Cross-Canada by Ebike

[newjeff]

Good to hear from you Justin. Try putting small grocery bags on your feet inside your shoes to keep your feet warm. This not only keeps them dry but warm too. When you were in Toronto I noticed you kept your pants tucked into your socks. So it's one pair of socks, plastic bag, next pair of socks. Get some Dr Sholls foot powder or you won't be able to take the plastic off. LOL. Only in Canada! Eh!!!

The smile on your face is priceless Dr Scholls will keep it there.

The last few days have keep us all checking this board three or four times a day with bated breath.

There was an article in the Toronto Sun (Sunday Sept 21 page 33) about your cross Canada trek, but had the reporters own agenda about the election rather than Justin's trip.

Well Justin keep the smile on your face, the rubber side down, and those cards & letters coming!

Regards

Bill Wicksted (Toronto)

P.S. Would be nice if the posters, on this thread at least, would give there names and city. I don't know all the user names or where you are from.

 

[EDWIN]

Hello Justin
Very glad to see you posting again. At times like this feeling cold is a good thing.It means you are still alive and still sane.Dress in layers ,stop and warm up often,think warm thoughts,and keep going till the end.Then it's a good time to stop.It could get a little soggy if you go to far.
EDWIN

 

[justin_le]

I don't know if anyone got a good look at the rear tire on Justin's rig (it's covered by the Xtracycle bags), but it has a really strange wear pattern on it. The tread in the center of the tire is fine, but the shoulders are worn almost as though there was some mechanical interference between the frame/fender and the rotating wheel. He HAD worn through the fender where his added weight, sitting on top of the Xtracycle, had pushed it into the spinning tire. He'd already cut out the offending section of the fender (and we removed more of it while he was here) - but that didn't explain to me how the SHOULDERS of the tire were worn, and symetrically at that!

Here's a photo of what my rear tire looked like as of Quebec City:



It doesn't look anything like the original tread that is still fine on the front wheel which has the same tire. I thought that Phil's observation that this wear pattern could be attributed to under-inflation quite intriguing. I think the odds are still pointing to the fender rubbing as the main culprit. From somewhere in BC all the way to Northern Ontario I kept having to readjust the thing so that it wouldn't buzz against the tire every time I hit a bump, and I think that the buzzing sound was the fendor vibrating side to side which would cause the symmetric wear. Here's what it looked like before I just cut it off:



Mind you, looking at that picture now, the side treads certainly seemed to be more intact then than they are right now.

 

[justin_le]

One thing I have never fully understood is why bicycles are banned on most freeways. It seems to me that they make for the best bikes paths out there when you are interested in covering ground. You get a superbly wide shoulder, the pavement is almost always clean and smooth, there's a rumble strip separating you from the traffic, there is usually good streetlighting at night, and there are no parked cars, intersections, giant potholes, or other common road hazards that cyclists usually face. It's true that the cars are moving fast, but at least they are moving predictably.

Anyways against the advice given to me I decided to enter Montreal last week along highway 20. It seemed to all be going great until uh oh, flashing red and blue and the short burst of a police siren. The first french words that I got to use this entire trip were "Oui monsieur, je comprends, pas de velos sur l'autoroute, prochaine sorti a la droit, OK" and I was then politely escorted off the freeway at the next exit.

And there no surprise, I had to face pot holes, unlit roads, uncontrolled intersections, and getting lost navigating side streets at night in a big and unfamiliar city. Whatever the rules may be, I certainly did not feel any safer!



I thought maybe that the car-exclusivity applied mostly to the freeways inside the cities but it then happened twice more while leaving Quebec the other day, and in these cases it's just a highway out in the countryside, no fancy concrete overpasses and such, but the officers were quite adamant that both cyclists and pedestrians were banned and had no place there. I started to explain why I felt that this didn't make any sense ( and it's the Trans-Canada highway after all, for all of us to enjoy ). But then it's like right, don't try to argue what's right vs. what's the law to a policeman! So I said terribly sorry, I must have missed the sign, etc. etc. and got away with stern warnings.

First thing I asked at the tourist info booth when I got into New Brunswick was if there were any roads bicycles weren't allowed on. The lady paused and thought for a bit. "Nope". Hooray!

 

[Ypedal]

Should be smooth sailing in NB, i see touring bikes all the time on the highways, but the highways are pretty bad in sections.. ( not that i would know how good the highways are in the rest of canada mind you.. ) .. Might be wise to carry a box of timbits !! :wink:

 

[mikereidis]

One thing I have never fully understood is why bicycles are banned on most freeways. It seems to me that they make for the best bikes paths out there when you are interested in covering ground. You get a superbly wide shoulder, the pavement is almost always clean and smooth, there's a rumble strip separating you from the traffic, there is usually good streetlighting at night, and there are no parked cars, intersections, giant potholes, or other common road hazards that cyclists usually face. It's true that the cars are moving fast, but at least they are moving predictably.

I was wondering why you didn't report that trouble yet. Just Quebec ?

So how did Terry Fox and Steve Fonyo et al do it ? "Special rules" for special people with caravans etc. ?

Time to lobby for a Trans Canada Bikeway.

 

[zenon]

Hi Justin!

Keep up the good spirit and just picture all of us here jumping and cheering at the finish line.
I can still picture you bouncing on your unicycle at Science World in Vancouver and you never
mentioned about this trip.
Its true action do speak louder than words.
See you when you get back
Keep on keepen on

Cheers!!!

 

[fechter]

Doh! Busted!

Great cop picture. Just play dumb... You can't argue with law enforcement.

You're almost to the end, and just in time as it looks like it's getting too cold.

Keep going, and going, and going....

 

[Ypedal]

I just got a call from Justin, he's in Fredericton, no charging spots between it and Moncton, so he will detour to sussex and be in Moncton in the morning !!! 8)

 

[mikereidis]

Doh! Busted!

Great cop picture. Just play dumb... You can't argue with law enforcement.

You're almost to the end, and just in time as it looks like it's getting too cold.

Keep going, and going, and going....

Like the Energizer Bunny ?

Sorry, couldn't resist. Esp. w/ the charging comments.

 

[wasp]

we have a commonlaw right to travel...i would have made him pull out his little book
and showed me where it says i gave this right up?

 

[justin_le]

A lot of people have asked me about wildlife, and sure enough on this trip I have encountered bears, deers, foxes, mountain goats, skunks, raccoons, rabbits, porcupines, beavers, a giant owl, and lots of unidentified critters that I've mutually startled and sent running to the bushes while riding at night.

But the one thing that I've been warned about endlessly was moose. There are "Caution: Moose" signs all along the roads from Northern Ontario right to here, and moose collision statistics posted on all the visitor info centers. And in spite of all the warnings from people to watch out for moose on the road I hadn't seen a single one! I was going to be so disappointed if I finished this trip without a lone moose sighting. But then yesterday, standing fairly proud on a bank overlooking the highway I finally saw my moose.


Thank you Moose! You (and the gorgeous weather, fall colours, tailwind, and perfect NewBrunswick roads) made my day.

 

[justin_le]

I've had many neat encounters and welcomes from random people along the way, but the best so far was from the small town of Lavaltrie, north of Montreal. It was a little before midnight and I was starving so I ventured off the main road in the direction of what seemed like a tiny center hoping to find something that was open. Oh thank you, a Tim Horton's.

It was empty except for a couple youths hanging around outside, and after a while they came to ask questions and I did my best in broken french to explain the rig and what I was up to. They were like, "crazy, a visitor on ebike from Vancouver!" and phoned their friends to come over and check it out, and so forth, and before long a whole party had gathered around me at Timmies, staff included (white cap at the back)!



Ha, I even got a dance for the handlebar camera as I was leaving. It's only taking 1 shot per minute though so you can't exactly see the moves, but what a riot.

 

[Nimbuzz]

Best thing to warm feet is wool socks!

 

[newjeff]

Say Justin;

Your bike is now a piece of Canadian History. It would be a shame to junk the bike and ship the rest back home.

Why not auction your cross Canada e-bike on Endless Sphere as is sans (that's french for without) your one of a kind controller! You could get a controller down there perhaps from Gaston to replace yours. I'm sure someone would be very glad to have it. The sale would pay for all the electricity you used at least. LOL! The bike construction is brilliant!

Who out there would bid on this item? Reserve price $1000.00? Cdn plus Shipping.

Regards

Bill Wicksted (Toronto)

 

[Dee Jay]

Ha, I even got a dance for the handlebar camera as I was leaving. It's only taking 1 shot per minute though so you can't exactly see the moves, but what a riot.

Party people in Montreal!

HOTZZ...

Lot's of good DJs and parties there... they know how to party-hearty over there, I hear.

Dude, you should've stayed hung out with them. They'd surely taken you to some hoppin' clubs and hooked you up with some fine buds and Chemical X! 8)

J

 

[smithinparis]

I laughed so hard when I read Justin’s run-in with the police in Montreal. It SO reminded me of something from Douglas Adams. Anyway, just so that people don't get the wrong impression of Sûreté du Québec, police officers all around the world have a twisted impressions of what is safe when it comes to textbook law.

Douglas Adams has a quote in the Salmon of Doubt which mentions that he was traveling in England, and while going down the motorway, the flow of the traffic was that he ended up passing cars on the inside lane, and the police pulled him over for it. It turns out that he had just come back from the states, where passing on either the right hand side or left hand side was generally accepted, and he just let his guard down.

Anyway, the police officer made him pull over onto a blind turn of a slipway with traffic careening by feet away, which made Douglas Adams really scared because he had his pregnant wife in the back of the car. He told the police that he thought that the situation was very dangerous, and they got into a debate about safety and the law. Anyway, the argument (from the police officer) when like this:

Overtaking on the inside lane is inherently dangerous. Why? Because the law says it was. But he was parked on a blind bend in slip road on police instructions which made it legal, and hence - follow the logic - safe.

Douglas argued that he accepted that he made a maneuver that was illegal under the laws of England but that their current situation being park on a blind bend in the path of fast moving traffic was life threatening by reason of the actual physical laws of the universe.

The officers next point was that he was not in the universe, he was in England.

... Oh Douglas Adams will be missed ...

 

[mikereidis]

Best thing to warm feet is wool socks!

Ummm, socks, shmocks, the French dancing gals could warm ALL parts of the body.

 

[Ypedal]

Clean bike - Check

Tires at 50 psi - Check

Cold beer in fridge - Check

Day off work - Check ! ( this one is gonna cost me, boss lady was very reluctant.. but allowed it )

72v 20ah pack fully charged - Check

AA's for digital camera charged - Check

As long as Justin don't get lost on the way, i plan to travel in his direction and meet as far as my pack will allow !

 

[justin_le]

Party people in Montreal!
HOTZZ...
Dude, you should've stayed hung out with them. They'd surely taken you to some hoppin' clubs and hooked you up with some fine buds and Chemical X! 8)

You have to understand, this was the little town of Lavaletrie, not Montreal. Tim Horton's that night WAS the hoppin' club!

Now, where's this YPedal Fellow? he's supposed to meet me here at this big truck fueling station :wink: ... -Justin

 

[Ypedal]

Meanwhile......

Leaving at 1pm from home, headwind making the Amp Hours roll by at an alarming rate, funny how i have 72v 20ah on board but never really venture out far from home, i cover long distances in my city circle but i never drain the pack more than 50% because i'm running BMS free !!! And 72v 20ah is a hell of alot of battery really..

On my way there, my cell phone rings, almost giving a lady walking her dog a heart attack just as i was passing by ( the cell phone is way louder than the bike lol )

" Hello.. i just passed an Irving and a Subway Subs.. do i keep going or is this the place we meet ? " .. with all confidence i reply " Keep going, the Big Stop is huge and you'll know when you get there "..

I get to the Big Stop.. No Justin yet.. alright.. i park my bike at the front and take my helmet off.. getting strange looks from 2 ladies selling tickets for a Mustang.. I explain

" Waiting for a guy crossing canada on an Electric Bike !! " .. " Have you seen anyone like that passing by ? "

Ladies : " No, not that we noticed " .. " Electric ??? uhh.. what ? "

So i explain and ask them

After 10 minutes, and a few calls to Justin's cell phone, that were not connecting, i feared i may have given him the wrong instructions when he told me he was at an Irving and a Subway Subs shop, but don't look to be a " Big Stop " ..So i look behind me.. and there sits a big yello " SUBWAY "...uh oh..

I ask the ladies " Hey.. if a guy was comming from Sussex. would he pass an Irving and a Subway before getting to this one ? " .. gulp... " Yes, in petecodiac ".. phew.. felt better all of a sudden..

They point out that he would likely be comming from the other side, so i casually put my helmet on and circle the building to find :

 

[Mathurin]

One thing that surprised me about Justin was his fluency in french.
Anyways, wish you guys mutual nerdgasms like when he was here!

 

[Ypedal]

[youtube]MvOLGczq3Q4[/youtube]

 

[Ypedal]

Had a go on the Chopper !

 

[Ypedal]