eee kT

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it became clear that neither the car.nor its oc-'

~ slow-moving show. The main event-was

*- trailed the big car on his touring bike:

_ wheels of his touring-style hybrid bicycle into the waters -

Lloyd says he just wanted to have a little adventure before

Lloyd Widenmaier
recently arrived
in Sidney after —
riding his bike
across Canada

KEVIN WOODLEY
PHOTO

Kevin Woodley
Peninsula News Review

nyone traveling through the Peninsula along
Highway 17 last Tuesday afternoon would
have come across an unusual sight: mov-
‘ing slowly along the shoulder of the
southbound lanes was a classic 1970.
Cadillac convertible. The roof was
down in the afternoon sunshine and _
hanging out the. back with a:
camcorder.was Hazel Widen-
maier, a 27-year veteran of
~~... Peninsula life. In the driver's
seat was Hazel's eldest son, Cary, and next
to’him her mother-in-law, Mona. :
As exiting ferry traffic passed by, waving:
and shouting at the camera-touting Cadillac,

cupants were the feature attraction in this

Haiel's brother-in-law, Lloyd Widenmaier, who

“There was my son-and his (Lloyd’s) mom in |
nd'in the back seat try-
“Peo

he got too old.
- “Vdidn’t want to:
do 80 at 80,” he
gayswithalaugh.
“The tour is possible and I'm eso ay
“not sure thal age is a factor, but it’s not for everyone. It’s:
not cheap — you have to be prepared to get a hotel some-
‘times and to eat properly. The name of the game is to get
across, not to see how much pain you can endure.”
- Crossing Canada by bike also means preparing for poor
- weather conditions, something Lloyd realized quickly...
Shortly after beginning his journey in Newfoundland,a
‘small blizzard kept him locked inside his hotel for an en-

he say

of Victoria’s Mile Zero.
He missed his targeted finish date — July 4 — by a sin-

gle day, but rested for three days and lost another three

days because of bad weather. porie is

y

Asked why he would ride coast to coast on his own,

~. jsolation, but not loneliness.

rere omeertrremanrenaiiret nian

\ PENINSULA NEWS REVIEW 3

tire day. : cs
“The only little downside was the weather,” he says

~ about the rain and clouds that accompanied him for five of

the eight weeks he spent on the Trans Canada Highway.

Along the road, Lloyd talked with 15 cyclists attempting
the same feat, but in the opposite direction. Many were
Canadians, but others were from England, Germany and
even Luxembourg. He even stumbled across one popular
ice cream stand where the owners had taken to counting
the cross-country cyclists. They counted more than 200
last year and have already come across 33 so far in 1999.

“Everyone was doing a little private journey. You think
your project is the only one, but it’s not,” says Lioyd.

To prepare for the journey, he learned the basics of bi-
cycle mechanics, researched things like equipment, nutri-
tion and health and put in more than 3,000 kilometers of
road training. The former Saskatchewan school principal

has been cycling for years could do 150 kilometers in a
single day, but wasn’t sure if he could ‘string together 60
consecutive days of long-distance riding.

- Lloyd rode between eight and 10 hours every day and
says that, despite the early uncertainties, he knew he was
going to finish the trip after the first week on the road.

“I got stronger and stronger each day of the trip,”

phe says. “It surprised me. Each day I just couldn't
wait to get up and go.” > a:
On the longest day, Lloyd rode 227 kilometers and
non considers any trip shorter than 90 kilometers a lost
ay.

"You're never really alone,” he says

yw

~ may. try his hand at a magazine article geared towards

first-time bicycle adventurers like himself. For now he is %

just happy to be finished such a taxing trip.
“For the most part this was meant to be private,” he.
_ says. “You really get a sense of accomplishment and...

Jearned something about yourself you didn't know." ;

: ,

once
extensively scored by a key.

Sidney/North Saanich

RCMP. and the -North

Saanich Fire Department.

are investigating an arson
fire that occurred on Sun-
day, July 11.

A 1983 Buick, owned by.
- Frederick Chrystian, was

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_ stolen from a location in Vic-

- DENTURISTS ~ ss
Edwina Clausen B.D. § of
Be. “Prompt Professional Denture Service." |
DENTURES CONSTRUCTED =f |
f® RELINES - SAME DAY! © REPAIRS IN A HURRY!

“Hospital and Home Calls”
AOA Baacon Ave.) Sidney, B.C.

toria that day. At about 9:30
p.m. a call went out to the
fire department and police

that the car had been set on |

fire on West Saanich Road.
Emergency vehicles” re-
sponded, and the fire was

ah

~stroyed,

extinguished, but not before
‘the car was completely de-

kk
Residents in the Dean

~ark and Barrett Road area
called police at 1:50 a.m. on

July 10 to report acts of van-

dalism. and mischief. Sid-
ney/North Saanich RCMP

- found four youths who had
been removing rocks from

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neighborhood yards and
setting them out on the
road, Two of the youths are

residents within the neigh-

borhood.:
wk

‘The owner. of a 1987

Mazda pickup: discovered:

extensive damage done to

his.-vehicle at.2 a.m, on Sat-

urday, July 10. .
His truck had the paint

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and air had been let out of
his tires, More than $1,000

damage was done, say po-
lice. The incident happened

on Amelia Avenue.

The owner of a black
1995 Saab found his vehicle
had gone missing on Thurs-

day, July 8 The theft was
called in to Sidney/North
Saanich RCMP at about 3

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p.m. The theft occurred on

“Harbour Road, in the vicin-
‘ity of Van Isle Marina. The

vehicle was recovered on

“Monday, July 12, at the end
of John Road in North;

Saanich.

Police remind vehicle
owners to lock their doors,
make sure all windows are
closed and. the keys re-
moved before leaving their
vehicle unattended, .,

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