Happy Friday! Eva Frazier and I are back on our regular schedule. Hooray!
This was a really fun episode and it’s the perfect listen for the weekend. There’s even sound effects of sandhill cranes (only because Eva was too shy to do it herself). Here’s a taste of what we talked about:
Sandy Blvd potential as BikeLoud eyes a bike lane and Eva dreams of depaving it.
Will Ladds 500 be too big?
Why artists make great BBQ chefs
Eva is going sailing this weekend
Water-related rides during Pedalpalooza
Thanks for listening, thanks to our paid subscribers, and thanks to Brock Dittus (of Sprocket Podcast fame) for our theme music. Listen in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
We can all use a bit more joy in our lives. And what better place to find it then on the streets in our neighborhoods by bike?!
Today I learned about the Sidewalk Joy Map and couldn’t wait to share it with you. This excellent map includes 65 locations citywide where you can find wonderful, community-made delights like little free libraries, artistic displays, interactive public art, free swaps, and much more. It’s as if Hidden Portland for the Curious (one of my fave Facebook Groups) has been organized into a map.
The Sidewalk Joy map was created by the folks behind PDXDinorama and PDX FLAG, two instagram accounts that highlight front-yard art and little free art galleries throughout Portland.
Just a small sample of the wonderful whimsy waiting for you to discover.
There’s a Google Map where you can find all the attactions and descriptions of each one. And there’s a PDF with all the descriptions you can print out if you want a hard copy.
So grab your bike and a friend if you’d like, and plot a course for the Brooklyn See-Saw (SE 15th and Lafayette), the Comics Cottage (SE 56th and Rhone), the Robot Alley (south of N Skidmore between Borthwich and Kerby), the Tiny Creature Swap (NE 21st north of Knott), or the Puzzle Exchange (near SW Iowa and 45th).
Portland’s oft-maligned Vision Zero program will make a trip to City Council next week. The Portland Bureau of Transportation plans to update council members and share their 2023 crash report and Vision Zero Action Plan update.
BikePortland previously reported on the plan update when it was released back in November. But I don’t think we’ve covered the 2023 Deadly Traffic Crash Report, which was finalized in February.
PBOT’s crash report is a summary of where and how people were killed on our streets in 2023. The city’s grim tally of fatalities last year was 69 — the highest death toll in at least three decades and a figure that surpasses 2021’s record high. In the opening of the report, PBOT refers to “those killed by traffic violence” as representing a broad cross-section of Portlanders.
Here are a few stats from the report that caught my eyes:
East Portland communities face greater exposure to traffic violence. In 2023, East Portland’s traffic death rate per 100,000 was 15 compared to nine in the rest of the city.
The average age was 40.
51 of these traffic victims (74%) as male and 18 (26%) as female.
In 2023, 74% of traffic deaths occurred on Portland’s High Crash Network.
Eighty-seven percent of traffic deaths occur on streets with posted speeds of 30 mph and higher. While only 8% of our streets have speed limits higher than 30 mph, 54% of traffic deaths in the last three years have occurred on them.
Half of the pedestrians who died in 2023 were experiencing houselessness (12 of 24). These statistics speak to the extreme risks of persistent exposure to traffic, often on high-speed streets.
An average of 16 pedestrians were killed annually between 2018 and 2020, compared to an average of 26 pedestrians in the past three years (2021–2023). But 2023 is the first year that pedestrian deaths are lower. In 2023, pedestrians made up 35% of traffic deaths with 24 pedestrians killed in crashes. In 2021 and 2022, more than 40% of traffic deaths were pedestrians. In 2021, 27 pedestrians died in crashes and 28 died in 2022.
Black communities in Portland experienced traffic violence at a disproportionate rate when compared to other racial communities in the city. Eleven people killed in traffic crashes were identified as Black, making up 16% of the people killed this year, much higher than their share of Portland’s population (5.6%).
On Wednesday at 2:00 pm PBOT staff will present these findings to council. In the ordinance that will be discussed at the meeting, PBOT shared the ongoing work they’re doing and a few new approaches they’ll take in their fight to eliminate all road deaths by 2025.
Graphics from the report.
One of the new measures was a traffic safety evaluation adjacent to all temporary housing shelters citywide. This analysis will include cost estimates for safety upgrades.
Another new initiative is an executive working group to be convened by the PBOT director. According to the ordinance it will consist of “relevant Bureau directors from across the City,” who will, “Collaborate on actions that support the City’s goal to eliminate traffic deaths.”
In related news, in a Vision Zero newsletter emailed yesterday, PBOT announce a change to their crash response protocol. Launched in 2019 under former PBOT Commissioner Chloe Eudaly, this protocol included the installation of an illuminated message board sign at the location of every fatal crash in the city. The sign would include a date of the crash and the admonition, “Travel With Care.”
Now it appears they will change that program to save money. Instead of putting the signs at all deadly crash locations, PBOT will set out just four signs — one in each of the four new city council districts. The locations will vary each quarter and will focus on intersections that are on the city’s High Crash Network.
Are you a biking enthusiast with a knack for sales? We’re on the lookout for a friendly and knowledgeable Bicycle Sales Associate to join our team. As part of our crew, you’ll help customers find their perfect e-bike while sharing your passion for all things cycling.
Responsibilities:
• Chat with customers to understand their biking needs and preferences.
• Take Customers on test rides.
• Show off our awesome selection of e-bikes and gear.
• Ring up sales with a smile and make sure everything runs smoothly.
• Keep the shop looking neat and tidy.
• Stay in the loop on the latest biking trends and products.
Requirements:
• Love bikes? Great! Experience in retail sales? Even better.
• Help Set up the shop in the Morning and Put Away bikes at Closing.
• Know your way around different ebike models and gear.
• Friendly, outgoing, and ready to chat with customers.
• Expect to work weekends.
• Can occasionally lift 50 lbs
Bonus points if you can fix a flat tire on the fly!
Perks:
· Competitive hourly rate! Based on experience
· Vacation and PTO.
· Health / dental plan available after 90 days.
· Sweet discounts on biking gear
· Free Coffee
The eBike Store is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status.
How to Apply
If you’re passionate about cycling and eager to deliver top-notch service, we’d love to hear from you. Submit your resume and a brief overview of why you’re the perfect fit for this role.
Lykins looks for a break in traffic before merging onto SW Vermont from Shattuck Rd. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
If you count the words of every Portland City Council candidate’s platform, it’s likely Chad Lykins would have the highest tally. The District 4 candidate is big on policy. His BikePortland debut was all about him wanting to have the best transportation platform of any candidate in the race. That might be because he has a lot of ideas and is eager to implement them, or because he has a PhD in research and public policy.
I spent a few hours with Lykins in his district yesterday. We rode our bikes and talked about infrastructure and policy — from protected bike lanes to homeless shelters. We both wore microphones as we pedaled around and I’ve shared the conversation above (and on our podcast feed).
Lykins is a leading candidate in District 4. Last month he became one of only seven candidates to qualify for $40,000 in matching funds. He’s a former professor, small business owner, and nonprofit leader. He’s also a proud progressive. It’s a label he defines as the center of Portland politics.
When I asked him how he’d navigate the divisive discourse that defines (and plagues) local politics these days, he said, “I think that for this next city council to be successful — and I’ll borrow the phrase from [Paul] Wellstone — ‘We don’t need to focus on if we’re on the left, or the right, or the center. We need to be out in front where the problems are.’ That’s really what I’m focused on.”
The pinch where SW Multnomah goes under Capitol Hwy.SW Capitol Hwy bike lane through Hillsdale Shopping Center.SW Multnomah raised bike lane.SW 45th (I think).Hillsdale bus only lane.Corner of SW Multnomah, 45th, and Maplewood.SW Cameron (or Illinois).Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy.Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy.Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy.Very sketchy lane taking on SW Bertha transition to Barbur.SW Barbur Blvd near Terwilliger.S Corbett downhill.S Moody.
Lykins says his guiding light isn’t a particular ideology or political label; it’s evidence. “Before I think about ideology, whether something’s progressive or moderate… I just look at the evidence. Trying to win a seat on city council is really trying to elevate a bunch of people that care about evidence-based policy so we can govern.”
But Lykins understands not everyone agrees on the evidence, so some political lines must be drawn to make progress. “In Portland, that means less reaching out to the extreme right-wing and getting them to agree to stuff. The right wing is pretty weak, and they don’t have a lot of viable candidates running this election. It’s more about progressives, and I believe progressivism is the center. You’ve got conservatism on the right, and you’ve got radicalism on the left. Progressivism is what the center is. It’s where most Portlanders are. It’s about reaching out to the more radical members and saying…”
On both sides of the center? I interjected. To which he replied:
“No, actually. I think we can leave the radical sort of right-wing. I don’t actually think we need them to govern. We can listen to them, we can make them feel seen, but I don’t feel that we need to move to the right on things. But we do need to be able to reach out to the more radical [left] people in Portland and say, ‘Hey, like you, I walk and I ride. But sometimes I have to drive my kids a soccer practice and it’s not safe to do that. And I also drive. So let’s bring the volume down when we’re yelling at motorists a little bit.
I’m saying that we can be pro-tenant without being anti-landlord. There are some policies that really help both.
I feel like folks that say, ‘Oh, the problem is capitalism, so we need to uproot capitalism. Or the abolition of private property… I can’t put that on the city council agenda.”
“I am so glad you brought Eli on [the BikePortland Podcast]. I thought that was a good thing to do… I think Eli and I have different ideas as to what the evidence says about helping communities that are harmed by widespread addiction and helping people get housed. But I want to win that debate with him. I want to have the debate. I don’t want to try to silence other folks.”
On homelessness, Lykins (like every other candidate), says it’s his top priority.
Our ride began at Baker and Spice in the Hillsdale Shopping Center on SW Capitol Hwy. As we made our way to SW Multnomah, we pulled into the Multnomah Safe Rest Village.
Lykins supports shelters like these, but worries they might sap urgency for more permanent housing solutions. “We have to have answers to homelessness, and right now all we have are bad choices. Living in sheds isn’t anybody’s dream. But living in tents is everybody’s nightmare… We have to make sure that these aren’t a trap. That they’re not permanent rest villages. Because no neighborhood wants to host it forever and no person wants to live in one of these forever. It’s supposed to be transitional and we have to make sure it maintains that.”
After sharing fellow candidate Eli Arnold’s vision for immediate construction of regulated tent camps, I asked Lykins how he’d balance a housing-first mindset with concerns around “free for all” dispersed camping.
“I don’t want to speak for Eli, but as I understand it, his plan is not a shelter plan in the way that HUD [the federal Housing & Urban Development] defines it. It’s just a different place to put the tents. So he’s talking about instead of dispersed camping, concentrating the camping so that they’re all behind a big, barbed-wire fence. It’s just tents packed in very tightly together. I’ve searched as best I can for studies for — has anybody gotten off fentanyl and meth while living in a tent, whether it was dispersed or concentraed? — I haven’t found that that’s very effective or that it reduces crime in the neighborhood around it… I don’t think that that’s a real solution. I don’t think that it helps people get the job training they need, the mentoring they need to move on to services.”
While he’s spent time in academia, Lykins doesn’t speak solely from ivory towers. He says he grew up in Alabama with two teenage parents and his mom suffered from substance abuse and mental health disorders. “Things were not always safe in our house,” he recalled. “There was a night where I was getting something to eat in the kitchen, and I turned around and there was a gun to my head. Uh… I… it was my mom. She thought somebody had broken in the house. She just wasn’t totally, like, with it.
So when I talk about addiction, I talk about it from the perspective of somebody that’s had it in his family, has seen the impact on families, and has some ideas as to what folks that are going through and what they really need.”
Lykins also understands the impact unsafe bike infrastructure has on people in his district. At several points during the ride he checked in to make sure I felt safe.
“This bike lane really sucks!” he said, as his voice bounced with the cracks and bumps of the gutter bike lane on SW Capitol Highway next to the bus lane through the Hillsdale Shopping Center. He supports the bus lane, which has attracted a fair amount of opposition) but I wouldn’t call him a superfan. He thinks it might need some tweaks, but he absolutely wouldn’t support ripping it out. “I still stand firmly by the idea that we need to pass a statute at city council that says we’re not going to remove bus or bike or pedestrian infrastructure until we’ve replaced it.”
Lykins talks like he’s the rare leader who could weave that fine line between compromising his beliefs with a commitment to make significant progress. “The question is not letting the perfect kill the good,” he said, as we stood in the Alpenrose Dairy site that’ll soon be hundreds of new housing units. “I don’t want to be the person who drags things down because they don’t meet a hundred percent of every single objective we put out. You have to be willing to compromise.”
While he’ll listen to other sides, Lykins is unabashedly in favor of more dense development. “If we increase density, we’re gonna reduce vehicular miles traveled, we’re gonna have more people fighting for public transportation and bikes, and [those modes] will be more viable,” he said. “There’ll be more people riding it and our total maintenance for all of our roads will go down.”
And what happens if we don’t build more housing close the the central city?
“If we have to expand the urban growth boundary, that’s just building a time bomb. Because you have to maintain all the roads you build. You have to maintain the sewer system and all that stuff.”
Lykins has strong arguments for moving away from the car-driving status quo. “[My views are] pro driver, pro-motorist, because every time I ride my bike somewhere, I didn’t take your parking space, and you didn’t have to wait behind me. And I also didn’t hit you with my car.”
“I’m not a particularly great driver. So you got me off the road. That’s a good thing!” he added, laughing. “So the more people you get on bikes or taking public transit, the better your life is as a motorist.”
He also thinks building more protected bike lanes — with protection beyond just paint and plastic — is long overdue. At one point while riding he broke into song as we lamented the paint-only status of a bike lane: “They should remake the, ‘I’m Just Ken’ song [from Barbie],” he said, and then began singing, “It’s just paint. It’s just paint. Keeping you safe, it ain’t.”
Lykins is a Portland political newbie, which might be why he’s still in such a good mood. But don’t mistake his demeanor for a lack of seriousness. He understands the stakes are high.
He said he will focus on two things if he’s elected: housing (which he feels “unlocks” many related issues, including transportation), and setting up Portland’s new form of government to be effective.
“We have to govern well and we have to do it right the first time. I don’t know if we get a second chance. It’s a very narrow window.”
— Listen to the full conversation in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also watch a highlight reel video on BikePortland’s Instagram. Learn more about Lykins at LykinsForPortland.com
It started off so innocently! (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
19 years ago this week I published the first-ever blog post about biking in Portland. On April 8th, 2005 I wrote a short post about the arrival of spring (I went back and added a lead photo a few months later because I was publishing on The Oregonian’s OregonLive.com at the time and they didn’t let us to share photos). The photo is of my wife Juli and my daughter Eleni wearing bunny ears (above). We were setting out for the Bunny on a Bike ride, one of the first group rides I ever attended in Portland.
The time I’ve spent doing this weird job really hits home when I think about how Eleni is now in her third year of college.
My first 155 posts were done via email. I would type them up and email them to someone at OregonLive, then they’d post it to the “Bike Fun” blog. Once I got the hang of blogging, I got frustrated with The Oregonian and went out on my own. I bought the BikePortland.org domain name and shared my first post there on July 29th, 2005.
July 2005 selfie (before they were called that).
19 years. Just last night I had another moment when the passage of time hit me like a ton of bricks. I confirmed my hunch that I did a story about one of the dads on my son’s basketball team. The story was posted in July 2006 and it was about two sweet kids who opened a bike shop in their garage on NE Holman Street. One of the kids in the story was 13 at the time. Now that kid is a man and his 13-year-old plays on a team with my 13-year old. (Head-exploding emoji.)
Anyways, I don’t have the time or energy to get too reflective about this right now. My to-do list islong, I have a local TV news crew coming into the Shed in a few minutes to talk to me about e-bikes, and then I’m heading out to southwest to spend the rest of the day on a ride-along with a city council candidate.
I just want to say thank you. Thanks for sticking with me for the 550,016 comments, 18,047 stories, and 19 years. I’ve given a lot to this job (probably too much), but it has given me a lot in return. Despite everything, my love for BikePortland and its potential is as strong as ever.
We have built some very special and I’m extremely proud to say we built it the right way: one reader at a time, one subscriber at a time. And we’ve maintained 100% independence. There’s no editor or corporate overload looking over my shoulders, no board of directors. It’s just you and me. That’s it. My most important advisor, investor, and source of revenue are the people — just like you! — in this community. Individuals paying $5-$10 a month are by far our largest source of revenue. That means, at the end of the day, I am accountable to the community over anything else.
It’s very fitting that we’ll celebrate the one year anniversary of Bike Happy Hour next week (4/17). I hope you’ll come out and join us. That event has helped cement my love for this community and has given me fresh eyes and a fresh heart for keeping this candle burning.
Pain is temporary, the view is forever. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
It’s officially spring riding season in Portland. If the amazing sunny weather isn’t a sign, then the Ladds 500 is. Lots of good stuff to choose from this weekend as folks sharpen their quads and quivers for lots of riding to come.
Ladds 500 – 10:00 am at Ladd Circle Park (SE) “It’s spring, let’s do something stupid,” is the official slogan of this beloved event that has turned into a phenomenon. It’s a party in the park and a pedaling frenzy in the street. Weather will be perfect, so will the vibes. Learn more about the event by browsing stories in the BP archive. More info here.
Reach the Beach Training Ride – 10:00 am at Sellwood Park/Oaks Bottom (SE) Join an experienced ride leader from Portland Bicycling Club on a 50-mile, brisk-paced (15-17 mph) road ride that will help get you in shape for the big Reach the Beach ride on May 18th. More info here.
Trail Maintenance at Stub Stewart State Park (Washington County) Join NW Trail Alliance for a fulfilling day of earning your turns and help fellow volunteers get the freeride area ready for a busy season of riding. If you love riding, or just love nature and want a perfect excuse to spend the day immersed in the woods, this is the event for you (and the whole family!). More info here.
Sunday, April 14th
Dig Day at Sandy Ridge – 9:00 am at Sandy Ridge Trailhead (Sandy) Help maintain the trails at one of the best MTB riding areas in the region and spend a day in the dirt with some awesome folks. Hosted by NW Trail Alliance. More info here.
Southerly Ladies Series – 10:00 am at Trolley Trail Trailhead (SE) Join a crew of wonderful women for a “chill pace road ride” to Oregon City where you’ll be awe-inspired by an overlook of Willamette Falls. Led by Maria “Bicycle Kitty” Schur. More info here.
West Hills Climb-athon – 10:00 am at Bethany Village (West Side) Brooks, Old Germantown, Rock Creek, Logie Trail, McNamee and Newberry. If you love to climb, you should know those names. Come out and sharpen your uphill skills on these iconic summits and share in the pain with fellow cyclists. Led by Portland Bicycling Club. More info here.
Monthly Overlook Ride – 10:15 at Stacks Coffeehouse (N) Join a leader of the Overlook Neighborhood Association to explore nooks and crannies of this beautiful place while connecting with other bike lovers. Casual, social ride that starts at a great coffee place for drinks and snacks. More info here.
Corvidae Bike Club Ride – 2:00 pm at Peninsula Park Fountain (N) This is a welcoming group that knows how to have fun and takes care of each other while doing it. Expect a no-drop vibe where all bikes are welcome and bring your sense of adventure. More info here.
Sellwood-Moreland Nature Ride – 3:00 pm at Sellwood Riverfront Park (SE) Get your 15 minutes of fame as ride leader and filmmaker Amit Zinman documents this classic Portland ride on his BikeStuff PDX YouTube channel. Expect to be on camera. More info here.
— Did I miss your event? Please let me know by filling out our contact form, or just email me at maus.jonathan@gmail.com.
The scene outside Aladdin Theater Tuesday night. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
Note: Audio from this event is now a BikePortland Podcast episode and can be listened to in a player at the end of this post.
How do you go from an engineering consultant to a celebrity that can pack a theater with 600 people on a weeknight in Portland in just a few short years? Upload consistently excellent videos about city planning to YouTube.
That’s the path Ray Delahanty took to become what the host of last night’s event, Lilian Karabaic, called a “YouTube celebrity for deadpan urbanist humor.”
Delahanty was chosen as the special guest speaker for the Portland State University Transportation Research and Education Center’s Ann Niles Active Transportation Lecture. Niles, who died in 2011, was a Reed College graduate who moved to Portland with her husband Phil Niles (who was in the crowd last night) after a career in academia. In Portland, Ann Niles became a dedicated transportation and urban planning volunteer and advocate who worked in support of projects like the streetcar, MAX light rail, bike lanes, sidewalks and more.
Niles would have likely been annoyed if she showed up to the theater last night on her bike, only to find almost no bike parking. The lack of spots meant folks had to walk several blocks to find a place secure enough to store their bikes during the show. Once everyone got inside, all was right with the world as they were treated to a fun, casual and free-flowing conversation between Karabaic and Delahanty.
Lilian KarabaicRay Delahanty
Karabaic is host of OPB’s Weekend Edition and a journalist focused on finance and transit. Delahanty is a PSU grad and former Portland resident who’s worked for the Oregon Department of Transportation and had a 15 year career as a planner and project manager for consulting firms and private agencies. He started his YouTube career in 2021 and now has about 225,000 subscribers and puts out one video per week with titles such as, “10 Suburbs That Are Becoming More City Like,” “10 Cities That Destroy Their Downtowns With Parking,” and “Why Americans Live So Far Away From Everything.”
On stage, Karabaic’s bright pink outfit and huge turquoise bike earrings, contrasted with Delahanty’s subdued grey pants and blazer. Their presence mimicked their fashion choices as Karabaic’s ebullience balanced out Delahanty’s calm and reserved delivery — the same one that makes his videos so easy to watch, digest, and like.
While Delahanty offered excessively diplomatic answers to some of the night’s juiciest questions (like how to bring more women and people of color into the planning field or which project was his favorite to work on), there were some fun exchanges and his fans learned a lot more about the man behind the mic.
Asked an audience question about how he balanced ethical issues of working on projects (like freeway expansions) he knew were harmful to land use and transportation goals, Delahanty replied:
“You have to be able to earn a paycheck, so you might have to sometimes work on projects that you don’t have the highest opinion of. But as you advance in your career, look for opportunities to gravitate towards the projects that are inspiring to you — not just in terms of the way you want the world to look, but the things that get you excited to get up in the morning and to go to go to work every day. It’s hard to do that if you’re working on projects that you genuinely think are harming society.”
To which Karabaic followed-up with, “You have to have people that care about moving those goals forward, even if they are working on a massive highway expansion, because you need to have those voices in the room. And also, you’ve got to feed yourself, and you can’t eat ethics for breakfast.”
And while Delahanty said he loves being his own boss (a huge change from working in the public sector), he made it clear that he still is beholden to a lot of daily feedback. Last night Karabaic asked if there was any viewer comment he’s received that became lodged in his head long after he first read it.
Delahanty shared that a commenter on a video about Miami wrote, “What you’ll notice, as you travel around Miami, is it’s walkable urbanism for the rich and abject car dependency for everyone else.” “And that was harsh,” Delahanty acknowledges, “But Miami is almost like the most extreme version of that. And so that really still sticks in my head.”
Asked to name his favorite arterial and favorite new bridge in Portland, Delahanty answered with Sandy Blvd (he used to live in Hollywood neighborhood) and the Flanders Bridge between northwest and the Pearl District.
“It’s such a short distance and you don’t feel like you’re leaving the street environment. You feel like you’re still in an urban setting and it’s so short that you don’t reach a point where you’re like, ‘Oh God, I’m over freeway!'” he said about the Flanders Bridge.
The crowd was eager to cheer for anything wonky. A mention from an audience member that they’d like to, “See I-5 filled in altogether at the Rose Quarter,” got one of the largest cheers of the night. So too did Delahanty’s admission that he builds spreadsheets to help with many major life decisions — like which city to move to and which neighborhoods to live in.
But the loudest cheer of the night came when Delahanty announced the current video he’s working on. After he hinted that it was about Portland, Karabaic asked for a three-word hint.
“Historic streetcar system,” Delahanty replied, and the crowd responded as if the Timbers just scored a match-winning goal.
Delahanty and CityNerd’s popularity gives veteran and aspiring urbanists hope — especially those of us who live in Portland. It’s nice to know we can still pack a large theater to hear about someone who makes a living ranking transit systems on the internet. Beyond that, there might be something else at work here: Most of CityNerd’s viewers are from Portland and Seattle, which made Karabaic wonder out loud if Delahanty’s work has tapped into many peoples’ strong urge to find solutions to the persistent problems our cities face.
Whatever nerve he’s struck, last night leaves no doubt of Delahanty’s influence.
CityNerd superfan Blaise Lewis.
As I packed up to leave the venue, a man named Blaise Lewis approached. “Do you know Ray?” he asked. He then gave me a copy of a short comic book he made called, “All Board: The Condensed History of Portland’s Light Rail.” Lewis wanted me to give it to Delahanty because, he said, “He was my inspiration, he’s the reason I went back to school for planning.”
Asked what he thought about the event, Lewis said, “I never thought I’d see him in person, so it’s kind of like meeting your hero I guess.”
— Meet Delahanty at Bike Happy Hour later today. He’ll show up to the Gorges Beer Co patio at 4:30 and can’t stay too long so get there right at the time if you want to say “hi”.
Screenshot of DirtyFreehub.org. Inset photo: Linda English.
Linda English, a runner-turned-cyclist and tech industry retiree, has built something very special. Linda and her crew have uploaded about 300 gravel ride routes onto DirtyFreehub.org and the site has become a must-browse for anyone who seeks adventure on two wheels. I’ve watched the site’s impressive growth over the past decade — right along with the explosion of interest in riding drop-bar bikes on unpaved roads.
I talked to Linda a few days ago about the site, the rise of gravel riding in Oregon, the projects she’s working on, and more.
Based in Bend, Linda says about 200 of the routes she’s uploaded are in Oregon. In addition to being a resource for cyclists, Linda’s work has become recognized for its role in economic development in rural Oregon towns. Dirty Freehub (a nonprofit) has secured contracts with agencies like Travel Oregon and the Oregon Coast Visitors Association to develop routes specifically with tourism in mind.
“It’s what we call ‘drip tourism’,” Linda shared with BikePortland. “where instead of having two or three hundred people show up to an event, which is really stressful for a really small town, we can just sort of run people through there. It’s just been this explosion. We can go into tiny little places like Paisley, Oregon, and create ride guides out there. And the next thing you know, there’s people out there and they’re just loving it. And the town loves it too because it’s economic development.”
Linda’s goal isn’t just to inspire epic rides. She also wants people who use Dirty Freehub to gain a deeper understanding of the people and places they ride through. DF’s ride guides feature all the mapping and GPS details you need to have a successful ride, and they also include bits of local knowledge, like where to find the best food and local lore. The site also offers podcasts that feature interviews with locals — like a logger who shares their fear of riding on popular cycling roads, or a farmer who shares how their life is different than a city-dweller. “It’s really cool to get cyclists to be a little bit more compassionate. We’re really interested in how to break down that rural-urban divide,” Linda shared.
A recent project Linda has embarked on is a series of “All Access” routes that are geared toward entry-level riders. All routes in this category are less than 25 miles and perfect for folks with adaptive bikes, electric bikes, or those who aren’t able to deal with elevation gain or a tricky gate that’s hard to navigate around.
Asked her favorite place to ride in Oregon, Linda said, “That’s an impossible question!” But she mentioned Baker City and Joseph (eastern Oregon) and said one of the “secret places” she loves is Madras. “I’ve lived in Bend for a long time and we’d just drive right through Madras on the way to Portland. But you get out on some of those roads out there and it’s stunning. It’s just so quiet out there, it’s really, really fun.”
Do yourself a favor and check out DirtyFreehub.org. And get to know more about the site and woman behind it by listening to our conversation. You can hear it in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
Last night I had a few minutes to kill on my way to an event, so I posted up on North Williams Avenue to observe some bike traffic (as one does).
If you’re new here (welcome!), People on Bikes is a portrait gallery series BikePortland launched in 2011. It’s basically a way to appreciate the beautiful diversity of cycling and develop a deeper understanding of bike culture in a specific location. In addition to busy bike corridors across Portland, we’ve shared galleries from New York City, Miami, Amsterdam, Colombia and Copenhagen.
You can take whatever you want from these images. I personally find it interesting to have a snapshot of what riders look like at a given time and place. As I browse the gallery, I look at the type of bikes folks are riding, how they’re riding, what type of gear and accessories they’re using, and what type of person is on the bike.
What do you see when you look at these photos? Are folks on e-bikes or fast road bikes? Flat bars or drop bars? Are they on a training ride or just getting home from work? Or both? Are they Black, white, brown, small, large, tall or short? How many women? Are most of the riders young or old? Do they use panniers or a backpack? Are their bikes expensive or cheap? Do they look happy, relaxed, or stressed? Are they wearing bike-specific clothing? Helmets?
The location is North Williams Avenue at Tillamook and I was there from about 5:50 to 6:10 last night. Keep in mind, this is a random sampling and I didn’t exercise any editorial judgment in which photos I selected. I tried to shoot every person that came by. If anyone didn’t make the gallery, it was because the image wasn’t good.
View all 32 images below (reminder that if you click the first image, you can use your arrow key to move through the gallery):
The patio will be poppin’! Come on out and join us.
Hope you can swing by Bike Happy Hour tomorrow (Weds, 4/10), because we’ve got two special guests and ample opportunities for activism. We’ll hear from Portland City Council candidate Rex Burkholder, learn about an exciting project from a group of Portland State University students, and activists from BikeLoud PDX will meet up for their bi-monthly Bike Loud Action Mixer (BLAM).
Burkholder is running for a seat in District 3, which encompasses (roughly) southeast Portland from the Willamette to 82nd, and I-84 to the southern border. Burkholder is an advocacy veteran and former Metro Council member who’s well-known in local cycling circles. In late 1990, Burkholder co-founded the Portland Area Bicycle Coalition, which in 1992 incorporated as the nonprofit Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) which grew to prominence in the 1990s. The BTA changed its name (and its mission) to The Street Trust in 2016.
Burkholder was a leader in the successful “Outdoor School for All” effort in 2016. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
After he left the BTA, Burkholder was elected to Metro Council in 2000 and held that position for 12 years. He ran for Metro president in 2010 but didn’t win the race. After that, he went into consulting and worked on various environmental advocacy issues. Burkholder now finds himself in a highly competitive race to represent southeast Portland on city council.
At Happy Hour, we’ll give Burkholder the mic to tell us why he deserves our votes and he’ll be open to a few questions from the crowd. Show up around 5:00 to hear Burkholder’s speech.
After Burkholder, we’ll learn what Strategic Minds Consulting Group is up to with their Future Sandy project. Strategic Minds is a group of PSU Urban and Regional Planning students that includes: Afroza Hossain Misty, Anchal Cheruvari, Heather Rector, Holly Querin, Katelyn Dendas, and Symeon Walker. They’ve teamed up with BikeLoud PDX to flesh out a plan to re-think Sandy Blvd as a multimodal corridor.
Future Sandy study corridor map. (Source: Strategic Minds)
Sandy is currently a high-crash corridor without any dedicated space for bicycling; but its diagonal layout has long made it a very attractive candidate for a bikeway. With repaving plans in the near future, advocates want to make a potential bikeway project shovel-ready if the opportunity for a big redesign presents itself. The scope of the Future Sandy project is from NE 14th to 28th.
Members of Strategic Minds will be at Bike Happy Hour from 4:00 to 6:00 tomorrow. They’ll be conducting an interactive map exercise, so please take a few minutes to check out their table and information. They’ll ask folks to identify bike routes around Sandy and which destinations are important to them. The more folks they hear from, the better. Speaking of which, be sure to take their online survey (closes April 30th).
And if all the talk about the future Sandy bikeway gets your blood pumping, hook up with BikeLoud PDX for their BLAM session. The BLAM is a meet-up where all ideas are welcome. Show up with your idea for how Portland can reach 25% bicycle mode share by 2030 and connect with others who can help you put it into action.
Can’t wait to see you all tomorrow! In addition to this stuff, we’ll have some time for open mic, so come and promote your ride/product/business/idea/song/poem, or whatever.
— Bike Happy Hour is every Wednesday from 3:00-6:00 pm at Gorges Beer Co patio (SE Ankeny & 27th). Join us for great food, drinks, and company. Everyone is welcome!
Hi everyone! I’ve been away from the Shed since Thursday on a family trip, so that’s why things have been slow around here. I am back now and slowly getting the gears turning again. (And yes, I realize it’s Tuesday.) Also note, the Weekly Reader (our weekly email newsletter that you should sign up for) will come out later today.
Without further ado, below are the most notable stories our community has come across in the past seven days…
Safer transit in Portland: Dismissing public safety fears is just as extreme as calling for a police-oriented, law-and-order approach says this opinion column about how to create a more safe and welcoming environment on TriMet. (Portland Mercury)
Cash for e-bikes: Another state has seen the light and will pay its residents to purchase e-bikes. Starting this summer, Minnesota will launch a program that will offer a purchase incentive of up to 75% of the price of a new e-bike, or $1,500 max. (Clean Technica)
The ubiquity of hit-and-runs: A harrowing story from Utah where hit-and-runs have become so common that it took officials a while to figure out that some of them might be linked — and intentional. (Salt Lake Tribune)
Historic declaration: An unprecedented coalition of European legislative bodies adopted a new plan they hope will, “unleash the full potential of cycling”. (Global Cycling Network)
Fentanyl and car crashes: Another reason we need to offer excellent alternatives to driving and make road designs as safe as possible is that far too many people end up driving cars while high on fentanyl. (Streetsblog USA)
But, we aren’t Paris!: The ascendancy of the French capital as a major cycling city continues to inspire as a new study shows the mode share scale has officially tipped from driving to cycling. The reason? A lot more bikeways criss-crossing the city. (Forbes)
Take back the streets: Portlander Cathy Tuttle says it’s time for women to speak up about the violence and harassment they face while biking. Her op-ed follows up the survey she conducted for BikeLoud PDX. (Momentum Mag)
