CHEK Upside: Cyclists accomplish 500 km fundraising ride from Victoria to Port Hardy in one day

CHEK
WatchVictoria's Rob Britton and Vancouver's Taylor Little dedicated the brutal, yet rewarding ride to a cause close to their heart.

Rob Britton and Taylor Little have reached a new level of exhaustion.

“Like, super groggy, but not tired groggy, like broken soul groggy,” said Britton, alongside Little from their hotel room in Port Hardy.

“So tired that you can’t even put yourself to sleep,” added Little.

It’s the type of tired that results from a fifteen-hour, five hundred kilometre bike ride from Victoria to Port Hardy.

Britton and Little battled torrential downpour, and an elevation gain of over four thousand five hundred metres.

“So you have to be pretty sharp. Your lights are reflecting the rain and the road is kind of flat, and it’s pouring rain and you’re already mind numb and you have to like stay really sharp the entire time,” said Britton, detailing the final and most brutal one hundred kilometre stretch to Port Hardy.

“I remember seeing, I think it was like forty-seven kilometres to go and thinking ‘still like an hour and a half,'” added Britton.

The 35-year-old Britton lives in Victoria and is a professional cyclist and Canadian Champion. His good friend Little, 36, meanwhile, works in finance in Vancouver and is a passionate cyclist.

The 36-year-old says a ride like this was a mental challenge like no other.

“Your body is capable of it … and I think I’m a good example of it. I’m not a pro cyclist like Rob, I think my longest bike ride this year is one hundred and fifty [kilometres], but if you keep fueling you can finish but you have to keep your mind healthy and focused,” said Little.

A healthy mind was the root of their motivation.

The two dedicated their Island conquering feat to raise funds and awareness for the Wirth Counselling Fund, a non-profit that focuses on mental health initiatives.

“It’s been a really tough last few months in the world, and raising mental health awareness is just something that fits,” said Little.

Together they raised over $11,000 while accomplishing a brutal, yet rewarding ride that they’ll never forget.

“When you look at it that’s really what it shows. The human body and human mind is just a really special thing,” said Britton.

Kevin CharachKevin Charach

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