On The Road Again...

LORD TUNDERIN, TUNDERBIRD!

IT was a wonderfully sunny day... my partner exclaimed loudly with gusto... "I LOVE IT"

We were on the T-Bird, headed North through Central Alberta. Ranch country. Staying off that Zoo known locally as Highway 2, we kept to the small towns of the provincial foothills. This was Brenda's first ride on a bike and it was going to cover nearly a thousand kms!



ONCE out of North Calgary heading West on 1A, Cochrane passed by without so much as a second glance. Once a sleepy little town well out of the city, it has become yet another bedroom community of a sprawling urban jungle. Cochrane is built up to the point now, that you have to go a lot further afield to really get a feel for small town Alberta. True, the old downtown still retains a bit of old charm, but it's been years now since I've seen cowhands tie up the reins at the Cochrane Hotel.

We pulled over in Sundre, had ourselves a little breaky and a couple of garden variety coffees, Brn's with milk and sugar, while I took mine Cafe Negro, as I usually do.

By the time we were leaving town, the clouds were clearing away and our ride North on 22 brought us decent heat, enough to cause me to begin the process of shedding layers.



A short stint on the David Thompson took us West to Rocky Mountain House
.

Stopping for fuel in RMH it was getting downright warm. I checked with Brenda, she had not removed her helmet during the process, and she told me she was doing fine.

We veered North again at the Nordegg intersection, heading towards Drayton Valley. The next 34km presented some long pauses in the hot sun, while waiting for the pace car through several long construction zones... after all, this is Alberta.

Just as we approached the turn off leading us away from Drayton and towards Leduc on HW 39, I feel three rapid taps on my left shoulder, indicating a need to stop ASAP! I pull off onto the right turn lane, pull to the side of the highway, and Brenda nearly tumbles off the back seat. She is feeling very ill, thinks she is going to pass out!

I sit her down away from traffic and she immediately lays on the pavement in what little shade the bike provided, helmet and all. Recognizing what amounts to heat prostration, we unzip her jacket, remove her helmet and get some H2O into her. Within a minute ot two, we are able to get over to the grass shoulder and shading her as best I could, she lays onto the grass while I am sure the sky did 360's above her.

She's not prone to motion sickness, in fact it amazes me that we can drive through mountain passes as she reads a map/book/candy wrapper. I can't do that!

I get sick on kiddie rides!

It's the heat (0ver 30C) the sun, the warmth and insulation of her jacket, the confines of the helmet, aided and abetted by the long lines, the acid smell of tar and oil, and the lack of food and water. Several of my partners over the years have succumbed to just this thing.

As we are preparing to remount after the short breather, a young woman driving a pick up, pulls in behind us, and offers to help. She was heading in the opposite direction when she spotted us, Brn laying down beside the bike, and had about faced to give us a hand. How great is that! Nice to know there are still a few left...

Pulling off the road in Warburg, at a very non descript fuel/restarant stop for food and a cool drink, we are surprised by the quality of our lunch and the speed with which is served. Rob (I'm certain not his actual name) is from Lebanon and even though he was somewhat cool taking our order, he proves to be rather friendly and talkative on the way out. He tells me he has just returned from Beirut and it is the most beautiful city in all the World. "Paris of the Middle East" he proclaims, except better, "it has the ocean..."

Who can argue with that...