Windy and winding

Hello all, Braydon here.

Yesterday, upon hearing we had a long day in front of us suggested we grab a quick breakfast at a lovely little cafe called Hello Toast. In typical Grant fashion breakfast took until noon and resulted in the four of us being interviewed for a local newspaper. So yes, keep an eye out for our ugly, wind beaten mugs. We're kind of a big deal.

Upon leaving Kamloops we were promptly met with fierce winds that made riding a battle to stay on the road and keep with traffic. The wind continued for just over an hour until we were able to get into the mountains and get a little bit of shelter. We took the number 1 highway rather than the Coquihalla in hopes of some fun mountain driving and we were certainly not disappointed. The further we drove into the mountains the twistier the road got, becoming turn after turn of flowing corners. The only thought I had past how to take the next corner was "This is why we ride motorcycles."

This lasted for hours, until I came around one fateful corner and encountered one of my greatest riding fears. Hornet got blown into my helmet. Yes. A hornet, flying around the inside of my helmet. After a minor brick shitting and scramble to open my visor I was able to get the hornet out via my visor. In no great hurry to repeat that, but excited to get to Vancouver we continued on through more beautiful roads. Coming in to wine country, just outside of Vancouver I had my second intimate experience of the day, when a small bird flew into my head. It bounced off just the top of my open visor. It kind of felt like I was having a V8 moment, and I sat stunned in my saddle trying to figure out what had just happened. Never a dull moment I suppose.

We arrived at our place in Vancouver, right in the middle of downtown on Burrard, and decided it would be necessary to go out for a belated birthday supper for Colin. We went to a small seafood restaurant for oysters and mussels. Our waiter happened to be a Saskatoon boy as well and we experienced some good old fashioned prairie hospitality. When we weren't getting berated for never having had oysters on the half-shell he was bringing us round after round. A fantastic seafood and drink experience which turned out to be a small fraction of what it should have been. Awesome.

Between the roads and the experience in Vancouver yesterday was the best day yet and they only seem to be getting better. We'll update again before we leave Vancouver.