May 8
May 8th, 2007
I woke up bright and early behind the gas station in Whitbourne. I had my ankles taped and my skates laced up by 7am. I wanted to get an hour in before breakfast. The sky was gray and looked like rain was coming, but the weather was forecasting that the clouds would pass and the sun would break through. Sure enough, the rain started just after breakfast. The reliability of the weather predictions makes me feel like I’m back in Vancouver! It didn’t rain too hard though. Just a constant drizzle. I didn’t get too wet, but my skates spit quite a bit of mud up the back of my legs.
When we stopped for lunch about 10 km short of a town called Come By Chance, I decided to have a nap before starting again. When I woke up, the roads were dry! On came the shorts.
As I continued on, I noticed a car off in the distance sitting on the opposite side of the road. When I approached, two women got out of the car and flagged me down. They had passed me earlier and pulled over to wait for me so they could make a donation! Another prime example of the Newfoundland people.
I finally arrived in Clarenville around 4:30 and was greeted by a local reporter with the Clarenville Packet. I welcomed Kathy into our RV for a quick interview and a photo. She’s hoping to print an article later this week.
I had now reached 100 km for the day! My first 100 K day! But for those of you who know me well, 100 km just wasn’t good enough. I was feeling good, so I choose to move ahead for a little longer. The next town was Port Blanford. But it was 30 km away. I was thinking about going about half way and driving in for the night. But again, my stubbornness came through. I fought through my exhaustion and made it to Port Blanford just after 7 pm. And I’m glad I did.
The first gas bar we stopped at was the Cornerstop. They offered to let us stay there and plug our hydro in. And on top of that, a few locals began showing up and offering donations! The highlight of the evening was a donation from a couple of fantastic kids, Nicholas and Jillian. I hope I’ve inspired them in some way.
Now that I’ve had my bison fajita dinner, I’m just about ready for bed.
130 km today. That’s more than I thought I’d ever do!
Posted in Daily Journal | 2 Comments »
May 8th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Hello Folks
Port Blantford…….what do you have rockets attached to your skates ! ! That is an awsome achievement for one day.
At that rate you will be in Vancouver by Canada Day.
Thank so very much to you and your mom and dad for the lovely card and the gift certificate. (you should’nt have ). We enjoyed your stay immensely and wish you could have stayed longer.
May 9th, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Hi Rich,
Sorry for the delay, but I’ve now made the donation to your campaign. It’s not a lot – only $250 – but it’s what I can afford right now.
Your daily journal is EXCELLENT and I will post some links to it on my blog!!
Keep the faith, amigo and best of luck in every regard!!
Rob W.