Photos de la Route

The Rocky Mountains haunt my dreams.

I’ve never seen mountains bigger than the Laurentians yet their aged forms seem to pale in comparison to photos of the Rockies. Friends from out west are hesitant to even call them real mountains. This doesn’t bode well, because as small as the Laurentians may be, I’ve certainly never cycled there either.

I must admit that I do like climbing hills. In fact, I prefer a good hill to long, flat stretches. I spent my teens in Québec City, built on top of a high plateau with steep cliffs on all sides. If you wanted to cycle anywhere outside the plateau, you were going to have to climb one hell of a hill on the way home. But those were hills, not mountains.

Taking this challenge to heart, I go out of my way to cycle as many hills as possible as hard as I can in the few months remaining before tackling the Rockies. Nic & I take the long back route up [Mont Royal] — a paltry 220m climb, if even that — on a regular basis just to get a feel for what B.C. will be like. We’ve looked at the maps and the name “Bonanza Pass” — over 1500m high — fills me with dread.

My temporary summer job painting homes in chic Westmount, gives me plenty of opportunity to practice. I take the “high road” out of the McGill ghetto often, grinding my way up des Pins and Cedar, then tackling whatever hill I can find on the way to the day’s job site in hilly Westmount. It gets to the point where I can tackle Cedar at a moderate sprint, cranks straining all the way up.

But that long climb up Camillien-Houde (and the paths beyond to the summit) requires a much slower, more determined approach. I suppose a Cat. 2 rider could zip right up that, but I’m not in that league. Instead, I keep up a steady cadence in a low gear, focus on the pavement in front of me and ignore the long climb ahead. Live in the moment, keep spinning the pedals and then suddenly you’re up there, the climb is done. On a good day we turn around, race back to the bottom and do it again.

Rocky Mountains, here I come.