Today I met with other fellow bikers who will be doing part of the trip and we will be starting together as a pack. Very nice guys and we are all looking forward this amazing adventure. 
We meet at Duff's in Toronto for some beer and wings while we discussed gear, routes and exchange information on the Logistic.
William, Scott and Ben. Scott and Ben will be ridding with us until Calgary on the first 9 days and then William and I will continue to Ontario by June 30.
So far the plan goes like this: We'll start on June 01, 2012 on Vancouver but I might flight there on May 27  just so I can visit some friends and ride to Victoria so I can claim I have started my trip on the further point of the west coast and then meet the rest of the guys on June 01 in Vancouver to start our first day ride all the way to Mission, BC.
It is starting to look challenging but at the same time I can't wait to start this trip. It's going to be epic, I can tell already!

I finish with a picture of the adventurers, from left to right: Me, William, Scott and Ben. Thanks for the support guys!

Last post I promised that my new bicycle would have a name. Well.....meet Dante!

He got his name after The Divine Comedy's Dante Alighieri since it will be my travel partner and ironically will take me (as I like to see it) through:
- Hell (The Rocky Mountains and all its uphills)
- Purgatory (the long day rides of the Prairies + mosquitoes)
- Heaven (once we reach the Atlantic coast and I get to eat tons of seafood in Newfoundland)
Every minute I spend ridding my bike I am sure I made the right decision by buying it, it feels great and every single accessory I put on it makes it look like a tank and makes me feel more confident it won't fail me on the trip.
Yesterday I took Dante for his first long ride to Toronto Island where I took some pictures of it and got to put some mileage on. I am thinking on all the rest of accessories I might need for this trip like panniers, racks, lights, saddle, etc and I've started a "to buy" list.
Saving for those things and finding deals on used bike stuff and camping gear.
Next on the list: Toronto-Vancouver one way ticket. I need to choose which one will be the Airline if Air Canada or WestJet whichever has the better deal.
In the meantime, here's a picture of Dante.

Countdown to the Trip = 73 Days left

After going to the Bike Show and being all happy about talking to the Marin Bikes Distributor, I followed up with him on several occasions for 2 weeks, (2 emails+1 phone call) that were NEVER returned :/ so I finally gave up on the option of doing my Cross-Canada Tour on the Marin Four Corners.
This sucks big time since I had my heart set on that bike and it delayed me for about 3 weeks, now i have sold my commuter bicycle so I can't ride/train for the trip until Friday March 16 I was dealing with Insomnia and around 2am I saw on craigslist an ad selling an used 1993 Trek 520 Touring Bicycle for $700 up in Thornhill. The pictures weren't clear and right away thought "well, an old bicycle is better than no bicycle" so I emailed the seller just to receive a reply right away (I guess he had insomnia as well)
The next day it was going to be a crazy day because I had to work in the morning and then play a gig at night for St Patrick's. On top of that I was hoping my buddy and boss Trevor could drive me all the way there to pick-up the bicycle before someone else would show up first and get it. I kept on emailing the guy to hold the bike for me (which he did) and once I was there I saw although the bicycle was 20 years old it looked like it had never been ridden at all. The condition was mint with not even a scratch and all the components were almost new. It was my size (56 cm) and Dark Forest Green. I took it for a spin around the block and it felt great. Once I was back I offered the seller $650 which he accepted kindly and put it in the back of Trevor's truck.
I got myself a top of the line Touring Bicycle handmade in USA which is 20 years old but, at the same time I saved myself almost $600 from the price I was willing to pay for the Marin so now I can buy more accessories or use it towards the trip.
Like that old Rolling Stones tune says: 

"You can't always get what you want...
but if you try sometimes, well you just might find....you get what you need"

This whole last minute lucky strike reminded me of a particular scene from my favourite show "Long Way Round" when Charley Boorman has his heart set on KTM for their motorcycle adventure while Ewan McGregor likes BMW, they get denied the sponsorship and bikes from KTM based on the conception that they would fail to complete the round-the-world trip and then they decided to go with BMW just to prove them wrong. At the it was a better choice and they succeeded on their adventure.
But I felt so identified with Charlie's rant, hahaha, bye bye Marin, hello Trek 520!
Pictures and name of the bike to be revealed soon....

Countdown to the Trip = 76 Days left.

Well, after almost 2 months of research and one bicycle show I have narrowed it down to one bike, and the winner is.....(drum roll) the Marin Four Corners. 
It was the right decision for many reasons, while the Trek 520 & Surly Long Haul Trucker have been manufacturing touring bikes since 30 years ago or more, there were around the $1700 bikes, so way off my budget. The Raleigh Sojourn although nice and good looking was heavy and I wasn't sure disc brakes were the best option (for a quick fix) on the road. The Marin Four Corners on the other hand was only $900 and it comes with the option of Cantilever or Disc Brakes, and the whole Forest Green sexy look sold me on the spot! (yeah, green's my favourite colour)
At the bike show I was lucky enough thanks to my brother to get a hold the Marin representative and obtain that amazing price, he was very interested about my trip and being the Four Corners a new addition to the catalogue almost proud I had chosen Marin for my trip. He was very helpful and courteous and offered assistance for when I reach Quebec.
My main urban commuter bike for the past 5 years has been a Marin Kentfield, so I know it is a reliable, strong and lasting bike plus I know the mechanic/repair part will be easy.

Here you can see all the specifications of the bike directly on the Marin website
http://www.marinbikes.com/2011/bike_specs.php?serialnum=1855

And for the "Eye Candy" here's a picture of my mean-lean-green-machine!

Countdown to the Trip = 87 Days left.

Well, the most important piece in this crazy bicycle adventure of course is the bike itself. Touring bikes are not that affordable and they surpass the $1000, and the ones that are under that range are normally cheap quality. Since I am going to be ridding it for 3 months everyday I figured i need to find something that won't break on the first week.
I started looking for used bikes but no luck, many brands make touring bikes but I managed after 3 months of research to narrow it down to four. 
- Trek 520
- Surly Long Haul Trucker
- Raleigh Sojourn
- Marin Four Corners
The Toronto International Bike Show is coming soon so I will have a better chance to test them and take a better look at them in order to choose "the one"

Countdown to the Trip = 95 Days.