I’ve known Rob for over 30 years and Cathy from when we rode the Colorado bike tour Ride the Rockies together in 2010. When I heard that they needed help from a “guest driver”, I volunteered. I arrived in Detroit on Sept 12, Rob picked me up in the Winnebago, and we drove to Frankenmuth, Michigan a Bavarian-style town north of Detroit. After 350 miles or so driving across eastern Michigan and Southwest Ontario, I flew back from Buffalo, New York. My primary role, other than giving Tex crap, was to drive the Winnebago 60-80 miles per day, meeting the riders for 2-3 pre-arranged rest stops along the way.
The pace is certainly different than the cyclists. On a bike, they ride hard to get in their miles in a reasonable amount of time, over a variety of roads and differing weather conditions. The motor home is leisurely with stops at, for example, Tim Horton’s for donuts and Dairy Queen for Dilly Bars. Don’t judge, I share.
I’d also stop to chat with folks. For example, Lance, the caretaker at Otter Lake Village (Otter Lake, Michigan), filled me in on Otter Lake. In short, the town has (exactly) 378 people in summer (and fewer in winter), the lake is 160 feet deep, and there is a rock and a sand bar in the middle of it. They apparently have a kick-ass fireworks on July 4th. Who knew?
The nice young lady at the Backus-Page House Museum near Wallacetown, Ontario told me about settlement of the area in the early 1800’s. Colonel Tilton (apparently of Irish descent) was responsible for divvying up land to immigrants. Requirements included clearing land and building a house within a certain period of time. Well, if you were Irish you received 200 acres, but if you were Scottish, only 50. Even then life wasn’t fair.
But the coolest thing was the people, Rob, Cathy, Tex, Skigs and Peach are delightful human beings, each of whom is full of life (not to mention wicked senses of humor) and that’s really energizing. It’s inspiring that after 40 years, they still are so dedicated to and persistent in their relationships with one another.
Peach is from Ontario (and still plays 130 hockey games/year), and has many friends in Southwest Ontario. His friends Ed and Jane, Bob and Margaret, and Terry were extremely gracious to host us in their homes in Port Stanley, with a lovely dinner and a lot of laughs at Terry’s home on the shore of Lake Erie. Thanks so much to our new friends.
I’ve never met a Canadian who isn’t nice, have you? Actually, I’ve met one. A woman at Tim Horton’s in Chatham-Kent very clearly expressed her displeasure with me when I inadvertently stepped in front of her in line. Sorry lady.
- John Evans
LOL I absolutely adore this post by John Evans. If he doesn't become a writer (if not a rider) immediately, I think I'm gonna croak. His writing is just too damn good. The voice! (PS That's what I'm lovin' about this adventure: all the exercise, all the adventure, the great writing, the volunteer drivers like Boomer who sincerely thinks he's old enough to drive. Rock on, darlins!)