Archive for September, 2009

End of Summer Bike Trip

Thursday, September 17th, 2009

Natalie and I have just finished cycling from Vancouver to Calgary. Here are some photos from the trip.

The Seawall in Stanley Park   Climbing to the Hope Slide

Sumallo Grove in Manning Provincial Park

Cycling the Crowsnest Highway Number 3

We stopped in Penticton for a couple of days to watch my brother Scott at Ironman Canada. Scott was disappointed with his race, but the rest of us were proud of his effort. Not everyone can turn in a top twenty result and still call it a bad day.

Scott Curry at IMC 2009 Scott Curry at IMC 2009

Double exposure shot of Scott Curry at IMC 2009

We got to cheer on a lot of the other pros as well. It was great to see Tereza Macel race to victory after she won Ironman Lake Placid only five weeks earlier.

I was teammates with Tereza at the 1996 World University Triathlon Championships in the Czech Republic. After having raced for so long, many would have assumed that her best races were behind her, but Tereza’s recent commitment to TeamTBB has obviously paid off.

Tereza Macel at IMC 2009

It was also exciting to watch Jordan Rapp pull off the overall win. Jordan is well known for his movie themed race reports. You can check out his site at: rappstar.com.

Jordan Rapp at IMC 2009

After a couple of days at the Ironman circus, it was nice to hit the road again. Natalie and I didn’t put too much pressure on ourselves to cover a certain distance every day. However, mountain passes and the desire to reach certain campgrounds by nightfall sometimes made for some tough days.

Cycling by Christina Lake

Cycling by Kootenay Lake

Hoodoo near Fairmont Hot Springs   Cycling through Sinclair Canyon

Overall the weather was fantastic. We only had one really rainy day which was at its worst as we descended from Sinclair Pass in Kootenay National Park.

Descending Sinclair Pass in the rain

Of course, if it weren’t for the precipitation, we may not have got to enjoy the mountains in all their snow-capped beauty the next day.

Cycling through Kootenay National Park

The wolf on highway sign wasn’t the most reassuring thing to pedal past on our unarmoured bikes. We later learned that the sign had been up for the past two months. There had been a wolf begging on the highway and they were simply trying to prevent motorists from stopping and feeding it. Nevertheless, I was glad Natalie and I decided to leave our bicycles made of straw at home.

CAUTION WOLF ON HIGHWAY. NO STOPPING   CAUTION WOLF ON HIGHWAY. NO STOPPING

Believe it or not, we did make it all the way to Calgary. However, I dropped and broke my camera as we approached the continental divide. As a result, we have only the memories etched in our minds and a slightly heavy feeling in our legs to remind us of our amazing time in Alberta.

Already looking forward to the next bike ride!

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