Wednesday at Bike Happy Hour: bike theft prevention and bike touring slide show

Hope you can join us at Bike Happy Hour (BHH) on Wednesday (tomorrow!) as we’ve got two special things going on.

First, from about 4:30 to 6:00 on we’ll be joined by Portland Police Bureau Public Safety Support Specialist (PS3) Robb Wolfson. PS3 Wolfson will tell us about the work he’s been doing to help folks prevent bike theft. He’ll also register your bike, so if it does get nabbed it’ll have a much greater chance of being recovered.

If you’re new around here, you might have forgotten that in 2015 BikePortland worked with PPB officers to establish a Bike Theft Task Force. The unit did great work for several years before it ran into the budgetary and political maelstrom of 2020. Fast forward to a few months ago when I was biking through Peninsula Park and a guy who I first suspected was a Park Ranger walked up to me and said, “Would you like to register your bike?” It was PS3 Wolfson, who I soon learned had picked up the bike theft work that had sat dormant for a few years.

Wolfson is committed to registering as many bikes as possible with services like Project 529 and Bike Index, and he wants to increase awareness of bike theft prevention. Come out Wednesday night to meet him and get your bike registered.

And right after BHH, our friend Ted Buehler will host another one of his Bike Touring Slide Shows. He’s lined up three really great presenters who are ready to share their adventures with you. Starting at 6:30, you can sit back with great food and drinks and be entertained by the photos and words of Mia Pisano, Joel Finkelstein, and Steve Vertal.

Below is a little blurb from Ted about each one to whet your appetite:

Mia Pisano – Bike Touring novice goes abroad! (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, 2025)
With no previous bike-touring experience, Mia cycled through five countries in the Baltic Sea area. She will show you some highlights and some things she learned which might be useful for other novices. She will also share a global perspective that she gained through traveling in countries with a Russian border.T raveling with her highly experienced friend Ted, Mia Rolled on a 1990s mountain bike with full camping gear. Highlights were swimming in lakes and rivers, sampling local cuisine, searching for the best linen shop.

Joel Finkelstein – Tour of great bicycle cities in Northern Europe (Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, 2025)
Joel responded to Ted Buehler’s invite to see some of the best bicycle cities in the world on a whirlwind autumn adventure. Starting in Copenhagen, they went to Odense, Denmark, Munster Germany, Rotterdam and Delft, Netherlands, and Malmo Sweden. These are cities that have gone to multi-decade efforts to build and maintain excellent bicycle infrastructure. With varying levels of success. But overall, each one is a huge inspiration for those of us in Portland who wish we could achieve such goals.Joel rolled on a vintage Bike Friday New World Tourist. Stayed in hotels, hostels and with friends. Highlights were odd bits of coastline in three countries. And one day with a terrific tailwind.

Steve Vertal – Portland to Astoria and back
Steve is retired and a road rider. He traveled “light” on his bicycle to Astoria, stayed in a hotel, then returned to Portland. The route included the Banks Vernonia Trail, and sections of Highway 202 along the Nehalem River, through Mist, Birkenfeld and Jewell. This sector of Oregon is surprisingly quiet and pleasant, given its proximity to the Portland metro area.

So come out to Migration Brewing on North Williams Avenue Wednesday evening from for bike theft prevention tips and bike touring inspiration. I’ll be there at 3:00 pm as per usual, we’ll have snacks at 4:00, PS3 Wolfson should show up around 4:30 and will stay until 6:00. The slide shows will start at 6:30. See you there!