Saturday, June 18, 2005

Albert was concerned about taking the bikes back into the rain, which was still coming down quite hard, without getting the chains cleaned and oiled again, so Dick took us to Tuxedo Bikes & Sports in Calgary to see about getting a few supplies. We bought an aero bar, plus some extra chain oil, then proceeded back to Airdrie, via a scenic route that included a spectacular lookout over the city and the Elbow River, which was definitely looking “muddy and wide”. We had to take several detours, and drove through some sections of road that were at least a foot or more under water. I unfortunately didn’t have my camera with me (I thought it was just going to be a junket out to a bike store), but Albert got some good shots. After we got back to Airdrie, we spent some time trying to put the aero bar onto the bike, but were unsuccessful, in that we didn’t know how to keep the computer and light attached. So, we said farewell to the Buchanans, with many thanks for their wonderful and unexpected hospitality, and headed back to the bike store (in more rain). We were fortunate enough to have them do the installation free of charge, but we unfortunately had to sacrifice the wonderful handlebar light Nory gave me.

After these errands were completed we made our way to John and Joy Railton’s (Albert’s cousins). The directions we were given would have been terrific except a main road was closed due to flooding, but thanks to the GPS program Terry Hehn insisted I take along, we had no difficulty finding an alternate route. Thanks, Terry – we’ve used the program a lot already. Joy was ready for us with a warm fire blazing and a glass of wine at the ready; she knew what I needed! At the same time as we arrived, John and Joy’s children Sheryl and Bryan, along with Bryan’s girlfriend Alyssa, came to visit also. We had a fabulous dinner with the family, and then settled in for a much needed sleep.