Redhed's Rambles

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Planning and Anticipation

Most Plans are just inaccurate predictions....Ben Bayol

When I rode to Ushuaia, I had given myself fairly clear travel instructions and my plans were straightforward: "Keep the Water on the Right". For the most part, I kept to this design and thankfully did not get too lost. So much for all my instructions to all of my former Social Studies students regarding the importance of knowing that one should "Never Eat Soggy Weiners" as a guide to finding their cardinal directions.

View SA Trip Route in a larger map

I have long recognized that my own sense of direction and place in the world is completely turned sideways once I get into the featureless flats of the Prairies or go fishing on the "outside" of the rim of mountains on the West Coast of Vancouver Island.

I have learned to rely heavily upon my ZUMO 665 GPS(Garmin), and I have slowly learned how to maximize the features of this technology. I spent a few fretful days wondering how I would ever manage to navigate about Cuba when I learned that the authorities were adamant that I could not carry my GPS on Blondy. As it turned out, the Captain of the Stahlratte was ordered by the Cuban authorities to store all of the GPS navigational aids while the adventurers were spread out all over Cuba. Other than getting turned around in Havana for a few hours, and riding in some restricted areas, I somehow managed to have a great tour of the Island without my electronic connection. I recalled the irony of the Cuban ban on GPS devices when I kept running into Cubans who sported smart phones with all sorts of GPS navigation features.

Most of my family now live in the flatlands of Alberta or the Northwest Territories. I have found it difficult to orient myself in the two cities of Edmonton and Calgary, and I have made it a point to ensure that Mr. Garmin has clear coordinates and directions to my destinations whenever I am out on the flatlands of Canada. It is not good enough that the Rockies are out there behind me somewhere, as I need clearer references in order to not get turned around. I have been organizing some planning and coordinates as I head towards Newfoundland and eventually the Horizons Unlimited meeting in Nova Scotia.

BMW Moto Dealers, Suppliers

Note: Due to Google Maps' privacy settings, only I can see the actual locales on the maps below. The Lat/Long coordinates will assist any riders who wish to access the dealers listed below.

Newfoundland

Mount Pearl (near St.John’s)

The Toy Box
Avalon Motoraad
15 Old Placentia Road
Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador A1N 4P4

Phone (709) 726-6500
Email sales@avalonmotorrad.com
Website http://www.avalonmotorrad.ca
15 Old Placentia Road; Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador
A1N 4P4.
Heideneaus available

47.5128635,-52.830112

New Brunswick

Moncton

Adriaan's Cycle Service
80 King
Moncton, New Brunswick E1C 4M6
Phone: (506) 382-0262
46.094989, -64.780465

Near Moncton
Atlantic Motoplex
930 Champlain Street
Dieppe, New Brunswick E1A 1P8
1(888)378-0169

Nova Scotia

Dartmouth NS

Pro Cycle
550 Windmill Road,Dartmouth
Nova Scotia Canada B3B 1B3
902-468-2518, fax 902-468-5635
www.procycleonline.com
44.692783,-63.600385

Dartmouth NS

RPM Cycle
168 Main St.
Dartmouth, NS B2X 1S2
(902) 434-8516

44.682292,-63.535598

Bedford NS
Pro Tech Suspension

Pro Tech Suspension
299 Rocky Lake Drive, Unit #1
Bedford, N.S., B4A 2T3
Canada
(902) 832-3155

Hammond Plains NS
BALANCE TIRE and AUTO

Stephen Lightfoot 832-0689
75 Leeward Avenue
Hammonds Plains, NS
Please call for an appt.

Manitoba

Winnipeg, MB

Wildwood Sports
1143 Pembina Hwy.
Winnipeg, MB
R3T 2A3

Tel.: 204-477-1701
Fax: 204-453-8793
wildwood@mts.net
www.wildwoodsports.com

Lat 49.846770000 Lon -97.153270000

Ontario

Toronto ON

BMW Toronto
11 Sunlight Park Road
M4M 1B5
Tel.: 416-623-4269
Fax: 416-623-2700
bmwtorontoinfo@bmwtoronto.ca
www.bmwtoronto.ca

43.655719,-79.349869

Oakville ON

Budds' BMW
2454 South Service Rd. W.
L6L 5M9
Tel.: 905-845-3577
Fax: 905-825-9887
sales@buddsbmw.com
www.buddsmotorrad.com

Lat 43.411590000 Lon -79738110000

Ajax ON

Endras Motorrad-BMW Durham
100 Achilles Road
Ajax, ON
L1Z 0C5
Tel.: 905-619-5522
Fax: 905-619-5544
info@endrasbmw.com
www.endrasbmw.com
Duram.bmw.ca

43.853679,-79.008674

Ottawa ON

Ottawa Motorrad

450 West Hunt Club Road
Ottawa, ON
K2E 1B2
Tel.: 613-731-9071
Fax: 613-731-1729
Service Center Contact info:
Tel 613-731-9071
Toll Free: 855-731-9071
Heideneau Tires
Open Monday
www.ottawagoodtime.com
Frankie service@ottawa.com

45.335185,-75.72289

New Market, ON

Serpa BMW
87 Mulock Dr. L3Y 8V2
(905)895-8700
fax (905) 895-2690
www.serpabmw.com

44.03716,-79.472198,

London, ON

Wolf BMW

1859 Oxford St. East
N5V 2Z6
Tel.: 519-951-9482
Fax: 519-951-6493
sales@wolfbmw.com
www.wolfbmw.com

43.015164,-81.183673

Quebec

Cherokee

Tel.: 819-821-3595
Fax: 819-821-3212
sherbrooke@performancenc.ca
www.performancenc.ca

Montreal

Moto Internationale
6695, rue Saint-Jacques
Montréal, QC
H4B 1V3
Tel.: 514-483-6686
Fax: 514-483-3454
info@motointer.com
www.motointer.com

Lat. 45.460320000 Lon. -73.626180000

Quebec City

Moto Vanier
776, boul. Wilfrid-Hamel
Québec, QC
G1M 2R3
Tel.: 418-527-6907
Fax: 418-527-8006
motovanier@bellnet.ca
www.motovanier.ca

46.8121384,-71.2553416

Laval

Monetter Sports
251 Boul.des Laurentides H7G 2T7
(450) 668-6466 faxL (450) 668-6799
monettesports@videtron.net
www.monette.sports.com

Saskatchewan

Saskatoon

European Motorrad
2634 Faithfull Avenue
Saskatoon, SK
S7K 5W3
Tel.: 306-934-3717
Fax: 306-934-5144
sales.customcycle@sasktel.net
www.customcycleandmarine.com

52.1698825,-106.665048

Alberta

Calgary
Blackfoot Motorrad
6 Highfield Circle S.E.
Calgary, AB
T2G 5N5
Tel.: 403-243-2636
Fax: 403-287-1297
sales@blackfootmotosports.com
www.blackfootmotosports.com

lat 51.010780000 lon. 114.046590000

British Columbia

Victoria
Island BMW
740 Roderick St
Victoria, BC V8Z 3K9

48.449021,-123.372244

West Kelowna
Bentley Motorrad
1110 Stevens Rd
West Kelowna, BC V1Z 1G1

49.866301,-119.560838

Saturday, May 10, 2014

A Visit to Toronto

Digging for Family Roots....

A number of decades ago, I involved myself in a self-analysis process in order to better understand the paths that I had chosen in life. I read many books on self understanding, attended different workshops, and participated in a variety of self-help groups. I have always been a strong advocate for preserving Family networks, and although I sometimes stumbled in the case of my own journey, I feel strongly that the influences of Family often dictate the unknown choices that we sometimes make in Life.

I remember reading a book called Family Ties that Bind, which was essentially a discussion of family of origin issues and implications. For awhile, the premise of that book and related others became the focus of my attempt to understand my Life. More years and experiences have mellowed my views somewhat, and while I still have a strong belief regarding the influences of Family, I seem to now have a broader understanding and appreciation not only for the impact of Family but that of life and circumstance.

Thanks to a generous nephew who is a Captain at Westjet, I was able to spend a week with my sister in Toronto. I started my journey east in Comox, met my sister and nephew in Calgary, and travelled with her to Toronto. While I was awaiting departure from the Comox airport, the Canadian Air Force aerobatic team, The Snowbirds, were practising in the skies overhead. The adjacent Canadian airbase is the home for 442 squadron, the members of which are responsible for search and rescue operations in British Columbia and the Yukon.

I haven't flown in a couple of years, and in my packing beforehand, I grabbed a backpack which was in my closet. I figured that I could use that as a carry-on and keep my checked luggage to a minimum. As we all know, security is considerably tighter now, and I was shocked when the security people at Comox told me that I was carrying a knife. I had not checked all of the pockets of the backpack, and sure enough, I rediscovered a good Gerber knife which had missing for a couple of years. The security folks were good about it, and I think recognized that it was a genuine mistake on my part. I asked if I could leave it with them and pick it up when I returned to Comox in a week. The young girl rolled her eyes at that one, and I was prepared to lose the knife when another security guy offered to take me back to check in, and try and find my checked baggage. Luckily, it was easily found, the knife was placed in the checked luggage, and I was cleared to go. It pays to pay closer attention to the rules regarding luggage restrictions I was reminded. I was very impressed with the security folks, and their willingness to accommodate me so that I did not have to give up my knife. Although they were not Westjet employees, they did exhibit the type of helpful attitude, which in my experience, is typical of Westjet folks.

A view of the Canadian Rockies between British Columbia and Alberta, for my friends in other lands...

My sister and I spent a night with my nephew in Calgary, and then flew on to Toronto. We had made arrangements to meet with some of our relatives whom we had not met in a very long time. One of our aunts had recently passed away, and the gathering of the Family was an opportunity for us to meet folks whom we had not met. Our Mother had married Dad at the end of the War, and headed out west, while the remaining 11 brothers and sisters from her family had stayed in the Toronto area. We were looking forward to meeting our cousins and their children.

In the meantime, we did some touring of downtown Toronto. My sister had decided that she was going to walk on the edge of the CN Tower, and she claimed that this adventure had been on her bucket list for a long time. I did not know what she was talking about, but I decided quite early on that I was not having anything to do with hanging from the edge of a tower a thousand or so meters in the air!

The closer we got to the CN tower, the more convinced I was that my Sis had slipped a cog. I hurt my neck just looking up at the Tower.

Apparently she had seen Rick Mercer do this walk, and therefore she figured that it would be easy-peasy.

The advertising featured smiling faces, but there was no way that I was going out there. I get vertigo from watching a climbing event on T.V.! My sister recognized that there was no way of convincing me to hang off the edge of the tower, and she was convinced that she wanted to do the Edge Walk. All I saw was a very tall tower going up, and up, and up....

We hung around until it was time for my Sister to have the training sessions prior to the actual walk on the edge of the Tower.

It seemed to me that her smile was kind of frozen on her face, but she was determined to go with the adventure of hanging out in space. A family of five joined her. They had come from England to enjoy the Canadian experience.

After the crew was ready, I hurried up the elevator to the observation deck. I would be able to watch my kid sister hanging out in space via the safety of external video cameras. My view from the deck was amazing, and the size and scope of Toronto was before me. I was 351 meters, or 1151 feet above the hard concreted below.

I watched an aircraft land at Billy Bishop airport, below me, as I waited for my sister and her companions to swing into view. I was able to watch the progress of the group on video monitors as they walked around the edge of the Tower. They were above us on what appeared to be a 2 meter wide walkway.....

Swan dive at 1200 feet!! Yikes....

Attagirl!!

Yikes!!!

While I was busy taking photos of the monitors, I was telling anybody who would listen that she was my sister, out there. I still felt pangs in my stomach, watching them hanging out there, and when they moved around the catwalk, I found it easier to fool with my camera than watch. Too high for this Scaredy Cat...

It was enough for me to simply put my feet on the edge of the glass floor, and peer down a thousand meters or so...

It seems that our trip to Niagara Falls the next day was somewhat anti-climatic for my sister, who was more interested in hanging out with the birds...

My sister and I visited Mount Pleasant Cemetery, and after some searching we found the site where our maternal grandparents were buried. We could not find the burial site for our great grandfather who I understand came over from Ireland in the middle of the last century.

My sister and I were able to visit with our Aunt Kay, who still holds down an accounting job at 88 years young.

A bonus to meeting Aunt Kay was to reconnect with her six daughters, all cousins full of energy, laughs and many stories. My sister and I also met six other cousins whom I had not seen for over 50 years. It was gratifying to spend time with our Ontario family members. I learned a bit more about our family roots and I was very happy to reconnect with Family.