74.31km –10H08’
Altitude : 46 m
Last night, Eliane celebrated the 43rd birthday of her eldest son, Laurent. So we drank a toast to his good health and naturally, as we do every evening, to the day’s stage. It has become a custom on this race. René and Serge tried to remember what they were doing on this day, 43 years ago, while Eliane was in the maternity hospital.
Today Serge is in pain, but he goes on. “I want to stop sooner, at 4:30 PM I finish the stage, at 3:00 I’m in bed”. Don’t look for the mistake; it is Serge’s sense of humor. In effect, the sage is quickly finished on this holiday weekend because as of 2:00 PM the traffic becomes infernal on this famous route 86, which Serge sees no end to. He will have 4 km more of it tomorrow morning before changing direction and taking the national 8 and then changing again after 6 km to take the route 847, which we will follow all the way to the center of Oulu. There is a strong wind at the end of this afternoon which comes from the Gulf of Botnia; we are on the Baltic Sea. Serge is already worried about tomorrow because of the wind and we hope it will not be against us if it does not subside.
Serge eats all his food at refueling with a good appetite. It must be said that the entire “support crew” is attentive, even if Serge likes to tease them sometimes and today was an example when the soup at km 50, was full of “leftovers”. Our runner joked by saying that he was going to turn into a hog because he is forced to eat these famous leftovers, not to say garbage. In any case, just the smell of the food prepared in the van whets the appetite and the almost empty plates after each refueling confirm that more than just smelling good, it is good.
It was a special day for René, who went all the way to Oulu twice, once to scout the route that leads to the garage and a second time to go to the garage, because Mr. “Van” needs to have the oil and filter changeed in order to finish the race in good form. We have to take care of the material as well as the runner!
And lastly, I will finish this log with a question: Does Finland belong to Scandinavia or not? Here is the response, compiled from information sent by a dear friend on the Internet and for which we thank him:
« Geographically and historically, as is proved by the flag which has a cross, Finland is a Scandinavian state; it is part of the Nordic countries and of this confederation (a premature mini Europe). Finland is the only country to have a common border with Russia. Throughout its history, occupations, annexations by the Tsar’s armies, then the Nazis, not to speak of the Communists, have done everything they could to destabilize Finland. Many Finnish families to this day bear the scars of these struggles and fratricidal influences. So, neighboring Sweden, Norway and Iceland tend to be wary of this Finnish ally that is so fragile and unstable…
Sweden and Norway are closer.
The Scandinavian countries are amazing, almost fascinating. The Union of Denmark and Norway, obtained by alliance in 1380, formed the “Kalmar Union,” in 1397, by annexing Sweden (who owned what is Finland today). Denmark (which had the largest population at the time) dominated until the union collapsed in 1523. After the Napoleonic wars, in 1814, the Kingdom of Denmark was obliged to cede Norway to Sweden, who had freed itself. Norway refused, adopted a constitution and declared its independence, within a kingdom whose sovereign was the Dane, Christian-Frederick. A compromise was found in the form of a “personal union” where Sweden was the leader. Phew!
At the end of the 19th century, a national awareness emerged in Norway. It was ready for sovereignty. June 7, 1905, the “Storting,” Parliament, unilaterally decided to no longer acknowledge King Oscar II of Sweden and the government resigned, which in effect dissolved the Union under one crown. A referendum requested by Sweden ratified this decision and a second established a separate monarchy, rather than a republic. Prince Karl of Denmark accepted to reign under the name of Haakon VII. Christian Michelsen was President of the government.
Norway, a founding member of the United Nations in 1945, of NATO in 1949 and a member of the Schengen Area refused, following two referendums in 1972 and 1994, to join the European Union. Norway continues to use its own currency. It remains a constitutional monarchy, with a parliamentary government named by the King. Although it is not a member of OPEP, Norway is the third largest exporter of oil in the world, which gives it comfortable revenue.
Sweden, a parliamentary monarchy, entered the European Union on March 1, 1994, but it has not adopted the Euro as its currency. It has a healthy economy thanks to the revenue from wood, iron, fishing, hydroelectricity and industry that includes (Volvo, Saab, Electrolux).
Lastly, Finland, which was abandoned to Russia in 1809, benefitted from the Russian Revolution of 1917 to obtain its independence, like its Baltic neighbors. Contrary to its neighbors to the West, Finland is a parliamentary democracy, with a President of the Republic, a government and a parliament. It joined the European Union in 1995 and has taken the Euro as its currency.”
See you tomorrow.