It be a while since this blog has beckoned a visit from the likes of this ol pirate. I should do a little recap of what's been flailed since Mexico... Heather and myself returned to the West coast and commenced on missions of healing, for her and increased community involvement for myself. Debt and rent made time very valuable that fall and winter with a continued desire to roam keeping my attention pretty acute. I began working for Reckless Bike Stores in Victoria around Halloween and had alot of fun and headaches. The people were real, genuine and bike savy but being given the same managerial beauracracy that you'd find at a popular fast food restaurant. The game of intentional learning had begun and my bikes and projects started to transform. My artwork as well! 6 months of monkying on bikes for a variety of local and far flung cyclists has taught me a treasury of useful skills to apply. I thank my friend and bike mentor, Russ Parks for the support and bad hippie jokes, yargh! My investment of time and energy to personal fulfillment had led to much tension between Heather and I, and so road dawgs sometimes go stray. While working at two bikeshops,dumpster diving,editing and painting, I somehow managed to volunteer a few hours a week to (in my opinion) an EXTREMELY beneficial and crucial step to human survival for our future generations... Bicycle mechanics in schools! The program is Recyclistas' BIKE LAB SOCIETY of Victoria BC and the school was SJ Willis Secondary school where I helped instruct students in steps to creating, fixing and rocking a new recycled bike built by them at the end! A wonderful experience that I hope to participate in again someday soon www.recyclistas.ca !!!

... During the early month of January, a fleet of over 50 highly trained RCMP and local police violated the rights of Canadians living in Langford BC, specifically the "Bare Mountain" treesit and the Spencer Road interchange project funded by corrupt government using tax dollars illegally. It took a greater part of the morning to remove 6 of the startled campers and a standoff in a tree was abandoned by the afternoon. Arrests were made, trees were cut, ancient and sacred CAVES to the local Coast Salish people of Lower Vancouver Island were filled with debris and sealed for construction. The sitters began around 10 months earlier, almost a soon as word "leaked" from officials that the beautiful residential forest hugging Highway 1 to Nanimo was to be removed and paved to become a superhighway for Bear Mountain Golf Course and Bullshit Farm residents to get through Langford easily. All this was at the citizens of Langford's expense, while government promises new business opportunities for the rich. A downscaled resemblance to the upcoming 2010 Olympic Games where again, Canadian "Officials" have chosen for themselves to further dismember an integral part of Canadian culture and life. The First Nations people have no foot to stand on, yet are herded around our provinces insisting it's for their own economic and communities good. Since when is Golf or Luxury Housing, Canadian? Before I rant on about the Olympic haulocost, I'll finish by saying that the sitters succeeded in many ways. Protests ensued and awareness grew as the developers recieved proper public consultation and scrutiny. First Nations and locals were present to witness the warning signs of an unfair and secretive use of public funds and resources. Oh yeah, the company hired to do the roadwork recently ran out of money, so the highway will now be backed up for locals and visitors far into the new year. We are well prepared for the next chance to oppose this bullshit corrupt system known as Canadian Capitalism, through peacefully demonstrating our right to stand tall for our branchy elders, and kneel to our children's future potential.

I left Victoria as the April Fool, high on mushrooms and riding my shiney, two wheeled bullet from the bowels of man's twisted need for outbound concious exploration... Desperado. I shared my last few scattered words and spliffs on the Mystery Moonlight Bikeride and began my long journey north to go tree planting near Burns Lake, BC. So I fixed the broken handlebars, complete drive overhauled, brake caliper arm extensions built, newly reinforced front and rear pannier racks and fenders, a new front fork ordered from Marzocci with suspension and lockout for cross country aaaaand, two wheels that I built from scratch. They were my first home-built wheels and the proccess was difficult for me to grasp and took many retries and late nights at the shop but I got em! Novateck Hubs, DT Swiss spokes, 28 inch Keba rims and some Block Eight Kenda tires with anti-puncture strips. The wheels barely fit into Desperado's 26" wheel base but now acts as a fast and aggressive hybrid with some sweet low maintanance AVID BB5 disc brakes. I have never ridden a better setup for touring in my life. The conversion with toe cages increased my speed and efficiency by average 10-15 km per hour!! The same for flat bouncy trail too. Speed and control over a variety of terrain means more pleasure for this rider.

I rode for a month from Victoria to Nanaimo with snow and wind at my back, visiting friends along the way (Lena Davidson, you are one of a kind!) and into Vancouver to stay with Icarus for April 20th (4:20!). After I unloaded my gear and sat down inside, a "CRACK!! Flash! RUUUMBleee rumble rumble" shook the coast and snow began to fall for hours. A beautiful sight and a true lifesaver, for the same storm system roared across the province, shedding piles of snow for which I was grateful to drink my whole trip North (beats drinking Quesnel water anyday). I was picked up by a kind man with a wooden leg around Hope, BC and driven up a mountain near Lytton to stay and help out at an organic farm built by volunteers with salvaged and recycled scraps. Waaay out of this world! I woke up in my own little cabin and joined a family breakfast of some of the most nuriting homemade goodness i've yet to experience again. Followed by weening a couple kids (newborn sheep) onto their sheepish mamma with help of 2 young WWOOFers from abroad. That's about as close I want to get to a newborn anything, really. And so my long a quiet trip up highway 19 continued... a frozen BC landscape of lakes, alder and pine, tired Canadian geese, and overly curious rural locals. I ventured into new and familiar places around Quesnel and Prince George, pirating empty camp sites and dumpsters until Burns Lake, my destination to begin my 2 solid months of tree planting for everyone's favorite silviculture company...

Hybrid 17 was again very profitable and fun to work for with this season being my favorite yet! carved a few staff shovels which blew my mind how easy it made planting! Only a few injuries and perfect weather was a highlight along with the neverending antics of many new faces and personalities. I even found myself enjoying the company of an intruiging female planter named Lèa and completed the season with plans to hitch-bike to Vancouver Island together. Though the roadtrip was fun and relaxing mostly, our standards of living were different among various other issues and eventually she left for school or something. I wish her the best!

6 months in a pirated trailer park studio on Lake Cowichan have come and gone with some of the most beautiful scenery and mushroom patches i've ever seen are hugging the park and lake with a nearby abandoned boyscout camp, freak MOF (Ministry of Forests) tree farm, and a beach with a spring gushing mineral water. I am here to make better freakbikes, booze, art and repair my gear for touring next year. Maybe across Canada but I dunno yet. My neighbors are very generous and kind! All in all, a great setup aside from being away from everyone. I realise I have denied myself an isolated place to let my mind speak for some time now and the results are complex and becoming clearer everyday. Naturally learning, respecting and observing my roots to invite inner-inspiration... to find the strength to grow in better directions. In this I have in many ways, abandoned many efforts to encourage direct action against our community's redundant problems via long range bicycle travel. Doing so has given me a chance to seize new ideas and visions for the future. When the waters are calm, one can see a clear reflection. And when the artist is starving, he'll paint on anything... oh yes.

Whew! I Would love to hear what the curious are up to in their neck of the woods! Also feel free to visit if you're near the island, i'll email you directions to "Casa del flail"
Thanks again to the numorous kind friends and strangers out their who have helped me discover all the adventure out there!

"just remember that you're married to the sea",

Captain Bly

solidleebly(at)cyclecide(dot)com