Western Canada - Ride Reports...

Yesterday we went on what was the 2nd and now annual Harvest Ride or "Tour du Pyrogy" which took us from Edmonton to the Ukrainian heritage Village which is a one way distance of 55 kilometres.

The route:

We rode out via 82 Ave through Sherwood Park and left Hwy 630 at continued down Twp 524 to RR 210 which borders Elk Island Park and then connected with Hwy 16 to ride the last 10 km east to the Heritage Village that was holding it's annual Heritage Festival.

We averaged 20 kmh through the city and picked up speed once we were in the countryside and the route is a pleasant one as it's fairly flat with a few small hills and the final 10 km to the village is a gradual descent. We made a few stops as one fellow needed a chain line adjustment and we had a blowout while on TWP 524 that warranted a tyre boot.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-06.jpg

It looked like an accident scene...

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And we had to goof off a little...

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After that the ride went on without incident and we arrived at the park at noon... the smiles on people's faces were what made putting this together worth it.

My little sister and her new Kuwahara Mixte...

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-21molly.jpg

Some really great folks...

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These two handsome guys are also part of our ride but opted to make things a hammer fest...

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-18.jpg

The Heritage Village is a wonderful place and re-creates what life was like for the wave of Ukrainian settlers who came her at the turn of the last century... everything is period correct and walking through the park is like doing a little time travelling.

And the Pyrogies and food were awesome.

Pt 2

We spent about 3 hours putting back our weight in food and touring the park... my little sister's husband and girls joined us at the park and I spent most of the day with them.

The girls loved the village and were especially delighted to be able to go into the fields and pick wheat...

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-25.jpg

Yes...they're twins.

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My other family...

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-27.jpg

The ride home was pleasant save for the first 20 km where we had to ride both uphill and into some fierce winds and rain (a little storm cel was passing through) but after that things settled down and we made good time on the road and got home well before dark.

We took over the "Laughing Llama"...

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By the time I got home I had ridden 82 miles (fixed) and everyone seemed to handle the distance really well... since it was a no drop ride the stronger riders were taking care of those who were not quite as strong for which we received many thanks.

The 2008 group...


http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-14.jpg

Other folks will be sending me more pics (and I have a few more)... I seem to have focused more on the people more than I did the scenery which was really beautiful.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/Harvest2008/Harvest2008-24.jpg

Looks fun! I'll have to take a closer look when I have some more free time.

Cool, looked like a sweet ride.

Ah that Ukrainian food! You just get finished eating, then four days later you're hungry again:)

Looks like a good time - and good weather too!!

Since everyone had such a steller time we have been talking about doing another similar ride before the weather turns... stay tuned for details.

I was also pondering doing a Saturday or Sunday morning breakfast ride which would involve food and a leisurely ride through the river valley... anyone interested?

I might be very intersted...
I feel like i've bumped into one or two people from your group on a nighttime ride one time...

That looks like a really nice ride. Maybe next year cycle out here to Winnipeg and have some perogies; I'll buy.

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