Miss Otis Regrets Tinhorn Creek Blues: Friday, July 22nd!

Give me your tired, your poor, / Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, / The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. / Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, / I lift my lamp beside the golden door! -Emma Lazarus, poet and playwright (22 Jul 1849-1887) [from a poem written to raise funds for building the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty] 

Annie Kenney & Christabel Pankhurst, Suffragists

Photo: Wikimedia

Ginette Bertrand How you remember every single little "dipsy doodle" is beyond me! You will be the par excellence raconteur at the old folks retirement home in a gazillion years, all that exercising will keep that entry into the old folks home at bay for a long long time! Patrick James Dunn Hi Ginette! Remembering the dipsy-doodles is how I keep myself company on long rides! Plan to cycle to Tinhorn Creek this morning as we are meeting close friends for lunch there. (I will shower and change in their guest room!) Lady Dar will drive so afterwards we plan to visit Intersection. Had a superb bottle of the Merlot a week or so ago, when another close friend took us to Theo's, here in Penticton, for a terrific meal. Cheers! Ginette Bertrand Unfortunately Bruce is in Vancouver Fri and Sat back at the winery Sunday 11AM+ I am sure he would have loved to take you to the barrel room and have you do some real "what's to come" tasting!

Hello Dearest Jo-Anne! First of all, thank you so much for your donation! It goes without saying that I am most appreciative of your support! As well, I do apologize for not thanking you sooner but we have been on the go with visitors day after Gran Fondo and then in to Vancouver for Folk Fest. (Had hoped to call but time was very, very short!) Then back home on Monday to leave for Osoyoos to stay with Flamin' and Sarge for two days and celebrate Lady Dar's 69th! Back home yesterday. Fab ride, if interested.
 
Today we are having lunch with Joan and Paul Whitney, at Tinhorn Creek, and then back to host an unbroken string of visitors until after August long-weekend! I will be in town on August 10th to see my orthopod about my left hip replacement. Not sure, as of this writing, how long we will stay but as soon as I know I'll be in touch and perhaps we can orchestrate a visit. Thanks again for your donation. Fondestos and Cheers, Patrizzio! The attached snap shows Lady Dar's birthday cake. Each candle is worth 10+ years!


Hi Anthea! First of all, thank you again for your donation! I do apologize for not replying sooner, about time at Folk Fest, but life has been very, very busy ever since! Ironically, Will and family were in Penticton, visiting his family, when we were in Vancouver so we didn't see them! Still a fabulous weekend of music with Jos and Aarturo.  I'm hoping to hike this Monday, before post-weekend group arrive. Have not been since before GranFondo and really miss the outings! Thanks again, Anthea, for your donation. Fondestos and Cheers, Patrizzio!

Hi Teens! Thanks for your donation. Fondestos from an older and wiser, Lady Dar, still a slumber! Cheers, Patrizzio!The attached snap is of a Very Proud Grandfather!

I was up at 5:00 am this morning as I's slept soundly right through the night. Once I'd zapped my java I watched Stage 14 of the Tour, the Folk Fest weekend having put me way behind in terms of the recorded episodes I'd seen. Digitated away until around 8:00 am when Lady Dar clambered out of bed. The forecast for Friday looked "iffy" last night but showers were not predicted until around 1:00 pm for Oliver so I decided I'd ride. After a hearty breakfast of overleft chicken I filled my two water bottles as I was carrying my change of clothes in a small knapsack so a camel-pack was a bit clumsy. We were having lunch with Joan and Paul Whitney, at Tinhorn Creek, and they were going to allow me to shower and change in their guest suite once I was there.

Depending on wind, I knew it would take me roughly two and a half hours, +/-, so I left the house at just after 9:00 am. [Had arranged to meet the Whitneys in the Tasting Room at 11:45 am and they would take me back to their suite. The lunch reservation was for 12:30 pm at Miradoro so that would give me enough time to get cleaned up.] Although wind was reasonably stiff, 14 kph S, I made reasonably decent time to OK Falls and was on 97  and making my way to Gallagher Lake at just after 10:00 am. 

There are only a few slight, gradual climbs as one cycles past Vaseux and so I continued to make reasonable headway, in spite of bucking the wind. Knew I'd only have about 42 km on the clock by the time I reached Oliver itself so I made a couple of dipsy-doodle loops around the two manufactured home communities at Gallagher Lake to give me a few more km. Once past Tuc-el-Nuit and Seacrest, the highway is almost all slightly downhill and the wind was more of a cross-wind than a head-wind so I had logged an AVG of 24 kph when I entered Oliver. That dropped when I took another extended dipsy-doodle up towards the base of Fairview Mountain, to give me the extra distance I wanted to achieve by ride's end. 

After I looped around Chokecherry Street I made my way to Road 5 as it would take me back to Okanagan Highway. It was pure delight to swoosh down this  stretch, having had to labour up it during the GranFondo, the grueling ascent of Fairview Mountain looming! Not long on the highway as Tinhorn Creek is the first winery south of Oliver and I turned off onto Road 7 to see the winery perched high above me. Access is via Tinhorn Creek Road and I knew that it was a more than grueling climb, somewhere between 10%-12% grade, I estimate. At any rate, I decided I'd try it so I started up. Not too, too bad, at first, but soon I knew I'd have to stand up, even in lowest gear possible, and managed to get to just below a service driveway, almost two thirds of the way to the top. My legs simply wouldn't go an inch further and I couldn't will myself or my lungs to continue. Fortunately, I was able to unclip my right shoe easily and quickly, turning my Garmin off immediately. At one point I was afraid I'd end up falling over, still attached to my bike, such was the angle I was at and my labouring, screaming system was about to shut down. 

Once I had the other foot free, I stood for a few minutes, gasping to catch my breath, almost like a fish flopping around in the bottom of canoe, and when I had recovered sufficiently, I pushed my Trek the rest of the way up the hill and made my way towards the Tasting Room. Joan and Paul were just walking across the parking lot so we greeted one another and the ride was over! Map and Stats for ride:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1267864103#.V5P-K8kz7So.email

Colleen Teahan Waldron Good lord Patrick you are one early riser! 🌞

Patrick James Dunn It's easy when Lady Dar pushes you out of the bed!

Thanks for the update. If you want to cycle sometime just call me. Have colonoscopy today but then here till 28th when go on a backpack to Lake Chelan area and back Aug 1/2. bye for now Gill I know a lot are away but have we got at least 4 on Tuesday. Please let me know if you can come Did I miss anyone? Bye Gill Hi Gill; I can come. You didn't include Patrick... Pam Corinne and Patrick, didn't send to you originally as in Patrick's email he said you guys were not available. We do only have Phil, me and Pam so if you want to come no problem!! bye for now Gill Hi Gill, we have visitors on Tuesday who don't play so will not be there, but we can host next week. Cheers Corinne

Ayn P For all my loves in Chevy Equinox SUVs. ..just saw one take a serious hit and that interior cage held up nicely with Mom and her kids getting out safely with just a "Whoa" and some very relieved expressions Corinne Durston Good to know!