Middle Fork of the Willamette River.
(File photo)
The quality of riding in Oakridge can be illustrated in many ways. One of them is by the success of Mountain Bike Oregon.
The first MTB Oregon was held in 2005 and was attended by 38 hearty soles. Founder Randy Dreiling says there were more guides than riders. It didn’t take long for word of the event to spread. Word of mouth, propelled by popular Internet forums like MTBR.com saw the next year’s attendance balloon to a sellout crowd of 300 riders.
Riders came from 20 different states including as far away as Maine and Florida.
This year, organizers decided to split the three-day event to two sessions.
(File photo)
The vision of MTB Oregon came from Randy Dreiling, who had dreamed of such an event since the early 1990s. In 2004 he connected with Porter Childs from the Portland-based event company Good Sport Promotion.
It only took Porter a few hours of riding in Oakridge before he was hooked. The idea for MTB Oregon was fleshed out that same night.
Dreiling has been an ardent advocate and supporter of mountain biking in the Oakridge area for years. He’s on the Chamber of Commerce, runs a mountain bike guide service called Oregon Adventure, puts on the Oakridge Fat Tire Fest, and much more.
(File photo)
Dreiling says MTB Oregon couldn’t happen without the support of local mountain bike club, The Disciples of Dirt (DOD). They maintain hundreds of miles of trails and they provide guides for all the rides.
With the work of people like Randy Dreiling, great events, and the sweat equity of the Disciples of Dirt, it won’t be long before Oakridge is on a very short list of mountain bike meccas.
For the latest photos from Mountain Bike Oregon 2007, check out the gallery.