The 2CV Alaska Challenge
Bulletin No.15: HAMSTRUNG
Williams Lake, British
Columbia. Friday 20th August 1999. Roads are taken for granted, a method of getting from A to B, yet they become an intrinsic part of our lives. The vehicles whizz up and down but you get only the briefest glimpses of the people in those vehicles. What are they doing driving on that road? Is it joy, is it sorrow, is it mundane, is it illegal? A road is a story, a romance, a mystery, an intrigue. For 12 days and 3000 miles we had been heading due west on Trans Canada Highway 1. On 19th August we reached Cache Creek, British Columbia, and left the Trans Canada Highway to head north on BC Highway 97. One story ends and another begins... The No.1 car's brakes were still not working properly and Jose was still driving like a maniac . There's much talk about French and Italian drivers, but the Dutch have even more of a death wish when they're behind the wheel. My co-driver had a penchant for accelerating when she saw brake lights or red lights, before braking hard. She also continued pulling into parking spaces at high speed, which caused our last mishap (see previous Bulletin) Likewise, the careful drivers in North America drove her mad and she would tailgate all the time. The slow RV's (Recreational Vehicles) raised her blood pressure the most, and I had to keep telling her that we were also driving an RV; a Ridiculous Vehicle: SLOW DOWN! But there was still a screech of brakes and a cloud of dust when we stopped in at the Long place on Clearwater Lake, approx 50 miles north of Cache Creek on BC 97. We had last seen John Long 2 weeks previously in Toronto, when he had saved the Alaska Challenge by supplying us with a slow running screw for the No.1 car. On that day in Toronto John was about to head off for a vacation at the family holiday home in British Columbia. Another one of those strange coincidences ensured that we were driving right past the home a fortnight later, which gave us time to get a new slow running screw sent over from England. John got his screw back, gift wrapped. If only the rest of the trip had been that simple. If only Jose hadn't attempted to waterski on Clearwater Lake. She'd never tried to waterski before, which was obvious from the way she kept falling over. On the 3rd attempt to stay on the skis one leg went one way and the other leg went the other way. Jose felt her left leg click. She limped from the water in considerable pain. Rob's co-driver was now injured and suddenly her Dutch method of driving didn't seem so bad after all. It appeared to be a hamstring injury and the next day, Friday, we went to the Cariboo Memorial Hospital in Williams Lake. Rob reassured Jose, and told her about the reciprical agreement between Canada and the European Union whereby free medical treatment could be obtained by tourists. The receptionist in the emergency department didn't seem to know about this and Jose was told it would cost $150 to see a doctor. We were directed to a nearby clinic, where Jose could see a doctor for $40. Rob waited outside the clinic and studied road maps. How badly was Jose injured? It was still a long, long drive to Alaska. END.
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