Blog

Well we ended up staying an extra day in Brandon after the wind and rain caused the city to declare a state of emergency.  Thanks to Peter and Kathy for your willingness to let us hang around for a whole extra day.  I was able to attend church with Peter and Kathy so that was nice.  We had a bit of a lazy Sunday which was nice but the winds were hitting 60 km per hour so really not biking weather.  Today we woke up ready to get back on the road only to learn that hwy 1 (Trans Canada)was closed due to the amount of water on the highway.  We had planned to try to get all the way to Winnipeg today because it was calling for a strong tailwind.  So we drove about a half an hour north of Brandon and I started biking.  It was actually sunny for a small amount of time but about 30 km in to the ride the rain came down hard again and the shoulder of the road was not very rideable.  With the rain creating almost no visibility and many trucks and motor homes on the road I made the decision to hop in the van and drive.  We drove to Portage la Prairie where the weather was a little better and we were back on hwy 1 so I started biking again. I was able to make it all the way to Winnipeg and I feel bad about driving some of the way but I'm sure my safety was in jeopardy had I continued biking on the road.  I rode about 100 km today.  If you are following me on strava you will notice my max speed was 107 km/hr.  This is because I forgot to take the GPS off my bike when I first put it on the car (only for a few KM).  The tailwind was nice but not that nice.  I was able to average about 33km per hour coming into Winnipeg.  A large dark cloud followed me right into Winnipeg and eventually it started pouring rain just before we made it to the hotel.  Thanks to the Victoria Inn for donating a room tonight.  We hope everyone in Brandon is staying dry and safe.  Im glad we are back on schedule and dont have to ride tomorrow as it is calling for more rain and wind.  Wednesday however looks, so far, to be a nice day so Im looking forward to riding in some nice weather.  Only a few more days and we will be in Ontario.  When we got to the hotel we had lunch.  Thanks to Kathy for packing our lunch for us last night and leaving it for when we left this morning.  You guys were great hosts and we cant thank you enough.  I also received an email from CBC radio when I arrived here and they are going to do an interview today at 4:15 so Im looking forward to that.