Raging Waters

Today a loosely organized group calling themselves "Portland Bike Party" planned to ride to multiple fountains and cool off from the 100 degree temperatures.  They dubbed their ride "Raging Waters".
The group was more mainstream than the Thursday Night Ride that I've been attending.  There wasn't a tall bike to be seen! ;-) While there wasn't the variety of bikes tonight, there was no doubt that these people were bikey.

Bill and Tess were there.

 Tess was on my soggy birthday ride in February.  Today would be soggy as well, but only because we'd be splashing around in fountains.

We pedaled along slowly and given that the fountains would be packed with kids on this very warm evening, we sent an advance party to warn parents that we were on our way.  The kids loved us..... we brought water toys!

Some of us splashed around in the water, some just watched.

After 10-15 minutes we'd ride to the next fountain.

The fountain at the Moda Center was just trickling, likely turned off for the evening.

I took the time to stop as we crossed the Broadway Bridge to get this photo. I knew I could catch back up with the group and didn't want to miss the photo opportunity.

We had one more fountain to visit yet.

The group was going to wrap up at a pizza place, but I said my good byes and rode back to Lloyd Center, where our ride had began, and my pickup was parked.

With the 5 miles I had biked earlier in the day the daily total was 18 miles.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............18..............0...............0...............0.................18
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199
July.................246................0...............0.................0...............246
Total............2036...............0...............26...............0..............2082

It's Thursday

  And time for the Thursday Night Ride!  A local bike shop sponsors a weekly ride on Thursday night.  It's an eclectic mix of fat tired bikes, stretched bikes, single speeds, tall bikes, track bikes, and of course a lot of fixed gear bikes. The ride wouldn't start until 8PM, so I went for a little preride.

It was a warm day, it eventually reached 103.  I just tootled along.

I rested in the shade of a tree and watched crews put up tents for next weekend's Bite of Oregon, and Red Bull will once again be hosting Flugtag as well.

The Tilicum Crossing is getting closer to being open, though still not open for bikes yet.

Before long it was time to make my way back to the Salmon Street Springs, the meeting point for tonight's ride.  I was only there a few minutes before likely candidates began gathering.

By the time was shoved off, we numbered well over 100 strong. All lanes were bike lanes.

Earlier in the day it was announced that we would ride to the St John's Bridge to show support for the #ShellNo protesters.  By the time our ride started the police, coast guard, and fire department had swept the protesters from the scene.  We still rode to Cathedral Park.  As we rode along the bluff the sun set, and the full moon greeted us.

We arrived at Cathedral Park and spent some time on the beach below the arches of the St John's Bridge.

I didn't spend too long there before pedaling back to downtown Portland.

It is pretty bad when my 228 miles for the month ties for the third highest monthly total, and there's still one day of July left!

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............51..............0...............0...............0.................51
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................228................0...............0.................0...............228
Total............2018...............0...............26...............0..............2064

Will park bikes for beer!

  Most years I am a volunteer server at the Oregon Brewer's Festival, thus earning a complimentary event mug and a dozen drink tokens or so.  A few months ago I saw a request for bike parking attendants, who would also earn that same perk.  What the heck, why not?  Dave thought that sounded good too, so he also volunteered.  Today was opening day for the festival, and our shift was from 11:45 AM to 2 PM.  The venue is just over 20 miles away, and with a mid day start and finish, it was a no brainer to ride to the event.   

Things were a bit unorganized there, but we did manage to get quite a few bikes parked, especially considering it was mid day on a work day.

 

After our two hour shift was up, we gathered our event glass (er plastic!) and tokens and went for a stroll around the venue.  We grabbed some lunch from one of the food vendors, then each had a couple of 4 oz tastes. We both had other plans for the afternoon, so we'll have to go back later in the week to use up the rest of our tokens!

Dave had plans in SE Portland, so we parted ways after only a few blocks, as he went east of the Hawthorne Bridge, and I continued south.  I crossed by the entrance ramps to the new Tilicum Crossing.

 

 I was following a website generated route and found myself crossing over I-5 on the Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge directly below the Portland Tram.

 

As I pedaled through the neighborhoods I came across this window sticker that amused me.

 

 

Most of you who know me, know that I consider the whole gluten intolerance thing, despite some people being truly afflicted, as a fad on par with Adkins Diet, low carb, high carb, paleo, low protein, cleansings, etc.  Just pass me a Snickers bar and I'll be fine.  ;-)

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............44..............0...............0...............0.................44
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................177................0...............0.................0...............177
Total............1967...............0...............26...............0..............1993

Race Across Oregon

  I was crew chief for Barry Dickson's Race Across Oregon adventure.  Joining me was Dave S, who has crewed for me for almost all of my ultra races. He's a capable crew member with a disposition that fits well with high stress, low sleep, close quarters situations.

Also joining in the effort was Lauren B, who has crewed for me, raced as my partner in the 2x mixed team "Flying Aquarians" and now crewed with me.  She too is most capable, and is an absolute joy to crew with.

 

 We where there in support of Barry Dickson, who's job it was to ride bike, far and fast!

 

We did our best to supply him with what he needed to keep that bike moving.

 

The crew did well.  Others were not so lucky.  Several other racers had to withdraw from the race with situations that could have been avoided if their crews had done their job.

Barry did well too.  He finished in second place.  Not bad at all considering this was Barry's longest race to date.  He was about 25 miles behind #1, and nearly 30 miles ahead of #3 with the rest of the field behind that.

 

I did manage to get an 8 mile ride in. As we were nearing the finish our vehicle said we had 31 miles worth of fuel left.  We had 35 miles left to go.  Something had to be done.  We didn't want to risk running out of gas.  Barry did not have the route on his Garmin device and there were a lot of turns as we would enter The Dalles. A plan was hatched where I would hop on the spare bike (my carbon bike was brought along as spare) and follow him in, giving him route guidance via the Cardo BK I was wearing.  I was not allowed to lead Barry or ride with him.  I followed along about 300 ft behind and called out turns over the Cardo.  I was not sure I would be able to keep up, he's a fast rider, and even though he had 500 miles of riding already, I was in athletic shoes.......... on Garmin Vector pedals. 

Dave and Lauren made a dash to the nearest gas station and I waited for Barry along the road.  As he rode up, I told him to keep going and that I would follow (hoping all the time that I ACTUALLY COULD!) Barry was peddling in the low 20's but luckily I was able to manage that.  After about 8 miles of pacing him, our support van returned with enough gas to make the finish.  I sprinted ahead of Barry and the crew pulled over and we quickly loaded the bike and got back behind Barry.

Disaster averted!  Some others were not so lucky. Race Across Oregon passes through some very remote country.  What few gas stations we pass are closed at night.  We know of at least one crew that ended up pushing their support vehicle!

As a crew, we were all very proud of our racer.  He rode hard, and placed well.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............8..............0...............0...............0..................8
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................133................0...............0.................0...............133
Total............1923...............0...............26...............0..............1949

Abbreviated

I had planned to go on an evening bike ride with a whole bunch of folks, but alas.

I picked up a rental van for this weekend's Race Across Oregon and thought I'd have it changed over to a support vehicle in 2-3 hours then join the gang.  The wait at the rental facility was long, so I didn't get the van until an hour after I thought I would.  The rack on top was slightly different sized than the one I rented a few weeks ago, so I had to modify my bike rack.  Everything seemed to just take longer than expected.  I sent my regrets to the ride leader and kept toiling away.

I did manage to get 3 miles in earlier in the day as I gathered last minute supplies for the weekend, but did not get the ~20 in the evening.

I'll be crew chief this weekend for Barry Dickson as he competes in Race Across Oregon.  The race starts at 5AM Saturday.

You may be able to get race information at http://overthetop.bike

If you are on Facebook you might try THIS

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............3..............0...............0...............0..................3
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................125................0...............0.................0...............125
Total............1915...............0...............26...............0..............1941

A short ride around SE Portland

I had an appointment in SE Portland today, which worked out perfectly for taking in a short ride with a local bike meetup group.

It was an interesting mix of folks in spandex, most with two bottles on their bike..... for a 16 mile social paced ride.

I was in gym shorts and t-shirt, tennis shoes, and no bottles on the bike.

 The route for today had been posted ahead of time, and I had loaded it on my Garmin. The pace was slow, but I was fine with that and had no need to push on ahead. I stayed near the front of the group.

Here I am as we waited for cross traffic, second from the right, with the small backpack on. 

There were some typically Portland moments.  A gal on a tall bike rode by, a fat tired bike sat parked in front of a coffee shop.  There was even some bike art along our route today.

The group  today was pretty good about stopping at stop signs. At least those in front of me were, I can't speak for those who were behind.  One thing that bothered me, but evidently not those involved, was riding in the door zone.

Why is a door zone bad you ask?
 

                           

We managed to make it through today without mishap.........this time.  We rode along the Willamette River for a short distance.

As we exited the Springwater Trail our route was to make a right turn.  I was in mid pack and noted that the leaders missed the turn.  I had the route on my Garmin........and didn't miss the turn.  I was now just on a bike ride and followed the instructions on my Garmin to the end of today's route.  Without the group around me, I had picked up the pace a bit and finished well before the others arrived and used the time to load my bike and check email. ;-)


Rather than stay for lunch I left for my appointment.   It was a nice day for a ride.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............16..............0...............0...............0.................16
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................122................0...............0.................0...............122
Total............1912...............0...............26...............0..............1938

Breakfast and a short ride around

  A new day, another ride to breakfast, then the long way back.  Two day STP riders were dealing with wetter weather as they pedaled southward.  I only rode 7 miles, but it was dry!

 

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............7..............0...............0...............0..................7
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200 
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July.................106................0...............0.................0...............106
Total............1896...............0...............26...............0..............1922

STP, or otherwise

Today was STP (Seattle to Portland), the 204 mile bicycle classic run by a big bike club based in Seattle.  I've biked it 10 consecutive years, and found no need to repeat this year.  My brother-in-law Dave hasn't quite reached 10 yet, and this year his son Ryan was going to be doing his first STP, so they were in.  I met Ryan and Dave on STP eve in Seattle and shared a burger and beer, and wished them well.

The next morning they were off at the first hint of daylight.
The weather the last 10 days or so has been hot, with what would be a tailwind for STP riders.  But the day before STP the weather cooled a bit, and as one would expect with that change, the winds shifted around to be coming from the south.

With a slight headwind for 200+ miles, and a few drips of rain here and there, many found it was more than they bargained for.  Dave has experience riding long miles, Ryan would benefit from youth, and an experienced guide.

Congratulations to Ryan for his first one day STP, and to Dave for yet another one day STP.

While they were riding 204 miles, I rode about 1/100th of their effort.  After a ride to breakfast at the Queen Ann Cafe, my odometer showed 2.05 miles.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............2..............0...............0...............0..................2
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July..................99................0...............0.................0...............99
Total............1889...............0...............26...............0..............1915

A night ride

I got 7 miles worth of errands today then loaded the fixie up and went to Portland for a night ride.  I arrived a bit early so I just rode around the waterfront taking in the sights.

It was finally time to go to the Salmon Street Springs, the meeting point for tonight's ride.

                                                            And the fun begins! 

My fixie, normally the most out there bike on a group ride, was one of the more conservative rides tonight.  Stretched bikes, tall bikes, fatty bikes, mini-tall bikes, tall bike fixies, all sort of customized bikes.

There ended up being just over 100 folks. 

We shoved off close to 8PM, 30 minutes later than the advertised time.  We were a large group and commanded the lane, and in most cases ALL the lanes.  After 90 minutes of riding the group stopped at a convenience store.  A few snacks were procured, and more than a few cans of adult beverages. 

We headed out again and this time we were on more open streets and picked the pace up a bit.  The group strung out.

We'd regroup at traffic signals from time to time.

The leader took us south along the Springwater Trail.  When we got to Oaks Bottom we went trail riding and ended up on a secluded beach.  Ah, so that is what everybody was buying beverages and snacks for!  A few folks couldn't resist the river right there, and the cover of darkness.  Swimming looked a bit too cold for me.

I left after a short time.  It looked like the rest were going to be there awhile and I've got plans for the morning.

It was a nice ride back.

Too bad I didn't have my camera with me, the phone's camera really shows its limitations when it's dark.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............33..............0...............0...............0..................33
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200 
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July..................97................0...............0.................0...............97
Total............1887...............0...............26...............0..............1913

Berries!

The winter was mild, the spring was warm and dry, and now the summer is early!  My friend Kay and I rode out the Springwater Corridor today from Oaks Park to Gresham.  At our turn around point there were a large number of wild Himalaya "black" Berry  bushes.  Surprisingly, there were a lot of ripe berrys.  We had no problem finding enough ripe fruit to get our tummy's full!  With all the yellow grass and ripe berries (and farmers harvesting wheat and grass seed!) it looks more like late July-early August out there than early July. 

Kay told me that she stopped a bike thief in the act a few days ago.  She was in an exercise class and had locked her bike with a cable lock in front of the building.  Luckily the front of the building is glass windows.  The class had their backs to the windows, but the teacher was facing the windows. 

During the routine, the teacher says "hey Kay, is that your bike out front?  I think someone is trying to steal it!"

Kay is a very fit older woman.  She bolted outside.  She laughs as she tells me that one of the guys in the class followed her toward the door, thinking it was part of the routine!  She confronts the bad guy with a "hey, that's MY bike".  The guy had already clipped the cable but left the bike and took off on a dead run.  I'm glad that she thwarted the would be thief.  It is a good reminder that cable locks aren't really worth the money you pay for them.  With just a small pliers sized tool even a heavy cable can be clipped in one swift movement, just like cutting a wire with a wire cutter.  If you value your bike, use a good quality U-lock, and never lock your bike where you can't see it.


.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............26..............0...............0...............0..................26
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200 
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July..................64................0...............0.................0...............64
Total............1854...............0...............26...............0..............1880

A beautiful day in the neighborhood

Mr Rodgers had it right.  It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood.  I had a busy day full of duties, but did manage to get on the fixed gear bike for a lunch run.

.........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............6..............0...............0...............0..................6
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200 
June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199 July..................38................0...............0.................0...............38
Total............1828...............0...............26...............0..............1854

Chocolate Centers

I had planned to join a group for a short ride in Washington County today.  It was predicted to be warm.  There was some discussion in the days leading up to the ride that the start time should be moved up a bit, in an effort to beat the heat.  That sentiment was being offset by those that planned a late night out the night before with Independence Day fireworks celebrations.  Eventually those who had self described "chocolate centers" won out and the starting time was moved up to 8AM in Hillsboro. 

It was a fun ride. I again took the fixed gear bike.  The group of 30 riders broke in 3 groups based on expected speed on the road.  I figured I could keep up with the 15-16 mph group, so rode with them.

It was fun.

I hope too many of those chocolate centered folks didn't melt, because I don't think we beat the heat too much.  Sure, it will be warmer as the day goes on, but after our ride we met for lunch.  As we finished lunch and headed toward home it was 87 degrees.  Warm enough to soften chocolate!

 

 .........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today............31..............0...............4...............0..................31
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200   June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199
July..................32................0...............0.................0...............32
Total............1823...............0...............26...............0..............1848

Small Town Americana

Independence Day, a day to celebrate many things, including small town traditions.  Like many communities the one I live in celebrates the day with a parade.  Not one of your big productions with corporately sponsored floats and marching bands.  This one was neighborhood kids on bike, trikes, and scooters, being led around the residential neighborhood by a fire truck.

Like the Pied Piper, the big red piece of fire apparatus led about 125 kids and parents around. It looked like way too much fun, so before long an old guy on a fixed gear bike joined the entourage.

Following the parade I biked to lunch.

 
 .........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............6..............0...............4...............0...................6
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200   June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199
July..................32................0...............0.................0...............32
Total............1823...............0...............26...............0..............1848

A new month

 Today I did the reverse of my last ride.  I road down Queen Ann hill in Seattle, loaded my bike on a bus and traveled to Portland, then road from Portland back to Wilsonville.  I failed to mention that on the ride TO Seattle a few days ago I was nearly right hooked by a mom in an SUV in Seattle. We missed by less than 2 feet.  Today I nearly collided with a bus that pulled out in front of me.  I was traveling in the middle of the right lane of two on Cedar Street in Seattle.  As Cedar crosses Third Ave there is a 4 way stop intersection. Third has two travel lanes each direction. When it was my turn to cross I started out, but as I approached a bus that had pulled up to the stop line in the far right lane, he pulled out. I was probably 6-8 ft away as he pulled out.  I was on the fixie, but managed to get stopped with about a foot to spare.  It was a warm day and the driver had his window open, so he had no problem hearing me vocalize my displeasure with his actions.  He looked out the window (wish he would have done that BEFORE he pulled out!) and said "sorry", before continuing on his way.

On another note, I knew that I was 1 mile short of a 200 mile month in June when I finished my ride up to Seattle a few days ago.  I've been busy with Race Across Oregon details, but figured I'd have no problem getting that 1 mile, and then some, as I'd ride home.  I didn't realize until 3AM that June had ended and it was now July.  Oh well, it's not like I was getting any prizes for getting a 200 mile month.

 .........road bike..........rollers.........mtb..........lifecycle.......total
  Today.............26..............0...............4...............0...................26
 Jan...............765...............0...............0...............0...............765
Feb................248...............0...............0...............0................248
March...........183.................0................0..............0................183
April..............228...............0................0...............0 ................228
May................200................0...............0...............0.................200   June................199.................0..............26...............0.................199
July..................26................0...............0.................0...............26
Total............1817...............0...............26...............0..............1842