Chill out: Winnipeg man bikes to every 7-11 for Free Slurpee Day
Josh Drury decided to bike to every 7-11 shop and guzzle down a neon-coloured concoction at every stop
It may qualify for the most Winnipeg day ever.
Winnipegger Josh Drury spent Tuesday riding his bike around town. But instead of seeing the sights, he visited every single 7-11 store in town — all 47 of them — and gulped down some icy Slurpee beverage at each stop.
And it was all for free, thanks to the convenience store chain's annual Free Slurpee Day giveaway.
Celebrating <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreeSlurpeeDay?src=hash">#FreeSlurpeeDay</a> by hitting every 7-Eleven in the world Slurpee capital, Winnipeg. First stop, store 15198 on Corydon. <a href="https://t.co/WNv6kYkgeo">pic.twitter.com/WNv6kYkgeo</a>
—@DruskiWPGDrury said he was inspired to try the trip after picking up a cheap 7-11 jersey on eBay.
"They had a cycling team back in the '80s that they don't sponsor anymore but I've always liked the design. I took that up and I thought it would be cool to wear it to get free Slurpees on Free Slurpee Day.
"Last year, I looked at [doing the trip] but I had just done a big ride so I wasn't in a condition to do it. But I looked at it again this year and I had the day free so I decided to give it a go."
Drury said he suggested the idea to his wife, Carrie Simpson, and expected her to talk him out of it — but she was all for the adventure and suggested he post a picture on Twitter at every stop.
"I don't have a huge Twitter account — I only had about 45 followers and I think I'm double that now. That just kind of took off from there."
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Ohthankheaven?src=hash">#Ohthankheaven</a> I'm halfway done this foolish quest - Slurpee number 24 at store 15459 on Main St. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreeSlurpeeDay?src=hash">#FreeSlurpeeDay</a> <a href="https://t.co/slnNmYDPtr">pic.twitter.com/slnNmYDPtr</a>
—@DruskiWPGWhile Drury said Winnipeggers cheered him on, the weather wasn't so helpful.
"I finished the trip with a leg from Fort Richmond up through Pembina to Osborne, and by the time I got to the Fort Richmond location, it just started pouring rain. I was not thrilled with that, but I was pretty close to the end then and I had to go back north to go home then, so I thought, 'I'm going to finish things.'"
In total, the trip took him around 12 hours — about four more than he expected.
"I'd done a few rides that approached that distance but I figured [it would take] about seven to eight hours on the bike. I hadn't realized how much time I was going to be off the bike, just getting slurpees and then doing the live tweeting. It ended up taking a lot longer than I thought."
And that'll do it! Slurpee number 47 at store 15052 on Osborne. All Wpg <a href="https://twitter.com/7eleven">@7eleven</a> locations covered with 30 min to spare. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreeSlurpeeDay?src=hash">#FreeSlurpeeDay</a> <a href="https://t.co/wS0kc6T4UR">pic.twitter.com/wS0kc6T4UR</a>
—@DruskiWPGDespite gulping some Slurpee at every stop, he said he never experienced the dreaded brain freeze.
"I ended up doing a bit of a short fill at most of them — I did about two-thirds of one of the small cups there," he said.
"It would have taken too long to sit and drink one at each. So I would have a few sips, dump it in my water bottle, it would melt a bit and I would be able to drink it all on the way.
"I don't seem to be too susceptible to [brain freeze]. I do sometimes get a frozen throat and at one point I took too much at once and my stomach was not really happy with me."