Nearly 500 people lined up to compete at opening night of the Portland Trophy Cup at Portland International Raceway last night. This event, now in its 10 season, shows what’s possible when promoters embrace inclusion, eliminate barriers to entry, and make the spectating almost as fun as being on the course.
I was amazed at the size of the fields. One of the men’s fields had almost 70 participants. That’s a lot for a weeknight ‘cross race in 2025! And the women’s fields really blew me away. I caught the starting line-up and was so excited to see the massive crowd. Organizer Clint Culpepper and his crew of volunteers and sponsors has really done a wonderful job with this event. Trophy Cup offers free registration for juniors and beginner women and there are also free clinics to anyone who wants to learn.
When it comes to inclusion, Trophy Cup embraces itself as a place where all racers are welcome. Despite a recent USA Cycling policy change (goes into effect later this month) that bans transgender women from competing in women’s categories, Trophy Cup allows trans women (and nonbinary folks) to race in whatever category they’d like. (That’s because Oregon’s sanctioning body for competitive cycling, Oregon Bicycle Racing Association (OBRA) is independent.)
Whether you’re a hardened racer, newbie, or just cross-curious, I’d highly recommend checking out this weekly event. It happens every Tuesday through October 14th at Portland International Raceway (PIR), just north of Kenton. It’s easy to bike there: just hop on your neighborhood greenway and get to the Columbia Slough Path and/or North Denver Avenue. And remember to have lights for the ride home because I bet you have so much fun you’ll stay until dark.
Full photo gallery below. (You’re welcome to use these on social media, just please credit/tag/mention BikePortland.)
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What a beautiful video partnered with amazing photography!
Thanks Jonathan !!
I only had to spectate one trophy cup race before trolling craigslist for a used bike to join in the fun (maybe like 8 years ago?!). Trophy Cup is truly one of the most fun, ridiculous, affirming spaces to be in- I encourage everyone to give it a try – all treads welcome 😉
Love the photos, thanks for covering this!