Canadian ice dancers Gilles and Poirier ride a long road to another Olympics

Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier experienced the first real test of their partnership on a lonely stretch of Nebraska highway.

The newly formed ice dance team was halfway through a long drive to move Gilles' belongings from Colorado to Toronto the summer before the 2011-12 season, when the trip hit a considerable snag on the prairies.

"We drove together for three, three-and-a-half days," Poirier said. "And we had the car break down in the middle of the road trip."

"We spent 12 hours at a dealership trying to fix my car, in the middle of Nebraska!" Gilles added.

Rather than panic, the teenage travellers patiently worked through the problem and got back on the road.

Fifteen years later — with multiple Olympic berths, world championship medals and Canadian titles in between — the decorated duo looks back on that moment as a reflection of their unshakable friendship and steady resolve.

"That's the adventure of life," Poirier said. "That's what we've been on together, is just this long road trip of life, this journey where stuff happens and we make it work.

"We always unite and come together when shit hits the fan."

Gilles said the potentially stressful sequence of events in the American heartland is a good representation of their career together.

"Whatever's thrown our way, we've just overcome it," she said. "Had a few laughs along the way, had a few cries along the way, and just embraced the journey."

Their journey, as an ice dance team at least, is nearing the final destination. Gilles and Poirier will compete in a third Olympics together at the Milan Cortina Winter Games, aiming for their first medal on the sport's biggest stage.

They won't say it outright, but the 34-year-olds are, in all likelihood, headed for their last