Former Crown ward pedals across country for his mental health

Chris Aubichon biked over 6,000kms in three months from Moncton, New Brunswick to Nanaimo, B.C. in a personal odyssey for his mental and physical health. He hopes to pursue his education after the B.C. government removed age restrictions for tuition waivers for former Crown wards in August. Photo: Mick Sweetman / CHLY 101.7FM

Chris Aubichon was 44 years old, 325 pounds, suffering from Type 2 diabetes, bipolar disorder, anxiety and depression when he decided to bike roughly 6,000km across the country from Moncton, New Brunswick to Nanaimo, British Columbia.

Chris’ personal odyssey was sparked by a change that the provincial government made this year eliminating age restrictions for the Provincial Tuition Waiver Program for former wards of the court. It took effect on August 1 and a $3500 Learning for Future Grant is also available to help pay for additional costs like textbooks and a computer.

“I could have flown out west, been there in 12 hours, but the man who did that would be the same man who left and wouldn't be successful,” he said at a gathering of friends and family in Nanaimo’s Bowen Park on Friday. “So I figured I'm going to do something crazy. I'm going to jump on a bike, and I'm going to go 6,000km and when I'm done then I'll be in a position where I can be successful here.”

Chris grew up in foster care on Vancouver Island and moved to the maritimes 20 years ago after the birth of his first daughter.

“It's kind of surreal to be back in Nanaimo, I didn't think I ever would be, but I'm really happy to be here because this is ground zero for me,” he said. “This is where it all started, this was where I was raised a ward of the court. These were the first streets I lived on. This is where I first became an addict.”

Chris’ sister Jenn Aubichon first found out about his journey after he tagged her in a Facebook post when he was already on the road.

“I didn't believe it. I didn't understand what was happening,” she said. “So I got in touch with him about two days later. Before I said anything to anybody I wanted to hear from him what was happening. He just told me that he got a bike and he was coming home and I said, ‘Okay, let's figure out how you're going to do this safely.’”

Chris says the hardest part of his journey was the first 10 days when he was only able to pedal 15km to 20km a day due to being out of shape, but it wasn’t just his physical ability that he found challenging.

“Mentally, it was really dark, he said. “I was really struggling. But incremental challenges, day after day and fast forward three months, and I'm a different man today than I was when I left.”

Selenia Aubichon welcomes her father Chris Aubichon to Nanaimo as he completed a three month cycling trip from Moncton, New Brunswick on Friday, Aug. 11. Photo: Mick Sweetman / CHLY 101.7FM

His sister says that part of that change was seeing people support Chris as he pushed himself to bike across the country posting updates to Instagram regularly and Reddit that generated a lot of support for him.

“We grew up not really seeing the beauty in people. We weren't really taken care of very well or loved even for that matter,” she said. “Children in foster care don't usually feel love.”

Jenn said that when Chris ran into problems like his bike being stolen, his tent breaking or not having money “all those hardships turned into beautiful moments. Canadians invited him into their homes to sleep, to eat their blueberry muffins or to have a shower.”

She recalls a man who stood on the side of the road in Saskatchewan with a sign reading “you inspire me” as Chris rode past.

Jenn says that seeing her brother pedal across the finish line in Bowen Park was an emotional experience.

“It was beautiful,” she said. “It's amazing what he did. Who has the strength and the perseverance to do that? I know what he's been through.”

Now that Chris has made it to Nanaimo he’s looking forward to getting an education but said he needs to talk with a career advisor to figure out exactly what program he wants to pursue.

“I want to work with at-risk youth or wards that are transitioning to live on their own, or even adults that were former wards that are struggling but have greatness in them,” he said. “So if that's social work, counseling addict services, remains to be seen, but I'm going to be in that world.”

Chris Aubichon (second from left) stands with his two daughters Naveah (left) and Selenia (second from right) and sister Jenn Aubichon in Bowen Park, Nanaimo on Aug, 11 after cycling for three months from Moncton, New Brunswick. Photo: Mick Sweetman / CHLY 101.7FM

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.