Ride Along

Ride Along is our popular feature where we join people from across the Portland region for their ride into work. In the process, we gain a better understanding of who’s riding and what type of conditions they face.

We’re looking for a new sponsor of this popular series. Please let your boss or manager know about this great opportunity. If you’re interested in working with us, please contact our sales manager Jonathan Maus at jonathan@bikeportland.org or (503) 706-8804.

Check out previous Ride Alongs via the links below…

Ride Along with Ben Sanders: Vancouver to Lake Oswego

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

This is Ben Sanders. He commutes to work 20 miles from Vancouver to Lake Oswego.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

This post was made possible by Portland Design Works, a local company that designs beautiful and functional parts and accessories for everyday cycling. Ben is one of three winners of our Ride Along Contest we held last March.

A 20-mile pre-dawn bicycle commute might sound horrible to some people; but if anyone can enjoy such a long haul it’s Vancouver resident Ben Sanders.

Kimberlee Chambers crossing SE 122nd and Halsey.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

— This post was made possible by Portland Design Works, a local company that designs beautiful and functional parts and accessories for everyday cycling. Kimberlee is one of three winners of our Ride Along Contest held last March.

From neighborhood highways to neighborhood greenways, from bike paths that double as both wildlife corridors and homes to families with nowhere else to go, Kimberlee Chambers’ 12-mile work commute offers a stunning diversity of riding experiences.

Ben and Kate Cogdill outside her preschool in northwest Portland.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)

— This post was made possible by Portland Design Works, a local company that designs beautiful and functional parts and accessories for everyday cycling. Ben Cogdill is one of three winners of our Ride Along Contest that will be featured in the coming months.

In many ways Ben, Jenica and Kate Cogdill are a typical Portland family. But when it comes to getting around, they’re a rare breed. The Cogdills live and work downtown and bicycles suffice as their family vehicle. While Portland’s inner neighborhoods have some of highest rates of family biking anywhere, it’s uncommon to see kid-toting parents amid the hustle and bustle of the central city.

We’re excited to announce the winners of our Ride Along contest!

We’re excited to announce a new partnership with Portland Designs Works. And we’re kicking it off with a contest that will win three lucky readers $300 worth of PDW gear.

This fantastic local company first sprung into our hearts back in 2009 and has really hit their stride in the last few years thanks to a line of smartly designed products, creative spirit and authentic commitment to our community.

Now, PDW has stepped up to be the official sponsor of our Ride Along series! That’s the regular feature we’ve been doing for just over three years now where I meet up with a reader at their house and join them for their ride into work. Along the way, we get to know the person and we see their ride — the good, the bad, and the ugly parts — from their perspective.

Ali Reis, on SW Broadway en route to her job just east of Raleigh Hills.
(Photos by J. Maus/BikePortland)

This post is part of our SW Portland Week.

Ready to rock.

Alexandra Reis (she goes by “Ali”), a 30 year-old social worker who lives in north Portland’s Overlook neighborhood, is one tough cookie. She earned her urban cycling stripes on the streets of Brooklyn and Manhattan while going to graduate school at New York University. Now she’s putting her street smarts to use on her 11-mile daily commute to the outer limits of southwest Portland.

This post is part of our special focus on east Portland this week.

Not every bike trip east of I-205 is terrible. In fact, parts of Kathleen McDade’s daily commute from Gateway to Ventura Park are downright pleasant. But as is often the case here in east Portland, it’s the crossings of major arterials that really make her nervous.

Ben, Liam and Campbell McLeod roll out of their driveway in Sellwood on their way to school this morning.
(Photos J. Maus/BikePortland)

This morning I joined Ben McLeod and his two sons, Liam (9) and Campbell (7) for their ride to school. They live in Sellwood, just a few blocks east of Sellwood Park, and the boys go to Cedarwood School in Lair Hill. The trip is just about four miles and it includes some of the best and worst biking conditions that Portland has to offer.

Welcome to the latest installment of our Ride Along series, which is sponsored by MetroMile.

Prepare to be envious of Paul Cole’s commute. This 29-year-old northwest Portland resident has a commute that’s only about 1.5 miles, most of it on relatively low-stress streets, and he also gets to ride over the Willamette River every day.

Cole, who works in marketing for a software firm, lives in an apartment in Old Town at NW 5th and Everett. He moved to Portland from St. Augustine Florida in 2007 and hadn’t ridden a bike since childhood when he moved here. One day he stumbled into Bike Gallery during one of their big sales and bought a bike. “I was kind of nervous at first,” he recalled, as he packed his panniers and got ready for work (he stores his bike in his apartment).

Welcome to the latest installment of our Ride Along series, which is sponsored by MetroMile.

Last week I joined Stasia Honnold for her morning commute. Stasia, 29, lives just a block south of SE Division near 40th and she rides up to the Oregon Zoo each day where she works in the Zoo’s education programs. It’s about an eight-mile trip each way, and unlike many commuters that head up and over the West Hills, Stasia rides up through Washington Park instead of hopping on light rail.

Ride Along

Ride Along with Ben Sanders: Vancouver to Lake Oswego

Ride Along with Kimberlee Chambers: Gresham to inner southeast Portland

Ride Along with Ben and Kate Cogdill: Downtown streets and secret paths

Meet the three winners of our Ride Along contest

Announcing our Ride Along with Portland Design Works contest

Ride Along with Ali Reis: Overlook to Raleigh Hills

Ride Along with Kathleen McDade: Gateway to Ventura Park

Ride Along with the McLeod Family: Sellwood to Lair Hill

Riding Along with Branden Shelby: Vancouver to Portland

Riding along with Paul Cole: Short but sweet in the city

Riding along with Stasia Honnold: Clinton bikeway to the Oregon Zoo

Riding Along with Julie Kramer from Lloyd Center to Sellwood

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