216 results for author: Colin Harris

Day 110/111 – Happy Mother’s Day!

I was my mother’s first of three children.  How her first experience of childbirth led her to have two more, I’m not sure!  I was a breech baby, coming out bum first.  But that was only the start.  I wasn’t breathing properly when I came out and there were some tense moments at the local hospital in Drumhellar, Alberta.  As well, my feet were both turned abnormally inwards and the doctor gave the impression initially that he wasn’t sure I would walk properly.  All of this worked itself out, but I would imagine it wasn’t an easy couple of weeks for my parents. Both of my sisters are now mothers and between seeing them with their ...

Day 108/109 – 41.1 km (2683.6 km)

Yesterday morning, I ran 41 km and ended up about 35 km east of Ottawa.  My body was tired after 5 straight days of running, so Sarah picked me up and we drove into Ottawa.  At some point this coming week, I will go back to that spot and run the remainder into Ottawa, finishing on Parliament Hill.  I’m pretty sure Stephen and Jack are going to extend a big welcome as I run up onto the lawn!  Actually, it will bring back a lot of memories as my summer job through university was doing the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill!  So it will be fun to step foot on the Hill soon… in a different way! We’ve had to work out some logistics ...

Day 106/107 – 70 km (total – 2642.5 km)

Highlights from the last 36 hours… 1.     Early yesterday morning, I ran into Ontario!  It felt incredible and I was smiling ear to ear. 2.     Sarah picked me up shortly after and we drove to Long Sault, just west of Cornwall to visit Long Sault Public School. 3.     The day was amazing… we had an assembly and then Sarah and I went out for lunch recess with all the students… in the rain… and had a blast!  After lunch, we had been scheduled to do some activities with the grade 4-6’s.  The teachers asked them if they wanted to come inside because it was raining pretty hard, but they all were adamant on staying ...

Day 105 – 47.6 km (total – 2572.5 km)

There are moments where unexpected events lead to great joy and today entailed a couple such moments for me.  We started the day early and I got about 18 km in before Sarah picked me up and we drove to Rigaud, which is about 30 west towards Ottawa.  Mary-Kate Jackson is an English teacher at a French school called College Bourget and asked us to speak with the grade 10 students there.  It is a massive school – about 1600 students.  About 300 students packed into the auditorium and I found myself experiencing first hand the language barrier.  Mrs. Jackson’s students spoke some English but most students were Francophone, and some of what I ...

Day 103/104 – 48 km (total – 2524.9 km)

Today, simply some pictures of my run through Montreal.  Thanks to my friend Lilith who came out to run about 7 k with me and show me some landmarks along  Sherbrook!  Best weather running day in three and a half months...

Day 101/102 – 31.6 km (total 2476.9 km)

Yesterday’s run was a mix of strong winds, rain, sun, humidity – it seemed to change every 10 minutes.  I ran to Repentigny, which is on the east side of Montreal.  Sarah and I then drove into Montreal last night.  We both have friends in town and for the first time in about a month and a half, we will enjoy a full two and a half days off.  Last night, my friend Steve drove in from Tremblant to meet up for dinner. Just over a decade ago, after university, I worked and lived in the Rockies for a bit.  Kananaskis was this great little spot that wasn’t as busy as Banff, but had everything you could ask for as an outdoor lover!  Peter ...

Day 100 – 47.9 km (total 2445.1 km)

In some ways, it’s hard to believe that Sarah and I stood up on Signal Hill in Newfoundland 100 days ago, ready to begin this project.  The details are so vivid in my mind that it can seem like yesterday.  And in other ways, it feels like these 100 days that have passed could be 300.  Struggling with winter on the Rock seems forever ago.  But here we are, 100 days in and on the cusp of entering Montreal. Sarah had wanted to surprise me this afternoon.  She had bought a cake, candles and some champagne and was going to bike out to me on H138 to have a little celebration.  Our RV had other ideas.  For the past two weeks, Sarah has had to ...

Day 99 – 44.72 km

Today after lunch near Pointe-au-Lac, I took a break to share some thoughts about the Active Healthy Kids Canada report card that came out today... a great running day as well... the temperature was ideal! I can almost see Montreal down the St. Lawrence!!!

Day 97/98 – 95.9 km (total – 2352.5 km)

Happy Easter Sunday! My parents were ministers as I was growing up so a lot of my time surrounding this weekend was spent in church.  I had a unique ability to tune out sermons from both my mom and dad.  As a twelve year old in Winnipeg, I even distracted others from their message… I distinctly remember getting a discerning eye from my father after I had made people around me in the pews laugh out loud while he was speaking.  If I had my time back, I think I would have tried harder to listen to those sermons from my parents, for many reasons.  But obviously Easter weekend holds particular significance in the church.  It was an important ...

Day 96 – 49.5 km (total – 2256.6 km)

Today was a long, but beautiful day.  I think rich blue skies are sort of a drug for me.  I can’t help but be happy when I see the sun shining.  And today, as I made my way over the bridge into Quebec, my mood was in stark contrast to what it had been 48 hours earlier.  Funny how a little blue sky can do that!  I wanted to get in some good distance today and my legs felt really good.  The last 15 k included crossing the St. Lawrence and running its shores on the north side towards Montreal.  It was a beautiful mix of paths and communities that hugged the river.  For me personally, it was a great way to celebrate Earth Day. Science ...