It was two to two and just going into overtime in the playoffs . My wife just got home from a quick trip to P.G. delivering cats from her rescue program.
“You have to get out and catch up with this guy I saw on the road, walking, pulling some type of trailer. He must be doing some kind of fundraiser or something and it looks like a good story to me,” she said.“
“But the game is going into overtime,” I protested, “Can’t it wait? Ok, it does sound like a story all right, I better try to find the guy.”
I caught up with this character at the pull-out past the bridge on the way into town.
“Would you mind if I did a column on your adventure?” I asked.
He replied, “Why not?”
Turns out, his name is Richard Zier-Vogel and he had just come from Dawson Creek — well, not just — it’s been more like three weeks. “The weather has been a bit too hot, but I’m not complaining” he said.
“Why?” would be my first question and he proceeded to fill me in on his tale.
“I am a Dentist and I have sold my practice in Hinton, Alberta.” He told me. “I have been doing some locums around the country and I decided I wanted to walk to work. I am scheduled to work in Masset on Haida Gwai the end of May and thought this would be a good opportunity to do it. This is not my first walk, I’ve actually walked across Canada and its just something I like to do. “
I scratched my head and wondered to myself, “Is this guy crazy?”
Turns out, he is not. He is just a guy that believes in making his passions a reality. He is actually raising money for a charity he supports in Haiti.
“I met this young lady in Whitehorse a few years back when I was on a dental locum there,” says Richard.
Her name is Morgan Wineberg. She was just out of high school and wanted to help out in Haiti after the earthquake. She ended up learning the native language, Creole, moving permanently to Haiti and working to rehome children that have been stolen and forced into illegal orphanages.
Morgan is an amazing young lady and does just that “Follow her Passion.” Check her website and you will be inspired, “Little Footprints, Big Steps.”
“You have yourself quite a rig here, Richard, can you sleep in it?” I inquired.
“Yes, it works pretty good for that, its abit unusual looking, I call it a pod and I hitch up like a horse and just plod along. Terry Fox has always been my hero and if he can do 42 kilometers a day on 1 leg, I can do 42k a day on 2 with a pod. I also have a website ‘My Plod Pod’ and I usually keep a bit of a diary about the people I meet along my travels.
“My journey is really about the friends I get to meet and achieving the personal challenges I set out for myself. I have been on bicycle road trips too but really prefer the walking.”
“You sure have put yourself into some interesting situations, Richard, how does it look for the future,” I asked.
“Well, I have done my time with locums in Newfoundland, Nunavut, Nanaimo and other interesting places.
“I’m 69 now and think its about time to retire. I have a daughter in Nanaimo with a grandson and I would like to become a good Grampa. The walking has kept me in pretty good shape and I’m sure chasing after my grandson can do the same.”
“Thanks for this Richard, nice getting to know a little part of your story, good luck out there,” I concluded.
Can you believe after my hour or so interview with Richard I headed back home and the playoffs were still in overtime, I even got to catch the winning goal.