OLDS – A former Olds-area resident is cycling across Canada.
But he’s not riding to raise money for cancer or some other cause.
He’s riding to fulfill a dream his father had.
Kevin Spicer, 27, now lives in the U.S. state of Georgia.
His father moved to Mountain View County from Peterborough, Ont. and often talked about some day riding a bike back there from Olds.
“He talked about it my entire childhood, and he was never able to do it because of jobs, because of me and because of everything else that happened,” Spicer, an only child, said during an interview with the Albertan.
“Now he's in his middle 60s and he is going in for a knee replacement so he really can't do it now. He's getting his left knee done. I'm doing it to fulfill his need and dream of doing that.”
Spicer planned to fly from Atlanta to Vancouver on May 22 and begin his cycling journey the next day.
It will take him not only to Peterborough, but all the way to St. John’s, N.L., a journey he expects will take about 50 days.
His parents will follow behind in an RV, which the three of them will sleep in each night.
Spicer’s wife, Rachel, plans to join them for the last week or two of the trip. They hope to celebrate Canada Day together on Parliament Hill.
Spicer is aware that cycling across Canada presents all kinds of challenges: terrain, weather and possibly bears or other animals.
He says he’s planned for any and all of that.
He’s been racing bikes for the past five years. Some of those ultra distance gravel races have lasted for 150 to 200 miles.
“My best placing at a national race was fourth in my age group at Steamboat Springs in Colorado last year. I was off the podium by five minutes,” he said.
Spicer rides a bike four days a week and lifts weights. Also, he and Rachel run three days a week.
He has a plan for the widely differing terrain, from mountains to the Prairies.
“I am bringing every single piece of equipment I possibly have at home here,” Spicer said.
“We're prepping for snow. We're prepping for blizzards. We're prepping for wind. We're prepping for really flat terrain and really hilly terrain and so I'm going to have two different sets of wheels.
“I'm going to have equipment to make myself go fast on the flat (ground) and I'm packing equipment to make sure I'm light enough to go up the hills as well.
“So I have a lot of suitcases coming with me and there's a lot of gear coming with me.”
Spicer was asked what he plans to do if he meets bears, coyotes or other potentially dangerous animals on the route.
“That is a good reminder,” he said. “Everybody keeps stressing to me that I need some bear spray underneath my bike, so I think that's going to have to happen.”
There’s a connection between Spicer and another former Olds-area resident: international water-skiing champion Ryan Dodd.
Dodd got Spicer into water skiing when he was about 12 years old.
Eventually, Spicer obtained a water-skiing scholarship. He competed in the U.S. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1, the highest athletic level. His team finished in the top three a few times.
However, in 2018, an injury ended Spicer’s career in that sport. He suffered two herniated discs in his back during a jump.
“My career ended immediately,” he said. “Couldn't walk for a few months.”
He found himself making daily visits to physiotherapists, undergoing X-rays and other procedures.
Spicer still wanted to do something athletic, so for the past six years, he’s been cycling. He loves the sport and the camaraderie with fellow cyclists.
Spicer was asked what he plans to do when they get to Peterborough.
“I have no idea,” he said. “That's far enough away (that) I haven't thought about it.”
It was suggested he might like to take a selfie; perhaps by a Peterborough sign or by his father’s old house.
The cycling trip will also serve another purpose, Spicer said.
He’s been working as a financial consultant.
“I jumped up through the corporate ladder pretty quick and also burned myself out extremely fast and learned the value of living, living to work or working to live,” he said.
The pressure of the job got to be too much for him so he quit and plans to spend some of the journey deciding what career he’ll pursue in the future.
He said whatever that next job is, having fun will be a priority for him.
“I'm going to be interviewing while I'm on the bike ride as well, to figure out where I want to go or what I want to do,” he said.
“My biggest thing is I need to work for the right company that's going to support my endeavours and work with really good people.
“The subject matter of what I'm going to do doesn't really matter at the end of the day to me, as long as I work for that good company.”
Spicer said Rachel, a wealth manager, is very supportive of his decision.
“She's gone through a lot with me over the last five years of with this job and it being extremely time consuming and the mental stress that goes along with it.
“So she understands that this needs to happen, because she's also an athlete so she understands the sports aspect of it,” he said.
“She's totally supportive of it. She's excited over it.”
