music tonight.
(Photo © J. Maus)
It’s been a long, quiet week here at BikePortland HQ, as Jonathan and I have both been out of town — he’s in DC working like a madman to cover the National Bike Summit, and until yesterday I was down south at the smaller and scrappier but no less inspiring L.A. Bike Summit (more on that soon).
There’s not much time to round up the weekend’s events, but here are a few ideas that look good — please feel free to add your own suggestions, reports, and more in the comments.
– Sleep not your thing? Tonight is the infamous Midnight Mystery Ride, Hootenanny edition. Help Rev Phil celebrate freedom, bikes, and getting older without forgetting how to have fun. Bring musical instruments and copies of the lyrics to your favorite songs for everyone to sing to. Meet at 11:00pm. Starting location is up now at the MMR website.
– The Pi(e) Ride (on Saturday, 3/14 of course) is a classic Shift-y offering, including food and silly mathematical references. It leaves at noon from the Bipartisan Cafe at 7901 SE Stark, and the distance will be approximately 9.42 miles.
– The Easy Riders, always up for a mellow good time, have a SoPo Ride coming up on Sunday. It leaves at 10:30am from the Stumptown on Division and 45th and explores the flatter areas south and east of there at an easy pace, ending at a bar. Exciting destinations include the Fubonn Asian mall, the Portland Mausoleum, Keana’s Candyland, and Reed College.
Ride hard, ride safe, and have fun out there.
If you want something epic:
http://www.orrandonneurs.org/rba/2009/Snoozeville/Snoozeville_Info.html
Bring your Chinook Book coupons for Maggie’s Buns in Forest Grove!
If you happen to be riding up Williams Ave between Shaver and Mason please look to your left and consider my neighbor’s
smashed
car. It is parked where it was struck by a drunk driver a few nights back at 2:50 am. I bring this to your attention as a reminder that even on a generally safe bike corridor bad things can still happen. Imagine if the driver had drifted to the right and stuck a late night rider. Since I live on Williams and ride everyday I see thousands of cyclists on this route and I am still surprised at how many ride without helmets and/or don’t wear reflective gear or sport decent lights at night. While we can’t completely protect ourselves from criminals like the one who did this, let’s please mitigate the remote risk by wearing a helmet and remembering our flashers. Have a safe weekend.
Rode today (Saturday)– it is quite icky out there! Between the persistent rain and the wind, it was a small battle to the finish. Felt good, though! 🙂
Did 54 in the rain and wind out by Banks, North Plains, Forest Grove and beyond. Saw some of the Snoozeville Populaire participants. As Bob Roll would have said, I was “dipped in the doo” when I was done.
Had to dash to Bellingham for a family emergency. Hit the Seattle Bike Expo with a couple of Seattle friends to break up the drive and the personal sh**. Big fun, but I enjoyed the Oregon Manifest more…
Took Friday afternoon off and went on a new trail with my riding partner. Went up Shadybrook to Dorland to Moreland, then to 30 and up Cornell to home. Forty-seven miles total. The Dorland/Moreland route is finally paved, but it was really steep at times. Great ride, though.
Joined the pi(e) ride from the Shift Calendar! Details are here- http://crowmolly.blogspot.com/2009/03/pie-ride-314.html
Great time! Thanks to John for leading!
I rode the Snooseville Populaire, plus rode from home to and from the start for a total of 100 miles – it was dry for the first 20, a veritable monsoon for the next 60, and then dry-ish for the final 20. The wind never let up, however, and was rarely at my back.
Anon #6 – thanks for confirming the rumor that the Dorland-Moreland connection was finally paved . . . I guess that’s next on my list . . .
Thanks to everybody who braved the rain for the ride! We had the perfect size group for our purpose, supported four local small businesses that obviously put a lot of care and effort into their work, and had a great time.
Off to see Andy’s pictures…
Easyriders ride was great! Nice meeting y’all.
I rode the Oregon Randonneur’s Snoozeville Populaire on the wet and windy Saturday. Volunteered for the area’s “other bike culture” by working at the OBRA Banana Belt race at Hagg Lake on Sunday.
Oh, forgot that I joined a couple of friends to ride 57 miles on Friday first out the Springwater Corridor then around Pete’s Mountain.
Cecil,
I live on on the Dorland-Morland hill.
Let me know when you ride up and I’ll
hand you a towel.
RayO