By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
For the second year in a row, Sam Miron will travel to a Canadian coast and back, not only in service to his bucket list but – more importantly – in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
The Cobourg resident travelled to Vancouver last June and rode his motorcycle back home in a fundraiser he called Ride With Heart. Biking to the east coast and back will, of course, be Ride With Heart 2.0.
In a recent interview, he shared his itinerary. Leaving June 8 – same as last year – he’s entering Quebec and hoping to make Trois Rivieres the first night and Fredericton, NB, the second.
Then he will take the Confederation Bridge (the longest in the world at 12.9 km) to get to PEI and exit the island province by ferry to enter Nova Scotia.
From there, he will travel to Antigonish and see the beautiful Cabot Trail. He’ll enjoy a little more of Nova Scotia after that, return through New Brunswick, travel through Quebec on a different route to get to Ottawa, then home again.
It looks like an eight- to 10-day trip of about 4,500 km. Miron calculates that to be 600 to 700 km. a day, depending on whether he feels like stopping more frequently – given that he is turning 71 this year, he accepts that might happen.
And though he had a few friends interested in accompanying him, they have backed out and he is riding solo.
“And I’m okay with that. I don’t mind riding alone. I kind of enjoy it,” he said.
Getting his ducks in a row means his donations page has been posted (visit https://heartandstrokethinkoutsidethebox.crowdchange.ca/..), and his goal is to raise $5,000 for the Heart and Stroke Foundation this year.
Miron was spurred organize last year’s Ride With Heart by family members who have succumbed to heart issues. In fall 2020, both his mother and mother-in-law died of heart issues just nine days apart – following on the heels of losing his father to heart issues seven years earlier. It was his wish to recognize and remember them in a meaningful way.
This year, he is also motivated by the issues his sister is experiencing, including a minor stroke, and the loss of one of his oldest friends, Bob Merpaw. He had just turned 70 in Florida in March and had no symptoms beyond a backache. He went to have a shower and that was the end.
Last year Miron raised $8,100 with his ride from the West Coast back to his home in Cobourg. He also got recognition from his company, Coldwell Banker Real Estate, who give an annual Canadian Ambassador Award for community service. He was singled out from among 3,000 agents in more than 150 offices across Canada for the honour.
The ride that made it possible was to have begun in Vancouver, where he shipped his bike in advance. When he got to Vancouver, he learned the bike was stuck in Northern Ontario. He is forever grateful to the Harley Davidson people who gave him a loaner bike until he could retrieve his own in Edmonton.
Over 11 days and 5,000 km., he said, “it was just a lifetime of memories.”
Having to speedball his way through Manitoba because of COVID restrictions, for example. He could not stay in the province without having to isolate for a certain number of days, so he set off one morning from about 10 miles west of the Manitoba border and planned to keep going until he hit Kenora, Ont. Then he found the experience so exhilarating that he went on as far as Dryden.
The next day, he had a scare when a moose ran out on the road in front of him, but he was on the home stretch. The last day he rode home in a torrential rainstorm, but not alone – his friend Rick Polley of Colborne biked up to Espanola to meet him and accompany him back.
With airfare, shipping the bike, plus hotel rooms, food and fuel along the way (not to mention extra motorcycle gear for the first leg of the trip since his original gear was still in transit with his bike), he estimates it was a $4,000 adventure. But he is adamant that he does not want any sponsorships or donations that go toward his costs – anyone inclined to make these contributions is urged, instead, to make a Ride With Heart 2.0 donation for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
“I am looking forward to this year. I’ve never been on the Confederation Bridge,” Miron said – “I hope that the winds are not too strong.
“We’ll see – it should be a good trip.”
Miron plans to repeat something else from last year – a daily recap of his journey which will be posted on Facebook for all who want to enjoy the experience with him.
And he put an optimistic PS on the write-up on his donations page: “If my body and bike are up for the challenge, there might be Ride With Heart 3.0.”
