Sunday in Calgary

Hello everyone,
Some of you have been asking who Joanne is. Well, Joanne is one of the ladies I met in the documentary Don't Stand Still and she lost her battle to this disease last year on Sept 11. One day after the walk in Toronto. It is Joanne and her whole family that have inspired me to do these seven walks. You can see part of the documentary on YouTube. If you type in "don't stand still-breast cancer" under search on YouTube you will see a trailer that shows Joanne and her family. If you watch this five minute trailer you will begin to understand what an inspiration Joanne continues to be to this day.
Saturday night was spent cooling off in an air conditioned room, an Epsom salt bath then a shower, pasta dinner with a little wine and then collapsing into bed for a 8 hour sleep. We woke up at 5:30 again to get to the Barricks by 7 (where we walked to yesterday) We wanted to get an early start so we would beat the heat of the day. They were calling for the same type of weather on Sunday again. So we hopped into a cab and had only a moment of hesitation when he asked me to confirm that the Barricks were off Flanders Ave. Luckily I had overheard someone telling a cabbie that yesterday and made a note of it on my Blackberry. So I knew it was off Flanders but did he know where Flanders was? He seemed to and I thought this could not possibly happen twice to me...could it? We arrived safe and sound at the Barricks and started off for day two at 7:10 am.
Once again, a huge THANKS goes to Dave my personal trainer because my knees have been feeling pretty darn good. Another THANKS to Tony and Mark who have the most unfortunate task of working with my feet. Trust me...they do not get paid nearly enough for that job! My feet have been feeling OK and they will probably not get much better until after all the walks are over. So, a couple of weeks ago I bought "walking poles" and they look like ski poles but you use them for walking. I have been training with them but the longest walk I have done with them is about 8 kms. The other training thing I have been doing is walking with a knap sack on. It carries an extra pair of shoes, two water bottles and some stuff and probably weighs an extra 10-15 lbs on my back. Pat and I shared the duties of carrying the knap sack but I did not want to try the poles for 35 kms on the first day but I was going to try them on Sunday.
Thank goodness I did. It made a huge difference. My feet felt much better and I will definitely be using them for the rest of the walks. Don't get me wrong...there were still some tough spots on Sunday but I could noticeably feel the difference with the poles on Sunday. The right one is noticeable more worn then the left which makes sense since the right foot is worse than the left.
Sunday was another beautiful day without another cloud to be seen anywhere. It felt much cooler though this morning with more of a breeze. As we walked along the reservoir we met up with two sisters (the middle child sister was walking ahead) who were walking for their mother. Here is an example of how this walk is helping. They have mobile detection/screening vans that travel the province (this is also in Manitoba)to reach the more rural areas of the province. Since this walk has started they have been able to add more of these units in each of the provinces. So there are five sisters in this family and their parents still live in a rural area about two and half hours outside of Calgary. One day (the sisters) Mom is playing cards with her card group who are waiting for the mobile unit to come by so they can be screened. The Mom thinks...what the heck I will go with them since I have nothing better to do. Well, I don't have to finish the story for you. Their Mom is doing great but it is because of the early detection this mobile unit provided. This is the "Walks" money at work.
We are at lunch by 10 am and we are one of the first 350 walkers. At lunch there is a little more shade today...more tents provided by the organizers which was great of them. One of the tents they provided over the last two days was a "misting" tent to help us cool down. Although today was hot but not like Saturday. While we are having lunch some of the walkers who camped last night at the Barricks were listening to the coyotoes all night. This is just one of the many reasons why I don't camp...you don't hear coyotoes in a hotel room on a sweet sleeper bed. The coyotoes are in addition to the cougar they had just trapped in one of the local parks the day before. Hard to sleep with one eye open all night listening for the local WILD life.
One of the things you worry about on the walks is blisters, rain and the seize factor. This factor effects many things you do over the weekend. How long you can stand in one spot, how the "seize" can effect many areas sometimes more than one at a time and finally how long you can sit and rest. For me the "seize factor" is huge therefore I can not sit for long. So after a fairly quick lunch we gingerly start off again. One of the first houses we past just outside the park has sprinkled pink rose petals on its lawn for a border. The green grass as a background to the pink petals was such a simple statement but at the same time said so much. Many of the walkers commented on it at the finish line. Just another example of how people can show they care and give us such as boost with just one act of kindness.
Along the way Pat and I agreed that there was more men walking in this city than any other city we have walked in, which is absolutely great. There was one team alone called 12 Men Abreast and these guys were great. They were too far ahead of us (not fair...longer legs than mine) but we heard lots of stories about what great guys they were. No surprise here.
So as we turned the corner on to MacLeod Trail we could see the roof of the Saddledome which reminded us of the windmill at the Ex and we knew we were close. This always brings a spring to your step which was needed at this time for me. As we were rounding the corner heading to the finish line there was a survivor walking in front of us. She was about 55 years old and we knew she was a survivor from her pink laneer. Her pace was a little slow and you could tell that she was tired...and with one gesture like she had done it a million times before... her hand slipped into her husband's hand. He was there walking by her side for the last 59.5 km and together they were going to cross the finish line and beat this disease together hand in hand.
We finish the walk at 1:27 and again...the finish line is well worth the 60 kms. The closing ceremonies did not start until four and my feet and the seize factor would not allow me to wait till then so we left early. The closing ceremonies like the opening are the same but the emotion is always different. At the hotel we met some fellow walkers and asked them if they stayed for the closing ceremonies which they did. These ceremonies were different though...a wave went through the walkers...when the survivors walked in...all of the walkers, crew and volunteers would kneel to the survivors. Well, it is probably best that I missed this ceremony because you would of been able to hear my blubbering in Toronto. In fact I am blubbering this as I write it. This was just spur of the moment act these people decided to do. What an amazing thing. The irony is...I feel like it is I who should be kneeling in front of all of you. To the volunteers, crew and fellow walker who take a weekend out of the year, away from their families and to walk an amazing 60 kms to find an end to this disease. To all of you who support me each and everyday, I kneel to you and say "THANK YOU". You will never know how much it means to me.
Look out Edmonton...here we come August 10th.
To Mom and Joanne...Thank you for your courage and inspiration.
With love and thanks,
M.J.