The Cross Canada Cycle Tour Society October 2022, Volume 39, Issue #9
From the Tour Director’s Desk – October 2022
Southern Rockies Tour – Cyclist Entering Canyon
Southern Rockies Tour – Camping
Southern Rockies Tour – Truck Stop
Sunshine Coast Group 1
By the time you read this Newsbrief, our Sunshine Coast tours – the last for our 2022 season – will have completed. We have already heard back that the tour members had a fantastic time socializing, cycling, and eating together. We sure hope everyone had a good summer of cycling and a fabulous time on their 2022 CCCTS tours.
So, now it is time to think about 2023 tours and what you might want to sign up for. Thailand – Bangkok to Phuket – will be our first tour and a group of 14 “happy campers” will be heading off in January to cycle in the sunshine along the coast, eating Thai food all the way. It is still possible to contact the Tour Coordinator (me) to make a late registration for this tour. Next up is our first pilot test CCCTS cross-country (x-c) ski tour, which will take place in Washington state. Registration happens at the end of October. Our Arizona tour will start on March 22. We aren’t ready to post the details of this tour yet but they will be coming soon. It is guaranteed to be a great tour with one of our experienced leaders – an “Arizona snowbird”, in charge. Then, comes Mallorca starting in late March. Wow! Who doesn’t want to go to Mallorca in late March when it can still be cold and rainy at home. This tour filled up very fast but you could always put yourself on the wait list. Portugal will be just around the corner in April. We will post the details for this tour in late November and run the registration in December. Then in June, we have the Okanagan tour with cycling in Vernon, Penticton, and Oliver. A beautiful tour relatively close to home for many of our members. Yeah!! This one should be super popular. Sign up right away if you’re interested. The registration will run in October. More tours will be coming for 2023 but this is the current lineup for the early part of the year.
Just an fyi about tour registrations: The way to get on a tour is through luck with our random number lottery system. It is true that leaders can prioritize up to 30% of the group but in practice it isn’t that simple to do and the vast majority of us get on tours based on our lottery numbers. Yes, that even includes your Tour Director. Or, an even better way to get on is to volunteer to lead or coordinate a tour. That is the only guaranteed way to get on a tour. And, your spouse or partner also gets an automatic in too.
There will be more tours coming. Check the list below for what we currently are aware of. And let me repeat what I have said before. Canada tours are the most popular and the most accessible to the greatest number of members. We want more Canada tours! But we can only offer what you all volunteer to lead. Please consider stepping forward to lead a tour.
So, as of today, here’s what our plan looks like for 2023 tours:
- Thailand – Bangkok to Phuket (January 8 thru 23)
- X-C Ski in Leavenworth and the Methow Valley, Washington State (February 15 thru 24)
- Arizona (March 22 thru 31)
- Mallorca (March 24 thru April 4)
- Portugal (last two weeks of April)
- Okanagan (June 3-12)
- Washington State tour – TBD location (Late spring or summer)
- Croatia (September 18 thru October 4)
- PEI and Isle de Madelaine (September)
- Japan – Kyoto and Noto Peninsula (last two weeks of September)
Details for each tour will be posted when tour proposals and budgets are finalized and have been approved by the Board. Watch your CCCTS emails and the website since tours will be posted one at a time as they are ready and tour plans are always changing.
Please give me a call or send an email if there is a tour you would like to lead. We are open to any tour idea you have for cycling or winter cross-country skiing as long as it is a safe place for travel. (robincooksandsews@gmail.com, 206.899.7255)
Happy Halloween and Canadian Thanksgiving!
Robin Howe, CCCTS Tour Director
A Members Thanks
Linda Graupner and Tim Musclow would like to extend their appreciation to the generous members of CCCTS who provided routing advice on our recent self-supported ride from Vancouver to Calgary. This was part 3 of our ACDC (Across Canada Done in Chunks) journey, and many members responded to our call for advice. A special thanks to George Zorn who gave us the brilliant idea of cycling through the Kootenay Lakes region from Vernon to Fauquier, Nakusp, Kaslo and on to Creston, which turned out to be a highlight of our trip. George even did up the RWGPS routes for us in his “spare” time! Thanks also to Allan Buium whose detailed route advice helped us navigate safely through Vancouver (nice bike paths but you didn’t tell us the Adanac path was all uphill!!), and to Bernie Koppe for sending us a Vancouver cycle route map (turns out she is very good friends with our cousin’s wife who we also visited in Vancouver). Many members, including Alex, Doug, Jay, Barry, Richard, Glen, Lorne and Sharon and others responded to our enquiry about the state of highway 3 from Hope to Princeton – there was a huge range of opinions on this issue, from “it’s in good shape” to “are you crazy?”, but as it turned out the highway was fine, with low traffic and lots of new pavement with good shoulders. Hints about favourite coffee shops en route were also appreciated. Thanks everyone for taking the time and interest to provide your support. We had a fantastic ride, and even managed to dodge all the forest fires and smoke which are, sadly, plaguing the province.
Upcoming Tours
- 2023 Leavenworth & Methow Valley X-C Tour
Status: Registration opens Mon, 31 Oct 2022 5:00 PM
Dates: Wed, 15 Feb 2023 ‐‐ Fri, 24 Feb 2023First official CCCTS winter cross-country ski tour. Ski your heart out in eastern Washington in two beautiful areas. Stay in two very nice hotels in small mountain towns –the Bavarian-themed town of Leavenworth and Twisp, which is in the heart of the Methow Valley. The Methow Valley offers 200k of groomed cross-country ski trails.
- 2023 Mallorca Tour
Status: Ride is full, wait list only.
Dates: Fri, 24 Mar 2023 ‐‐ Tue, 4 Apr 2023Join us for a tour of one of the world’s best spring cycling destinations! Mallorca is well-known in the cycling world for iconic climbs to spectacular views, including the famous Sa Colabra and Cap Formentor rides. In addition to its stunning coastal roads, it boasts an endless network of peaceful and smooth secondary country roads. Best of all, you are never more than 10 km from the next charming little village with cafes, bars and bike-friendly restaurants. This fully-supported luxury tour will allow us to experience the hilly west coast of the island…with an included e-bike option for those who want a little boost up the hills.
- 2023 Okanagan Tour
Status: Registration opens Mon, 24 Oct 2022 5:00 PM
Dates: Sat, 3 Jun 2023 ‐‐ Mon, 12 Jun 2023Experience the Okanagan with 3 days in each of Vernon, Penticton and Oliver. Quiet roads, scenic vistas, small town charm and Okanagan sunshine (hopefully!)
- 2022 Sunshine Coast Tour – Group 2
Status: CompletedLovely, coastal ride on the Sunshine Coast of B.C. and the east side of Vancouver Island.
- 2023 – Thailand Tour – Bangkok to Phuket
Status: 10 slots are available.
Dates: Sun, 8 Jan 2023 ‐‐ Mon, 23 Jan 2023Escape winter to cycle for two weeks in the sunshine along the southern peninsula of Thailand from Bangkok to Phuket. Enjoy fabulous Thai cuisine all along the way.
Upcoming Hub and Spokes
- 2022 Granby Quebec Hub and Spoke
Status: Registration closed
Dates: Sun, 25 Sep 2022 ‐‐ Sat, 1 Oct 2022Welcome to Granby in the beautiful Eastern Townships of Quebec where the National Capital Region is planning to have a H&S from Sunday September 25 till Saturday Oct 1.
- 2022 Duncan Hub & Spoke #2
Status: CompletedWelcome to Duncan, the “City of Totems”, an attractive town near the mouth of the Cowichan River. You’ll get to visit Cowichan Lake, Chemainus and its world class murals, Cobble Hill wineries and a cidery, ancient railroad routes and the famous Kinsol Trestle, while enjoying five days of riding around the beautiful Cowichan valley. Leads & sweeps for all rides.
- 2022 Duncan Hub & Spoke #1
Status: CompletedWelcome to Duncan, the “City of Totems”, an attractive town near the mouth of the Cowichan River. You’ll get to visit Cowichan Lake, Chemainus and its world class murals, Cobble Hill wineries and a cidery, ancient railroad routes and the famous Kinsol Trestle, while enjoying five days of riding around the beautiful Cowichan valley. Leads & sweeps for all rides.
- 2022 Florida Gulf Coast Hub and Spoke
Status: Ride is full, wait list only.
Dates: Thu, 10 Nov 2022 ‐‐ Fri, 18 Nov 2022Extend your 2022 biking season with a week of cycling on Florida’s beautiful Gulf Coast! This hub and spoke will take place in November and will be based out of St. Pete Beach, known for its sunshine, soft sand beaches and dedicated bike trails. We will explore the Pinellas Trail and other bike trails and roads in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, with stops along the way to explore the sites and sample the seafood.
Globe editorial: Reducing the dangerous impact of cars that just keep getting bigger and meaner
In many respects, vehicles today are safer than they have ever been. Mandatory seatbelt laws, airbags, headlights that turn on automatically and modern crumple zones make the inside of a vehicle an increasingly secure spot. In Canada, the fatality rate per 100,000 vehicles in 2020 was the lowest in at least two decades.
However, safety overseers – at least in North America – have been much slower to address the risk vehicles pose to everyone around them.
Hundreds of Canadian pedestrians and cyclists are fatally struck every year.
While European regulators insist on design changes that can protect people outside the vehicle, North American auto safety standards have traditionally not taken them into account.
This is particularly relevant today, because vehicles on this continent have gone on steroids.
The supersizing of cars and trucks is everywhere. The new Volkswagen Beetle is 73 per cent heavier than the model that starred as Herbie the Love Bug.
The changes are even more striking among larger vehicles. The Cadillac Escalade is an SUV so big that up to 13 children can sit in a line in front of it without the driver being able to see them.
Sedans have increasingly been discontinued and marketing muscle poured into bigger, and higher-profit, vehicles that make a sales pitch of their aggressive shape.
The man behind the looks of the 2020 GMC Sierra HD aimed to evoke “a massive fist moving through the air.” Karan Moorjani told Muscle Cars & Trucks he wanted the pickup to look imposing. “We spent a lot of time making sure that when you stand in front of this thing it looks like it’s going to come get you.
It’s got that pissed-off feel.”
People who do find themselves in front of such a truck are at much higher risk than if hit by a smaller vehicle. A high and squared-off front end strikes a pedestrian directly in the chest, unlike a sedan that hits lower and can cause the victim to roll onto the hood.
In Europe, regulators have recognized the problem, and rate vehicles’ ability to protect not just the driver and passengers. Vehicles in Europe must meet standards for human impact on the bumper and hood, as well as for sightlines from the driver’s seat.
The practical result of these rules is that hoods tend to be shorter and slope down more. Windows are larger.
This helps explain why the Ford Transit, which comes in cargo van or open-bed options, and features a large windshield and stubby raked hood, is the most popular light commercial vehicle in Europe. Last year in the United States it was outsold more than seven to one by the blunt-nosed F-150 pickup truck.
The design of vehicles is just one of the reasons Europeans enjoy safer roads.
The EU took another big step this month toward controlling speeds.
As of July, new vehicle models released in Europe must be fitted with intelligent speed assistance (ISA). This uses cameras or GPS to determine the speed limit, and then employs escalating audio and physical cues to discourage drivers from exceeding it. ISA will be mandatory by 2024 on all new vehicles sold in the EU.
Not all such changes could realistically be brought in by Canada alone.
The country exists as a bit player in an integrated continental auto market.
But officials here can support and participate in nascent efforts south of the border to make vehicles safer for those outside them. Earlier this year, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration floated the idea of including pedestrian protection in its vehicle safety ratings.
And there are things Canada can do unilaterally.
A commercial license could be required for the biggest private vehicles, which have surpassed four tonnes in weight.
A limit could be put on how high after-market modifications can raise a vehicle. The use of “bull bars” installed in front of the grill could be regulated, as could those spiked lug-nut covers whose only apparent purpose is to intimidate people riding bicycles.
When seatbelt laws were introduced, many people howled. Now the majority of Canadian motorists buckle up without a second thought – and are safer as a result.
Some of that same safety ethos should be extended to protect the people these drivers might encounter.
Videos
A great video from our British friends at Global Cycling Network.
Bangkok to Phuket with Spice Roads
New Members
| Vivian | Holford | Campbell River | BC |
| Gord | McNeil | Ottawa | ON |
| Erika | Kellerhals | Campbell River | BC |
Published at least ten times a year by The Cross Canada Cycle Tour Society, a non – profit organization for retired people and others who enjoy recreational cycling.
Items for the NEWSBRIEF must be received by the 28th of the month. The Editor reserves the right to edit for clarity, brevity and suitability of publication. The views expressed in the “NEWSBRIEF” are not necessarily those of the CCCTS or the Editor.
Submissions for NEWSBRIEF should be emailed to alaird212@gmail.com