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Avery's Ride for PKU blog

I will be blogging about my preparation and planning leading up to the ride and will try to Blog as much as possible as I pedal across the country.

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  • Aug2Sat

    Laval and Trois Riviere's

    August 2, 2014
    We left Lachute a little later than planned and headed on a short ride to Laval.  Svend decided to join for the short ride to Laval and then he planned to have John drive him back to Lachute for his reunion.  We arrived in Laval in time to find a bike shop and get my gear shifter replaced.  After spending 179.00 it was fixed and the shop owner game me a small discount which was appreciated.  Thanks to Primeau Velo for the excellent service.  After getting the bike fixed we headed back to the place we were staying.  Thanks to Helene and her husband Daniel for being such accomodating hosts.  After we got back we ran into a small issue.  The keys to the bike lock had gone missing. There was a bit of a miscommunication and the keys were gone. The issue was that the lock was locking the spare bike to the bike rack and the cord was attached to the van hitch essentially making it impossible to open the van door.  John and Helene decided to go to a fire dept and have them cut the lock.  Turns out even their machines could not get the lock off but they finally found welder that was able to get the lock off the car so needless to say I am now looking for a new lock.  I actually could not find one like the original in Trois Rivieres but hope to find one in Quebec tomorrow.  After bit of a stressful afternoon I was looking forward to a relaxing evening.  We decided to head downtown to Schwartz deli, a smoked meat institution in Montreal.  There was quite a line up but we did not have to wait to long to get a table.  The food did not disappoint.  If you are ever in Montreal you should check this place out.  While waiting in line a few people in front of us asked about my t-shirt so we had a chance to talk to them about PKU and the ride and they also made a 25.00 donation so thanks to them whoever they were.  After getting smoked meat we headed to a well known bagel shop in town where I picked up a few bagels for the road and just happened to be in the shop at the same time as Stan Bowman, GM of the Chicago Blackhawks.  I told him about the ride and he posed for a picture.  Thanks Stan and Go leafs Go!!  I'm regretting not getting Argos tickets as they were playing in Montreal and they pretty much embarrassed the home team.  After a decent night sleep we were back on the road for a 145 km trek to Trois Riviere's.  This was the first ride without Svend the main navigator.  My GPS lead me to Trois Riviere's without to many issues (it likes to take safer routes that are not necessarily the most direct).  The ride was hot and humid but once we got out of Laval it was basically sticking to hwy 138 all the way.  Tomorrow we will take the same hwy all the way to Quebec city where we will spend a rest day and likely eat way to much poutine.  Tonight at dinner I saw someone order a pizza with Poutine on it.  I then regretted getting whatever I ordered.  We were in Trois Riviere's when a festival was going on, the street was closed and there were bands playing etc and it was a pretty entertaining night taking in some local culture.  Oh I almost forgot to mention that I discovered that this part of Quebec still has local strawberries so today I polished off a whole basket during on of the breaks.  Looking forward to having Svend join us again in Quebec City.  Anyway its 9:35 and Im going to take advantage of a low key night and get some extra sleep.  We are staying at a little bed and breakfast that is located just outside of downtown.  Its an old farm house that is located on what would have been the owners families farm.  Looking forward to the ride tomorrow into Quebec!

    Comment

    On Tuesday, August 5, 2014, Liz said:

    love reading your blog Kevin, only just discovered it. It was so great to meet you, and your family, in Kingston and Ottawa. We are all still pumped about the PKU-bonding you are creating. Go Kevin go!

     

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