Sea to Sea Welcomed into Canada

Sea to Sea cyclists were all smiles after crossing into Canada by ferry on Wednesday morning.

They were greeted by about 200 supporters with a reception that included plenty of baked goods and Tim Horton’s coffee.

“It feels good to be home,” said Alida vanDijk, of St. Catharines, Ont., “not that there’s any grand differences between our two countries. But after almost eight weeks away, it’s just good seeing some familiar sights. It feels like home.”

The Sea to Sea Bike Tour is presented by the Christian Reformed Church in North America, with congregations in both the USA and Canada. Despite the logistical challenges of crossing an international border with 192 cyclists and 26 support staff, organizers felt it was important to make the tour bi-national.

Slightly more than half of the 220 registered riders and almost all of the support crew members are Canadian.

As it turned out, moving through customs and immigration was went smoothly. Ed Witvoet, tour operations and logistics manager—and also a Canadian, sent a copy of each tour members’ passport and other pertinent information to immigration staff in advance. Upon arrival, Sea to Sea personnel simply needed to show their passports and their names were checked off the list.

“This was the first time I had walked across a border crossing, and probably the briefest,” wrote Gayle Harrison, of London, Ont., in her blog.

The most time-consuming part of the process was getting all the participants and support vehicles across the river—it took five crossings on the small ferry.

Once on dry ground again, the riders were treated to what some riders called a ‘royal welcome’ put on by churches from Wallaceburg, Sarnia and Chatham.

“People were lined up and cheering for us and there was a whole bunch of food: muffins, Timbits (small donuts) and coffee,” said Eric Stehouwer, of Kalamazoo, Mich. “I haven’t acquired a taste for coffee but I had a few sips of an Iced Cap and it was pretty stellar.”

Stehouwer has been to Canada three or four times before, but never riding his bike near Chatham. “When we hit the road again, it was flat, flat and more flat,” he said. “Then we stopped at another Tim Hortons and we went through the drive-through on our bikes.”

VanDijk said the crossing into Canada was more meaningful than she expected. “As we got closer to Michigan City, we were cycling along the St. Clair River and I said ‘there’s Canada over there.’ You don’t realize how much you miss your homeland until you’ve been away from it for a while,” she said. “It’s great to be on this side of the river.”

The tour will spend five nights in Canada, including a weekend stop in St. Catharines near Niagara Falls. On Monday morning, riders will cross back into the US via the Rainbow Bridge overlooking the falls.

Tour participants have plenty of activities lined up for their Thursday night stay in the London area, home to more than a dozen riders. About 12 have signed up to ride in London’s velodrome, one of three such facilities in North America. Another dozen or so riders will volunteer with two local agencies that work with the poor, serving meals at shelters to those in need.

Bill Wybenga, of Brampton, Ont., is staging an unofficial time trial on a 40-km straight, quiet stretch of road between Chatham and London. Results of those who participated will likely be posted to Wybenga’s blog tonight or later this week.

The 11th of 12 celebration rallies takes place on Sunday afternoon at Queenston Heights Park in Queenston, Ont. It will be the last of six outdoor gatherings and organizers are hoping it will be rain-free like the previous five.