Our Ride For Sight

Introduction

I've had glasses since I was twenty. I have now worn bi-focals for two years. I need 250,000 candle power flood lights to be able to see anything clearly while working in my garage workshop. I can certainly appreciate the affect aging has had on my vision, but it's nothing compared to someone with retinitis pigmentosa. That is what the Ride for Sight is all about; raising awareness and money for research to battle this disease that slowly robs its victim of sight. (See www.rideforsight.org)

This year's Ride For Sight was held at Trenton's Centennial Park.

I first got involved with the Ride as a member of the York Wings MC back in seventies. I last participated on the Ride when it was held at Peterborough 's Trent University. This year, the Central Ontario based event had moved to a new location: Centennial Park in the small town of Trenton . It was time for me to become involved once more.

A Special Ride

The ride would be particularly special because for the first time, both my wife Caroline and my daughter Gail would be coming with me on their own motorcycles. Although we live just a few hours away from Trenton , it would be Gail's first solo ride of significant length. Also coming with us would be Andrew, Gail's boyfriend and a new rider himself. We were all looking forward to what surely would become a memorable adventure.

Now I don't know how we got so lucky, but a colleague from my office, Charlie, had just completed construction of his retirement home on the Bay of Quinte , and we were invited to stay as his guests. This pleased me and my wife to no end as we no longer have any appetite for roughing it. The last time we had camped was when Gail and our son Mark were both toddlers, and the experience was one that we have never been able to forget. It was at Murphy's Point on what was no doubt the hottest, most humid day of that summer. Not only was the heat almost unbearable, but the group of partiers a couple of camp sites over from us didn't exhaust their merriment until almost dawn. On top of all that, we had the misfortune of pitching our tent directly over an ant colony - the kind that bites!

Although I realize that there is no better way to experience the camaraderie of bikers than camping at a rally, I was not disappointed to know that at the end of the day I would be only ten minutes away to a shower, a good meal, and a clean bed. I admit it, I like my comfort.