Day 22, July 11, Virden to Portage la Prairie

We woke around 6:30am. I didn’t really get a good night sleep. My tent blow over numerous times during the night. We probably should have slept inside. Allan’s tent looked like one of those kids’ pools you’d buy at Wal-Mart. There was about an inch of water in it. We had coffee with Kathy, showered, and said our good-byes.

We drove back to Virden to continue riding. Today was the first day that Brett rode with us since Anarchist Mountain in B.C. It was great to see him ride again. After about 20k the shoulder ended. This is where the bikers were killed 3 weeks before, so we had Allan very close in the Van. We had to ride in the left lane. We were later pulled over by the RCMP. I guess we needed a permit to have a slow moving vehicle on the highway. Anne phoned the RCMP before we left, and they weren’t aware of any permit needed. The guy was pretty good about it and just told us to keep in single file.

About half way to Portage, we were greeted by Brett’s parents on the highway. They drove all the way Provost to see us. They followed us the remainder of the way, which ended up being quite awhile.

As we pulled into the campsite, 15k beyond Portage, it began to lightly rain. Brett’s parents took us for a fantastic meal back in Portage at Boston Pizza. Thanks Ruth and Richard!

Today ended up being a +200k day. It really didn’t feel like it though. The tailwind was around 30km/h during the entire ride.