Day 3 - Manning Park to Osoyoos 186 km

We woke to reports that there had been a heavy rain the night before. We fervently hoped that this meant the clouds had released most of thier load so that it might be mercifully drier in the morning. We agreed to get an early start, rolling out at 7:30 AM. It was to be a very long ride, 186km (115 miles).

Our route and elevation map today, plotted by my Garmin GPS --->

For more details about the ride, click here

Whoopee... mostly down hill !!! -?? The graph is deceptive. Each of the little tiny bumps in the middle of the curve represents sharp, rolling hills that were pretty tiring. ---->

It was still cold by the time we wolfed down a huge, calorie (and energy) laden breakfast. but the rain had abated. I decided to take my time this ride to conserve energy for the mountains to come in day 4. So, I enjoyed a leisurely pace, stopping a number of times to take photos.

Brian, Sherri and Stan at Sunday Summit, the first pass outside of Manning Park, 1282 meters in elevation (4206 feet) -->

The country was beautiful.

<--Eagle's nest on a telephone pole!

Once out of Manning Park, we found ourselves cycling through a remarkable transition of climatic regions, from sub-alpine forest, to lush irrigated valleys, to dry scrub brush, to beautiful orchards and vinyards as we neared Osoyoos. It was much easier to sense every nuance, every sound and smell of fresh country air on a bike.

Whipping by a car, with closed windows, air conditioning and stereo blaring, it is simply not possible to do this.

Speaking of cars.... the IDIOTS on the highway up here are astounding. Twice, we nearly witnessed a head-on collision as impatient drivers crossed double lines on blind curves to get around our bike trailer supporting the ride, and protecting us from just such folk. The one that stands out in my mind was an event I could not bear to watch. The two cars were racing at each other at well over 110 kph just past a blind corner, with our pace car nearby. I closed my eyes, then opened them in astonishment... both cars had somehow avoided each other and continued their way in opposite directions. I still wonder how on earth they missed each other. It must have been by literally a foot or two. God, I hope that is the closest we ever come to witnessing an accident on this ride.

The climb out of Manning Park was easier than Allision Pass, but still tough with seven percent grades to overcome before we made a long descent into Pentiction where we stopped for a mid-morning snack. Then we hit headwinds that made progress feel like we were cycling through mud. Teamwork came to the rescue. The four of us who were riding together formed a tight paceline that rotated constantly so that no one was left facing the headwinds for more than a few minutes before being relieved by someone else moving ahead of them.

Along the way, we stopped at a provincial campground between Princeton and Keremeos beside the fast-flowing Similkameen River.

Similkameen River-->

Then came a series of broad, rolling hills outside of Keremeos, a farming community. They were deceptively tough, with short, sharp inclines that quickliy descended until, with only a minutes of respite, we were climbing again. Here, a paceline didn't really help. We really needed to take care to ride with all of our muscle groups, using the lift of our opposing leg to take the pressure of the leg thrusting down into the pedals.

It was a huge and painful effort for some, but I marvelled at the gritty determination of the riders I was with. One of the riders, Sherri said how she kept thinking of the three children she was riding for, children of her best friend, all of whom have been diagnosted with Cystic Fibrosis. No matter the pain, nothing... nothing was going to keep her from finishing the course for these kids.

Thankfully, as the day wore on, it became progressively warmer until we started the last huge incline up Richter Pass, a steady 4% grade that went on for miles. By then, it was hot and anyone who had not carefully kept hydrating themselves with liquids as they cycled quickly found they were losing steam. But, we all made it through a combination of teamwork through pace-line riding, using all of our muscle groups, and a HUGE amount of motivation. It was inspiring and a priviledge to ride with these folks.

We arrived in Osoyoos to another incredible welcome by the Kinsmen and Kinettes of Summerland and Penticton. Blair and his Kinsmen colleague, Matt served up burgers and hotdogs, while the Kinettes prepared lovely fresh salads and desserts.

The Kinsmen and Kinette team who greeted us

in Osoyoos-->

At the end of the dinner two our our riders, Doug and Simon, both of whom had children with CF, were presented generous donations by the Kinsmen to support their ride. The generosity of the Kinsmen and the Kinettes was exceptional, and greatly appreciated.

<--Our incredible GearUp4CF support team: Joyce Taylor, our meticulous Cystic Fibrosis Foundation organizer who ensured every need was attended to, and Tom Evans, our ever-attentive and helpful support vehicle driver. They drove two support vehicles at a mind-numbing speed of between 8 kph to 30 kph from Vancouver to Banff. If that isn't patience, I cannot imagine what is!

The sunset over Osoyoos lake was spectacular, again, like our ride into Harrison, ending a perfect day. And now, after writing this journal... I'm off to bed. It will be a big day tomorrow, with a monster climb out of Osoyoos stretching over 30 kilometers. Then we ride for another one hundred kilometers until we find ourselves in Grand Forks, our next destination on this epic ride to the Canadian Rockies.