Two Wheels To Nowhere

2019 on Two Wheels to Nowhere ~

As we approach the day when the calendar turns the final page on 2019, I have plenty of spare holiday time to mull over both the mundane commutes and epic adventures of the past twelve months of riding my two-wheelers. Fortunately, even the mundane commuting to and from work and around town stirs a little excitement in me each time before I depart. I’m not sure exactly what it is but for me there is a distinct element of exhilaration each time I hop on a bike. Funny how such a simple thing (think “it’s as easy as riding a bike!”) can repeatedly provide such a positive visceral feeling. I’m sure you all get what I am talking about here; we all have the same condition, to varying degrees. Somehow, it makes me feel like a kid again even though the DOB on my driver’s license and my aching joints tell me otherwise.

For the first three months of the year, in between bushwhacking on my cross-country skis, I managed to get on a bike a few dozen times. These rides were a combination of occasional commuting https://www.strava.com/activities/2027332120, a few spirited RadRoom time trials on Thursday nights, a few stationary bike workouts at home and a few opportunistic spins https://www.strava.com/activities/2058240437 out on the open road when the stars aligned to provide clear tarmac in spite of the snow banks and sub-zero temps. Just enough cycling, combined with some classic XC skiing, to maintain basic fitness during the dead of Winter.

Early April brought Chris and me to Grand Cayman for a week visiting family, soaking in the Caribbean Sea, reading on the beach and of course, riding! Thanks to Keith R who lent me a bike bag, allowing me to transport the Batmobile safely to the island. It was so awesome to have my own wheels in Cayman compared to renting in previous years. Grand Cayman is a small, flat island with generally good roads that lends itself beautifully to fast and furious solo riding https://www.strava.com/activities/2272462632. You can imagine how good it felt to put on a simple summer kit and ride through the balmy air followed by a dip in the warm sea after riding the previous 4-5 months wearing full winter gear! April also brought the unofficial start of the BCC Thursday Morning Sunrise rides https://www.strava.com/activities/2299047313. Led by Craig S, these rides became a weekly staple for me in 2019 as I learned to drag my sorry ass out of bed at 4:55a to join a solid group of riders for a pre-work spin. As Summer progressed, ridership grew and we even got in some Friday morning rides, as well! These early mornings also provided me with numerous opportunities to capture some stunning Sunrises and Moonsets! Icing on the cake. https://ericvanwesenbeeck.tumblr.com/post/185114832427/recently-getting-into-the-routine-of-early April closed out with an awesome BCC volunteer group cleaning up the roadsides around Shanty Bay on a snow Sunday; part of our club’s yearly civic duty!

The fifth month of the year usually brings a trip to Asheville, North Carolina with a cadre of the usual suspects from around town but this year it was not happening for me, having just returned from a week in the Carribean. Although May started kind of cold and dreary, some awesome riding began as BCC started regular Tuesday night rides and weekends offered opportunities for some long rides onto the Niagara Escarpment https://www.strava.com/activities/2381124819 with good friends and strong riders. Regular evening cruises along the Barrie Waterfront always brings me to randomly meet people or to see interesting scenes of life on the lake. https://www.strava.com/activities/2394518921

The next month started with a bang with our annual Tour de Lake Simcoe https://www.strava.com/activities/2415506469 on June first. Not for lack of effort, I only managed to get one other person out on the road with me. Well, when that person is Joe F, you end up with a rocket ride around the lake that left me sucking Joe’s wheel for an hour before he pulled away seemingly effortlessly for the last 20 kilometres! It turned out to be the smallest Tour group ever but the fastest Lake Simcoe circumnavigation I have ever ridden, with a blistering pace finishing the 200 kilometer rip in well under six hours. As the daylight got longer and the weather finally started to warm up in June, my rides got longer and faster. We had some great BCC rides as younger riders returned from school and the Tuesday night A-rides began to feel like a Runaway Train https://www.strava.com/activities/2443067914. All these fast, longer rides led us perfectly to the Summer Solstice on which the Toronto-Niagara Falls-Toronto Hairshirt Ride https://www.strava.com/activities/2475551164 is always scheduled. This was my third T-N-T Hairshirt Ride and it was hands-down the fastest! For the first half of the ride, I got caught up in the lead group which was more like a pro peleton, or so I imagine, because we completed the first 160 km in four hours!! While I stopped to fill my empty bottles, this group rode on to clock the fastest Hairshirt elapsed time in its 41 year history, smashing the record by riding 320 kilometers in 8h32m! Rolling with these guys for half the ride helped me to finish with a solid PB: elapsed time of 10h34m in spite of a broken rear derailleur with 120 km to go! June ended with my first of many “Rip ‘n’ Dips” https://www.strava.com/activities/2492727403 in 2019, enjoying the refreshing Kempenfelt Bay waters after an excellent escape on my bike. https://ericvanwesenbeeck.tumblr.com/post/186829227637/beautiful-sunset-today-as-i-cooled-off-in-the-bay

July was full of fabulous riding, often with the Barrie Cycling Club during the week and then out for adventures on the weekends with some really inspiring, like minded people. One of these weekends was the first annual Hairshirt North double century ride around Simcoe County https://www.strava.com/activities/2532969425, showcasing the beautiful waterfronts we enjoy all around us! Eleven people started out and six people finished the full 320 km route on a pretty much perfect Summer’s day. I was rather stoked to ride with such a strong group on this inaugural ride, which I hope to make an annual event. Mark your calendars for July 12, 2020!

Looking back on August immediately brings to mind one very special ride: the Terrific Tarmac Team Time Trial! https://www.strava.com/activities/2610234053 This ride is arguably, the highlight of the season for me. Exhausting but exhilarating. Four very determined and capable riders – Jason M, Steve E, Joe F and I – met up early on Sunday morning with one goal in mind: completing a 100 kilometre route in two and a half hours. This goal would require some serious suffering and some tactical teamwork. Sunny skies and very little wind definitely helped! We didn’t quite reach our goal but we came damn close at 2h33m, leaving us all the more determined to go for it again in 2020. This last month of Summer also provided some wonderful rides with family. Brothers Benjamin and Peter were in town and we got in some nice tours; I also managed some terrific tandem rides with my Mom. At eighty-four, she has trouble riding solo now as her strength and balance diminish however, her desire to be active outdoors is so strong and riding on the back with me she is able to pedal for quite a while! We enjoyed some memorable tours together around Barrie and the Bay on my now classic Motobecane bicycle built for two. https://www.strava.com/activities/2651817254

September and October made for some solid solo riding as several of my fellow riders headed to the south of France to ride in the mountains. I like solo riding a lot, so this was a chance to do my thing and keep fit for the Tour de T1D https://www.strava.com/activities/2750522352 organized by BCC’s very own Richard G and his wife, Darlene. This was a beautiful and challenging 100k route through the hills of Oro-Medonte raising over $47k for the Youth Diabetic Clinic at RVH, a worthy local cause! https://www.facebook.com/tourdet1d/ It was a really fun event with many friends from BCC participating. I plan to be there again on September 27, 2020!

November and early December saw some spectacular Saturday morning group runs with a small gang of BCC friends looking to stay active as the cycling season wound down. We enjoyed early morning meet ups at the Spirit Catcher followed by easy runs around Barrie’s Waterfront paths https://www.strava.com/activities/2885344747. Unfortunately, as I headed into December my knees started chirpin’ at me as old injuries were aggravated by the pounding of the longer runs I was doing. So, I backed off and enjoyed the daily walking as I commuted back and forth to my work and let my knees settle down a little. In early December, I prepped and waxed my classic cross country skis but with a very hectic pace at work and at home, I haven’t yet used them! In the meantime, a mild Christmas holiday week has allowed me one last run of Winter riding before the year is out. https://www.strava.com/activities/2963626488

As usual, cycling was a big part of my daily work and leisure again in 2019. These activities inevitably bring me to meet new people on the road – Max R, Tyler D, Craig L, Todd R, Les – and several new BCC members. The cycling community I find myself in also has some very inspiring individuals! Max R and Larry O, whom I have ridden with in the TNT Hairshirt rides, were both inspiring in their completion of the world renowned Paris-Brest-Paris 1200 kilometer epic tour! Avery G inspires me as a young man building a career in cycling that I only dreamed of at his age – as a bicycle mechanic for touring teams and as an incredible rider in his own right, on the trails as well as on the road. Joe F and Todd R who completed their first Hairshirt rides in stellar form. Jenn J who seems to effortlessly pick up a new sport and within a season is competing at a top national level in it! Trevor O who races with the best in North America, especially inspiring in his crit performances. Eric J and Tyler M who inspired me to reconsider my days-of-old penchant for bike-packing with their three day epic road tour https://lostconglomerate.com/pages/joe-ride through Ontario cottage country. Mark L who “vEverested” https://www.strava.com/activities/2074501841 on a 12h43m epic virtual adventure that had him climb over 8900 metres in a single ride! I am also inspired by the new riders this season who stepped out of their comfort zone and into the world of cycling, which can be intimidating at first but opens up so many new experiences and relationships. With retirement now on my radar, I am inspired by recently retired Carol and Tony who are seizing life by the ball bearings and living their cycling dreams.

And so, as we breakaway from 2019, I want to thank you all for your shared passion for cycling. Whether it’s commuting, recreation, racing, endurance, adventure, gravel, trails, roads or cruising, we all have this one simple thing in common. I am grateful for covering so many miles uninjured and in good health in 2019. I am grateful for the fun and fitness, competition and companionship that cycling with you all has brought me over these past twelve months. I hope to see each of you at some point in 2020 on two wheels to nowhere. https://ericvanwesenbeeck.tumblr.com/