I left home this morning without printing a map of a new route that I planned on MapMyRide. I've driven most of the roads at some time, but as we all know it's not the same when you're on a bike. You can't just turn around and ride that hill again, repeat.

So I decided to ask for directions, my wife would have been proud. I was riding a narrow two lane country road when I came upon a woman walking two golden retrievers. I figured she had to be a local. So I asked her for directions to get to Carrs Landing, not my destination but a nearby community that would get me on the right track. She thinks for a bit and then says, "turn left at the next road, then right at the next and follow the road as it bends ...". It's a good thing I knew a little bit about the area - where she was generally directing me would have added about 1000 feet of climbing.

Then it occurred to me, "can you tell me how to get to Tim Hortons?" She replies, "of course, that's easy! Turn right at the next road, then left and follow the road to the end."

My apologies for non-Canadians who may not appreciate the context. Tim Horton's is a Canadian icon - coffee chain. If you don't know where the nearest Tim Hortons is, you're not Canadian. I knew that my route would take me past the local Tim Hortons, so off I went thanking her for helping me with the directions.

I can only imagine how exhausted I would have been if I actually followed her initial directions.