FIRST PERSON ACCOUNT ~ "My Trip to Victoria" ~ By: Alisdair



Waiting at the restaurant for a
 taste of fish and chips ... fresh from the sea!

My Mum, 5-year old sister, Isobel and I wanted to go play. My sister and I took our bikes to go to the playground.  There was only one problem... my bike had training wheels. So Mum looked up bikes for kids like me (I have dyspraxia which makes it much harder for me to keep my balance than most other children) but somebody always wanted lots of money.  Then we found “Lose the Training Wheels.

My Stepdad, John took us to the EIA (“Edmonton International Airport”) so we could go on our flight to Victoria (after finding a 24-hour seat sale for a Westjet flight a few weeks earlier).  It was time to use that ticket! I had a nice chat with the man next to us.  Pretty soon we landed and I got to see my Great Aunt and Uncle.

The next day we got to go to the Legislature Building where we learnt about British Columbia’s history. James Douglas was the first Premier of B. C.  (We went to take a look a second time to find out about Amor de Cosmos who started “The Victoria Times-Colonist.”) This historic figure also saw the gold rush in California and later he also became Premier of B. C.). Francis Mawson Rattenbury was the architect for the building and the Empress Hotel. I got my picture taken with James Douglas and Queen Victoria.

My Great Aunt, Mum and I went to “Fisherman’s Wharf” but unfortunately the seal didn’t come up out of the water. But we then went to Clover Point where my Aunt showed me how to tell a male crab from a female crab.

After that I met my“Lose the Training Wheels” instructors and boy did I make them sweat!  The "Lose the Training Wheels” program uses special bikes with a roller (instead of a back wheel).  There are 8 different rollers (instead of training wheels) which they can make skinnier depending on the child’s confidence as they take a break for some water. This remarkable camp has an 80% success rate -- a success rate that I would soon be part of.

After breakfast the next morning Mum, my Aunt, and I went to Sidney, a town just outside of Victoria. First we went to “Mineral World” where there were rocks and other things, so I made a necklace out of my name. I also went to the “Shaw Ocean Discovery Center.” At the end you could touch some of the different kinds of marine life.

One day my Aunt and I tried to use a GPS to try to go Geocaching, which is when you type in the coordinates and try to find a box of treasures.  You get to choose one and put one back in.  Unfortunately we never did find it.

Then another day I still had to use a roller at the“Lose the Training Wheels” bike camp but... I SOON DIDN’T! I “lost my training wheels” and I lost them with belief!  I was just smiling to know it wasn’t a modified bike but it was your average everyday bike.

The next night I had to sleep in a youth hostel because my Great Aunt and Uncle went away for the weekend. On the way to the hostel, we saw some street performers who did some stunts. After check-in we went to Emily Carr’s birthplace and went to view an exhibition about her life at the “Royal B.C. Museum.” In the evening, we got also got to see the Legislature and the Empress Hotel lit up outside.

In the morning, it was time to go.  We were hoping public transit would be on time and luckily it was. When we were driving home from the airport, I got a BMX bike (with no training wheels of course and a speedometer.)

I really enjoyed my trip to Victoria and if you can’t ride and meet the specifications, I would recommend “Lose the Training Wheels” to you.

DID YOU KNOW? ~ JOHN LENNON's "Yellow Submarine" Rolls-Royce

After the "Lose the Training Wheels" camp concluded, we spent a few hours sightseeing in Victoria.  We went to the Royal BC Museum and were surprised to find John Lennon's Yellow Submarine "Rolls-Royce Phantom V" near the ticket kiosk in the lobby.  Of course we had to take a photograph!

We also took a partial picture of the sign that accompanied the exhibit.  The text may be too small for some to read.  In one place it tells about an irate woman who got mad at Lennon about the paint job on his car.  She called him a "swine" for "doing this to a Rolls-Royce!"

Not surprisingly, Lennon had a double bed installed in the back section of the vehicle.  The car had been in a "Ripley's Believe it or Not" museum and then was given to the Royal BC Museum in Victoria by the famous automobile magnate, Jim Pattison.

For car enthusiasts, a wealth of information can be found at this site.  Additional detailed photos of this interesting vehicle and of Victoria's beautiful scenery are here.

***

Yellow Submarine

John Lennon/Paul McCartney
© 1966

In the town where I was born
Lived a man who sailed to sea
And he told us of his life
In the land of submarines

So we sailed up to the sun
Till we found the sea of green
And we lived beneath the waves
In our yellow submarine

We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

And our friends are all on board
Many more of them live next door
And the band begins to play

We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

As we live a life of ease
Everyone of us has all we need
Sky of blue and sea of green
In our yellow submarine.

We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in our yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

REFLECTIONS ~ "Lose The Training Wheels" Camp ~ Victoria

It's been quite the week!  Last Monday morning Alisdair could not ride a two-wheeler.  But this Monday, he can!  And it is all thanks to a wonderful non-profit organization called "Lose the Training Wheels," some dedicated volunteers and the Queen Alexandra Hospital for Children in Victoria, British Columbia.

One Sunday afternoon in mid-May, Alisdair and Isobel and I went down to the local school.  Both kids were on their bikes (with training wheels) and I was walking between them.  One would get stuck, and then the other, and I'd have to take turns, pushing them a bit to get them going again.  Some insensitive folk drove by and stared at Alisdair, as he is almost 12, and I suppose they hadn't seen such a large kid using training wheels to ride.  The whole incident frustrated and upset me.  I wondered what we could do about the situation and began to search on the internet.

Yes, there were special bikes that could be purchased for large sums of money.  But, even if we bought a special bike for Alisdair, he would still be singled out from other children of his age group.  And then I found what seemed like the answer... "Lose the Training Wheels!"

As I watched a video of a camp held in Victoria, British Columbia, a couple of years ago, (see previous video post), the tears streamed freely down my face.  Although Alisdair made fun of my emotional outburst, he, too was inspiried by the clip.  He phoned his grandma and told her about our discovery and mused about how wonderful it might be if only he could attend a "Lose the Training Wheels" camp.

I emailed the organizers to ask if they still had spaces available and was told originally that it was only for children within their therapy program, but they would let me know if, after the local registration deadline, there were spaces left.  True to her word, a few days later, Sara emailed back saying there was room if Alisdair wanted to come.  This was terrific news but there were still a lot of hurdles to overcome if we were to go.  After all, Victoria is a long way from our prairie home and we needed to get there, have a place to stay once we'd arrived, have transportation to the recreation centre where the camp was being held, to find a replacement for our paper route, find someone to look after Isobel, etc. etc.  I wasn't sure we could manage everything the whole concept entailed, but I emailed Sara back and asked for a few days to check out the possibilities.

And then, suddenly, all the pieces of the puzzle started fitting together.  WestJet announced a seat sale and, although the tickets would still be costly, they were now a bit cheaper.  In fact, the difference in price between booking flights and riding on the Greyhound bus, was only about $30.00.  Grandma and Grandpa were willing to look after Isobel and Alisdair's friend, Rolland, agreed to do the paper route for the week.  It seemed like God wanted us to get to the camp and so I told Sara we would come.  She kindly agreed to hold a spot for us.  Shortly afterwards, Canada Post went on strike and it took some time to get our application sent in.  But Sara patiently kept our spot for us.

So it was that on Sunday, July 10th, Alisdair and I flew out from Edmonton to Victoria to prepare for an exciting and unforgettable week.  It was actually a six-day trip, with five days at bike camp.  But in those few days, he was able to accomplish something that he couldn't manage to do in about five years of trying ... he learned to ride a bike without assistance.  We will always remember this amazing life-changing experience and the blessing "Lose the Training Wheels" has been to our family.

We both want to share our week with you, so watch for future posts about the camp and our trip to the west coast.  Once I get our pictures downloaded (and our suitcase unpacked) we'll be composing lots of posts about Alisdair's journey to "Lose the Training Wheels."

VIDEOS ~ Footage from 2010 "Lose the Training Wheels" Camp ~ Victoria, BC

If you watch this video, you will learn about an exciting program called "Lose the Training Wheels."  This group had a successful Camp last summer in Victoria, British Columbia, sponsored by the Queen Alexandra Children's Hospital.  The group plans to run another camp in 2011 ~ from July 11th to 16th.

Participants will ride the modified bikes shown in the video for 90-minutes per day.  Alisdair's dyspraxia has made it difficult for him to be able to balance enough to ride a two-wheeler and so he is anxious to "lose the training wheels" this summer.

"Whenever I go riding on my bike, with the training wheels, I feel like lots of people are making fun of me," says Alisdair.  "It humiliates me to think that I'm going on 12 and there are children, not much bigger than my little sister, who can ride with two wheels."

Since Alisdair feels so strongly about this, we have decided to attend the upcoming Camp.  When we initially inquired about it, we were told participants from the Queen Alexandra Children's Hospital would be given top priority.  However, after the enrollment deadline, there was a vacancy and we were told Alisdair would be eligible to attend.  After receiving that news, we managed to find a WestJet seat sale and book plane tickets.  The organizers are now holding a space for him in their program.  We even managed to find economical accomodations at a hostel for the week!

Alisdair and I are both looking forward to our adventure on Vancouver Island . . . he'll be "losing the training wheels" and hopefully I'll be losing weight ~ chasing his bicycle around the riding arena!  It makes me tired and out of breath just thinking about it . . . wish us both luck!