Swimming Cycle

A Get Wet Ride!

FLOATER’S BLOG: Friend’s Pool Float Date, September 12th, 2026

Each winter when I am in Nicaragua, to try to stay healthy, I do laps in my pool. When I first arrive, I ease into the routine with a few lengths which I increase every day until I reach a kilometer’s worth of laps. Then I work on a cycle of shorter and longer swims with an occasional rest day which retains my heart health, some muscle tone and helps to keep my belly in check from all the beerfloats which also occur.

While in Toronto, pool access is much more limited, so I use my bicycle as my primary tool for physical maintenance. Using the same principle of longer and shorter rides I can maintain a fairly healthy routine.

Finding new routes to explore while getting some exercise is difficult as only half the ride can be away from home because I also need to return which then doubles the distance.

Even if I take a 50-kilometer bike ride away from downtown Toronto I can only head out for 25-k and then do my turn around. Going east this doesn’t even get me out of Toronto, north it barely does and west I can get a few kilometers into Mississauga. My solution is to use our local public transportation network.

This can turn a there and back ride into a much longer cycle. I can get to my closest subway station in about 3-minutes if the traffic lights are in my favour and on a good day reaching my local GO Train station which provides regional service is only about 10-minutes. These are tiny commutes after having the opportunity to explore distant realms which I couldn’t get to by cycling only.

However, my preference is to take the transit leg first and then cycle home. This way I am not all hot and sweaty around other passengers, but it also means that when I pull into the garage on my two-wheeler, I can pop open the beer fridge for a reward!

Another sweat reduced answer to the ‘cycle first, transit second’ method; is to make the stop prior to getting on a return train or subway car a long one, and possibly even have it include a swim. A beach destination is an option but then I have to keep a close eye on my belongings on shore while I make a splash. In addition, if I want to pop open a cold frosty on ‘la playa’ I have to carry enough ice to make sure a hot sunny ride hasn’t just heated up me but also my 5% beverage.

The ideal solution is to cycle to a friend’s house, and they just happen to have a swimming pool!

This is exactly what I did the other day. What a win-win-win situation. I get my long-distance ride done; I get to cool down and relax in a pool; and I get to spend a couple of hours visiting with a friend!

My ride took me from downtown T.O. to the far side of Oakville. In a straight line this is about a 37-kilometer distance going south-west but taking lakeshore trails and roads with marked bike lanes as much as possible makes this almost a 50-k ride according to the Strava app.

With my paniers attached to my bike I can tote my portable float and with a little research prior to departure I can locate a convenience store nearby my destination where I can grab a few cold ones meaning I don’t have to tote them for 50 kms. The result, a nice beerfloat!

The return trip required a 15-minute ride to Bronte Station, but this was not an issue after my relaxing visit. I had such a good day I’m now looking at the Farmer’s Almanac to start scheduling next summer’s visits.

Ride and float on!

Corliss

beer float.calm = beerfloat.netnot beerfloat.com