These riders are getting that syncing feeling as they prepare to head out on a four-person bicycle trip across the country. From left, Jeff Belanger, Ben Miller, Brenton Seamone and Ian Bevis plan to roll out Wednesday on a 6,100-kilometre journey they call The Tandem Tour, from Victoria to Halifax. Each ri
Photograph by: Darren Stone, Times Colonist, Times Colonist
Where one of these guys goes, the rest are sure to follow -- even if it's all the way across the country.
Four friends have decided to add a twist to cycling from coast to coast by taking on the challenge in perfect sync, on a bicycle built for all of them.
Ian Bevis, Jeff Belanger, Ben Miller and Brenton Seamone have been doing plenty of practice rides on their customized four-person tandem bike, and plan to start their 6,100-kilometre journey from Victoria to Halifax on Wednesday.
Their unusual conveyance was built for them by Rodriguez Bicycles of Seattle.
Each rider in The Tandem Tour, as the two-and-a-half-month camping journey is being called, is making the effort for his own special reason. Hence the motto for the trip -- four guys, four causes, one bike.
For Bevis, the ride is to support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of his close friend Eva Markvoort, who died in March after a lifelong battle with CF. The University of Victoria student was given her degree by school officials just before her death.
Bill Markvoort, Eva's father, will be meeting up with The Tandem Tour on the first day of the trip when they roll off the ferry at Tsawwassen.
He will then ride with the group to Fort Langley for an evening fundraiser.
Belanger is riding for the Canadian Diabetes Association because his brother is diabetic, Seamone is riding for the Multiple Sclerosis Society in recognition of his mother and Miller is riding for Friends of Red Tail, an environmental organization in Nova Scotia.
Seamone said when he and his friends began talking about the excursion several months ago, the plan was for a leisurely bike trip across the country.
"And then these guys stared getting wild ideas."
The members of The Tandem Tour, all either 23 or 24, came together when they attended UVic. Two are from Fort Langley, one is a Vancouverite and one is from Halifax.
"We're super excited," Bevis said. "It's an awesome bunch of guys. We're all really good friends, so we're going to have a lot of fun."
Proof of that is a new set of speakers strapped to one of the four sets of handlebars to provide mood music along the way.
The bike weighs about 29 kilograms on its own, but is a 385-kilogram behemoth with all four strapping lads in their seats.
It takes about two minutes to take apart and six or seven minutes to reassemble.
"Everything's beefed up. The front fork has extra tubing welded on," said Seamone.
Another friend, Ben Gulliver, will be shooting video segments and plans to put a documentary of the trip together. For details or to make donations, please see www.thetandemtour.com.
jwbell@tc.canwest.com
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