Vancouver.

I know we're all eager to hear about Madsen adventures, but as Don and I were coming back from a community league BBQ and getting supplies (tie-downs and plywood) we were rear ended by an AMA truck. I plan to do a separate blog about this so stay tuned on a rant about how wide roads and huge vehicles do not constitute safety. The ironic thing is that I stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian. I'm just glad he didn't get run over.

The most horrifying part of it all was that baby Dexter was in the back seat in his car seat. Thankfully everybody is okay and Dexter seems to be more or less unaffected by the impact. Unfortunately, Don sort of turned around when he saw the truck's grill in the side mirror and got his neck torqued quite badly. I was running on adrenaline and got out of the car immediately to see if the baby was okay, but it didn't take long to notice my neck and back stiffening up. I'll just say that nursing the baby has been challenging. Generally, staying in any one position for more than a few minutes hurts, as do particular ranges of motion. UGH.

On a more positive note, Don has come up with a nice design for Madsen's baby retrofit! It takes into account not structurally compromising the bin or frame by putting stresses on certain parts of the bike. And also works with the way the seatbelts are designed, instead of having them pull in strange directions. My friends, this will not be a hack job. It's going to be custom and I do believe when it's done I will be able to claim that my Madsen has been appropriately pimped for the baby.

I'd love to be riding the Madsen on our current snow free roads, but this project will have to wait until we get back from Vancouver on the weekend. Don is attending a resilient cities conference. We're leaving tonight for our home away from home. I have a ridiculous amount of extended family there and have been visiting annually since I was a kid. Since then, many of my Edmonton expatriate friends have also relocated there so this will be a great opportunity for them to meet Dexter.

We're not renting a car. I can't do bikes yet with the baby. So stay tuned for adventures on Vancouver transit and related pedestrian thrills. The stroller is going to get a lot of play. I also hear that taking the sky train in from the airport is a transformative experience - I'm really excited!

Thought that it would be nice to post some pictures of my last trip to Vancouver, right around the time this whole blog started. I rode the Amsterdam that summer and it was a great Vancouver bike. It's light. And Vancouver has lots of hills. I've heard that Burrard bridge also has a new cyclist lane that I sadly won't be able to experience just yet. When Dexter is a little older we'll drive there and bring the bikes and a little bobike seat for him. I'll just have to beware all the judgy Chinese grandmas, there are a good number more of those in Vancouver than in Edmonton.

Other things to look forward to are cool design stores down by the sea bus. Rooftop showrooms with cool furniture!




Vancouver has a fun aquarium. I really miss that dress, one of the elastics ripped in the bodice and that was the end of it.




This one is actually downtown Victoria, on the same trip.




Brunch at Sophie's.




Bike fun in the park near kits beach. Hey, that's my friend Justin in the picture with Don. He was just visiting!






Rosie on the green Sekine which is better known as, "zucchini." It was Don's grandma's and I rode it for several months when my bike life began. Like many things it was too big for me to ride long-term. I wanted it to have a wonderful home with a lovely girl so we gifted it to Rosie. Her husband was talking about getting her something faster to ride, which is horrifying to me! In the event that she moves on to another bike I hope she gifts it to another lovely girl who will use, appreciate, and love it. Subsequent reports have informed me that Rosie and Zucchini continue to have a lovely relationship with trips to the farmer's market and other weekend outings.




Bike gang! I think we were on West 10th or something.




I also plan to stop in at Rain City bikes to see what's up at their shop. I hope it will not be cliquey like a lot of boutique bike stores. You know when you don't feel particularly welcome and there is a distinct "in" crowd? I hate it when bike places feel that way. Or when dudes try to sell me hybrid bikes. Depending on how things go maybe I'll be able to test ride a bakfiets like Dottie over at LGRAB!

If anybody wants to potentially grab a coffee or go ogle bikes with Dexter and me, feel free to drop me an email or DM me on Twitter. Don will be at sessions during the day and I'll be pounding the pavement with baby D. See you all in Vancouver!