Caught in the headlights A voice for those who don't have gas

Jane’s dad

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Jane's dad shows off the donations

Jane Tooley is well-known among the cycling community.  Her bright smile, her energetic personality and her all around nice attitude has won her many friends.

Friends of Jane also know that she is a person who likes to help out with causes, lots of them.  This summer Jane went to Namibia in southern Africa to volunteer in a bicycle store with an organization called D.E.E.P., Disability Economic Empowerment Project.  Here is how Jane explains it.

"The project was stared with a shipping container sent over from Canada full of bikes, tools and a work bench.  basically, they emptied out the container and turned it into a successful bike store in just three years.  The catch is that they didn't have the best tools to start out with and after three years of wrenching, the tools they do have are extremely worn down.

It is honestly a wonder how everyone continues to stay positive and fix bicycles.  Where wrenches are concerned, all they have is a barely functioning 15 wrench, an 8 a 10 an 111 and a socket 9 and 15.  One Phillips screw driver.  The freewheel remover, chainbreaker pin, cone wrenches and allen keys are essentially useless.  No pedal wrench, vice grips, cable cutters, truing stands or headset wrenches.  I gave them my two spoke wrenches since they only had the multi-size kind.  In short DEEP is in dire need of tools."

So Jane sent the above story to her friends in the bike community asking that donations be made so that a colleague of Jane's who is going to Africa, could take the tools with her.

The drop off was the Bike Joint and over the last couple of days bags of tools started to show up at the shop.  Jane had asked for a specific list of tools for her friends to give.  In the end all the tools, plus some were collected by the cycling community.  Jane's dad was incredulous at the generosity put out.

The tools were then packed up and sent to Africa where hopefully a lot of happy bike mechanics are using the donated tools and the Toronto bike community should be proud of once again coming to the call of one of their own.

Another form of Transportation lll

I have had a veritable form of transportation options this week-end.  I, unfortunately had to go back to my hometown of North Bay for a funeral.  An old friends, father, who I had known while growing up passed away and I wanted to attend.

So on the Saturday I went up by bus, and on the Sunday I came back on the train.  I have to say that the way I waxed on about how great the bus was, and it was, you would think that I was going to do everything by bus.

But I have to say, if the choice be had, I would do everything by train.  There is something far more romantic and beautiful about the train that a bus just doesn’t have.

Sure there are little things, like buses seem to be on time and it doesn’t take as long, but the train, there is something about the train that makes my soul sing.  Makes me not care when we get to where we are going, because what you see on the way is so well worth it.

I walked to the train station, making sure I left early so I would not miss it.  I am always amazed by how adamant some people are about me not wanting to walk.  I guess you don't do that in North Bay, but I did.  I enjoy walking.

I waited for the train at the North Bay station, now situated out of town as opposed to the very local downtown spot.  But that was years ago that they changed the station position, so really I shouldn’t go on about it.

I didn’t know what I was thinking because I showed up on time and I thought the train would as well.  Unfortunately the Ontario Northlander, the name of the train, is notorious for the train not showing up on time.

This time it was only a half hour late.  Not so bad considering sometimes it doesn’t even make it.  I have had to finish the train ride a couple of times on a bus.  However this time everything was good and it wasn’t long before I was sitting on the train ready for the ride home.

I spent most of my ride in the bar car cause they have tables and a unrestricted view of the outside.  They also have beer, which I did not imbibe.  I had bought a book that I was very excited to dig into and there was a movie playing so I was entertained enough....however.

The outside continued to pull me away from the inside.  It was a beautiful ride.  Green, green, green as far as the eye could see.  It was stunning and gorgeous.  Swamps, creeks, rivers open fields.  The descriptive list could go on, but I will let my pictures tell some of the tale.

I was like a tourist on crack, jumping up and taking pictures at what must have seemed to others as the most inane vista.  But it was all beautiful to me.  There were times that I wanted to take photos, but instead just enjoyed the view, letting it all rush over me.

It was wonderful to see all of the sites that you would be unable to see from the road.  The forgotten places of Northern Ontario.  The junked cars, the rotting barns, the places that one could fantasize that people had not been in for decades.

Some of the most beautiful spots were actually in the Don river, just north of the city.  But the entire trip, from North Bay to Union Station was breathtaking.  I can’t wait to do it all again on the Bike Train to North Bay.  The Journey is truly the Destination.