride. How easy it is to fall back into the old habits of “racing” through a ride. It does feel good though to ride a light bike and just go.

The ride to the first rest stop was very nice.

To the second rest stop we had a few miles of “carreretta road” – Cuban style bumpy roads. These kinds of roads are hard on the bum and the hands and of course it was into a headwind.

After the lunch stop we had a tail-wind, a relatively flat smooth road and we motored. I knew the last three miles were going to be uphill. After we cycled through downtown Miamisburg, we headed uphill to the school and our place to camp for the next two nights. As we headed uphill, I told Ralf to meet me at the top and off he disappeared, leaving me in his dust. He is such a good climber there is no point in holding him back. I wasn’t too many minutes behind him, I am getting better.

After setting up the tent, showering and a quick chat with the folks we headed downtown.

Miamisburg is located on the Great Miami River and has some great bike trails. It has a nice waterfront park where we listened to some music.

We walked up and down the main street, there is some work being done to bring the downtown back to its former glory. They had a few empty shops, but they did have one really good outfitters shop, where we could have spent a small fortune. I bought a little black skirt to replace the one I lost in Charlottetown. The skirt is not Merino Wool but it hangs exactly the same as the skirt I lost and will probably wash and dry quicker than my lovely Merino wool skirt – it was on sale for $36.00.

We ate in a pub downtown – fish and chips and a couple of pints of beer.

We got back to the camp and chatted to Dick for a while. He is such a lovely man. We were hoping to meet Cindy, but she had other plans for tomorrow.

Sue asked if I was riding tomorrow. I told her I was planning to go up to the Indian Mound. Sue and Deb said that sounded like a good idea and we could all go together with Sue’s sister Pat who lives locally and will drive us. We are going out for breakfast, and then heading to the Indian Mound and back to the Outfitters Store.

Both Deb and Sue have climbed Kilimanjaro and I want to learn more about that. I am not sure I want to do it yet, but I might add it to my bucket list along with Macchu Picchu.

Wednesday June 22, 2016

I was awake at 4:30 making a dash to the Porta Potty clutching my tummy and butt cheeks. I felt awful. I was awake again at 5:00 and eventually got up at 5:15 with another visit to the Porta Potty. Fortunately, there were no line-ups as there usually is at the rest stops during the rides.

I managed to eat a muffin for breakfast and then asked Ralf not to do the Century Ride and ride with me for the day. He looked after me today, ensuring that I was eating enough to survive without throwing up.

Fortunately, it was an easier ride today. A couple of steeper climbs early on in the day, then rolling hills and the last 10 miles were flat with a tail wind. The weather was also much cooler today which helped with the cycling. We had a couple of rain showers, which cooled things down a little.

After we had set up the tent, Ralf went back out to the last rest stop (10 miles out) he added another 32 kms to his day. It didn’t give him an imperial century, but it did give him a metric century+. He met Dick at the last rest stop and cycled into camp with him.

After showering, Sue (one of the other GOBA riders) said she was going to set up her friends tents. They were doing the century loop and the forecast was for rain. I offered my assistance. We got the first one set up easily, but the second was a little more complicated. Various members of the group came over to offer their assistance and advice. We did get it up and hoped that it would stay there, at least until the owner got back from his ride.

Forecasts for severe thunder storms and strong winds had the Dayton Cycling Club in a bit of a tizzy. GOBA organizer came around and told people that buses would be available at 9:00 p.m. to take anyone who wanted to sleep in the gym for the night for an extra $10.00. Sue commented it was a “chicken little” scenario – “the sky is falling in”.

The Fire Department announced that they were monitoring the situation and if it was likely the storm would hit our area, they would advise evacuation from the tents into buildings on-site.

We opted to stay in the tent.

Tuesday June 21, 2016

I went back to sleep after Ralf left to do the optional loop of 81 ks today. I woke up at 7:40 and had a nice shower in the shower truck. The shower trucks are transport trailers set up with about 6 shower stalls and an area to get dressed. It can get quite hot in the shower trucks when all stalls are being used and very cosy as 6 women are trying to get undressed and dressed in a confined area. This morning I was the only one in the shower truck and it was very nice. I missed the breakfast set up in the school cafeteria. I had headed out to do the washing. I took the shuttle bus Uptown and headed to the Laundromat. I got misplaced a couple of times, therefore it took me about 30 minutes to find the Laundromat. I am not sure what it is about Laundromat dryers but, unless you have the heat set on “furnace” they never seem to dry your clothes properly. After $2.00 and sitting around for an hour or more, I headed back to the school with slightly damp clothes. I draped them over the tent awning and they dried very quickly.

I eventually ate “breakfast” at noon at a small café in Uptown. One of the nice things about GOBA, you never have to sit and eat on your own. Someone will always take the time to chat to you. I spoke to a lovely couple who had lived in North Bay! They arrived in North Bay in December on one of the coldest winters on record. Welcome to Canada.

I had a lovely spanekopita and a good cup of coffee.

Ralf had a good ride. When he is on his own he doesn’t take many photos and tends to put his head down and go.

Oxford is a nice little University Town – the Uptown area has some small boutiquey shops and lots of bars and restaurants that cater for the students. The evening entertainment was Square Dancing.

We ate at the Steinkeller German Restaurant again. Good food, and good beer.

We were in bed by 9:45 tonight and Dick did not get us into any more trouble.