A rainy day in Seattle, no surprise there

The plan was for a few of us Oregonians to take a 38 mile bike tour of some of the sights in Seattle.  The weather forecast was for highs in the upper 50's and partly cloudy.

Instead as we pedaled out at 10 AM, it was cool and damp.   It got damper as we went.  By 7 miles into our ride it was 48 and raining.

While we are Oregonians, and have gear to make this comfortable, we didn't expect this, and were not as prepared for the wet and cool weather.

We rolled down 3rd Ave N and made the turn toward Golden Gardens Park.

Mike giving us his "I am wet and cold" look.

We paused ever so briefly at Golden Gardens, and in the interest of staying warm we pedaled back toward Hiram Chittenden Locks.

We arrived at the locks and spent some time watching vessels make passage.

Jan's photo

We visited the fish ladder viewing room, as much to see the fish as to enjoy the heated space.

It was finally time to continue on.  Cyclists must walk their bikes in this federal facility.

We rode up toward Discovery Park.  The plan was to skirt the park and ride around Magnolia then out to Alki, but Mike especially was cold.  The girls weren't doing much better.   As we approached Discovery Park we decided to ride through the historic area, then weigh our options.

It was decided that as a group it was about as much fun as we could handle.  We would cut out the ride to Alki.   We rode along the Elliot Bay Trail for a short distance.

We turned around at the "Man-Boy Love Fountain"

We turned around and rode back to Queen Ann and rode up via the Kralik Way. Being Oregonians, and accustomed to decent pavement for the most part, one of our riders was surprised by the gaping expansion joints and large divots.  She learned her lesson quickly by taking a tumble when her bike wheel got caught in an expansion joint. Luckily she wasn't injured and her bike was fine.

With the 480 ft climb, Mike was warm for the first time today.  We took advantage of his comfort to ride a quarter mile to an overlook where we could catch a peek at the Space Needle.

We ended up with about 9 miles less than planned and completely missed Alki Beach.
There will be other days.

.......Road bike........Rollers.......MTB.......Lifecycle....Total
Today.......29...............0..............0..............0.............29
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...............225
July..........246...........0...............0.............0...............246
August.....502...........0...............0.............0...............502
Sept..........974...........0..............44............0..............1018
Oct...........899............0...............0.............0...............899
Total........4296.........0...............70............0..............4366

Another night ride

For the second night in a row I was riding with lights on.

The weather was perfect as 5 of us pedaled out from OHSU.  Jan and I had already logged just over 4 miles with a commute in from Sellwood.

We made our way across the Tilikum Bridge and northward on the Eastbank Esplanade, then up Williams.  We were right in the heavy flow of commuters.

(having trouble with formatting tonight.   Photos #3 and #7 credit to Jan.  It is late tonight and I'll see if I can straighten out the formatting tomorrow)

Somewhere here I must have bumped some button on the camera because the next several photos had a fisheye effect.

As we pedaled along Portsmouth St, about 13 miles into tonight's ride, Sara ran over something in the road and her rear tire went flat.  For the second night in a row someone in this group had a flat!  Once again there was plenty of supervision.

The flat was fixed and we were soon back on our way.  We crossed back over I-5 and turned back south.

When we got back near Moda Center Gray said his goodbyes and peeled off toward home.  The 4 of us remaining took a tour of Portland's waterfront.  It was a very nice night.

We crossed back over the Willamette River on the Hawthorne Bridge. We puttered around at the Salmon Street Springs for a bit.

We had just a short distance to ride before stopping for some carbo replenishment.

Mike and Sara were at the end of their ride, but Jan and I had a few more miles of fun in front of us yet.  As we pedaled along the Springwater Trail I told Jan that I had seen deer the last two nights near Ross Island.  Sure enough, as we came around the curve, there was a doe and 3 fawns halfway on the trail!  I couldn't find the flash control on my camera in the dark but the deer were still there as I turned my bike around and directed the headlight in their direction.  The photo didn't really turn out, but if you squint your eyes while standing on one foot and swirling a rabbit's foot around your head, you can make out a deer. They are after all masters of hiding.

When we got back to Sellwood, Jan and I commented on how nice the weather was.  I suggested bonus miles, she suggested that it was time to go home!   She loaded her bike, I pedaled mine!  I rode out the Springwater Trail until I got to Cartlandia, then turned around and came back.  It was a perfect night for a ride, but it was late.

.......Road bike........Rollers.......MTB.......Lifecycle....Total
Today.......39...............0..............0..............0.............39
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...............225
July..........246...........0...............0.............0...............246
August.....502...........0...............0.............0...............502
Sept..........974...........0..............44............0..............1018
Oct...........870............0...............0.............0...............870
Total........4267.........0...............70............0..............4337

A little night ride

Portland was once home to an event called "The Night Ride" where a thousand or more folks would pay to come out in the dark and ride (and a few hundred more would just skip the paying part and still ride). It was more about costumes and party than a ride.

Portland is also (in)famous for having the best attended edition of the World Naked Bike Ride.  Over 10,000 Oregonians (okay, and quite a few out of staters too!) take off their clothes and take to the streets.

It is officially a protest about oil dependency and highlighting cyclist's vulnerability. For a good number of participants, it is just a good excuse to ride around naked without getting in trouble.

Our ride tonight would be neither of these, but just a ride that happened to be after the sun set.

Neil was the ride organizer and he picked the Oregon Public House in north Portland as his starting point.  I started in Sellwood and rode the fixie to the ride.

Alan also joined us.   Alan and I had both arrived a bit early.  Neil walked up just a few minutes before we were to start.  He had a flat tire as he was riding to join us.  It took a few minutes to get the tube replaced, mostly because of excellent supervision.

Alan's photo

Just as the sun was setting we shoved off.
As we rode along the bluff over Swan Island we stopped for a photo.

Of all nights to leave the camera home   ;-(

Luckily Alan had his camera!

Neil was the only one to know tonight's route, so Alan and I just followed along.

There was very clear air tonight and the view along the waterfront was great.  My cell phone's camera doesn't do it justice.

Alan had biked hard yesterday and was feeling it a bit.  As we pedaled near the Moda Center he bid us goodnight and took leave.  Neil and I continued on northward "enjoying" a crazy ride up Williams Ave.  There seemed to be an abundance of cars turning and parking, and pedestrians crossing.  There were a few bikes out as well, and I was riding with a young woman who was on her way home from work.  We visited a bit about the craziness of tonight's ride up that stretch of street.  Neil and been dropped at a light, but had caught back up. Williams Ave is slightly uphill, and Neil was pleased that he was able to catch me.  I guess if I knew that it was a race..................  ;-)

Neil and I arrived back at the start/finish.  We each went our separate ways, him home, and me back down to Sellwood.

It was a great night to be out for a pedal.............  even if we did keep our clothes on!

.......Road bike........Rollers.......MTB.......Lifecycle....Total
Today.......45...............0..............0..............0.............45
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...............225
July..........246...........0...............0.............0...............246
August.....502...........0...............0.............0...............502
Sept..........974...........0..............44............0..............1018
Oct...........831............0...............0.............0...............831
Total........4228.........0...............70............0..............4298

In Search of the 2016 Race Across Oregon

I did ride my bike some today.

But it was for less than a mile.   Most of the day was spent scouting the 2016 Race Across Oregon route.  I wanted to drive the section that I could not use "street view" on.  I also needed to secure 24 hour gasoline availability.  This year I hope to have the time to have all the bugs worked out, unlike last year.  So far so good.

If you are a Facebook friend of mine you can see more of the photos from today's trip HERE.

2016 RAO, not yet final

.......Road bike........Rollers.......MTB.......Lifecycle....Total
Today........0...............0..............0..............0..............0
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...............225
July..........246...........0...............0.............0...............246
August.....502...........0...............0.............0...............502
Sept..........974...........0..............44............0..............1018
Oct...........786............0...............0.............0...............786
Total........4183.........0...............70............0..............4253

Another "Boring" ride

I joined a group of folks riding to Boring today via the Springwater Trail.  It had rained overnight, but the weather looked promising as I left home.  I left the rainbike home and took the fixed gear bike.  I did bring a rainjacket and put a clip on rear fender on the bike.  As it ended up I needed neither.  We never had so much as a single drop of rain all day, and the path was dry. As I often do for Portland rides, I started from Sellwood Riverfront Park, today riding 4 miles to the meeting point.

There were 16 signed up to ride, but the rain overnight scared quite a few away.  We pedaled out with 10 of us. 

Jan W photo

The group quickly broke into two groups, the faster folks riding away from the slower group.  The group organizer and I pedaled along with those taking a more leisurely pace.

We were having way too much fun on bikes.  Impromptu drag races, annoying goose calls, and general chatter ensued most of the day. When it comes to contests of speed, I'm at a disadvantage on the fixed gear. My top speed with the 42x18 gearing is about 24 mph  (a 135 cadence) but it was still fun trying!

We arrived at the end of the trail, in Boring.  We found the fast folks waiting.

After a short break, and a few photos.....

Picture #1 for Mark H's benefit

Picture #2 for Mark H's benefit!

The way back to the Willamette River is slightly downhill, and even the slower group picked up the speed a bit.

A few weeks ago I was riding the Springwater Trail and saw Lisa, a fellow RAHOOer (Ride Around Mt Hood), yesterday I saw Monica and Dean.  Today I saw Joe, and a few miles later Monica and Dean again.  It seems that when these folks aren't riding around Mt Hood, they are riding Springwater!

We arrived back at the bakery where we started and we all enjoyed a late lunch.

Following lunch we began talking about the current nice weather, and the fact that in the very near future we'll be longing for days like this as the rain falls and winds howl.  4 of us decided to go for a few bonus miles.  We rode back across the Tilikum Bridge............

Then turned north along the Eastbank Esplanade.

We crossed back over the Willamette River via the Steel Bridge, then worked our way back south via the Waterfront Park trail.  We had been talking about the Thursday Night Ride so when we got to it's starting point we had to stop.

Jan W photo

We rolled out again, continuing our way south.

We approached the Tilikum Bridge again and got to check out the new connection infrastructure.

We arrived back at the bakery, and we disbanded.  On my pedal back to Sellwood I came across the Portland Mural Ride, where over 100 people on bikes were being led around various sites that had large murals and given a talk about the artists.

The tour ended and I made my way back to Sellwood Riverfront Park.  My odometer showed 58.5 miles.  I turned up Umatilla Street rather than into the park.  I rode out a few blocks then moved north a few blocks, then back to Sellwood Riverfront Park.  

60.02 miles complete!  

It was a good day on the bike.  The slower pace left me feeling fresh.  The little races and the commute to and from the start were good "interval training", and 60 "base miles" is nothing to scoff at.

Those who stayed home today for fear of raindrops missed a superb ride.

.......Road bike........Rollers.......MTB.......Lifecycle....Total
Today.......60...............0..............0..............0.............60
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...............225
July..........246...........0...............0.............0...............246
August.....502...........0...............0.............0...............502
Sept..........974...........0..............44............0..............1018
Oct...........786............0...............0.............0...............786
Total........4183.........0...............70............0..............4253