January 07, 2017 (Gatineau, QC) – Two men from the Gatineau area of Quebec, just east of Ottawa, are attempting to ride 1,275km from Quebec City to Windsor, ON on fat bikes this January reports CBC and La Presse. Guy Rouleau and Nicolas Berniquez-Villemaire began their adventure on Jan. 2 in part to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday, to raise funds for Kids Help Phone, and to help establish a new Guinness World Record for people holding hands.

“It is time to do something different. Something original,” the pair posted on Facebook. “Something that will gather Canadians together and will leave them with a feeling of having accomplished something huge: In the fall of 2017, 1.25 million Canadians of all nationalities and different cultures will be forming a human chain from Windsor, Ont. to Quebec City. That is 1,275 kilometers long; that would be a new Guinness World Record.”

The pair have been on the road for 4-5 days and hope to reach Windsor by January 17. “Actually we’re taking what they call in Quebec the Chemins du Roy. So it’s not the highway. We’re following (route) 138 in the province of Quebec. From Quebec (City) to Montreal and then we’ll switch on the 148 which is also a medium route,” they told CBC. “Honestly, there’s not a lot of cars on these routes right now. So it’s actually the perfect route for a fat bike.”

Raising for a good cause will help to fuel them along the way. “Imagine families and friends getting together, enjoying a picnic and celebrating Canada’s birthday on a truly unique way.

“A name and a theme for this event: Générosité – human chaîne humaine. We think our world would be better if this factory-loaded human value would practiced more in our society. Half of the voluntary registration fees (a symbolic dollar) will go to Kids Help Phone, a national organization that provides leadership in improving the well-being of children and youth in Canada by providing them anonymous and confidential professional counselling, referrals and information in English and French, through technologically-based communications media.”

Berniquez-Villemaire told CBC the biggest challenge isn’t traffic or even winter precipitation on the journey to Windsor, “It can snow, rain, it doesn’t really matter. It’s the wind.”

Générosité – human chaîne humaine on FB here.
CBC report here.
La Presse here.