Report: Bike n Boggle

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Reported by Carye:
6/23

Click here for photos

10 bike riders, 25 – 30? at ACME

The ride that started with a beer and ended with third place & a flat.

About 10 people showed up at Portland Mercury HQ (NE 22nd near Sandy) for the bike ride that took us on an odd route past the cemetery, and through a field, and down a hill to ACME in inner SE.

At the HQ we were immediately handed a PBR to get the party started. Zach from the Mercury was to lead the ride – When we got to the field which was Colonel Summers Park, Zach jumped the curb with his bike. A moment of confusion for most of us followed, about whether we should jump the curb too. I made a lame attempt.

At Acme, us hungry bikers headed straight for the spread of party food – we were told there would be appetizers. Soon after sitting down with our food, we were told that wasn’t Mercury’s food but we took it from the Reunion party. Oops. we ate it anyhow.

Then the games began. Four to five to a table. 7 or 8 boggle games. Justin Sanders of the Mercury reading the rules. We played 4 rounds of Boggle. The four top scoring players moved to the final round to compete for a beautiful engraved boggle trophy & air guitar. Also Kudos to the Mercury for making very snazzy Boggle score cards.

Report: Happy Hours for Cyclists

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Reported by Amy:
6/16 and 6/23

While it’s hard to get a very good count, empty cups and anecdotal evidence reveal the following approximate count for the two Happy Hour events:

  • Stoppers and snackers: 50-60 each day
  • Gallons of liquids consumed: 4-5 each day
  • Thank yous and waves: 100s
  • “Get the %^&$ out of my way”s: 6-8
  • Wigs worn by event volunteers: 4
  • City council members stopping by: 1 (Randy Leonard)

Thanks to Jay Graves from Bike Gallery for providing Shifty Lube service on the Steel bridge esplanade, to Jeff B & helper for distributing lights on the Hawthorne, to Robert, Carie & Cody for transport help, and to Sang, Eli, Traveling Dan, Carye and Jeff on the tallbike for helping transport and serve!

Too much Bike Fun!

Critical Mass - Portland
Ahearne Cycles
Mt. Tabor Circuit Race
Multnomah County Bike Fair

I don’t even know where to begin. I’ve done tons of great bike stuff in the last few days. And, there’s some really great things on the horizon. OK, a quick recap:

A benefit showing of “The Tour Baby” at the Bagdad Theater last week saw about 700 people over the two nights. Total raised for the Lance Armstrong Foundation = $14,371! If you missed the screening you can still buy the DVD here.

Friday’s Critical Mass Ride was a great success. Lots of cop and bike love, a huuuge turnout (I counted 230 people) and an emotional speech by friends and family of Noah Cardamon (who was recently killed by a motorist while cycling). Before the ride, I met with Jim Sayer, the new Executive Director of the Adventure Cycling Association.
Click here for a slide show of the Critical Mass ride.

Last Wednesday, I met another member of Portland’s emerging bicycle industry; framebuilder Joseph Ahearne. He makes solid, custom cargo racks and frames with interesting features. His fledgling company is called Ahearne Cycles and he is known in the bike world for his custom flask holder. Yes, it’s like a water bottle cage…but custom made to fit a flask of your favorite libation.

Today (Sunday) I was lucky enough to be a volunteer at the 53rd annual Mt. Tabor Circuit Race. What a great venue for bike racing! I got to hang out and take pictures of the racers and I even took a few laps of the course in the official pace car with Portland bike racing legend, David Auker. Lots of fun, and these racers really inspire me to get my butt out and start riding more!
Check out my Mt. Tabor Circuit Race photos.

By far, the most amazing event of the summer was the Multnomah County Bike Fair on Saturday. I’ve never seen so much bike fun in one place. All the usual suspects were on hand for perfect weather and all sorts of cool, bike-related activities, competitions, crafts, etc… Best part of the day was an astounding performance by The Sprockettes. They’re a group of hot chicks on pink bikes that dance, sing and ride like no one you’ve ever seen…and they got a huge standing ovation for their performance. Sprockettes rule.

At one point during the fair, 500 bikes were counted in the park and it’s being said that that is a record for bike attendance at an event. That’s awesome.
Check out my Bike Fair photo gallery.

Report: Atomic War Preparedness Ride

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Reported by Shawn Granton:
Ride date: June 23

Figures:

  • total riders: 50
  • riders all the way up Kelly Butte: most of that 50
  • riders all the way to Chez Bernard for the movies: about 20
  • men in dresses: 1
  • tall bikes: 3? 4?
  • gas masks: a few
  • hazmat suits: 2
  • authentic Civil Defense hats: 1
  • confused civilians: many
  • buttes climbed: one
  • wrong turns: one (sorry!)
  • bike collisions: one
  • total length of ride: 4 1/2 hours

For a full report visit the Urban Adventure League Blog!

Report: Eastside Theater History Ride

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

From Shawn’s Urban Adventure League Blog
Wed 22 June 2005

While the weather wasn’t perfect for this Urban Adventure League ride (there was the imminent threat of rain for most of the ride’s duration, and it actually DID rain for a moment), it didn’t deter seventeen people from showing up at the starting point of Ladd’s Circle at 6:30pm for this unique tour. Introductions were given, the zine for the ride handed out, and the bicycle ride headed south-eastward on Ladd Av towards the first destination, the Clinton Street Theater. I gave a brief history of the theater, and the crowd gawked at the new addition to the cinema–Portland’s smallest brewpub (as of this week!)…

Click here to watch Clarence Eckerson’s movie of the ride!
Click here to continue reading the full report!

Memorial Ride Tonight

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Tonight’s Critical Mass will be a special memorial ride for cyclists killed by cars on the streets of Portland.

If you ride a bike and you want to show your support, please consider joining us on this ride. Their will be several stops along the route (PDF of route) where we will hear from friends and families of the fallen. Permits have been granted for these stops so there is no fear of problems with the cops.

I hope to see you out there.

Meet at 5:45, ride at 6:00
North Park Blocks off of Burnside

Report: Gorge Ride

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Gorge Ride – 6/22/05

Reported by Kiran:

Brief showers did not keep 5 intrepid riders from MAXing to Gresham and riding to the Vista House on the Historic Columbia River Hwy (The easternmost point of Pedalpalooza).

Photos by Dat:
http://homepage.mac.com/datn/PhotoAlbum66.html

Stats:
Top Speed-39mph
Detours-1
HelmetCams-1
Muddy pints of $3 strawberries-2
Espresso Drinks-3
Flats-1
MAX trains-3
Buses-2 (flat recovery)

After caffeination in Troutdale the sun came out and riders who still had air in their tires opted for the extended return to Portland via marine drive.

Local biker chronicles his commute

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward


Local commuter John Beaston loves his commute and his city. Over the past year, he has ridden his bike to work 99 times, and snapped a photo of the same spot each time.

He shared his just finished photo gallery, “A year of morning commute pictures” with me the other day and I thought I would pass it on to you guys.

Here are some comments from John about the photos:

“99 days” represents how many times I actually managed to bike commute over the last year. After moving to NPDX I’d been commuting the route (NPDX to Beaverton) for a few months and I remember thinking one day about how beautiful the river is no matter what the weather and what a wonderful job Portland has done to celebrate it downtown. I was struck by how it changes from day to day and season to season. I’ve always loved time-lapse photography and I guess I was inspired by the “A Year in the Life of….” books and websites. I decided to give it a shot and see what came out of it.”

I think it’s a beautiful statement on bikes and our city. I’m glad you’ve taken the time to put this together and If I had the connections and/or money, I’d help you with that book deal!

Oregon MTB Groups Release Mt. Hood Proposal

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

In an effort to retain access for mountain bikes in the backcountry, the Oregon Mountain Bike Alliance (ORMBA) and the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) have teamed up on an innovative plan that suggests new ways to look at “wilderness” designations in Mt. Hood National Forest.

At issue here is how the Feds define “wilderness”. The fear for mountain bikers is that the current definition excludes mountain bikes completely from all “wilderness” areas. If the Feds expand the wilderness boundaries, it means less places to ride. Therefore, this new plan is a huge development because it is an effort to revise how the Feds define wilderness areas. If successful, this plan might influence other decisions happening all over the country.

At stake is the sport of mountain biking itself. If they’re completely excluded from large backcountry areas where they’re currently allowed, it would have a severe effect on the health of the sport, tourism, and the cycling economy in the region.

But it’s not a matter of saving the economy. I think preserving wild areas are much more important that the health of the economy(!). However, I do think that there is a misperception of the effects responsible mountain bikers have on the trails. When ridden properly, bikes can co-exist peacefully with other trail users.

…but it all starts with a plan and I’m excited by the great work ORMBA and IMBA have put into this. Stay tuned for more developments.

Here’s a summary of the proposal.

A map detailing how the proposed designations for Mount Hood might be administered can be downloaded from IMBA’s web site.

Report: Bike to Tennis Ride

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Reported by Carye:

Bike To Tennis, Monday the 20th, 6:15 – 8:30 pm

8 bicyclists (3 men, 5 women) = 4 teams of doubles on two courts at Sellwood Park (We had the competive side – whoa Sara Stout sure can whoop it up with the fellas – and the not so competive side — Isn’t a cute white skirt enough? Joanna, where on earth are you putting those balls?)

Perfect warm sunny Summer evening, lovely ride on the East Esplande from Hawthorne Bridge to Springwater Corridor to Sellwood Park. After game drinks at Red & Black.

Cutest on the Court goes to Joanna Dyer. Meow!

Cutest Accesory: Sponge Bob Squarepants wrist band. Thanks Elicia

Worst Player goes to Carye Bye, that’s me, who had plently of time to practice for her event, but did not.

4 out of 8 were new to PP/Shift events. Hooray!

Photos soon I hope!

-Carye

Latest Headlines

Concrete curbs in South Tabor neighborhood aim to tame drivers’ donuts

Guest Opinion: How a bicycle led me to Mayor Wilson’s office

Oregon Senator will withdraw bill that sought to ban e-bikes from bike lanes

Thursday night: Bike travel tales return to Migration Brewing

From the Archives

Guest essay: A plan for a ‘passoire’-filled Portland