City cancels Sunday Parkways Southwest due severe weather forecast

A scene from a wet Sunday Parkways in
northeast Portland in 2011.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

The Portland Bureau of Transportation has just announced that they’ve cancelled Sunday Parkways due to the severe weather forecasted for this weekend. The event was scheduled for Sunday and this is first time Sunday Parkways been called off since the event started in 2008.

Here’s more via a PBOT statement:

The Portland Bureau of Transportation announced today that the last Sunday Parkways of the season is cancelled due to a severe weather forecast for the Portland metropolitan area. High winds and heavy rain are forecast for this Sunday, September 29.

The event was scheduled to take place in Southwest Portland from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. City officials are notifying sponsors, vendors and residents of the cancellation.

The worst Sunday Parkways weather I can ever recall was the September 2011 edition in northeast Portland. That day it rained very hard, but as we reported in our recap and photos, it didn’t quell everyone’s spirit (as that lady in my lead photo attests). However, this weekend’s storm is looking to be much more serious than just some good, old-fashioned Portland rain. The forecast is calling for several inches to fall — most of it on Sunday. High winds are also predicted. The Oregon Department of Transportation was concerned enough that they issued a special weekend travel advisory yesterday.

The southwest edition of was the last of this season’s five Sunday Parkways events. PBOT has not said whether or not it will be rescheduled.

UPDATE, 11:11 am: PBOT spokeswoman Diane Dulken has confirmed that this even will not be rescheduled. “Unfortunately no. It was a great season, it just ended earlier than we wished.”

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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Craig Harlow
Craig Harlow
10 years ago

I’ve really enjoyed the rainy, stormy Sunday Parkways events in the past, but those still enjoyed warm summer temps, so getting wet was just fine and another kind of bike fun. But with temps in the 50s, I think they made the right call, cancelling this one.

Andrew K
Andrew K
10 years ago

Yeah, probably a good call I hate to say. I work in the utility business and we are prepping for some heavy heavy rain this weekend.

Spiffy
Spiffy
10 years ago

Overcast with rain. Fog early. High of 59F. Breezy. Winds from the South at 15 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100% with rainfall amounts near 0.6 in. possible.

15-20 is my max speed so I guess I wouldn’t be able to pedal very fast…

rainbike
rainbike
10 years ago

Contemplate Rule #9 as you ride into the storm.

Dan
Dan
10 years ago
Reply to  rainbike

Portland from now until May is pretty much in permanent Rule 9 mode.

A.K.
A.K.
10 years ago
Reply to  rainbike

Most people here wouldn’t know the rules if they were beaten over the head with them.

q`Tzal
q`Tzal
10 years ago
Reply to  A.K.

That would be because those “rules” appear at cliquey, elitist snobbery.
A complete reading of the rules brings me the conclusion that they are a joke to poke fun at the elitist snobs themselves.

So obviously you were joking in expecting that anyone outside that elitist clique would be aware of those “rules”.

Dan
Dan
10 years ago
Reply to  q`Tzal

Hey, I’m part of that “elitist clique” and I don’t care if anyone else follows The Rules. There are lots of elitist cliques out there in cycling (don’t get me started about how the only people who ask if I’m okay when I flat are the guys on race teams and recumbents).

The Rules are a distillation of all the history, traditions, and other ephemera that surround the world of bike racing. It’s a silly world, and a lot of what we take as hard fact (like putting sunglasses over helmet straps), we’d be hard pressed to explain anything about why things are that way. But they just are, and that’s how it’s always been, and that’s how it’ll always be.

spare_wheel
spare_wheel
10 years ago
Reply to  rainbike

As a public service to “transportation cyclists”:

http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/

scranton
scranton
10 years ago

We cancel things for rain in PDX? Next stop, San Diego state of mind.

LoveDoctor
LoveDoctor
10 years ago

BOOO! I live nearby and was really looking forward to the event. However, since part of the goal of Parkways is to encourage new riders, a howling storm may not leave many rare-riders with a good impression. Give a shout out to the sponsors, though, so they will be willing to contribute again next year.

Joseph E
10 years ago

I was looking forward to this, despite the ominous forecast. Next year, the Sunday Parkways in September should be scheduled for the first half of the month, which almost always sunny and nice.

ben
ben
10 years ago

LMAO, Portland has no idea what rain is until they go to Denver, Co. It is pretty rare when we get a real rain storm!
I am going to go ride my bicycle anyways.