This morning we were up early. I was desperate to open the box and see what, if anything had happened to our previous cargo. I had to:
- Put the rear seat on and attach the rear bars.
- Cut the zip tie that was holding the front bars to the frame and put those on.
- Put the rotors on the wheels, I remove them as they have a tendency to get bent if you don’t.
- Wire up the dynamo so we can charge the GPS and phones using our own pedal power.
- Put on the rear and front racks.
- Bolt on the rear mech that was zip tied to the frame. I do this so the derailleur hanger does not get bent. I also carry a spare hanger.
- Put the pedals on
After I had got the bike built it required a test down into Bragg Creek. I wanted to buy some shorts a t shirt, oil and some cycling shoes.
After we had finished our errands we met Rachael’s bro and sister in law and children down at the river Elbow and had a nice couple of hours cooling off. It was 34 degrees at about 1100. The water is very cold coming all the way from the mountains near Banff. So clear you can see all the way through it. With water this clean and clear you don’t hesitate to get in. I could not imagine doing this in any river in the UK never mind the local rivers around Sowerby Bridge. Litter, industry, agriculture and sewage dumping all playing their part to make UK rivers hazardous to swim in. Here though in Canada it is normal and safe.
Later we watched Ben play football whist we ate ice cream. I am going to try once the wheels start rolling to be conscious of the food I am eating. I always think I am riding my bike so I allow myself to eat what I want and come back one stone heavier.
We have been chatting about the route and I am getting so excited. We will be setting off in a couple of days (Tuesday). Just by chance Ben and Jen are taking the kids to their trailer at Lake Koocanusa and that is exactly where our route goes through. The mileage makes it near perfect to hook up with them five days after our start to spend a night in their trailer park.
My exact route is on this link.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44959534?privacy_code=8TOX57w8mKSClt9Epuy0y5wspnKH9Dgg
Woke up early again this morning to another sunshine 34+ degree day.
Today we went into Bragg Creek to take the kids to the river and park. We went down on the bikes, the kids knew the way and were down in no time. Everyone jumped in and had a go riding the rapids.
When we got back we mocked the bike up with the bags to make sure everything has a place. We are getting dropped off by Jen tomorrow in Banff at about 0900. West still have a couple of things to buy such as a bear bag to hang our food and some longer Voile straps or a couple of shorter ones that we can link together to get around the food and the tent on top of the pannier rack.
The time is 2026 on Monday night. The count down to riding time is twelve hours 👍🏽👌🏽✌🏽