Spokin' Sportsmans

From a lovely weekend in April…

It is good having friends. Friends met while riding bikes. Friends willing to ride back to back centuries to accommodate the reality of the Sportsman baby relay. The goal for the weekend was the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and Beryl’s introduction to camping and bike riding.

Scott got home from work early enough on Friday for me to hop on the road bike and meet Dylan and Sarah as they pedaled from the ferry terminal to our house. Once home we reviewed the logistics of the weekend. Who was cycling Saturday, who was cycling Sunday, where we would meet, when we would meet, what I’d pick up from trader joes for dinner. In the morning Scott, Sarah and Dylan rode from North Van to Bay View State Park in WA, getting use out of the cue sheets from our ride to Seattle a couple of years ago.

We had a fortuitous meeting at the Peace Arch border crossing as I drove South with camping gear, 2 bikes (one for chariot pulling and one for road miles) and the baby.

We regrouped at the Tulip festival, harnessed up the Vassago and loaded Beryl into the Chariot. Baby’s first bike ride!! Sarah and Dylan graciously acted as a safety escort for Beryl; taking the lane when needed and even corking an intersection or two. We chose a short (maybe 10 km?) route with good shoulders and lots of blooms.

Back at the campsite we all enjoyed the luxury of car camping; something Dylan will be foregoing this summer as he heads back to Banff looking for his second completion of the Tour Divide this summer. I was nervous camping with the baby. You just never know when she might have a bad night! She was 2 hours past her normal bedtime before finally falling asleep, but she was quiet all night. Of course, I nursed her about half a dozen times rather than risk her getting worked up and crying. I never once ever considered that at any point in my life I would be used as a human chew toy. Beryl was a super camper and we enjoyed the vast space in our new family sized tent.

Sunday was my turn to ride while Scott had daddy time with Beryl for the trip home. I am slowly getting back in shape after having the baby, so it was great having friends to draft all they way to home, with a stop at Rocket Donuts in Bellingham.

Coming back into Canada was amusing.   There is a special bike lane through Customs and all three of us ‘Muricans rolled up together.  The border guard asked all the normal questions.  Where do you live? How long were you gone? What did you do?  Then he asked, ‘How do you know each other?’.  Dylan and I exchanged glances, each pondering how to answer.  The long answer– well, there is this mountain bike race in CO and my husband came across Dylan trying to nap alongside the trail in the rain…. We quickly blurted out that we simply met while bicycling.

I am lucky to have a husband so happy and competent with our daughter and willing to spend the entire day taking care of her so that I can get in a nice long ride!! <3 <3 <3.  So lucky to have a husband who supports me doing what I need to do to be happy.

After a quick dinner at our house, Dylan and Sarah kept with their car-free ethos and pedaled to the ferry terminal enroute to Nanaimo.

BIG THANK YOU to Sarah and Dylan for putting up with complicated logistics, enabling us to both get in long rides, and sharing Beryl’s first camping trip and bike ride!  Let’s do it again soon– like at the 12 hours of Cumberland?