Monthly Archive for August, 2008

Dalton to Sussex—82 Miles—Day 61 August29, 2008

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Barb Mellema
on August 29, 2008
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What a wake up call—a skunk came into camp and left at stench a little after 4:00 am—I couldn’t bury my nose in the sleeping bad enough. I didn’t get much sleep after that because I was tenting between John & Cynthia & they were on breakfast sweep duty.

We left Lackwanna State Park this morning with vest & arm warmers but jettisoned them shortly after. Lots of climbing today so we warmed in a hurry.

It was a big day for all—82 miles of ups & downs with grades of 14-16 % at different times.Coffee at Mugg’s in Hawley wasn’t quick with many bikers but few waitresses…but I got a funny picture of Fred Meyerink’s helmet hair.

The biggest climb was 4 miles that took us to High Point, NJ—this is the highest point in the state. Right at the top is High Point State Park with a monument—we just had to do it…another 1.5 miles to it, 291 steps to the top. It was 21 floors tall & reminds me of Washington Monument in DC.Louis & I stopped to take many photos today. Churches, prisons, wind generators…all were in great settings of these rolling hills…check out the photos of the day.

When I got to camp at Sussex Christian School I had a surprise visit from Ken & Diane (Vander Schaaf) Nywening—I wish I had more time to visit but thanks so much for coming to see me. We were in grade school & high school together and I used to cut her hair.

I also met a few blog readers and Dordt alums. Brandi (Ochsner) Vande Werken and her husband Joel are living here. Brandi had the sign for us in NE & I met her mom in the middle of the road. Joel is the pastor here. I also met Terri Garris and Stan and Melody (Brink) Sturing.

The food at the school here was unreal—what a buffet. WOW! It is time for me to start cutting back starting Saturday night—I won’t be biking on Sunday but rather starting the ride home. I’ll just have my daughter order first & eat what she chooses—then I won’t have to make a decision of what to eat or I’d over order.

We’re guests this evening in the home of Rob and Carol Dekker’s—he’s a brother to Rin Goedhart, one of my prayer partners at home. Rin—you are remembered fondly here and I even met a few of your former students…Sharon & John Morris and Rich Sytesma. Rich’s daughter Hannah made a great sign for us outside the Clove Brook Bakery…and we need to get Casey, their son, to our campus!

Sarah Terpstra will be getting out of the hospital tomorrow according to her brother. Bob said to watch her blog site for updates in a few days—thanks for your concern & keep praying for her.

Things from the day: :-)

  • I saw a sign that said, “A zoned community.” What kind of drugs do they take for them to all be zoned? Quaaludes?
  • How do you tell the person in front of you that “crack up” no longer means a crack in the road or a joke…but rather it’s time to throw those shorts away after a 9 week tour?
  • Ladies—your husbands have been making their lunches and doing their laundry for 2-9 weeks…don’t let them fall back into their old routines.

  • Men—your wives have been carrying their bags and setting up their tents for 2-9 weeks—they need a break.

It’s time for bed—this is the second time I’m typing this because I lost it in the cut & paste process. I’m not sure how much time I’ll have for blogging but I do plan for a few reflections later. Pray for us on our last day…that we stay safe as we go to the waters edge, that logistically it all works out with 3 different police escorts, and that the mission continue and not end at the water.

Binghamton to Dalton PA–58 Miles–Day 60 August 28, 2008

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Last night we were hosted for dinner by Valley CRC—they served Spiedies (speedys)—a local highlight. Skewered bites of marinated chicken & pork, slow cooked (2hrs.) over low heat. Let’s just say we didn’t leave hungry—they were very good and so was the fellowship.

The days are getting shorter—it took me years to figure out what people meant when they said it. But the sun isn’t coming up as quick or hanging around as long as it used to. I didn’t get up until 5:50 & we didn’t leave until 6:50. Heavy dew covered the tents and bikes that had to stay outside—Cynthia still gives me a hard time about my bike in my tent—it’s the child I never gave birth to.

It was low 50’s when we left and two hours later it still read 56*—clouds prevented the sun from warming us up too quickly. The high some say was in the 70’s—I don’t know when though. I think my blood is thinning out because I don’t remember wearing so many biking clothes as this week—I kept my leg warmers on all day today. My arm warmers now have safety pins at the top so they don’t fall down—lost a bit of upper body weight the last 8 weeks. Leg & arm warmers are made of lycra, with elastic on each end to hold them in place—they keep our extremities warm and are easy to peel off once our bodies or the temps warm up.

The morning smells are fresh—laundry in someone’s dryer, fields being worked, the smells at bakeries—and then a guy went by with a cigarette…cough, cough.

Cory was at 11 miles out and he waved us on and told us where a turn was coming up—he’s glad to be back at his duties today and not riding with us. We made a stop at Julie’s SAG and she had a great location—on the NY & PA state lines. Photo opportunities…She had potato chips for us—Yes! Salt instead of sugar…From there we went to coffee—we tried to get Julie to go along with us, she declined. What would they do to her if she dropped off the water jugs & chips with a sign that says she’ll be back in a bit? Fire her at this late date of the ride? Ever faithful to her duties…

I noticed in my mirror while we were riding that a few dropped off the line. Cynthia was having a bit of breathing trouble—so we spread out. Too many bikers in a long line limits the visual ability of those in back so we separated into two groups again—I was with Louis & John. Cynthia was with Jake, Andy and Jerry. We usually meet up at the rest areas or for coffee but today we missed each other when we went into town…didn’t see each other until camp.

Beautiful visuals today. Covered lanes, waterways, and the Tunkhannock Viaduct—according to the locals it’s the world’s largest reinforced concrete structure world.

Our climbs at the end of the day were short but steep—one persons GPS said 14-16% grade. I found my mountain muscles again—Hello little legs! Climbing here is different then the mountains—tree lines come quicker thank the Lord.

At peloton tonight Alida (in camp nurse) and Marv (kitchen truck driver and who hates to say more than 3 words at a time) De Boer, gave a reflection of the trip through their eyes. Alida said, “We are in awe of what you have accomplished on bikes with such skinny tires.” Then she gave us a few medical statistics,

· 22 people went to the ER

· 3 collar bones

· 1 Achilles tendon

· 1 broken pelvis

· 2 with broken ribs

· 1 arm

· 6 people broke bones

· 2 needed stitches

· 3 needed surgery after going home

Communion tonight was a blessing. At all of our services Jenna Zee & Annette Rolleman have been playing their flutes and sharing their talents with us—I hope they know what a blessing they have been to us. When you tell them thank you they respond with, “No problem.” It would be for me—music is not one of my talents. J

I’m being hosted in Sussex so this is my last night to sleep in my tent—it’s been a great little dome home but it’s time to move into my spouse house. J

Because I was hosted this past weekend I missed the mail. So today, I received a lovely letter from a blog reader in Salem, Oregon. Amy, thank you for introducing yourself and family to me and for your encouraging words. I hope someday you and your family, as well as many others, can do a Sea2Sea type experience. Until you do may God bless you and your husband in your ministry. Coffee shops are great places too—thanks!

Romulus to Binghamton—77 Miles—Day 59 August 27, 2008

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This morning we had on the winter woolies for breakfast. Corinne S. isn’t feeling up to par so some of us covered her breakfast sweep duties. Our group broke up a bit for the day—rolling hills aren’t good in lines.

Cory, our early morning SAG driver, rode with us today. We have enough others to chip in so he borrowed a bike & came with Louis, John & me. It was a great day for riding with the hills, cool temps and beautiful scenery—this blog entry might read like yesterdays but we’re still in upstate NY.

We didn’t get far down the road & we arrived at our first photo op. We came upon a Port-a-Pot distributor…I just had to have a photo of the guys by them—poor Cory can’t get away even for a day.

We arrived at Margaret De Weerd’s SAG stop, usually Cory’s area, and we stopped to say hello. Poor Cory couldn’t get his feet out of the basket pedals & down he went. He didn’t get hurt…but it counts…he became a statistic.

The road was easily marked & it took us into Ithaca—home to Cornell—so we found a donut/coffee shop & tried to have Cory enjoy a typical day of biking. Out came the cards to pass around and visit with John DV, Ralphy Boy, and Jim DG—these 3 started in MI.

We had to make a major climb right after coffee, for some it was difficult, but at the top was Six Mile Creek Winery. They had a wonderful setting & orchard right in the back—check out photos.

Cory had a great day—he’ll sleep good tonight–look at photos—life is good—God is great.

I’m limited for time—internet is down in camp & will be down for the rest of the week. I’m blogging with Ed G. & Bert S. at Broome Community College in Binghamton—it was a drive by car to get here & supper awaits. Blog entries could be sporadic but I’ll keep trying. Tomorrow night we’re in a State Park again—I think.

My family is on the way to get here—pray for safety for all—thanks for reading.

Byron to Romulus—77 Miles—Day 58 August 26, 2008

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As I crawled into my tent a local musical group was entertaining all the riders with fiddles, a guitar & a bass…beautiful music of many different musical styles. They even had an extra fiddle and let Vonda W. play a solo & join in with them.

The locals said it was in the upper 40’s this morning with heavy dew. I always keep my bike in my tent and after 8 weeks of setting my tent up & taking it down, it doesn’t take me long to do either. In the short time of taking my tent down my bike was full of dew… frame, computer, & seat…yuck! I about thought about using arm warmers but when I used them the other day I had to safety pin the tops to keep them up—I’ve lost a bit of upper body weight. Rather my heavy, long sleeve jersey, full finger gloves and socks today was the uniform because of the cool temps—I love biking in this kind of weather.

We went out in two groups today. Louis, John, Pete & I were in the first one & Cynthia, Andy, Jerry & Jake were behind us by 50’. Everyone gets the room we need for safety sake & if others hop on the line we’re not too long as we go through cities.

We went right past Cory—he was 11 miles out and too early in our ride but he was busy talking with a local and handing out a S2S card. (It’s not just the riders that are spreading the message—our support staff does too.) We didn’t stop until we had 25 miles in at Lima—time for coffee & passing cards out.

We had a lunch stop at a farm and it was hosted by the great people of East Palmyra CRC. Sloppy Joes, fruit, salads, chips—this is what I ate but the list of options goes on… two miles down the road I was bemoaning the fact that I ate too much.

Our last stop was to say hi to Joe De Weerd, a SAG driver we added in MI. I asked where the turn was coming up & he said in 2K. Had Cynthia, Andy & Pete asked when they stopped they wouldn’t have missed it and added another 50K to their day. Get out the ice pack…

The route today was great—rolling hills through cropland and very little traffic—Ed did good! We’re in the Finger Lakes area of New York. I didn’t know that this state had all this to offer—I usually think big city life when I think New York. I’ve been noticing the differences in the crops that are drying out, the sumac changing color, and some leaves that are dropping.

Sampson State Park is our tent space for the night—it was a Naval Base early on. The waters in Seneca Lake are so deep that they did submarine testing here. It has a Military Museum, clean bathhouses, nice beach and great camping area.

Mike Bruinooge (he started in MI) was filling his tire with air right before dinner. I just happened to walk up behind him and make a loud bang noise—need less to say, I should be watching my back in the future—it sure was funny at the time.

We’re celebrating tonight on behalf of Marti & Colby DuPlessi’s right to pay Canadian taxes—yesterday they were allowed into the country on a permanent basis. (Citizenship Ceremony) The cooks can really cook things up when they get on a roll—balloons, cake, poster & a Canadian T-shirt. Reminder to self—stay on their good side.

Tonight at peleton Len R., head chaplin, asked us what we’re going to say when people ask us about our ride. My response…read my blog! I put it all in here. I’ve been having an awesome experience seeing God in creation, in people, in moments of the day. We’ve started at an ocean, moved up mountains, dried out in the dessert, pioneered the plains, foraged in the forest, and Lord willing will see another ocean by bike. How do we sum up the experience of meeting people in coffee shops, along the road, rest/lunch stops, and celebration services?

By grace I’m having a wonderful summer. I don’t want to sound trite when I write that “I don’t know what the future holds but I know who holds the future… In truth…it’s almost scary to dwell on what God expects of me now that I’ve been given so much.

St Catharines to Byron, NY—76.5 Miles Day 57

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It was great meeting so many at the Celebration Service—thanks for the prayers and support. I’m not looking at Saturday as the end of the tour. I think it’s like a wedding comparison—the wedding ceremony is a kick-off for married life. The ride was also my personal kick-off for my personal journey and fight of poverty.

This is my last Monday to ride. This morning I left Henrietta’s home with Lavonne & Cynthia—she joined us last night—to get to Beacon Christian School where the group was based for the weekend. I was on my last sweep day today.

The cool temps dictated arm warmers and a vest when I left camp with Corinne S & Christeena N. The rest of the team, the London Express is what they’re calling us, was ahead of us a bit. We went on a bike path along the Welland Canal, missed our turn onto Queenston St., but it was a bonus that we happened to see a ship in the locks so it was worth it.

All the cyclists and support staff had to meet at 9:30 in a parking lot off of Hiram Ave. by the Falls for the border crossing over Rainbow Bridge. It was an answer to prayer at the border. We literally went right through—they gave us 2 lanes on the left and none of us were stopped, none of us had to show passports…just ride, say thank you & have a good day. I’m convinced it was all the prep work Ed W. did on the front end, prayers and the Lord’s blessings—that ease of crossing has never happened to any of us that we could recall.

We checked out the Falls on the USA side before we headed out in groups of no less than 6 through Niagara—safety in numbers. We didn’t stop too often but had a good day in general. The communities were small today but the route was pretty. When we got to Alabama, a small town in New York not the state, we went to Teed Off, a little burger shack connected to a golf course, and met the group I’m usually with. Hmmm…did they take an alternate route to still be out this late? Yep! They put on an extra 15K/8 miles on that route—glad I wasn’t along for that ride. J

The closer we got to Byron we saw fields of cabbage heads—that’s a new one for me—I could smell them before I saw them. When the sun disappears behind a cloud it cools down quick. It’s supposed to be cold tonight & they started a camp fire—I’m down wind right now & my tent might smell like it for the rest of the week.

It’s time to get our clothes off the line—Joe De Weerd rigged up a clothesline for us between his trailer& a picnic table—have our peleton meeting, and small group meeting.

Definitions for some of you:

SAG—Support and gear

RAGBRAI—Registers Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa—the oldest, largest fun ride in the world—IA is a state that has 2 rivers as natural borders, Missouri & Mississippi…at the beginning of the ride we dip in the Missouri & at the end we dip our bike tire in the Mississippi. (Thousands of people ride this ride the last full week of July.)

Tim Hortons–a coffee/donut shop. I hesitate to compare it to Starbucks and anger my Canadian friends. Tim H. was a hockey player. He was killed on a corner we went past last week in a car accident.

No small groups tonight–the cook are providing S’mores at the campfire–more sugar! Where’s the salt? A huge thanks to Henrietta for getting me to the store for ketchup chips!

Please continue to pray for SarahTerpstra–her infection has worsened and she’s back in the hospital. If I find out more I’ll post it.

St. Catharines, ON CANADA Sunday, August 24, 2008

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Do I have to get out of bed? It’s 8:10 & my body wants more sleep—I don’t know if I need the sleep but I want more sleep.

Yesterday I forgot to mention the horsemeat…yes horsemeat! We were at The Dutch Shop, Eritia’s bakery, & in the deli case I see a ‘loin’ labeled horsemeat. At first I laughed thinking it really was horse—then Jaco & John asked me what I was laughing at & I pointed & asked them what it really was—it REALLY is HORSE. Jaco offered me a slice—thank you NO! When in Rome maybe, but this isn’t Rome…and I have options. Maybe it’s what you get used to, but we used to joke about old horses going to the glue factory. Here, if the race horse loses it loses in a big way.

After blogging, dinner, and a shower we headed to Niagara. Henrietta gave us a ride through Niagara on the Lake and then took us to the Falls…such generous hospitality. Henrietta is a CRWRC worker in the Burlington office in Canada. She has served 10 yrs in Mali, West Africa. Her claim to fame was riding a camel in Timbuktu.

We went to worship this morning at Covenant CRC…not in Sioux Center but in St Cath. This church is Alida Van Dijk’s home church. A good number of other riders attended here too this morning. A few SERVE teams spoke about their trips at the service—it’s so neat to hear what they witnessed and what they were able to be a part of in the name of Christ. I can see seeds planted in them & if I never meet them again I pray that those seeds take fruition in the Word so they continue to go out in the world.

Pastor Herm & Dee—met a few friends of yours from Toronto—Gerard & Ellie Duiker & Emo Knibbe…they came here for the service today. It’s raining right now—maybe if we have the rain today we won’t have rain tomorrow when we ride…

The rain stopped and we were able to have the Celebration Service outdoors at Queenston
Heights at Niagara Falls. Brian Walsh gave the address and talked about being change agents—living the fruit of the Spirit without piety.We’re off to peleton & I found out I’m on sweep tomorrow morning—set out lunch items, breakfast will be provided by a local church I think, and them sweep the riders into camp. We’re crossing back into the states tomorrow—pray that it goes smoothly.

Mike Vander Horst went down again late yesterday afternoon & found out he has a crack in the color bone. Mike is a very good/strong rider, I’ve been behind him in a head wind & he’s also good about calling out road conditions for us. Please pray for comfort & healing–he’s going to ride in the morning though. Also pray for Sarah Terpstra—she went home with a kidney infection but will join us in Jersey City. Sarah—we’re praying your rest & meds do you well & I was sorry to hear this news.

It’s really hard to believe that we have 6 days of riding left. As much as I’m going to miss all the people I’m riding with and everyone in camp, I’m setting my mind that even though the riding is coming to an end— our mission and fight against poverty continues. I’m more aware myself of the needs locally and globally and some of the things I can do. I’m more knowledgeable of the work CRWRC and our missionaries and disaster response teams do and our churches involvement. It was announced that were over the $2 million point in our fund raising—Praise God & thank you all.

Hamilton to St Catharines—46 Miles Day 55 August 23, 2008

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After a great night at Ena & Dick Mostert we headed back to Redeemer College to get our gear. Louis B, John VS & myself headed out together biking. Last night at peloton we volunteered, along with Aaron Carpenter, Cory Nyhuis & Johnnie Pierce, for a service project at Start up Niagara.

It was good weather with a bit of a side wind as we went along orchards of grapes. These orchards are for icewines—they let the grapes hang until it freezes to 10-13 C before they harvest the grapes & press them. We had pretty scenery as we went along the Niagara Escarpment on ridge road—I can’t explain the escarpment except to say, “The Escarpment soars 510 metres (1675 ft.) at its highest point and stretches 725 km (450 miles) from Niagara to Tobermory.” http://www.escarpment.org/about/overview/index.php Yeah—come check it out!

We dropped down the escarpment on a road with 12% grade into
Grimsby and stopped at The Dutch Shop, it reminds me of Casey’s Bakery with all the Dutch gifts and goodies to go along with baked items. Eritia Smit works here when she’s not biking so Jaco, owner, treated all the riders to coffee and mocha cake.

We kept our stops brief because of our time line but journeyed on to Shalom a rest/nursing home to greet the residents. Around the corner was Mountain View CRC where they were serving peaches and ice cream—I stuck to the peaches which were excellent—but it’s the support of the people that warms us.

We went on to Providence CRC in Beamsville which was the lunch stop—no time to eat a bit—just time to greet a bit—and we were off. Bless Cory—he grabbed us a few buns from Beamsville we could eat when we got in. This is where Aaron joined our line & we rushed in the last 20 miles.

We averaged 17 mph with city traffic & many stop lights—I no longer trust the guys when they yell, S-l-o-w-i-n-g—because they don’t! Stop lights meant ‘slowing’ and slowing meant ‘only if we see cars.’ I figure that’s how they bike on weekends in Canada.

Once we got in a quick clothes change had us heading out to Start up
Niagara, it is a soup kitchen & we served vegetable soup, bread, a tuna bun and desserts. You know those WWJD bracelets? Well, I really think that this is a place where Jesus would hang out. People come for the food, to socialize, or both. We served maybe 80 people, people I wouldn’t see on the streets of my community—doesn’t mean they’re not around—I’m just seeing with different eyes the different needs of different people. I was blessed.

When we arrived back at Beacon Christian School, our base for the weekend, I was treated to a massage. This weekend I’m a guest in the home of Henrietta Hunse along with Lavonne Koedam. Tonight we’re going to Niagara Falls and tomorrow will be busy with our last Celebration Service on the route—I’m not counting the finale here. It is so hard to believe that we have completed week 8.

Also, a shout out to Andrea (Knevel) Mulder, a Dordt alum I met yesterday at the Woodstock stop. It was great to meet her and I appreciate her energy and smile.

Please pray for Jeff Schoon-the one who told me about the snow plow to my igloo-who went down 2 days ago. He biked yesterday with a separated shoulder—these people are tough & want to finish every mile they can.

London to Hamilton—78 Miles Day 54 August 22, 2008

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Thanks for all the birthday greetings-I was trying to slide under the radar on this one–it didn’t work. Karen-happy birthday to you today!

This morning I didn’t awake until 5:55—that would be extremely late if I had a tent to pack. Although, if I had a tent to pack I wouldn’t have slept that late b/c the tent zippers of other would have gone off. I was tucked in a bed at Irene & John VDSteen’s home. I’m not a high maintenance woman on a bike ride so I was up and at it in a bit-I’m not a high maintenance woman off a bike ride either though.

As we were riding into Ingersoll we were concerned on how big our line of bicycles was getting. I was #5 & Cynthia was #6 with 4 or 5 more behind—not smart when the goal was to keep everyone off her rear wheel. We had a great stop at Ingersoll CRC under the care of Coby—Heather Fieten’s mother—good hospitality runs in the family. Ingersoll CRC helped sponsor Andy DV, Pete VN & Mike VH, guys from our group, and we can’t do this without your support.

We split up the group for the day—I rode with Cynthia, Mike, John & Louis. The guys took the lead & Cynthia was at the end. Riders were quick to give us space when we explained what we were doing. It worked slick—if she falls behind a bit I help pull her up to the end of the line. If we get too far back I give a yell. She’s biking strong but stops & starts are done gingerly—and she’s ready to get in at the end of the day. We told all the SAG drivers that if we pass by without stopping it’s not because we’re anti-social—I don’t think that title would fit anyway.

I just had a guy from Redeemer take my photo while I’m blogging—I fessed up that I was from Dordt—I don’t think I’ll make their publication. :-) I wore my Dordt College jersey to this campus but didn’t want to push it while on campus. They’re doning a great job for us and we appreciate it.

I’ve been enjoying this whole ride and I love to see new things/places. The rolling of the hills today was great—reminds me of home & I hate to lose those climbing muscles on too many flats—we’ll need those muscles next week. I went past crops of cauliflower, tobacco, and ginger besides the corn & beans I could recognize. The smells of the day can linger when the humidity rises like it did today, but most of them were good smells. Early morning we ride down streets & smell clean laundry—when we’ve been living out of a gear truck & canvas bags you notice the subtle smells of clean clothes & perfume on ladies in coffee shops. Fresh cut grass and hay remind me that I didn’t sit the mower once this year…I think there will still be time when I get home…shoot.

Lunch was at Woodstock—in a field that reminded me of RAGBRAI—with sandwiches and mocha cake. There is no chance of losing any more weight even if I wanted to—I’m sticking to the fruit or I’ll end but in a diabetic sugar coma—and I don’t have diabetes…yet! Then it was off to Brantford where I was greeted by the Vanderwoerd family. Valerie, Jim, Colin, Trevor, Graham and Hannah were cheering us all on. They were members of Covenant CRC with me in Sioux Center and now live closer to family—Trevor is taller than me now & on his way to take a drivers test—I’m sure he did well.

Now we’re at Redeemer’s nice campus. Fellowship CRC welcomed us and Leah gave me a pedicure—I think I may have needed it after all these weeks of biking. I’m going to be billeted this evening, along with Claire E. & Hank Z. by Ena and DickMostert—she’s very busy welcoming the riders and doing a great job of it.

Doug Lukte got taken down by a dog today. Rick Gritters & Joy, Doug’s wife, made it past the German Shepherd & Black lab—Doug thought he was safe too until one of the dogs took right for his front tire—down on his shoulder. He’s sporting some rash on his elbow as well as a sore right shoulder.

Pete Van Noord had a spill too today. Pete was with the other group of guys that broke off of our group and with 10K he rubbed tires with Jerry K. He’s sporting a bit of the road rash too—he then headed for the bike shop to replace/fix his aero bars.

Please continue to pray for safety–that’s the only way we get through a day–the prayers of the people & grace. We’ve been so blessed and enriched with this opportunity and meeting such wonderful people along the way that even though I know I’mrepeating certain sentiments–I still mean them.

I talked with Henry Kranenburg-a Dordt Board Member -he was also at my interview-told me I still have a job to go back to…Yeah!

Chatham to London—74 Miles Day 53 August 21, 2008

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It was hard to wake up out of a bed this morning. Usually the tent taking down ceremony helps wake me up—but his morning it was the smell of coffee & egg dish. :-)

We headed out in arm warmers and vests & kept them on for the first 30 miles. Our line was big but we stayed to the end of the line…Jerry at the back, then Cynthia & I was ahead of her before all the other guys that were pulling in the wind. I can’t imagine how she felt having to sit the saddle 2 days in a row—only this one longer. Head wind today and a bit stronger then yesterday kept us at it. We didn’t dismount or take a break until we were at Walt’s SAG stop—mile 32—time for coffee. When Cynthia is on the bike it’s best for her to stay on as long as she can before she takes a break—that’s great for us because we’re used to sitting in the saddle longer since our century days in Iowa. It’s fun to hear her give the guys a hard time again & I can sit back & laugh along.

Pete wanted to get going because he was meeting his son so they could ride together for the day. Jake wanted to get in because his daughter & 2 grandkids (cuties) were meeting them in the park. Pieter Pereboom joined us as we left Walt’s SAG. He’s from London as well as John and between the 2 of them we knew we could get in without having to take an alternate route—or if they took us on a short cut they would know where it would truly end up.

A time trial was scheduled today for those who wanted to sign up & see how well they could do for 40 km. I think they had a good turn out—I hope to find out how well it went tonight at peloton—but the headwinds had to slow some of the times down. Another exciting thing was the opportunity to go to a velodrome—indoor, slanted, wooden track with single gear bikes. They just had to bring their pedals & helmet. I’d love to try it if it would be at the end of the tour. I could see myself wiping out this close to NewJersey—not pretty—save it for another day. I’m anxious to find out how well they enjoyed it.

While we were going to Mt Bridges a pick up comes along beside & asks for Andy De Vries—I tell the happy couple that he’s at the front of the line pulling—it’s Andy’s brother & sister-in-law. We arrived at the lunch stop at 10:00—Mt. Brydges Hope Community CRC opened their church and arms to all of us. Sandwiches, fruit, beans…don’t want to be at the back of the line in the morning…It’s a blessing to be encouraged in all the ways people are willing to demonstrate their support. On our way out of town we were greeted by more of Andy’s family—a sister & niece. This tour went from being a Vander Steen reunion ride to a De Vries gathering—I’m happy for him & it’s great to meet family.

There are times when I’m riding here that I think I’m still in the Midwest—corn on one side & beans on the other. Today we did see a blueberry orchard and a tobacco field—not Midwest crops, but very interesting to hear about the harvesting of those crops.

While we were getting close to the end of the ride John VS pulls into a parking lot—we were on our way to his dentist, Dr. Jerry Heerema—a friend, church member & supporter of John. He gave us tooth brushes, paste and floss. I told the dentist thank you on our way out—then I told John I didn’t care if his proctologist was a donor/friend—we weren’t going there.

On arriving to London we went to Springbank Park to pick up a bike path that would lead us safely through part of the city. It was well marked with chalk and at the Y in the path we were greeted by many cheering kids with watermelon and water. Shortly the press showed up and interviews were conducted. At that time I remembered I hadn’t checked in with John Slagers back at KDCR for quite a while—I made the call.

We headed to the school here where Jake Pasma is on maintenance, London District Christian Secondary School—we all told Jake we we’re going to eat in the library so he’d have job security when he gets back.

(By the way—will you hold my contract back at the office for me—I know I missed that deadline—couldn’t help it—plan to sign again—Lord willing.)

On our arrival I met more of Pete, Andy & John’s family members—kids, grand kids, siblings…they had a great welcome. They had food around the back of the school—bakes goods & fresh veggies & dip. But the best dip for most of the people was the ice cream supplied by the Elgin County Dairy Producers. The woman serving knew my name—at times I’m at a disadvantage because of this blog but I like to meet the people. I took her picture with all the helpers—thanks for the cone & chocolate milk. Chocolate milk is very popular after a ride as a recovery drink so it was great to have it right in camp. I also met Heather F. who has encouraged me through my blog. London is doing a great job here.

I’m being hosted (billeted) by John & Irene Vander Steen tonight. As I’m sitting here blogging you wouldn’t believe the people that are bringing food here for us. All the weight I lost due to the desert will be back on due to dessert. They are treating us well in Canada—their hospitality is unbelievable.

Thanks for all the birthday wishes. I honestly forgot how old I was. When some people asked me & said I was 2 years older than I thought I was. It was my son who caught it last night in a conversation. With age goes brain cells I guess. :-)

I met a few Dordt alums at the school—Pete Minnesma, computer instructor here and Uncle to Marty who was on the 1st stage of the ride. And Gerald Vaandering—art major. Gerald asked how Norm M. is back in Sioux Center. Please tell Jo A. & Norm M. that they are fondly remembered.

Also, remember JimBeezhold who injured himself unrelated to biking–he has a few broken ribs–and a thank you to his family for the water stop on our way into GR.

Thanks for reading and please introduce yourself to me if I’m in your area. I may not remember all the names but some I can put together with your comments to my blog.

Richmond to Chatham—56 Miles Day 52 August 20, 2008

Published
by
Barb Mellema
on August 21, 2008
in Sea to Sea
. 3 Comments

Last night while I was blogging I was sitting by Art Mulder—he blogged that he was sitting by me—trading barbs with Barb. You need to know I didn’t trade art with Art—I can only doodle. :-)

At peloton it was announced that Lynn Verros, from Knoxville, IA, left for home. She had a hard time biking after her accident—all the fun goes when you’re in pain. Lynn, please know we’re keeping you in prayer and I understand what it took to leave the tour.

We had a special guest at peloton last night, Marcia Van’t Hof—in February her 46 yr old husband Mark died unexpectedly of a heart attack. He was a pastor and a real supporter of the tour—Mark Dekkinga rode his bike from Denver to Grand Rapids. Marcia has been given the grace to stand in front of us and encourage us to continue on to help any way we can to fight poverty. She explained how her in-laws stayed around their area of MI during white-flight.

My phone went off at 1:03 this morning—I usually have it off but I forgot. It was my son singing me a Happy Birthday song. I was in my sleeping bag at 9:00 & in a deep sleep—hard to get mad at a son who remembers your birthday and is watching the clock when it flips to the right day—only he forgot about the time change…I didn’t tell any one in camp—more about this later…

This morning I was on sweep duty—help out at breakfast. Extra people in camp added extra people to the sweep team. I swapped with Larry Meyer the other night so I didn’t serve in the evening dinner line. I missed seeing who was added to our sweep team—that’s always a good way to meet the people on the tour. The breakfast line was closed down early so everyone would get out on time and into Marine City for the ferry crossing.

It was so cold when we left this morning. I had just as much clothing on this morning as I did when we left Snow Mountain Ranch in Colorado. I left with Christeena today and picked up John Klyn & Chris Mulder on our way out of camp. We were doing 20 mph when a line of 5 riders came on right in front of us. They slowed down to 18 mph—what’s up with that? Christeena told me to drop them because we can… :-) We didn’t because if they wanted to do all the work with the wind I was going to let them!

We took the ferry in shifts after checking in with Jen Van Beek. We all had to meet with passport in hand 20 miles down the road in Marine City, take the ferry to cross into Sombra, Canada. Kids in a candy store…most of the Canadians couldn’t wait to “go home” they were so excited. I don’t know if it was to the mother land or the first Tim Hortons.

You can’t believe how smoothly the crossing went at the boarder. It was a prayer issue for all of us when we consider everything that could hold us up. Give your passport—say your name—walk on. It was that way for all of us as riders & Support.

I was on the last ferry across the St. Claire River—I think it took 3 or 4 trips to get us all across, gear truck & all. When I got off Cynthia was there waiting with a big hug. It was so good to see her. So many people were there to cheers us into Canada I couldn’t believe it—very welcoming. They served Tim Horton coffee, timbits (donut holes) cupcakes, candy and fruit. (I was able to meet family members of the people I’ve been riding with.) A very nice entry through customs & into Sombra—I didn’t get this kind of welcome the other times I visited…

I finally got to meet Irene—John VS wife and I hope to get to know her better this week. I also met Heidi Oshcner’s brother wearing a Dordt shirt while I was eating a timbit—I love it.

We left Sombra with our usual group but without John VS & Louis (they were talking with many friends.) We had Cynthia & Mike VH with us. Cynthia told us the speed she was good with, the guys were in front for headwind control & I brought up the rear to keep everyone off our line. Shortly out of Sombra we had 3 guys hop on our line. I asked them to give us the needed space Cynthia needed for reaction time & they backed off. We did chat for a bit first and he introduced himself as John De Pooter (this is as close as I can get right now.) He was the organizer of the welcome into Sombra & they were riding for the day. I thanked him because it was so well organized, he dropped back & explained to his friends who we were with Cynthia ahead of me. Maybe 100’ behind us now & I hear a loud SNAP! I looked in my mirror & saw a guy go down—it was John DP. His buddies didn’t know it was him & I’m watching them approach as I’m yelling biker down. We slowed our line and as John’s friends got closer I had to yell at them that it was John who went down. I saw John go to the side of the road & other bikers coming up from the back. We didn’t turn around—experience after Cynthia went down—too many people around can be another accident waiting to happen. His buddies went there, other bikers came up & a SAG was behind shortly. I must admit that just that quickly I was mentally back on the interstate to Fort Morgan watching Cynthia in my mirror again—I got an instant adrenaline rush and a case of the shakes. We found out later that John suffered a broken nose, split lip to the gum & facial road rash. He’s thankful for his helmet.

Cynthia did great today! We kept the stops to a minimum to avoid crowding and b/c it takes so much out of her to click in & out—so we skipped all the SAG’s. She can’t stop for a half hour at a time—she needs to keep going or it hurts her ‘sit bones.’ She told me that in the evenings she gets tired & them a limp is more pronounced. She plans to ride one day at a time—it’s REALLY flat here so it’s easier for her—climbing puts too much pressure on the pelvic region. The guys were good about yelling out the cracks and bumps—that’s huge for her.

When we got to Chatham (chat-um) she did humor me & stop by the sign for a photo. I’m not going to try to pronounce any of the names here because many are French influenced—and they’re laughing at ‘my accent’. When we went past a sign that read ‘Pain Court’ I asked her who holds court for pain? She told me it’s pronounced Pan Cor—I give up. And, it’s not hockey unless you say it with that lugee/horking ( hacking throat action)—I just can’t say it correctly for them—my family will tell you that I can’t hack a lugee.

I met new faces when we arrived at the community center like Nancy Schoon—she’s a blog reader. Andy’s sister in-law, Anne, sent me some ‘colored money.’ Very cute Anne—thanks! It will take me a bit to get used to the monopoly-like money. I’ll just get them to buy the coffee…

Tonight we are guests at Cynthia and Ralph’s home. She served a great meal, with help from her family—way to go Janessa, Jolene & Andrew. They opened up their home to many of us & we are so appreciative. The bed I’m sleeping in is so far off the floor I have to be mindful not to roll—falling off my tent mattress is nothing—falling out of this bed could break my pelvis.

We left after dinner for peloton & Len R, our head Chaplin, announced that they had a special surprise for someone—me! They had me come up & he told everyone it was my birthday & that they were serving cake courtesy of Dordt College. The card reads, “Happy Birthday from the crew at work.” Before I left I joked that I was getting out of serving treats because I was going to be on the ride—paybacks—I understand them. They had 3 cakes & sang to me so I’m celebrating with 200 & some of my new best biking friends. Very embarrassed but very blessed to be remembered—thank you all very much.

Thanks for reading… :-) And just so you know, the snow plow didn’t meet me at the border to escort me to my igloo likeJeff Schoon told me it would.

Nancy Krygsman, (my Canadian counterpart in the office)…do you want me to bring you anything back from Canada when I cross in a few days? Remember my packing weight limit though… :-) Pastor Herm? Now’s the time to get your order in. Oh yeah…how about some ketchup chips?