Distance Ridden: 4,043km (2,512Mi) Actual
Distance to go: 1,455km (904Mi) Estimate
$$$ to charities: 10,090 (figure based on confirmations received from charities)
Tires/tyres annihilated: 10
Bear Sightings: 5
Crazy Carribou encountered: 1
Average daily calorie intake per rider: 6,500
Hilarious moments: Countless
Hilarious moments we can publicly report: Very few
After more than 12 months of planning, our entire crew finally arrived in Vancouver, ready to get this ride on the road. Our first "team bonding session" was errrrr, awesome!
It sounds like the start of a bad joke, we know, but a Kiwi, a Canadian and two Aussies got together to discuss the trip...
...Hilarity ensued.
We'll be updating this on a regular basis as our supercallafragelisticexpialadocious journey gets underway in an effort to shed light on the funny side when the going gets tough.
Our facebook page will be updated regularly with a greater selection of photos.
We hope you laugh as much reading this as we will creating it!
"We've been through every kind of rain there is - a little bit o' sting-ing rain, and big ol' fat rain, rain that flew in sideways and sometimes rain that seemed to come straight up, from underneath." -Forrest Gump
Rain came down, spirits remained high. GREAT TO FINALLY BE ON THE ROAD!
Thanks to everyone who came down to Stanley Park to bid us farewell! It was great to have a crowd to see us off...
...Love your work! :)
Despite the inclement weather, our good friend Chris Blohmke and his roommate Linnaea came out to join us on the bikes for the first few miles until we got to the Vancouver office of the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. It was great to have a few extras along to increase our visibility on the road through the city, and also to create awareness!
A BIG THANK YOU also goes out to Dave Crawford! This guy led us from Stanley Park to Mission on his Harley in awful conditions, and we felt a hell of a lot safer for it!
His support didn't stop there, however, his company - Edgemont Moving and Storage have also provided us with a considerable sponsorship package to make this ride possible on a logistical level, and subsequently allowing us to donate more money to the charities we're working for.
Our departure was delayed slightly (FOR A GREAT REASON) after we got a phone call from Kim at BrandFX in Vancouver - she wanted to come down and present us with a sponsorship cheque on behalf of Zespri International - the world's largest exporter of Kiwifruit. THANKS KIM!
Our GPS tracking device is also up and running! You can use this to see where we are and where we've been.
Thanks again to everyone for the support so far!
"There's a smell in here that's gonna outlast religion." -Kenny
What do you get when you put 3 cyclists in a confined space together..?
With the riders physically adjusting to their high-protein, high-carbohydrate diets (and up to 7000 calories per day), consistently riding 100km day-in, day-out, their digestive systems are playing games with them...
Support driver Dave awoke this morning with the facial expression of a man who had just sucked on a lemon, whilst simultaneously getting punched in the head.
"OH MY GOD! What the hell have you done?!?! I didn't sign up for this!"
Sorry Dave.
Sorry reader - we didn't want to stoop to fart jokes in one of our first entries, but we err, just had to get it out of our system.
Pun intended.
We made it 6 days with no major problems for riders or their bikes, until...
...We were descending past Christina Lake towards the base of Bonanza Pass, when we came around a bend at about 45km/hr (28mph).
With the team riding in formation to gain an aerodynamic advantage, Daniel was leading the group and couldn't avoid a pile of loose shale on the shoulder of the road. Within 10 metres of riding, he blew not one, but both his tyres.
Despite instantly losing the ability to safely steer his bike, we're happy to report that he somehow managed to stay upright and come to a stop without taking out Hollie and John.
With the tyres inflated to about 100psi, the sound of them exploding was impressive!
With the tyres costing almost $100 each, the sound of them exploding was depressing.
Not letting it get us down, we replaced the Michelin Race tyres with some Continental Gatorskins - a high-performance, kevlar-lined alternative...
...Don't these things happen in 3's? Once we arrived at our next rest-point and started dismantling the bikes to clean and service them, one of the brand new Gatorskins spontaneously exploded. BANG! In the campground. People thought we were shooting at them.
Given that we like to look on the bright side, we're stoked that it didn't explode on the descent into Trail - a dangerously steep run about 8km long that is notorious for claiming the lives of cyclists and motorists alike.
We're also happy that the sound of the 3rd tyre attracted the attention of John, a fellow Aussie from Brisbane who came out to talk to us about our adventure. He became another one of many to hand us $20 for the cause.
At the top of Bonanza Pass, Daniel stopped and waited for John, who turned up 5 minutes later, wanting to get his photo taken underneath the sign marking the summit.
John attempts to cross ditch on side of road.
John ends up knee-deep in mud.
Shoes soaked by the freezing cold stream of water running in the ditch...
...Don't these things happen in 3's?
10 minutes pass...
JOHN: "Where the f*** is Hollie? You blew 2 wheels to shreds, I end up knee-deep... I've got a feeling Hollie's having problems getting up the hill."
15 minutes pass...
20 minutes pass...
25 minutes go by, and Dave, our support driver finally comes chugging around the bend to the summit in the VeloCURE RV.
DAVE: "WE GOT A BLEEDER!"
DANIEL: "WHAT?!? Is she OK?"
DAVE: "Yeah, just a nose bleed, I think she's OK now."
Almost half an hour passed by, before Hollie came into view, blood all over the front of her shirt and soaked to her bike and handlebars.
We shouldn't complain about breathing problems, given the fact we're raising money for Cystic Fibrosis research, but we can't imagine it would have been easy to breathe whilst riding a bike up that ridiculous mountain with a nose full of blood.
Kudos, Hols - you're either tough or insane. Or both.
"Dad reckons the faster you go, the more you see of the place." -Dale Kerrigan (The Castle)
Two words: Kootenay Pass.
Arguably one of the toughest mountain passes for a cyclist in North America, this beast is made up of 24km (15mi) of continuous uphill, the final 10km packing a punch with grades consistently at 9%.
We fought, we perspired, we blew a tire (tyre, depending on the continent you're on), we pedaled our proverbials off, and we all made it to the summit safely. Despite the fact that all our riders were sweating buckets once reaching the top, we quickly got cold - it snowed briefly while we were there!
What makes it all worth it?
A frozen lake at the top, a helicopter performing long-line drops of gas and explosives used for avalanche control and "that" sign...
...The sign we speak of is the one at the top of all similar mountain passes, warning motorists of the steep descent ahead. It brings joy to every cyclist stupid enough to ride his or her bike to the summit. What goes up, must come down, right?
Coming down the other side in formation at up to 70km/h (43mph), we decided to slow it down a little after being passed by a logging truck, it's slipstream almost blowing us off the bikes. Slow it down to 65, that is.
So at 65km/hr, we almost missed the black bear sunning itself on the side of the road...
..."let's slow it down to 60 - there might be some more bears up here."
Less than a kilometer down the road after our first bear sighting for the trip, a Carribou (like a deer, but the size of a horse) jumped out on the road in front of us without warning.
Daniel was once again at the front of the group as they slammed on the brakes, and the conversation went like this:
DANIEL: *Long string of expletives, not appropriate for publication.*
HOLLIE: "That was the most ridiculous looking animal I've ever seen! Did you guys see it jumping? It was like a wildebeast on ecstacy."
JOHN: *Speechless and white as a ghost*
DANIEL: "I think I just pooed in my pants."
Note to reader: This story has nothing to do with the charities we're working for, nor does it have anything to do with cycling. It is simply an open warning about the inherent dangers of mixing comedy and orange juice.
Lunch on roadside, 1:33pm...
DANIEL: Takes sip of orange juice.
JOHN: Begins to quote a scene from the TV series "Little Britain."
DANIEL: Mouthful of orange juice, begins to laugh.
JOHN: Notices the vulnerable position Daniel is now in. Continues to quote scene AND act it out.
DANIEL: Continues to laugh uncontrollably, orange juice starting to come out his nose.
JOHN: Again, continues to quote scene.
DANIEL: *Vomits the last two bites he'd taken of his sandwich, along with all remaining orange juice.* "BLLLUUURRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH! BAHAHAHAHAHA! OOOOOWWWWWW, MY EYES! MY EYES ARE BURNING, GET ME SOME WATER!!!"
If you've ever laughed with a mouthful of any carbonated drink, you will know there is a very unpleasant sensation created if it comes through your nose. Orange juice is ten times worse - the acidity making it feel as though someone is pressing a cigarette lighter against the back of your eyeballs...
...so the next time one of your friends takes a sip of OJ, be sure to make them laugh.
In the time we've been planning this trip, we honestly believed that June 8 would be the toughest day, given the ride over Kootenay Pass. We were wrong.
In hindsight, this story is hilarious for us. At the time, however, it was the most physically and mentally challenging part of the trip so far.
At the base of many of the mountain passes, there are signs warning of sudden changes in weather conditions. We took note. We have all the wet weather clothing a cyclist could possibly want. We have a support driver who has stopped for us on the side of the road at 10km (6mi) intervals for the duration of the trip when he couldn't be following behind us. We've come prepared.
Despite all our great plans and preparation, there's only so much you can do to stay warm and dry on a bike. Water will still run down your neck, into the collar of a Gore-Tex jacket. Water will still find its way into shoe covers, soaking your socks. Gloves - same deal. Coupled with low temperatures, your muscles start to play games with you. Legs struggle to turn pedals, hands find it hard to steer, fingers won't change gears or pull on brake levers.
Today was supposed to be an easy (relatively) 90km (55mi) ride. Mother Nature decided to change that.
The first 70km was ridden into predominant headwinds, driving rain and freezing temperatures. There was a point where all that wet weather clothing became useless. There was a point where John and Daniel needed to answer the call of nature...
Stopped on the side of the road, as any cyclist has done, the scene played out like this: (Keep in mind they were struggling just to apply the brakes on the bikes in an effort to stop.)
Both riders attempt to remove gloves, pinching fingertips one- at-a-time. Result: Fail.
Both riders remove gloves with their teeth. Success.
Both riders attempt to pull down shorts to answer natures call. Result: Fail.
Both riders agree that attempting to pull down each others shorts with their teeth, on the side of the road, in full view of passing traffic is a bad idea.
After 5 minutes fighting with lycra shorts, John succeeds. Daniel does not.
Back on the bikes, one bladder about to burst and 25km left to ride to the next overnight rest point. Today did nothing for our fitness levels, but everything for our pain threshold!
We're happy to report that the next rest point was Fairmont Hot Springs, where we sat in the water for over an hour to warm up. Fantastic!
*Editors note: The weather has been a whole lot kinder to us in the days since this story occurred.
We made it across The Rockies!
Big thank you to Steve and Liane White and their family for hosting us in Calgary. Only a cyclist would know how nice a comfortable bed and a hot shower can be after a few cold and wet days on the road!
Not only were our bodies ready for a break, so were our bikes. Thanks to Speed Theory for making sure we could continue to turn the pedals! Jeremy looked after us at the Vancouver store before we left, while Adam and the crew were on deck in Calgary. Much appreciated guys, we wish you had more locations across North America!
Also, we want to shout out to Aaron Graham, a good buddy of ours from Australia (lives in Calgary) who came out to enjoy a quiet beer with us on our rest day.
After a horrendous first two weeks, it became our turn to sock it to Mother Nature.
In an effort to escape the weather pattern we'd been caught in, we rode the 300km (186mi) from Calgary to Medicine Hat in 2 days to give ourselves an extra rest day. It turned out to be a good decision - on said rest day it rained sideways. 6 inches of precipitation in 24 hours, with wind gusts up to 70km/hr!
June 18: We leave our campground in Medicine Hat, AB to get back on the trans-Canada Highway and continue East. As we were leaving, our support driver was listening to local radio...
Radio Announcer: "News just in, the trans-Canada Highway has been closed between Medicine Hat and the Saskatchewan border due to flooding."
The radio announcer wasn't lying - there was up to 2 metres of water across the TCH near Irvine, AB. So much rain in such a short period will do that!
We take a Northern detour, riding into a slight headwind on a significantly smaller road, along with all the diverted traffic from the TCH. Intent on riding the entire distance, we made it the equivalent distance of our orignal scheduled ride for the day before the road became impassable for cyclists. We load the bikes on the back of the support vehicle to finish the day in Maple Creek, SK. Not long after our arrival at the campground, it began to rain again, and we smiled - for once we'd beaten Mother Nature!
VeloCure: 1, Mother Nature: 0
June 19: Daniel wakes up. "WOOOOOOOOOOO! IT'S SUNNY! WAKE UP YOU MUPPETS, LET'S RIIIIIIIIIDE!"
The rest of the crew obliges, enjoying the thought of riding in the sunshine. We eat, we get dressed, we make our way to the highway. More rain overnight had filled a nearby dam to capacity - so much so, that it ran over the spillway in massive volumes, flooding a large area behind our campground, and...
Completely washing out the highway about 100m down the road.
VeloCure: 1, Mother Nature: 1
We soon learn of an "emergency vehicles only" lane just South of the campground, pack a bag with our wallets, phones and a few snacks and sweet-talk a family into giving us (and our bikes) a ride down the lane to get us back on the highway.
We decided we had to keep to schedule, and if Dave, our support driver couldn't get through, we'd get a motel room in Swift Current and wait for him overnight.
Dave wasn't allowed to go through immediately, however, as the road needed to be graded before heavy vehicles could pass. After 2 hours of sun, and some grading of the road (during which time 2 of the 3 graders on site became bogged), Dave saw another storm rolling towards him.
"It's now or never", he thought to himself as he dumped the RV into a low gear, locked the steering wheel to the left and sped through the mud. He makes it through. (We weren't there to see it happen, but we saw the condition of the road - getting a 28ft motorhome through that mud is a feat that would impress any professional rally driver.)
Unaware as to whether Dave had made it through or not, we were stoked when he caught up with us about 70km East, horn blaring in celebration.
VeloCure: 2, Mother Nature: 1
We make it to Swift Current, about an hour before it begins to rain cats and dogs, thunder and lightning included.
VeloCure: 3, Mother Nature: 1
June 20-26: This game of cat-and-mouse with Mother Nature continues for the week as we race incoming storms to the next town each day. We win the battle 6 out of 7 times with a margin anywhere between 10 minutes and 1 hour.
VeloCure: 9, Mother Nature: 2
June 27: In our greatest display yet, we decide to take advantage of a slight tailwind, with each rider cycling at their own pace. Daniel covered the 100km first, with an average speed of just over 42km/hr. John wasn't far behind at all, and Hollie very close behind him considering a flat she sustained with about 20km to go.
Within 10 minutes of stepping off the bikes, a thunderstorm resembling our best imagination of what armageddon would look like, flew over the top of us with brute force. We made it!
VeloCure: 10, Mother Nature: 2
Thanks to Luke Sitter, not only for hosting us in Regina, but also for coming out to take photos of us on the road, and for putting us in contact with some more amazing people...
Firstly to Rhonda, for your help in getting our story on CTV News throughout Southern Saskatchewan.
Also to Rob and the crew at Bonzzini's Restaurant for allowing us to throw a fundraiser at such short notice.
Then to Rita and Mavis from the Regina Chapter of the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, for coming out to the fundraiser, again at such short notice.
Big thank you to Annamaria and Mike, for looking after us in The 'Peg! Thanks for the food, the comfortable place to sleep and the hot showers, but most of all, thanks for the music!
Canada Day in Winnipeg was a blast! There's not much more to say, except that we'd also like to shout out to Taylor and Ellie (some buddies from Vancouver), who came out to play in the sunshine on our rest day.
We crossed the border on July 3rd, just in time for the celebrations on the 4th. It's taken until the 7th to write and post this entry, but the short time we've been here has been awesome - both on and off the bikes. This is why...
It's illegal to bring any fresh meat or produce into The US from Canada - we're aware of this, so we'd eaten as much as possible that we had in our support vehicle, and gave what was left to a few friends in Winnipeg before heading South. After a short delay at the border, we ended up getting in to our first US rest point a little later than usual, with no inclination to cook dinner for ourselves. So, we found the campground and a local bar, that shall remain nameless for its own protection...
Note to reader: This is the bar upon which ALL other bars should be modelled.
The first thing we noticed was the smell of burning Marlboro's and the ashtrays on the bar - yep, in North Dakota, you can still smoke in the pub. It was a pretty quiet night and wasn't over-powering, so we took a seat at the bar, ordered a drink and something to eat.
5 minutes into our "recovery lemonade", a large black dog came bounding through the doors of the pub.
"Oh, that's Clare - I guess she's the closest thing we have to a mascot" says our bartender as the dog runs behind the bar and helps herself to a drink of water from a bowl, kept specifically for her. "That's her owner over there" continues the bartender, "sometimes she comes down to the pub on her own when he's at work."
It's a dog's life.
Then we discover a sign behind the bar: "ALL TABS MUST BE SETTLED AND PAID FOR BY THE END OF EACH MONTH." Are they serious?!?! Yes, they're serious.
Another sign behind the bar: "Is it your birthday? Pay your age per drink!!! e.g. If you're turning 36, you pay 36 cents for each drink." Are they serious?!?! Yes, they're serious.
We could go on forever about what we learned in this bar on that night, but we need to tell you about what happened on the 4th of July...
The boys decided that, given we had a rest-day scheduled for the 5th, they'd like to go and mix it with the locals in Grand Forks, ND and see what 4th of July parties are all about.
They enter a nice nightclub in the centre of town, proceed to the bar and order a round of drinks.
"May I please have a JD and coke, a Captain Morgan spiced and coke and a double Crown Royal and ginger ale?"
"Sure" replies the bartender "That'll be $6, total."
"SIX BUCKS?!?! Is this some kind of crazy 4th of July special?"
"Nope, normal prices tonight."
We love North Dakota.
The following few days graced us with tailwinds, great weather and smooth, flat roads with very little traffic - we're now safe and sound in Bemidji, Minnesota.
We've also got to say that we've met some of the nicest, down-to-earth people in the last few days - if you're reading this, thanks so much for the good times and support!
Bright lights, loud sirens and lots of other shiny stuff...
As promised, this is the story of our run-in with the police in Crawford County, Michigan, after we decided to take our chances riding along the interstate highway. It's illegal, but it's also the safest road we've ridden on - with a wide shoulder, great visibility and a smooth road surface, it's actually a cyclists dream. Even the officer in charge agreed with us. Nonetheless, he has a job to do, and we were happy to oblige if he could find us a safe alternative route. The quotes were taken from our conversation with him, as he recounted his side of the story from the time we were first reported to police.
11:24am: Riding along the interstate (I-75), we ride straight through a roadside rest-stop to avoid disrupting the flow of traffic on the highway. We re-join the highway on the other side of the rest-stop where the shoulder continues.
11:25am: First motorist (sitting in the rest-stop) places 911 call to report 3 cyclists (us) riding along the highway.
11:28am: Crawford County Sheriff enters I-75 Southbound, looking for "3 cyclists in red, purple and white jerseys."
11:35am: Crawford County Sheriff exits I-75, failing to find us. (We were flying.)
11:36am: Second motorist places 911 emergency call to report 3 cyclists heading Southbound on I-75.
11:38am: Crawford County Sheriff re-enters I-75. "Where the f*** are these guys?!? Aren't they on bicycles?"
11:44am: We pass the Grayling exit, still unaware that the police are on to us.
11:45am: Trying to negotiate our way across the on-ramp (feeding traffic from Grayling onto the I-75) to get back onto the shoulder of the road, we hear the sirens and turn around to see the flashing lights.
John: "Ah, shiiiit."
Daniel: "Hahaha, oh well, we got 30 miles down the interstate before they found us."
Sheriff: *Gets out of patrol car* "How's it goin' guys?"
Daniel: "Ummm, really good. How about you?"
Sheriff: "I'm good, but I can't have you guys riding down this highway, it's against state law."
John: "Ah, OK. Can you give us a safe alternative route? We're trying to get to West Branch."
Sheriff: "Yeah, no problems, let me go grab a map from the car."
We spend the next 15 minutes finding another route, talking to the police (another patrol car turned up) about what we're doing and explaining to them that the interstate was the best section of road we'd ridden on yet. Despite being in full agreeance, they gave us an escort back up the on-ramp. i.e. against opposing traffic, and helped us find our new route.
Sheriff: "Anyway, how fast can you guys get on those things?" as he points to our bikes on the side of the road.
Daniel: "We've been sitting between 22 and 25 miles an hour (35-40km/hr) this morning."
Sheriff: "Haha! No wonder it took me 20 minutes to f***in' find you guys! That's awesome!"
After one of the longest weeks of the trip thus far, it was great to get a little R&R, put our feet up and give the legs a rest for a day.
Once again, we've been surprised by the generosity of complete strangers! This time it was the fine folks at Chippi Cycle who donated a few spare tubes and some much-needed handlebar tape and chamois cream.
Thanks so much!
If you're in, or passing through Saginaw, Michigan, be sure to check these guys out for all your bike needs. They rock!
"And since I'm not sure of the address to which to send my gratitude, I put it out there in everything I do." - Michael J. Fox
After 60 days, 5,050 kilometers and almost 170 hours on the bikes, we arrived safely in New York City on a warm, sunny day. It could have poured with rain, but nothing would dampen our spirits as the New York City skyline became visible when we hit the summit of that final, small climb before our descent towards Liberty State Park.
We managed to stay upright for the entire distance, and aside from a few bruised egos thanks to the powers of Mother Nature in the early days, no major injuries were sustained. We'd like to thank those who made it happen, because we sure as hell couldn't have done it on our own.
To Dave: He'll probably kill us for putting this up, but we don't care. He deserves recognition, and a lot of it. A better support driver we couldn't have asked for!
He put the trip plan together, complete with maps and altitude profiles (some of the more "interesting" ones can be viewed at our facebook page) that afforded us the knowledge of what we were in for each day. For example, we knew that at the 29.5km mark on day 8, we would turn a corner and begin our ascent of the single hardest mountain pass of the trip. We were actually at 29.4km when we turned that corner - pretty damn impressive!
Not only would he have lunch ready for us on the side of the road each day, he'd have our shoes laid out for us when we got there! He'd tirelessly clean the RV after we'd walk through it, soaking wet and covered in mud after a few of the "rough" days. Same goes with pumping the septic tank. 3 cyclists eating up to 7000 calories per day = a lot of septic tank pumping. Sorry we had to go there, but it just goes to show the kind of support we had.
What impressed us most about Dave's support, was the fact that he never, EVER (not once) exploded when we'd ask him those gruelling questions most kids grow out of at about age 7;
"Dave, how far to go?"
"Dave, when are we gonna be there?"
"How far to lunch, Dave?"
For a guy who doesn't have kids, he's got a hell of a lot of patience. Kudos Dave. We owe you. BIG TIME.
To Krena: For fielding phone calls at random hours of the day, when we were lost in the middle of nowhere with no internet connection, to "google this" and "google that."
Much like Dave, Krena never flipped out when we'd call her at 6am (local time in Vancouver) to ask her that dreaded question from 3,000 miles away; "Krena, are we there yet?"
To our sponsors: Bike spares, food, fuel, signage, fundraising venues, uniforms, printing and a fantastic support vehicle...
If Dave was our walking, talking navigation system, our sponsors were the engine room. Without them, this ship wasn't sailing anywhere.
Our sponsor list grew to the extent that it would actually be unfair to them to list them all here - it just wouldn't do them any justice. You can gain more information on our sponsors and what they provided to us by following the link to the various sponsor pages on this site.
To our various hosts: To Andrew in Banff, for the good times and the great food!
To Liane, Steve and their family in Calgary, for opening their doors and providing us with our first "real" beds and hot showers on the trip. Also to Aaron in Calgary, for showing us a great time in his adopted city on one of our rest days.
To Luke in Regina, for setting up a fundraiser with about six-and-a-half minutes' notice, and putting us in contact with the various news crews in the area. Thanks also for the photos!
To Annamaria and Mike, our "parents" in Winnipeg. Not only did we eat like kings and sleep like babies during our stay in The 'Peg, these guys made sure we were well-entertained. Mike ensured we had a steady flow of gut-busting jokes and great music while we were at "home", while Annamaria ensured we found all the good bars to check out on Canada Day, the way only a mother who's raised sons through their teenage years knows how.
To the great people we met along the way: Much like our list of sponsors, there are far too many to list here. You know who you are.
Thanks for the donations, the food, the drinks, the kind words of encouragement and support. A special mention must go to Bonnie, who we met in Osoyoos, BC - thanks for the hugs! (See the quote board below, for more information on that one.)
Finally, thank you, to YOU: For attending our fundraisers. For donating to the charities. For the messages of support. For reading this blog. For providing us with any kind of help, no matter what form that took. Your generosity at times was mind-blowing, and will never be forgotten, by us, or by those affected by CF or Diabetes - those to which this amazing adventure is dedicated.
We're going to have to limit this to the top 10. In no particular order...
# 1
DANIEL: "Have any of you guys got a quote for the quote board... That's appropriate for publication?"
# 2 (our favourite)
BONNIE (lady we met briefly in Osoyoos): "Wait, wait! Come here! Your mother told me to give you this when I saw you." *Gives John a big hug*
#3
DAVE: "I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world." (See facebook video - coming soon!)
#4
DANIEL: "You know what I'm looking forward to most about this trip?"
JOHN: "What?"
DANIEL: "Wearing Havianas and no underwear for 2 months."
#5
TELEVISION VOICEOVER: "The following program is recommended for mature audiences only."
JOHN: "Well, that counts me out - better change the channel."
#6
RANDOM TRUCKER WE MET IN SALMO, BC: "What brings you guys to Salmo?"
DANIEL: "We're riding our bikes to New York to raise money for research into Cystic Fibrosis and Diabetes."
RTWMIS: "Shiiiiiiiiit... Are you going through Creston?"
JOHN: "Yep."
RTWMIS: "That's a hell of a mountain pass between here and Creston. I can get you guys some stuff that'll turn all the molecules inside you into pure energy if you like."
#7
HOLLIE: "Holy S**t! Is that a mosquito above your bed?"
DANIEL: "No, it's my new pet pterydactyl."
#8
DAVE: "Next person to fart is off the tour."
#9
JOHN (speaking to his dinner on the first night): "I want you inside of me."
#10
DAVE (speaking about the coin-operated showers at one of the campgrounds): "Too dollar get yoo enny ting yoo waan."