mark caa

Mark Richardson (left) and his 12-year-old son Tristan stop at the CAA Saskatchewan office in Swift Current on Tuesday while on their drive across Canada

 

An Ontario man making the road trip of a lifetime made a stop in Swift Current this morning.

Mark Richardson and his son, Tristan, have embarked on a 10-week journey to drive the Trans-Canada Highway from coast-to-coast to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its opening, and were at the local CAA Saskatchewan office to meet with customers.

Mark, an automotive journalist and author, was supplied with a brand-new 2012 Chevrolet Camaro from General Motors for the trip, which is also sponsored by CAA.

"I'm always looking for a good excuse for a road trip, right? Any chance to get out on the road and have a look at the countryside, I'll take it if I can get away with it," Mark said. "When I realized that the Trans-Canada Highway is going to be 50 years old this year, the exact same age as me, I turn 50 years old on the same day the Trans-Canada Highway turns 50, I figured that I just had to get out and see it.

Mark talked about some of the things he had seen on his trip so far, and the stories of some of the people who live along the stretch that he's met along the way.

"I've probably met one of the most interesting people just last night at Ernfold, a guy called Warren Beach. He actually lives between the lanes of the Trans-Canada in that community," Mark added. "There's not many people there, and it's the only community that I've found that's between the lanes of the highway. They're surrounded by the link to Canada... and he told me this, it's quite a big deal that you can just drive out of your driveway and you can go all the way to anywhere in Canada if you want to."

Mark and his son will continue their trip today and hope to be at Rogers' Pass, British Columbia on July 30th, Mark's 50th birthday and the 50th anniversary of the highway's opening. They will then continue their drive to Victoria, BC before driving back home.

You can follow their journey on a blog at macleans.ca.

Colin Powers talked with Mark Richardson: