Sonya Bardati began her journey in Port Hardy on Tuesday, Aug. 9, her 80th birthday. (Submitted photo)

By Jordan Davidson

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PARKSVILLE — Fresh off her 80th birthday, Sonya Bardati is hitting the road with her rollerblades to raise money for animals in need.

Bardati celebrated the milestone on Tuesday, Aug. 9 and set off the same day on an approximately 350 kilometre journey from Port Hardy to Parksville to raise money for the Parksville-Qualicum Beach BC SPCA branch.

Her support for the SPCA began after adopting her cat Holly in 2011 as her late husband was dealing with a cancer diagnosis, and she credits Holly with keeping her sane through the loss.

“I was losing my husband to cancer, and he had decided he was going to go and get a cat. I came back from Arizona selling our place there, and I said ‘I’d like to go to the SPCA and get a cat’. He says, ‘I was there yesterday!’ So we had the same wavelength and hadn’t even talked about it.”

Bardati took a break from her ambitious inline skating journey to NanaimoNewsNOW on the side of Hwy. 19, near the village of Woss.

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Averaging about 50 kilometres per day, she plans on making it to Parksville on Monday, Aug. 15, weather permitting.

Her husband of eight years, Ken, trails her in a van to help keep her safe from traffic and provides a spot for her to rest.

“I stay on the main road. If we go off the main roads and go to the cottage or motel…and we stay there, then we drive back to where I left the (highway).”

Along with an information sign on the back of the van, she also dresses up in different outfits every day of her journey.

One of Bardati’s outfits, which are endlessly changing on her trek down Island. (submitted photo)

An avid cycler for the past 20 years, Bardati still employed the help of a trainer to get her ready for this journey.

“She got me on it, and I got stronger legs. I have strong legs in the first place because I’ve gone across Canada twice anyway by bicycle, so I do have strong legs, but she wanted me to have a bigger endurance.”

Averaging about 10 kilometres per hour, faster when gliding downhill, gravel on the road and steep hills are some of the biggest obstacles she’ll face.

“I won’t be doing that big hill going into Sayward. It’s a huge downhill, it’s an eight per cent grade. I’m not going to kill myself.”

You can click here to go to Badati’s fundraising page, or call 1-855-622-7722 and mention her Champions for Animals campaign.

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