Ladd’s 500 kicks off season of free bike fun

Pedal in the front, party in the back.
(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)

The Ladd’s 500 is a continuation of a proud Portland legacy: Free fun on in the streets that’s open to all — and with bicycles as the thread stitching everyone together.

The “third first annual” relay drew a huge crowd to Ladd Circle Park on Saturday, which was the perfect base camp for the day’s activities. What is usually just a sleepy roundabout in a quiet residential neighborhood was enlivened with picnics, BBQ’s (by bike, of course), music, and Portlanders eager to shed winter, embrace a dry day, and enjoy each others’ company.

David Barstow Robinson founded the event on a simple premise: “It’s spring, let’s do something stupid.”

This event is completely DIY. It was started on a whim by David Barstow Robinson — who still seems a bit shocked at how many people show up each year. David is an endurance rider (he just returned home from riding about 4,000 km in three weeks at the India Pacific Wheel Race) and veteran of many local bike fun events who might have taken some inspiration from fellow Portlander Merritt Raitt, whose “Circle Century” film went viral in 2013.

While it’s all about having fun, there was serious business to attend to: 500 laps around the 0.15 mile circle. That’s about 75 miles of incessant left turns. 25 teams with names like Welcome to the Dork Side, Aching Knees, Thunder Thighs, Bigg Boyz, Puddlecycle, Silly Cones, Badgehogs, and Rat Patrol, were up to the task. They kept a running tally of their laps on a big leaderboard in the middle of the circle.

Erinne Goodell marks down her laps.

Out on the street there was a dizzying diversity of riders and wheeled vehicles: Like a real-life version of a Richard Scarry book. Some went very fast, others went very slow. One woman donned a turtle shell on her back and happily rode just 3-4 mph. There were people riding skateboards, longboards, fast road bikes, tall bikes, swing bikes, scooters, fixed gears, bike camping bikes, freak bikes, cargo bikes, electric bikes, bikes with trailers, a bike with a piñata and stick to hit it with, a two-person pedal-car, unicycles, and even a ball. Yes, a ball.

And the riders were just as varied as their machines. A lot of factors come together to make events like this so inclusive. Part of it is the equalizing nature of the circle itself: If someone goes faster than you, a few seconds later they’re behind you. The constant mixing and proximity to friends and other riders — while never feeling “dropped” or too far behind — is empowering and welcoming.

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BikePortland reader Simon sent us this short and very sweet video that captures the spirit…

As you might have glimpsed in the video, fourth-grader Penny Poole (daughter of skateboard advocate Cory Poole) stole the show by completing laps on a mix of devices that included a longboard, a unicycle, and — most amazingly — a circus balance ball. Even amidst the chaotic scene, everyone stopped to cheer Penny on as she walked ever-so-carefully backwards atop a ball nearly half her height.

Penny Poole is a marvel. (That’s her dad Cory behind her.)

At the end of the day, Penny won “Best in Show” — an award that the organizer said was for “Whoever looks like they’re having the most fun.”

That award could have been given to almost anyone. Even the neighbors who came out in droves to observe the spectacle looked to be having a good time…

Despite all the added traffic the event brought to the neighborhood, there wasn’t any official permit or closure. And why would there be? The park and the street is public space. “We are allowed to be in the park, and we are allowed to ride on the road,” reads the official rules. “If anyone feels otherwise, please be judicious in your diplomacy or find someone who is able to do so.”

What about drivers and their cars? I saw many of them come through. They just slowed down, merged into (the unusually colorful and happy) traffic, and then kept right on going just like any other day.

People in cars were very well-behaved — likely because they were well out-numbered.

I know it’s hard to imagine given the dreary and wet week we’re having, but as peak bike fun season approaches, the crazy fun of the Ladd’s 500 will indeed become just like any other day.

And to that, we say…

Don’t miss our columnist Madi Carlson’s recap!

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, contact me 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 paying subscriber.

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Jim Lee
Jim Lee
6 years ago

Portland’s other velodrome!

mh
mh
6 years ago

Perfect.

Gary
Gary
6 years ago

Awesome! Sad I missed it.

Can someone clue me in on that stand-up scooter thing? The motorized white machine that looks like a cross between a bike and a scooter. That thing ooks fun, I’d like to learn more.

Eric Ivy
Eric Ivy
6 years ago
Reply to  Gary

That’s Ben’s. And yes, it’s a custom e-scooter. I happen to have a custom e-scooter as well with a BBQ on it. Come to Grilled By Bike on Cinco de Mayo to see more! (Check out GrilledByBike on Instagram as well)

Thanks for the coverage Jonathon! You put into words what everyone feels about the event! PARTY ON! EXCELLENT! WAYNE’S WORLD SCHWINGGGG

Cory P
Cory P
6 years ago

Soooo Much fun! Thanks to DBR and the entire bike-fun crowd that makes this happen!

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
6 years ago

Has anyone [yet] calculated the difference in the distance of taking the inside vs outside lines for this “race event”?

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
6 years ago

The other thing this event so cheerfully indirectly points out…

…that this rotary intersection is way over designed when it comes to pavement (and impervious surface) perhaps someday PBoT BDS:
– will depave portions of it OR
– covert it into a magic roundabout for bikes (with 8 mini circles for bi-directional flow) OR
– add an outside bi-directional separated dutch style bikeway …to banish the bad old days of no stop bike stings.

joan
6 years ago

The Ladds 500 was a delight! It was so fun to have so many different kinds of people and bikes there. I know many of us rode a tall bike for the first time. There was a real joyfulness and silliness to it all.

Duh
Duh
6 years ago

Ladd’s circle is not a modern day roundabout, it is a traffic circle, hence the large inner and outer radius and stop controlled intersections.