Hey Guys,
Check out this video from when we were in Toronto...more blogging to come soon. We hit my hometown of St. Thomas tomorrow evening! My mom will be a Medal-Bearer in Aylmer where she taught school for a number of years and then the Relay will be a part of the the St. Thomas Santa Claus parade. Its good to be back home!
Jonesy
Friday, 18 November 2011
Friday, 11 November 2011
Meet the Team
Hey Everyone,
We have rolled through Toronto and are now beginning our trek towards the Niagara Region where I will get to make a stop in St. Catharines and Brock University, my former home for 4 years. I have not been back since I graduated and I know that a lot has changed on campus, including a huge addition to the Physical Education and Recreation Centre where I spent about 93% of my time. I'm excited to check it out and stop by to visit some of the staff.
I had an incredible Blast from the Past moment in Clarkston, just outside Mississauga, when while riding the bike, I hear someone yell out "Jonesy!" Not expecting to know anyone in the area, I stopped and right in front of me was a woman named Andrea who was a classmate of mine at Brock in the Recreation and Leisure Studies program. I hadn't seen her in over 11 years but she looked exactly the same as I remembered her, except she had 2 of her 3 kids in tow this time. haha She was aware that I was working with the Relay (thank you Facebook) and when she saw it was coming through town, she decided to come down on the off chance that I would be in the convoy. As it turns out, I was riding the bike for the first time in a month and the stars aligned. I love it when things like that happen!
One of our amazing Endurance Team Members just left our team after his 10 day stint. His name is Geordie McConnell and he is the founder of the Ottawa Triathlon Club and Ottawa Running Club. He was also involved with the original Man In Motion World Tour for a short time as a university student. He rode with Rick for 3 days locally and then flew out to BC to finish up the last 3 days as well. Geordie did an amazing job as a team member, had an incredible time interacting with all the Medal-Bearers, and created some memories that will last a lifetime. He also made a very generous donation to the Foundation on behalf of his Triathlon Club AND made a cool video of our on road operations that showcases some of the amazing, talented, and hard working Relay team members that I work with every day. Check it out here:
Oh, and I went to Whole Foods for dinner tonight and made myself a tasty collection of tantalizing treats to bring back to the room, including 6 different kinds of quinoa salad. Soooo goooood!!!
Goodnight all!
Jonesy
We have rolled through Toronto and are now beginning our trek towards the Niagara Region where I will get to make a stop in St. Catharines and Brock University, my former home for 4 years. I have not been back since I graduated and I know that a lot has changed on campus, including a huge addition to the Physical Education and Recreation Centre where I spent about 93% of my time. I'm excited to check it out and stop by to visit some of the staff.
I had an incredible Blast from the Past moment in Clarkston, just outside Mississauga, when while riding the bike, I hear someone yell out "Jonesy!" Not expecting to know anyone in the area, I stopped and right in front of me was a woman named Andrea who was a classmate of mine at Brock in the Recreation and Leisure Studies program. I hadn't seen her in over 11 years but she looked exactly the same as I remembered her, except she had 2 of her 3 kids in tow this time. haha She was aware that I was working with the Relay (thank you Facebook) and when she saw it was coming through town, she decided to come down on the off chance that I would be in the convoy. As it turns out, I was riding the bike for the first time in a month and the stars aligned. I love it when things like that happen!
One of our amazing Endurance Team Members just left our team after his 10 day stint. His name is Geordie McConnell and he is the founder of the Ottawa Triathlon Club and Ottawa Running Club. He was also involved with the original Man In Motion World Tour for a short time as a university student. He rode with Rick for 3 days locally and then flew out to BC to finish up the last 3 days as well. Geordie did an amazing job as a team member, had an incredible time interacting with all the Medal-Bearers, and created some memories that will last a lifetime. He also made a very generous donation to the Foundation on behalf of his Triathlon Club AND made a cool video of our on road operations that showcases some of the amazing, talented, and hard working Relay team members that I work with every day. Check it out here:
Oh, and I went to Whole Foods for dinner tonight and made myself a tasty collection of tantalizing treats to bring back to the room, including 6 different kinds of quinoa salad. Soooo goooood!!!
Goodnight all!
Jonesy
Friday, 4 November 2011
Ottawa Video
Hey Guys,
I know I've been super slack about posting of late, but we are now in Toronto and as you can imagine, it is the busiest part of the Relay. I've been takiong some photos along the way and trying to make some notes about some stories, but haven't had much time to post anything. I guess maybe I wasn't cut out for this blogging thing! hahaha Maybe when Daylight Savings time hits here this weekend, I will use that extra hour to blog....but don't get your hopes up...I will probably sleep.
In the meantime, please enjoy this video of our trip to Ottawa.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2qELqPEHFE
Jonesy
I know I've been super slack about posting of late, but we are now in Toronto and as you can imagine, it is the busiest part of the Relay. I've been takiong some photos along the way and trying to make some notes about some stories, but haven't had much time to post anything. I guess maybe I wasn't cut out for this blogging thing! hahaha Maybe when Daylight Savings time hits here this weekend, I will use that extra hour to blog....but don't get your hopes up...I will probably sleep.
In the meantime, please enjoy this video of our trip to Ottawa.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2qELqPEHFE
Jonesy
Tuesday, 25 October 2011
The Rick Hansen Medal - Video
Hey All,
Well, we have finished up 2 weeks in Quebec and I have some pictures and a post to still write for that but in the meantime, please check out this video about the Rick Hansen Medal made for us by the Royal Canadian Mint where we will be visiting tomorrow in Ottawa!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eInRaHqbOX0&feature=player_embedded
Very cool stuff!
Jonesy
Well, we have finished up 2 weeks in Quebec and I have some pictures and a post to still write for that but in the meantime, please check out this video about the Rick Hansen Medal made for us by the Royal Canadian Mint where we will be visiting tomorrow in Ottawa!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eInRaHqbOX0&feature=player_embedded
Very cool stuff!
Jonesy
Tuesday, 18 October 2011
Quebec City - VIDEO...en francais
Bonjour mes amis!
Voila! La video de Quebec City en francais.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvKPlva1AMU&sns=fb
Bon soir.
Jonesy
Disclaimer - Je ne parle pas francais tres bien mais je comprende un petit peu.
Voila! La video de Quebec City en francais.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvKPlva1AMU&sns=fb
Bon soir.
Jonesy
Disclaimer - Je ne parle pas francais tres bien mais je comprende un petit peu.
Monday, 17 October 2011
Day 47 Woodstock, NB - Grand Sault/Grand Falls, NB
Good Evening My Beloved Blog Readers!
Well, I didn't think I was going to write tonight because it is now 12:52am but so much happened today that I just had to drop some notes for you all to check out.
I was afraid that our stretch of nice weather had left us and that winter had come early. While we were in Fredericton a couple days ago, it was bitter cold, windy, and rainy. Everyone had hauled out their winter gear and the grumbling and groaning about winter weather had begun. Weeeeeell, Stop the presses! Today was an incredible day!! Sunny, bright, cloud free, blue sky, 27 degree day...on October 9th in Woodstock, New Brunswick! So already we were off to a good start.
Okay, I lied, I'm too tired...I'll have to finish later.....Nighty night.
Okay I'm back....9 days LATER! Hahaha You had no idea it was that long, did you? Well, I apologize...but it was....(hint..I've already been in Quebec for over a week!...that blog will have to follow later.)
So heading out of New Bruncwick and into Quebec, I tried out a new job on the Relay. I was a "pilot". I drove ahead and marked the next 3 days of the Relay. This involves taking big yellow stickers and sticking them 250 metres apart on lamp posts, telephone poles, No Parking signs, traffic signals...or whatever we can find. We do this according to a very details mapping program that was created during the 2 hard drives that were mapped out by our Route Coordinators. It was a lot of driving...over 800km round trip resulting in an arrival back at the hotel around 11pm. This was on the night that the rest of that staff enjoyed a nicely prepared Thanksgiving Dinner at our hotel. Thanksfully I have a sweet boss who made me a plate and wrapped it up for when I got back. Thanks Deena! Then we are the pilots for the Relay for those days since we are familiar with everything after having down the recon mission. We lead the core convoy of vehicles throughout the day to make sure they stay on track and all Medal-Bearers are dropped in the correct places.
Well this day in New Brunswick had lots of cool stuff and since its 12:20am and I'm at risk of postponing posting this, I will give a quick rundown and include some pictures.
Visited Hartland, NB, hone of the World's Longest Covered Bridge at 1282 feet long. Found some Fisherman enjoying a lovely sunny morning on the water.
We had a Medal-Bearer in Perth-Andover who had a pet goat named Rocky who even came on the shuttle! GO ROCKY!
And our Last Medal-Bearer of the day in Grand-Sault/Grand Falls was Ron Turcotte. He was the jockey who rode the famous race horse Secretariat to the 1973 Triple Crown. For those of you who are uneducated in the world of horse racing. The Triple Crown means that a horse wins the 3 most prestigious races in the year...The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. It is a difficult task because they are quite different races and different lengths and horses typically aren't suited for all 3. Its so tough in fact that no horse has won the Triple Crown since 1978 when Affirmed accomplished the feat. Great job Ron! Ron got to carry the medal on the bridge that is named after him.
Our End of Day Celebration site was right by the Grand Falls and there is a zipline that crosses the gorge. They cut our staff a deal and we zipped across a couple times...after playing some mini-stick hockey with the kids of course.
Ohhhh yeah....ziplining harnesses are quite flattering for the gentlemen. I was walking a little taller around the ladies when they saw me descend down to the platform. :) Sorry..but this is the only ziplining photo that was taken.
See you in Quebec in the coming days!
Jonesy
Well, I didn't think I was going to write tonight because it is now 12:52am but so much happened today that I just had to drop some notes for you all to check out.
I was afraid that our stretch of nice weather had left us and that winter had come early. While we were in Fredericton a couple days ago, it was bitter cold, windy, and rainy. Everyone had hauled out their winter gear and the grumbling and groaning about winter weather had begun. Weeeeeell, Stop the presses! Today was an incredible day!! Sunny, bright, cloud free, blue sky, 27 degree day...on October 9th in Woodstock, New Brunswick! So already we were off to a good start.
Okay, I lied, I'm too tired...I'll have to finish later.....Nighty night.
Okay I'm back....9 days LATER! Hahaha You had no idea it was that long, did you? Well, I apologize...but it was....(hint..I've already been in Quebec for over a week!...that blog will have to follow later.)
So heading out of New Bruncwick and into Quebec, I tried out a new job on the Relay. I was a "pilot". I drove ahead and marked the next 3 days of the Relay. This involves taking big yellow stickers and sticking them 250 metres apart on lamp posts, telephone poles, No Parking signs, traffic signals...or whatever we can find. We do this according to a very details mapping program that was created during the 2 hard drives that were mapped out by our Route Coordinators. It was a lot of driving...over 800km round trip resulting in an arrival back at the hotel around 11pm. This was on the night that the rest of that staff enjoyed a nicely prepared Thanksgiving Dinner at our hotel. Thanksfully I have a sweet boss who made me a plate and wrapped it up for when I got back. Thanks Deena! Then we are the pilots for the Relay for those days since we are familiar with everything after having down the recon mission. We lead the core convoy of vehicles throughout the day to make sure they stay on track and all Medal-Bearers are dropped in the correct places.
Well this day in New Brunswick had lots of cool stuff and since its 12:20am and I'm at risk of postponing posting this, I will give a quick rundown and include some pictures.
Visited Hartland, NB, hone of the World's Longest Covered Bridge at 1282 feet long. Found some Fisherman enjoying a lovely sunny morning on the water.
We had a Medal-Bearer in Perth-Andover who had a pet goat named Rocky who even came on the shuttle! GO ROCKY!
And our Last Medal-Bearer of the day in Grand-Sault/Grand Falls was Ron Turcotte. He was the jockey who rode the famous race horse Secretariat to the 1973 Triple Crown. For those of you who are uneducated in the world of horse racing. The Triple Crown means that a horse wins the 3 most prestigious races in the year...The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. It is a difficult task because they are quite different races and different lengths and horses typically aren't suited for all 3. Its so tough in fact that no horse has won the Triple Crown since 1978 when Affirmed accomplished the feat. Great job Ron! Ron got to carry the medal on the bridge that is named after him.
Our End of Day Celebration site was right by the Grand Falls and there is a zipline that crosses the gorge. They cut our staff a deal and we zipped across a couple times...after playing some mini-stick hockey with the kids of course.
Ohhhh yeah....ziplining harnesses are quite flattering for the gentlemen. I was walking a little taller around the ladies when they saw me descend down to the platform. :) Sorry..but this is the only ziplining photo that was taken.
See you in Quebec in the coming days!
Jonesy
Friday, 30 September 2011
I'm BACK!!!
Soooo, for those of you who have been faithful followers of my Blog from the beginning, you have probably noticed that my once daily blog updates have become...oh....shall we say....a little less frequent... Well, this was not due to the fact that I was trampled by a moose in Corner Brook, or run over by coal miner in Sydney Mines, but rather I was caught up in the wheels of a Relay that operates and has needs 7 days a week for 20 hours a day. I was selfish and chose to sleep for those remaining 4 hours rather than blog and for that I apologize sincerely (okay, maybe 'sincerely' is not the right word).
At any rate, I did receive an earful from Momma Jones who was having a quiet period at the cottage and time that I failed to adequately fill with descriptive text for her to read was instead used to harass the wildlife with a camera lens thrust into their tiny faces. (I'm kidding, Mommy was very understanding and wished me all the best. She's lovely)
Well guess what! I have come to the decision that I simply cannot keep up the very ambitious schedule of daily updates. I will however attempt to keep up at least weekly.
In the meantime, please spend some time enjoying the following video clips that were put together by a fellow member of our team. Hopefully they will thrill and entertain and provide you with some context and fram of reference for some of the stories I've shared to date.
By the way, there has been lots of really cool stuff happen since I last wrote and some more amazing stories and people. You really should have been there! Maybe I'll send you a t-shirt. That t-shirt would say "I know someone who did some cool stuff and things and told me about some of the stuff and things but then stopped telling me any of said previously aforementioned stuff and things for awhile but might start doing it again soon, maybe and all I got was this crummy t-shirt"
I'm still working on the exact wording.
Enjoy!
Jonesy
At any rate, I did receive an earful from Momma Jones who was having a quiet period at the cottage and time that I failed to adequately fill with descriptive text for her to read was instead used to harass the wildlife with a camera lens thrust into their tiny faces. (I'm kidding, Mommy was very understanding and wished me all the best. She's lovely)
Well guess what! I have come to the decision that I simply cannot keep up the very ambitious schedule of daily updates. I will however attempt to keep up at least weekly.
In the meantime, please spend some time enjoying the following video clips that were put together by a fellow member of our team. Hopefully they will thrill and entertain and provide you with some context and fram of reference for some of the stories I've shared to date.
By the way, there has been lots of really cool stuff happen since I last wrote and some more amazing stories and people. You really should have been there! Maybe I'll send you a t-shirt. That t-shirt would say "I know someone who did some cool stuff and things and told me about some of the stuff and things but then stopped telling me any of said previously aforementioned stuff and things for awhile but might start doing it again soon, maybe and all I got was this crummy t-shirt"
I'm still working on the exact wording.
Enjoy!
Jonesy
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