Racers mixed with tourists taking tulip selfies at Sunday’s Wooden Shoe Kermesse in Woodburn.
(Photos by Jake Tong/The Wolfsmouth Cycling)

It was a quintessential Oregon scene last weekend when about 160 bicycle racers descended on a tulip farm in Woodburn (about 32 miles south of Portland).
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Close to town and carfree, the 2-mile laps of Portland International Raceway are a perfect place to race.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)

At the end of thge 2016 season, when promoter Jim Anderson walked away from the Race Monday Night series at Portland International Raceway, it could have been the end of a 20-year Portland tradition.
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Aedin Valente, aspiring businessman and track racer.
(Photo: Norrene Godfrey)

A 15-year-old from Astoria named Aedin Valente wants to start his own business. When he heard that the Alpenrose Velodrome needed someone to run the snack this summer, he decided this was his big opportunity.

The only thing he needs to make the Alpenrose Snack Shack a reality is to raise another $1,000 or so via the GoFundMe campaign set up by his aunt Norrene Godfrey (who happens to be an awesome track racer and Alpenrose regular).

Here’s what Aedin said when Norrene asked him why he wants to do this job. “I want to run the Alpenrose snack shack so I can gain experience in the business world, plus it is super fun to do. I want to raise funds so people will work hard and try and win the races. It’s fun to watch. I like that the people are super nice to me and very supportive.”
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Event flyer

This weekend a new type of cycling event will start on the streets in and around Portland. It’s called La Boucle Des Roses and it’s unlike anything we’ve heard of before.

French for “The Loop of Roses,” La Boucle is an unsanctioned race/ride with five stages that will take place between this Saturday March 4th and Saturday April 1st.

Unsanctioned rides are nothing new to Portland. We’ve seen huge turnouts for the annual De Ronde and its sister ride, La Doyenne. Last weekend there were about 70 people who showed up for the Timber Logjam. “Organizers” of those events simply pick a date and mark a route (both online and on on-the-road), and sit back and let the promotion happen through word-of-mouth. What makes La Boucle different is its presentation as a multi-stage event and its use of an online platform to tabulate times and rankings for everyone who enters — regardless of when they complete the routes.

La Boucle’s organizer Will Hahn says the event is a “stride forward for Oregon cycling.” It’s his response to a recent decline in sanctioned road racing events statewide. A recent thread on the Oregon Bicycle Racing Association email list titled, “State of Cycling, Its Decline, and Events” brought out dozens of voices to hash out the causes and impacts of why people are racing less and why events continue to fall off the racing calendar. Membership at OBRA is down as well and it seems like everyone has an opinion as to why. Ideas I’ve heard include: the difficulty of getting permits for road closures and a lack of affordable and quality venues; a lack of profit for promoters; people doing their own rides and “competing” via Strava; and so on.

Hahn’s La Boucle avoids some of those hurdles (administrative costs) and embraces others (use of technology). The low overhead allows Hahn to manage the race for a relatively low entry fee of $22. The five-stage Baker City Classic by comparison, costs $140. To help raise money for the prize purse, Hahn has set a GoFundMe campaign. So far he’s raised just $20 of his $2,000 goal. To protect himself from legal claims in the event of a crash or other accident, Hahn will require each official participant to fill out a waiver form.

Here’s more from Hahn’s description of the ride on the Ride With GPS event page:

The idea of this race grew out of the desire to grow Oregon bicycle racing from a grassroots level, to promote the tenets of good bike riding and to satisfy the missing holes in the Oregon race calendar. My intent is to draw riders from all walks of life, to pit them against excellent courses that would otherwise be off-limits and create a renewable system of racing that eases the costly burdens of race promotion.

I will describe this as a race, but it is more akin to a mass start Gran Fondo, open to all and free…

These courses are (for the most part) difficult and long. They are all marked with paint, but it is up to you to know the courses before hand. There are no referees or course marshals, no follow cars and no feed zones; other than those provided by yourself. Riders who break traffic laws aren’t following the tenets of good bike racing, sullying the image of cyclists and creating an unsafe atmosphere for other riders, please don’t be this person.

There will be a roll-out at 10:00 am from the bottom of NW Saltzman Road (off Highway 30) for Saturday’s opening time trial stage. You don’t have to be there to have your time counted and the course will be “open” for a one week period. To vye for prizes however, and to be considered an official participant, you must show up to at least two Saturday starts in the five-week series.

For the full details, view the official Technical Guide (PDF).

Credit to Hahn for trying something new. Do you think it will catch on?

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

BikePortland is supported by the community (that means you!). Please become a subscriber or make a donation today.

A shark ramp (to jump the shark, get it?) was one of the many creative obstacles on the course.
(Photos by Rob Kerr)

The officially unofficial Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships (SSCXWCXPDX) are now nothing more than a memory — or a hangover if you were lucky enoughy to be out there.
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This running-of-the-bulls inspired costume was one of the most creative of the day.
(Photo: J. Maus/BikePortland)

The River City Bicycle Cyclocross Crusade was at an entirely different level over the weekend. With its annual stop in Bend for races number five and six in the eight-race series, it was Oregon cyclocross at its peak. There was creativity, debauchery, inspiration, and fun around every corner.
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Come for the bike race, stay for the costumes (and the party, and the fun people, and the beer…).
(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)

The most anticipated weekend of cyclocross in Oregon is just two days away.

With half of the eight race Cross Crusade series in the books, organizers have a special event in store this year with a few new surprises and an entirely new course. Thousands of competitors and fans from throughout the state are expected to make the pilgrimmage to Bend for the traditional Halloween weekend. As usual, the festivities will be based on and around Deschutes Brewery in Bend’s Old Mill District.

As you get your cowbells, bikes, bodies and costumes ready, here are few things to keep in mind…

The course

There’s an entirely new course this year. It’s got a bit of everything: straight pavement sections, tight trails, and is likely to have some unexpected surprises. Organizers say race sponsor Red Bull is “bringing something very cool,” to the course. We’ll also get to pedal closer to the Deschutes River than ever before as the course winds its way behind the Les Schwab Ampitheater. Oh, and there’s a massive stair run-up that already has people buzzing. Our friends from Deschutes Brewery shared this preview video of it on Instagram on Monday…

A video posted by Deschutes Brewery (@deschutesbeer) on Oct 24, 2016 at 1:46pm PDT

The party

As is tradition, there’s a huge blowout party on Saturday night. This year it’s called “Altercross” and it’s a benefit for Oregon Adaptive Sports. The name is a reference to what organizers describe as, “An immersive alternative reality experience.” “The theme dictates anything can happen,” they continue, “from light, airy, whimsical & fun to dark, scary, creepy & odd… and everything in between!” These parties are known for excellent on-stage entertainment and this year is no different with over a half-dozen acts already lined up.

The headline band is Deltron 3030 an “alt-rap” trio from Oakland, California whose 2000 album, “warped space, bent time, transcended genre and blew minds, creating an album that still stands today as one of the most important records in the annals of underground hiphop.”

In years past this 21-and-over party has had to turn people away, but it’s in a new, larger space this year. Advance tickets are already sold out but plenty will be available at the door for $25. Check out the official event page on the Deschutes website or the Facebook event page for the latest updates.

The scene

If you want to experience true Oregon cyclocross — and arguably one of the best-run ‘cross events in America — you won’t want to miss this weekend. The team vibe is always strong at this event and this year will be no different. You have the best racers in the state, one of the largest race series in the world (in terms of participation) and the silliness and fun of Halloween costumes all over the place (the official costume day is Sunday). And did we mention it all happens on the grounds of one of the 8th largest craft brewer in the U.S.?!

There will also be a cross-country running race thrown into the mix on Saturday afternoon.

If you go the event, look for me and say hi. I’ll be there all weekend to race and soak up the atmosphere and I’ll be spending some time in the Giant Bicycles booth showing off my new bike!

— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org

BikePortland is supported by the community (that means you!). Please become a subscriber or make a donation today.

Quite a backdrop for bike racing.
(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)

The River City Bicycles Cyclocross Crusade headed to the Columbia River Gorge for race #3 in the series with the scenic town of Cascade Locks playing host. With the steep gorge cliffs on one side and the mighty Columbia on the other, hundreds of racers enjoyed an excellent day of racing despite dire storm warnings all over the news.

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The mud in this tricky off-camber downhill section gave even the elite riders a lot to think about on Sunday.
(Photo: Dylan VanWeelden/Pushing Towards Normal)

The River City Bicycles CylcoCross Crusade kicked off in fine fashion this weekend. With a big double-header at Alpenrose Dairy in southwest Portland, we are now in the thick of Portland ‘cross season. And by thick, I mean thick mud.
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A few of the 1,500 images we’ve taken of the Cross Crusade over the past decade. See them all here.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)

This weekend the race series that defines cyclocross in Portland will turn over a new leaf as it launches into its 23rd season. First held in 1993 — before many of its current participants were even born — the River City Bicycles CycloCross Crusade has grown past its adolescent years and is settling into adulthood. The antics the series is known for are by no means coming to an end; but you might notice a slight smoothing of the edges and a shift from partying to professionalism.[Read more…]