Bryan Bent went about three decades without pedalling a bicycle.
"I haven't been on a bike since I was 12 years old," he says.
The one he had then was a hand-me-down from his cousin.
But for the last couple of months he's been making up for lost time.
Pomerleu Inc., the company he works for, has put forward this challenge to its workers to form a relay team that will bike from Ottawa to Halifax in just 50 hours.
There are going to be about 110 people on his team. Each will be required to bike four stretches of 80 kilometres to complete the challenge scheduled for Sept 17.
"If we're all doing 80 kilometres, we have to keep a speed of 26 kilometres per hour and by doing that we'll be able to achieve the 50 hours," he says.
Biking may be a skill you never forget, but at 54, Bent knew this was a challenge he couldn't do on his own.
He lives in the Annapolis Valley, but is working in Pictou County for the next year or so as they finish some major construction projects, so he went to Nubody's Fitness in New Glasgow for assistance and signed up for their spinning class. Spinning is a type of stationary biking.
"When he first started, he told me what he was doing and he said he hadn't been exercising like he should have been," said Merton Arbuckle, spinning instructor. "He was hurting after the first couple classes, but each session I see him improving. He's much stronger and really dedicated."
In addition to the twice-a-week spinning classes, Bent has also been biking on his own two or three mornings a week.
"I'm up to 60 kilometres per trip," he says.
"For somebody who hasn't been on a bike in a long time that's amazing," Arbuckle says.
Getting used to the new bike his company bought for him to do the race has taken some extra focus, Bent said.
"These road bikes are a lot different than the bikes I would have had as a child," he said. "It takes quite a bit of getting used to. They're very light and they react to correction very easy."
Bent said his family has been very supportive of him as he pursues his goal.
"My wife was ecstatic," he says. "She's been trying to get me to the gym for the last 25 years."
It's been good to have the encouragement of his new friends at Nubody's as well, he said. Instead of a personal pursuit, he now views his challenge as a group effort.
"We're doing it," he says.
As much as Bent gives credit to Arbuckle's instruction, Arbuckle says having Bent in the class has been great for the program.
"He has a goal that he wants to reach, so it's very inspiring me to me to instruct him to reach his goal," he said. "His dedication just rubs off on everybody else in the class."
