| THE SKEPTIC'S PROGRESS |
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These are some of the letters I received from people during my trip. Comments from me, if any, are in red font, so you'll know. Mostly, they're in chronological order, but I wanted to start with this letter from Michael Shermer, which really meant the world to me. You see, Michael Shermer is not only the publisher of Skeptic magazine, and several fine books on the subject, he is also...wait for it...a former semi-professional long distance cyclist. Thanks for responding, Mr. Shermer!
June 1, 2001 Steve: What a great trip. I'm envious. In my five transcontinental crossings by bike I never took the time to smell the flowers. Do so. Michael SKEPTICMAG@aol.com
May 12, 2001 Hey Steve. Liked the video. I checked out your web page (good sister Lisa still had the address). Laughed at dad's pic but the one with you on it won't show up. Why? There are a lot more small pictures then big pictures. I don't know why. Hope all is going well. Bet it was pretty cold in some parts. If you need anything let me know. Have fun. kelly My oldest sister kblagdon@hotmail.com
May 13, 2001 Hi, Steve! We tried to send you an e-mail yesterday, but I don't think it worked since all these error windows kept coming up. So I'm sending you another one today! I took Mom to the library to look at your website. We nearly got kicked out for giggling too much. Well, we did get kicked out, but just because we ran out of time. So we picked up Kelly & found a shop on Columbia that sells Internet time so we could read the rest. Hey, don't get discouraged. Think of it this way... you're 1/8 of the way across, 12.5% done, past the mountains, Alberta & Manitoba are skinny provinces. Don't think about how far is left, just pick a spot not too far away that has something you'd like to see & then go see it. The beginning of a trip is always the hardest part. Hmmm. Think that's enough cliches for one day? Nothing's happening here, as usual. I think my April jinx has lifted. Although now that I think about it, my front tires have developed slow leaks & so has the sunroof.... And occasionally I hear a suspicious grinding noise.... And the baby needed x-rays.... And I've got a dentist appointment (always an invitation to disaster).... And there is a funny feeling in my toe! We miss you! From Lisa, my second oldest sister ;)
May 14, 2001 Im enjoying reading your journal. Don't give up The hills are allmost over. John Henderson ( the guy from the CBC) Ps I forgot to let anyone at work know about your trip. If you don't mind I will pass on your journal entries to them.to see if they want to do a story. John jhende9007@home.com
May 16, 2001 Hi Steve! Congratulations! I've been checking out your website, very impressive! But I have to admit, I would never have believed that you would have doubts about your ability to ride across the country. When Mom told me about it, it seemed exactly the kind of thing that you would do.
Take care.
May 22, 2001 This letter is from Ray Blessin, who used to publish a newsletter called the Canadian Atheist (copies still available on-line) and is a really nice guy. My deepest condolences for your brother, Ray...and I still miss the newsletter too. Hi Steve, Good project! I have lots of contacts across the country but I've lost all their email addresses in a computer upgrade. I do have a list of phone numbers though and will be glad to make calls about this. Unfortunately, my youngest brother was killed in a boating accident yesterday and I will be preoccupied for a bit. Please stay in touch with me as often as you can. It's REALLY nice to hear from you!
Regards,
May 23, 2001 Hey Steve! Nope, didn't make it to Halifax. The car (*$#&%^?*%*#&*&@(%@%*@%&@(%@(@^&!!^&*&^&*&$%*#*&@^@) died in Toronto. Got a ride to Montreal, so, lucky us, right? Glad to hear you're doing well (aren't you happy tou didn't quit in Calgary?). Off to check your site tonite...I've been bumming in a very big way for the past 3 days (and boy does it feel GOOD!), but I'm ready for the real world again.
Take care and see you soon!
May 26, 2001
Hello Steve:
Thomas
May 27, 2001 Hello: just try and see if this works, I meet you at the hostel in Regina when I bought my membership. I've checked out some of your great pictures. read some of the stuff. Very interesting. I'll keep pulling for you. and watch with interest. bye for now, have a great day. Lucille lucillen@accesscomm.ca
May 27, 2001
Hey there! I scanned through pretty quickly, to get a general view...I like, I like. Nice, clear organization. Beautiful pictures. Thourough tour report. I like, I like. I did (of course) take a closer look at your entries concerning Calgary (everyone is a megalomaniac - but I'm the best!) Your little (lying) charmer you! And thanks for posting a no-so-great picture of poor Wynona (!). I figure you owe me for the quote, though. (Copies of some of your wonderful pictures perhaps?) So, where are you at now? How are you doing? News please, if time permits.
See you soon,
wow steve, i wasn't sure you were truly serious about biking across this fucking crazy big country of ours but wow...wow is all i can say. well, not really. i liked the story about how your bike broke down. For you it wasn't just a story, it was a real-life shitty happening, but i'm sure in hindsight you look back and chuckle a little, unless of course you're still in regina. HA HA HA HAR HAR HO HO HEEE HEEE. I can remember one night hitching in europe. My friend Kara and I were trying hard to get to italy by nightfall but goddammit we were stuck on the french-italian border in a shitty little town called Aix or something. Pronounced "ex", sounds shitty hey? We stood in a roundabout, mapless, trying to go anywhere but the nowhere where we were. Sometimes sleeping in a highway ditch out of town seems more appealing then trying to stay up all night, and we had passed up an offer with some creep to stay at his place so there we were...hungry, cold and sleepy. It seemed utterly hopeless until a car pulled over to talk to us. We could speak a little french but luckily, as with most europeans, they spoke fluent english. At least sister did, what she translated for her brother stunned our tired, cold little ears. Her brother had offered to drive us to a, by french standards, to an inexpensive hotel. For poor canadian backpackers this was still too expensive, we told them this. We didn't tell them we thought france sucked, it was a ripoff and that we just wanted to get out and never come back. But anyways... To make a long story short this guy had a soft spot for cute girls in hard-luck places. He sponsered a night at the "Grand Prix Inn" for us and even paid for Le continental breakfast. So you see, if you don't get the point I just came up with, always rememember when you're traveling that when life seems shitty, super shitty like that, something fantastically memorable happens to propel you into another chapter of the story. For us, it was a spooky tunnel-filled semi-truck drive with two horny Romanians who would take us to Genoa, Italy...safe and sound...
take care steve, don't forget those lights and reflecters,
May 29, 2001 so good to see your type.. or script or whatever anyway?, that would have been rad if we could of got together before you left. well we've been back for about a month. soo good to hear that your moving across our great nation..just as planned, traveling accroosss part of Canada actually myself late this summer..My friends mike and mike are going to be in Montreal for the summer months and I will be rondayvoowing, then together moveing to Hamilton to seek our friend Allanah's hand, and meet her precious daughter, anyway maybe we can hangout. Im working on gettin a car and working at a construction site for a leaky condo project....in coquitlam, anyway I'm saving to finally go to music school!!!! I'll be in in September... Jenny is in Seaschelt for a while maybe until July then she will probably be moving in to the fair city, she has an email its jennybear@hotmail.com.................... Wonder where you are now, do you have a camera we can swap photos when we meet in the future. anyway enough type chat for me for today!! I'd like to hear about your trip while your on it so please don't hestitate to frequent my address...with your thoughts
nice hearing from you steve take care...
May 29, 2001 Hi Steve, jessica alexander here. I am having fun looking over your site which kelly linked me to. Thought you might want to know that Geocities/Yahoo is using your site to link to www.beliefnet.com which is all about angels and spirituality. It looked to me like you might not know about that. Good site, I hope you make it over this way. You had better drop in if you do. There's a shower downstairs which you will be welcome (and possibly encouraged) to help yourself to. Bye for now, j. jalexander@ns.sympatico.ca
June 4, 2001 This is great! How'd u do that pierced tongue pic? I recognize the Indian guy from TLC. ;-) -Florian June 4, 2001 I'm looking through your site and pictures. This is really great stuff! June 4, 2001 Funny... I assumed that Premenand was faked too. Maybe i'm too skeptical. It's a really good picture. Too good maybe.
-Florian
June 5, 2001 Hi Steve I guess that I should re-introduce myself. My name is Jurgen Beck and I'm married to Ann-Marie who is your brother-in-law Jay's older sister. I have been reading your trip reports (Kelly sent me the URL to your site) and have found myself awaiting new installments with eager anticipation - great writing/journalism. Now on to the meat of this e-mail - Ann, our son ----- and I are being transferred to Ottawa and expect to arrive there during the week of July 9th. We would like to extend our welcome to you if it works with your schedule. You can reach us at this e-mail address ( jurgen@telus.net ) for the next three to four weeks and at one or more of the following phone numbers: [edited out]
Wishing you a safe and fulfilling ride
June 6, 2001 Hello, We will do a write-up about this on AANEWS and those persons from Canada who read that can then get in touch with you.
All the best, They never did, to my knowledge. Sigh.
June 6, 2001 Good luck on your exciting adventure. We hope everything goes very good for you. Hope you make it to Milton and we get to see you and hear about everything. Uncle Fred and Aunt Judy silverfj@sympatico.ca
June 9, 2001 I saw your posting to rec.bikes.rides, and read your web page. So what happened? The web page ends in Regina, which is one hell of a place to end anything! (Ever fly into/over it? It looks like an island in a sea of grain or something.)
Anxiously awaiting updates,
June 10, 2001
Hi:
Regards, The connection between the two subjects is me!
June 10, 2001 I just started cycling some distances and realize how difficult it is. But it is also a sense of accomplishment. At the end of June I plan to cycle the Gulf Islands for 6 weeks. I am currently doing it (lots of steep hills) on the weekends to get a sense of what to take. I take stove, pot, sleeping bag, bivi sack, not much more adds up to 35 pounds. Weight is a killer, eh? One of the reasons I contacted you is I want to create a web site so I can pass on information about cycling the gulf islands to other cyclists here in Vancouver or who want to come here. I notice you are connected to Yahoo. Is that a free web page? I can't afford to pay for a web site but I don't know much about it. I actually only need a little space for a web page? An information would be greatly appreciated. Best of luck on your trip. By the way, I am 52 so age is not the determining factor, determination is. Keep going! Cheers!
terry
June 10, 2001
hi Steve
just a short note
and by the way what the heck has happened to you?
June 10, 2001
Steve-- Last summer, I discovered Wade Anderson's site (www.cyclingtrip.com) which you might want to check out if you're down for a day or 2 with nothing to do. I wish you well from the Hudson Valley of New York. I'd offer the couch and shower if you were passing through here, but you are probably not. Along your likely route, I've covered only the stretch between Montreal and Quebec City by bike (also Yarmouth to Halifax NS, which you will probably bypass). But in the event you don't know of these sites already, check out Ken Kifer's site (www.kenkifer.com)--he covered the northern edge of Lake Superior and has great ideas on rough camping. Also see Sheldon Brown for information on the Gaspee Penninsula of Quebec (www.sheldonbrown.com) and a wealth of info on bike repairs, etc. Your post to the NG started with a self-depricating "I know this has been done before, but..."--You are right that people have crossed the continent by bicycle. Thomas Stevens did it in 1886 on one of those 100-lb (45 kg), high-wheel Penny-farthing monstrosities (that is no typo. Eighteen-eighty six--over 100 years ago!) but that need not detract from the importance of what you are now doing. This trip is yours alone, and none of those who have come before you have made the grades less steep, the winds less strong or the trials less punishing. But they haven't left the scenery less fresh either, nor shrunk the sky. Your discoveries are novel. Wallow in them. You are right to be proud.
Best of luck,
June 11, 2001
Really enjoyed reading your story.
marc grant
June 11, 2001 Hey, congratulations on your web page. Hope to find time to learn some more about html and upgrade mine to a more functional status. Have you bookmarked now and hope to read your journals sometime soon. Just sending a quick email in case you're following the Superior Shoreline route when you hit Ontario. I did the shoreline last summer, and Nova Scotia a couple years ago, but only have the former trip up on my page so far.
Bicycling Travelogues and links at:
Good luck! Bike to work : work to live : live to bike
June 12, 2001 Good luck on your trip. I've known three people who have done this trip, and two were not cyclists. Just take it one day at a time, and eventually you'll reach your goal. No offense intended, but [being an atheist] has something to do with your age. This isn't age of your body, but age of your mind as an atheist. I'm not much into psychobabble, but I believe there is something to the idea that your mind takes a while to accept major change. You've probably heard of the 5 stages of grief - denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. These aren't cut in stone, they don't necessarily go in sequence, and each stage can last minutes or years, but they do seem to happen. I've gone (or am going through) similar feelings due to my choice of philosophy (agnostic and skeptic, but grew up in the United Church of Canada), transportation and recreation (bicycle, in an auto-dependent family), and place of residence (US, in a strongly nationalistic Canadian family). I know people who have (or are) gone through this due to racial (black/chinese/latino becoming "white", or white becoming chinese/indian), sexual (homosexual/lesbian/bi), and religious (born again christian, Jewish Reformed to Jewish Orthodox) choices, just to name a few. As I wrote above, I'm an agnostic and skeptic. I don't advertise it, but people will know it if they talk to me long enough. It's a part of who I am, but I don't have to fly a flag. I live in a predominantly Jewish neighbourhood, and half of my neighbours are Orthodox Jewish (in fact, there's an Orthodox teenager in my house right now, babysitting my daughter), but nobody cares. Two of my best friends are evangelical Christians. That may sound very strange (I wouldn't have believed it 5 years ago), but people are not one-dimensional - even evangelical born-again Christians :-) Again, best of luck on your trip. I wish I did it when I was still in school (or just finished) - now I won't have a chance until I am 50 (which is thankfully still a long way away).
Scott Nicol
June 15, 2001 I'm planning on doing the same trip as you, starting in about 6 weeks. I'm from England and I'm riding a tandem with my girlfriend. Have a great trip and all the best to you,
Dan
June 15, 2001 Hi how are you doing. Have been checking the web for more info. Great pictures. Keep it up. I'm pulling for you. Lucille lucillen@accesscomm.ca
June 18, 2001 Steve, I can't remember if I emailed you my web page a little while ago or not when I heard you were going around . . . I did most of the shoreline route but started on #11 at Longlac, the western part of the 200-km stretch with no services. Had a great breakfast at the hotel on the right. Anyway, I only did about 200 km of the western part of #11 and have two camping tips. Don't camp beside the general store in Jellicoe becasue the depression by the lake is very bug-infested. Nice to wash up in the lake but got lots of bites. If the timing works for you, go the 5-km or whatever north to Geraldton - there's a park on the left at the outskirts of town that you could probably pitch a tent at without anybody bothering you. It'll be a long day if you try going from Nipigon in one day but things go dead flat after Beardmore [going east]. Beardmore is big enough to support one hotel and one hardware store. There's a lot of services in Geraldton, more than there appeared to be in Longlac so get stuff here before continuing east. And if you want a real campground when you come into Nipigon, there's something on the left, on the west side of town, that charged me half-price for being a cyclist [$7.50]
Good luck ps curious why you want to take the northern route instead of Superior? Because it's the road less travelled. It wasn't an easy choice though...I'd love to see Superior. I guess it's a moot point now though, unless I finish the trip in the future. Thanks for the report!
June 20, 2001
Dear Steve,
Love from the road, Might as well 'fess up...you were sitting next to me at the library's computers, and I glanced at your email address. Too shy to say hi...the story of my life. :)
June 20, 2001
Steve--
CRAIG
June 21, 2001 Gaaaaaah! I was right! Saskatchewan's a black hole from which nothing can escape! When was your bike stolen? How about the rest of your stuff? Give us details! We want to send you some money to help defray the cost of a new bike. Kelly says we can just put it in your bank account if you give us the account# & branch.
Hope your luck gets much much better.
June 21, 2001
Steve-- You may be considering your options too narrowly. You could also buy a "beater", brush it up and continue on that. In 1995, I rode from Paris to Scotland and across Ireland on a rusty old Nishiki 10-speed that I bought in a flea market outside Paris for 300FF (about $60US at the time or about ($100CDN). It wasn't an uncomfortable ride, and I had a few mechanical problems, but nothing that I couldn't recover from. You could also get a job and work for about a month, hoard your money and continue as originally planned. You have the advantage of being in your native country. This is very bad and I feel for you. If I were rich, I'd ship you a bike to ride, but from what I've read, I doubt you would even accept it. You seem too proud and self-sufficient, and that's a strenght that runs in all of us who tour. Quitting is an option. I hope you don't have to. Stay in touch. Don't get too depressed. Try every day to work as hard to get back on the road as you did while you were on the road. You'll get there. As the friggin' Buddists say: "The oxen are slow, but the earth is patient."
CRAIG
June 22, 2001 I just read in the paper your bike was stolen. That sucks - sorry to hear that. The article sent me directly to your website. What a great piece of work! I truly enjoyed reading of your adventures so far. You have great writing skills - a skill that seems to be lacking in many young folk these days. I immediately wanted to invite you home and feed you (no, I'm not a weirdo - I'm a mom - I have sons your age... assuming you're 20ish), but fully understanding "your joy" of making small talk with complete strangers, I won't put that burden on you. I feel the same way. Give me an email address and you can't shut me up. Put me face to face with a person and I'm scrambling for something to talk about. But just to clear up a couple of mysteries for you - the yellow sticky bands are to stop canker worms - not dutch elms. (Who cares, right? But you may need to know that someday). Secondly - not everyone in Saskatchewan are like the folks who wouldn't let you camp in their yards. Some of us are quite kind and decent - however I would hope you've experienced a few of them seeing as how you've been in Regina for a month. Anyway, Mr. Vanden-Eykel, enjoy your journey - in whatever direction it takes you. Hope you get your bike back or some kind soul will offer you a new one. (I would offer you mine, but the girl's Mountain Tour from Zellers will definately have an impact on your cool-squared status). I'll be watching your website.
Darlene Chuka
June 26, 2001 Not that I'm trying to inflame Saskatoon-Regina rivalry (OK, I am, but I'll deny it, just the same), Regina is a terrible place to have to look for bicycles and parts. Dutch Cycle is the only game in town, although they are very good in that particular market, and at least they come from an honest tradition of European cycling. Unfortunately, the Regina market is not very demanding. Dutch would go broke trying to keep much good stuff in stock. On the other hand, there are six excellent bicycle shops within 15 minutes' riding of my home in Saskatoon. You could try calling the Saskatoon shops to see if they have anything for you (Bike Doctor, Doug's Spoke 'n Sport, Bruce's Cycle Works and Bike Universe would be your best bets - their phone numbers are on my web site). They could have it to you by bus the same day. I would have mentioned this earlier, but it didn't occur to me that you'd still be stuck in Regina. If you stick around much longer, you could come up to Saskatoon and meet up with phellow phred Mark Boyd who is making his way across western Canada currently.
Darrell Noakes,
Saskatoon, SK CANADA I couldn't agree more about Dutch Cycle...it was the only place really worth going to, and I got great treatment there.
June 30, 2001
HI Steve
Sincerely Yeah...stupid, right?
July 15, 2001 It's Megan. Remember me? ;) Hope you're enjoying your bike tour. I just finished my freshman year at Moore College of Art. I damn near killed myself on the work (and freshman year is rough at any school), but I came out with a 3.2 GPA. I rock! Bow before my greatness! (Sorry. Bad joke. I seem to have become very concieted during the course of the year ;) Just wanted to check in with you.
--Megan
August 6, 2001
Good to see your back at it. I thought you bailed at Regina.
John Henderson from CBC.
August 9, 2001
Steve-- I'm off on a trip myself next week, but not by bike. I'm producing a documentary video on Great Lakes shipwrecks. I'll be shooting in Sault Ste Marie Michigan sometime around the 20th. I'll look across the St Mary's River and try to picture you riding through, even if you are not doing so on that exact day. I'll be looking forward to updates when you get around to the website. In the mean time, have a great day on the bike!
CRAIG August 10, 2001 Steve-- Well, I look forward to the update just the same. I'm eager to find out what has happened, since your earlier journal entries/trip reports (whatever you call them) had really piqued my interest. Trips have a way of ending themselves, and when they do, there is seldom anything anyone can do to change the matter. If you haven't read it already, I would recommend "Travels with Charley" by John Steinbeck. He describes the feeling of cranking out the last thousand miles or so of a trip that had ended itself without warning him. All of the magic had left and what had started as a thrilling adventure, turned into a drag (and he was driving!) When it's over, it's over. It takes a lot of guts to admit that. I'll still imagine you riding past Sault Ste Marie, all the same. Maybe next summer, hey?
I'll watch for the update.
August 17, 2001 Many months ago I noticed your posting in rec.bicyles.rides and periodically checked your page. When you posted a while back that you were restarting I started looking again. From your note " Winnipeg. Here is where I'm calling it quits" I guess this is the end. Regardless, I enjoyed your travails. Next Spring I plan to ride from Florida to Washington DC, then if I still feel good, to the West Coast (Washington State), so I've been reading every travelogue I can (mid-life crisis in my case, carefully planned out, pension finally vested). Too bad you had a bad experience in the Prairie Provinces. My note here is mostly to let you know that others have been reading your progress. Maybe another year?
Richard Gardner You, and everyone else who wrote, will be the first to know. I shall return! I'm just not sure when.
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