Friday, July 10, 2009

Echo Bay to Blind River






July 10

Well, we're beyond the mighty Lake Superior now and on to Lake Huron, a great lake in it's own right. There has been a striking change in terrain - still the rugged Canadian Shield rocks but not the hills and mountains found along Superior's shores.
When we woke up today we almost thought it was a rest day - sky was black and threatening, forecast called for thunderstorms. We scurried around to get on the road early to outrun the weather. It worked. As the kilometers clicked by the clouds disappeared. The route was fairly flat and took us past farmland and cottage country and we followed the mighty Mississaugi River to Blind River.
Today was a big day for brother Rob - he hit three digits. That would be over a hundred kilometers ridden in a day - 104 actually. (He could have gone farther but the rest of us were tired.)
When we stopped in Iron Bridge today for a Gatorade break a car pulled up behind us. An older gentleman approached and pressed a donation in my hand. "Here. It's for a good cause." He shared with us that he is a cancer survivor and he recently lost his wife to cancer. Depression in the elderly as a group is common, and often goes undiagnosed and untreated. The stress of serious chronic illness can bring on new symptoms of depression or exacerbate chronic underlying depression in individuals. The Ride for Mental Health is for him too.

1 comment:

  1. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for doing this ride for mental health! My name is Barbara Mackay (Kathy Chittley-Young's sister)and on June 19th on our younger sister Nancy's 47th birthday her 20 year old daughter was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. As you know it is traumatic for the entire family, I bless you for bringing awareness to these mental health issues. Most recently on June 25th my eldest brother lost his wife. I have also come to learn that she suffered from Bipolar Disorder. I too at 16 suffered through a period of panic attacks for 13 years. Your mission is near and dear to me and so I again say a BIG thank you for all your efforts and know that strength and courage are coming directly to you from our families. I hope to come out to your Toronto event at the Distillery district and it would be a privilege to meet you.
    Sincerely,
    Barbara

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