Photo by Jim Moore

In January 2012, the number of official Oregon Scenic Bikeways expanded to eight, with the addition of the Twin Bridges Scenic Bikeway (shown in photo above) starting in Bend and the Covered Bridges Scenic Bikeway, starting in Cottage Grove (shown in photo below).

The Twin Bridges Scenic Bikeway shows off the rugged beauty of Central Oregon, starting in picturesque Drake Park in downtown Bend and extending out through rimrock canyons and high-desert range lands, with multiple crossings of the Deschutes River along the way. It’s a great one-day ride for anyone who wants a taste of Central Oregon riding.

Photo by Greg Lee

The Covered Bridges Scenic Bikeway spotlights Lane County’s collection of covered bridges – the most of any county west of the Mississippi – as well as scenic Dorena Lake and its smooth and wide Row River Trail. The trail is a rails-to-trails conversion, and with its relatively flat profile and separation from auto traffic, it offers a great opportunity for riders of all ages and abilities to take a spin through both history and breathtaking scenery, starting from the historic downtown of Cottage Grove.

Oregon’s groundbreaking Scenic Bikeways program is the nation’s first – designating the state’s best riding routes, nominated by local proponent groups and providing detailed maps, cue sheets and route signage so that visitors and residents alike can find and enjoy our finest cycling experiences.

For a complete listing of Oregon’s Scenic Bikeways, start here. For more information on the Scenic Bikeway program, check out this page.

Photo by Russ Roca

If you want a realistic, on-the-ground perspective of riding a bike in Oregon, you couldn’t do much better than talking to Russ Roca and Laura Crawford. As part of a grand experiment they call The Path Less Pedaled, Russ and Laura have been combining multiple forms of “alternate” transportation (bikes, trains, buses) to tour the country as modern-day explorers.

Their website explains it: The Path Less Pedaled is an open-ended bicycle tour – and an exploration of what it means to live outside the lines. In March 2009, Laura Crawford and Russ Roca made the decision to drop out of the status quo and find something new in an open-ended journey.

And they’ve spent a significant portion of their time in Oregon; they describe the magnetic of attraction of Portland this way, but based on their tales of life on our roads, it could apply to Oregon as a whole: “We always seem to be drawn back here. There are so many things about it that we love, like bikes, beer, food and especially our group of bikey friends.”

We caught up with them a few months back to talk about what they’ve learned about biking, Oregon, and why Eastern Oregon is their idea of touring paradise.

Photo by Russ Roca

We started by asking an obvious question: Since not very many people can afford – in money or time – to take extended periods away from their jobs, homes, etc., how can others experience the same kind of freedom Russ and Laura do?

“Part of the reason for this trip is to say, sure, taking three months off is a great advantage – but if you only have a three-day weekend, you can still go out and have an adventure,” Laura says. “Because you’re pedaling, putting in the effort; you’re so alive, and it’s not uncommon for one day to feel like three days – a weekend can feel like a week away. And adding train travel to it allows you to hop on a train and go somewhere else to ride. It makes touring more affordable and accessible – it’s a good way to start.”

One of the reasons Russ and Laura have enjoyed Oregon so much is that they recognize it for the bike-friendly place it is – and not just in Portland.

“Oregon has a head start in terms of bike tourism compared to other states,” Russ explains. “Even in the small towns, the people seem accustomed to seeing bikes; our experiences were very pleasant. I think part of that has to do with the outreach Cycle Oregon does; they’re cycling ambassadors, and communities see the economic impact cycle touring can have. In other states the towns don’t see why they should accommodate bike tourists. But in Oregon we’ve found rural communities are as accommodating as cities – business owners are trying to meet cyclists’ needs.”

Photo by Russ Roca

And, after seeing large swaths of Oregon on two wheels, what have they enjoyed the most?

“The diversity of terrain,” Russ replies. “The coastal stuff, the good climbing, the high desert was pleasant. We prefer Eastern Oregon the most – wide-open roads, light traffic, really pleasant small towns spaced out 30 to 50 miles, which is good for touring.”

“We’d pass through these small towns, and they were thriving, with a real sense of community pride: Mitchell, Halfway, Dayville – tiny towns that are well-kept and really friendly.”

You can find many more impressions from Russ and Laura – including Russ’ sublime photography – on The Path Less Pedaled website. It’s likely to inspire you to come to Oregon to ride – or, if you’re already here, to find some new rides. And they hope you get out and do it.

“My general touring advice is that the toughest thing is getting out the door,” Russ says. “You’re hemming and hawing over equipment and logistics… but once you’re out the door you’ll have a great time.”

Photo by Russ Roca

The weekend will feature two USGP races on the Deschutes Brewery course in the heart of the city’s Old Mill District – site of the two national championships.

“Bend has established itself as one of the epicenters of North American cyclocross,” said Bruce Fina of the USGP.  ”As a community, Bend has proven they can host world class cyclocross events.”

The USGP is expected to bring 800 racers and an additional 2,000 visitors to Bend for the two-day event.  ”Cycling is a big part of Bend’s culture,” said Doug La Placa, President/CEO of Visit Bend.  ”Hosting the USGP is an honor for Bend, and will provide a much needed stimulus to our regional tourism industry during an otherwise slow time of year.”

More information on the 2011 US Gran Prix of Cyclocross presented by Greenware® can be found at www.usgpcyclocross.com.

Photo by Tina Buescher

For its fourth iteration, this one-of-a-kind event gets even one-of-a-kinder this year, moving to Bend for a blowout Halloween weekend that includes the show as well as the Day of the Dead Cyclocross Festival.

Photo by Kris Lillich

Bicycle touring, especially in Oregon, means exposing yourself to the elements on a regular basis, either while you’re riding or in the camps you set up along the route. And withstanding a little rain and weather can be just a part of the game when you tour this state on a bike.

But every now and then, it’s good to step indoors for a hot shower, some clean clothes and a short rest from the road. That’s the experience Kris Lillich wants to provide for cyclists at the Bike Inn in Clatskanie, along Highway 30 between Portland and the coast. For $20 a night per person, you get access to a warm bed, a washer and dryer, a hot shower and space to store or work on your bicycle.

Kris opened up the Bike Inn two years ago after chatting up cyclists staying in the Clatskanie City Park campground, a popular place for cyclists to overnight on their way to or from the coast. Cyclists talked about their needs and wants and Kris, a former cyclist herself, listened.

“One of the main motivations for opening the Bike Inn was to raise awareness of the bicycle culture,” she says. “The cycle crowd is a neat crowd.”

Kris enjoys talking with the cyclists who come through her inn.  She likes their enthusiasm and zest for living life, and she thinks they’re just a smart group of people.

Bike Inn visitor Terri Wortman. Photo by Kris Lillich

The Bike Inn has hosted all kinds of cyclists in the past two years, including cyclists traveling the Lewis and Clark Trail from the east coast through to Astoria. Many of these cyclists like to take a day off to do laundry and relax before moving on to the coast.

The Bike Inn is located in downtown Clatskanie within easy walking distance of restaurants, the city park and the library. It’s also along the Clatskanie River; guests can opt to sleep on the inn’s covered deck extending over the river or take one of Kris’ kayaks on the water.

Kris is as much a booster for Clatskanie, a place she’s lived for 20 years, as she is for cycling. “It’s been really good for the community to see the cyclists come in,” she says.

She encourages cyclists to explore Clatskanie and the surrounding areas, including Beaver Falls Road, a kind of back way into the town that takes cyclists down an original section of the Columbia River Highway.

For more information, visit the Bike Inn’s website at www.bikeinnoregon.com or call and make a reservation at 503-369-6502.

Photo by Dylan VanWeelden

If you didn’t already know how excited Oregon gets about bicycling, you should have tried to fight your way through the crowds at the 2011 Oregon Manifest. The three-day extravaganza, built around the Constructor’s Design Challenge competition, brought together the cycling culture for one major geek-out.

The quest: Design and build the ultimate modern utility bike. The mix: 30 frame builders; nine collaborative efforts, including industrial designers and bike builders; six student teams from design colleges. The settings: an art gallery for display, a top-secret conference room for presentations and judging, a 50-mile “field test” over hill and dale (and pavement and gravel – see photo above), and finally the Chris King Precision Components facility for a beer- and live music-fueled party before announcing the winners.

And the bikes were… glorious, and outrageous, and unbelievably practical. Sidecars and back seats. Cable-steered bikes with the front wheel way out there. Long-tail modifications with massive cargo-carrying capacity. Minimalist, classic looks with discreet rack systems and tasteful fenders. Innovative touches like hand-tooled leather panniers, whiskey-flask carriers, onboard sound systems and MP3 charger outlets.

The individual winner came from Portland’s own Tony Pereira – who, incidentally, won the builder’s challenge at the inaugural 2009 Oregon Manifest as well. That year, his integrated U-lock was a huge design innovation; this year the bar was set much, much higher.

Tony’s 2011 bike was revolutionary enough to cause a shift in the thinking of the entire judging panel. His stated goal was simple: “This bike is meant to replace a car.” He set out to do it by providing the rider with many of the functions a car provides, but with the delicious freedom of still riding a bike.

It features electric-assist pedaling for a little help getting up the hills. It has multiple locking storage compartments. It has a built-in boom-box sound system.

Event judge Bill Strickland, editor at large for Bicycling magazine: “It has an engine. It has a trunk. It has a radio.”

Tinker Hatfield, event judge and renowned Nike product designer: “Sometimes as old-school guys, we take a purist approach to cycling. Tony made us realize that maybe we’ve been a little behind the times. We need to adjust our view of the cycling future. This is the future of cycling for people who aren’t super-fit. He showed us a gorgeous way to introduce new technology and have fun at the same time.”

Other winners included a student team from the University of Oregon’s design school, a collaboration between Portland locals Rob Tsunehiro and Silas Beebe, and an effort by Cielo Cycles, an offshoot of Chris King Precision Components.

The unstated but overarching goal of the event was ambitious: to change how and why people ride bikes. When a utility bike will get people out of vehicles and onto to bikes to make the same trips – and to ride for pleasure, too – there will be a shift in our transportation culture. And the designs in the 2011 Oregon Manifest represent a big step in that direction.

“What I saw was the future of everyday people getting into cycling,” Hatfield said. “And that was the key to this contest.”

Event judge Joe Breeze, founder of Breezer Bicycles and one of the early developers of the mountain bike concept: “Designs like we’ve seen here will let more people see the importance of bikes to us, and how we move around in the world. I see big changes.”

Check out photos of the winners and their bikes, plus much more, at the Oregon Manifest website.

The “mission statement” for the program, found on the 21 Ambassadors website, pretty much captures the spirit of the new program:

“We are the 21 Ambassadors. We believe that riding a bicycle is more than just the sum of its parts. To ride a bicycle is to be part of a community, to share a common experience, as much as it is about good health and helping environment. This is a community that we love and support, a community that we all help to grow pedaling through the cold wet winter mornings, the long carefree summer nights and everything between. We believe that as a community we should support each other in bad times as well as good. We, the 21 Ambassadors are here to help you. When tires flat and spokes break, when chains fail and gears groan, when you need a hand, we hope to be there to assist. We dream that your bike will always run flawlessly, that the world can be perfect, and yet, until all the stars align, we hope to help with what we know how to do, getting you and your bike back on the road.

The 21 Ambassadors are a commuter team brought together by their love of bicycling and their support for bicycling as a valuable means of transportation. 21 Ambassadors have been equipped with roadside bicycle repair training and a whole kit of tools and supplies to make repairs. There is no charge for their kindness, helping you back on the road is payment enough. If you see the bright (color) roll just give a shout; 21 Ambassadors would love to help.”

The ambassadors have all pledged to stop and assist riders, display exemplary riding behaviors, and carry their Road-Aid kits with them at all times.

Pedal Bicycle Tours in Portland has put together a great new resource for those who like to pedal and partake on the same trip: Pedal’s Picks: A map of our guides’ favorite places to eat, drink and explore Portland, the first and only combination bike map and city guide in Portland.

The genesis of the project was something we’ve pretty much all experienced: “We found ourselves spending a lot of time writing down recommendations, looking up addresses and drawing all over maps,” explains Pedal owner and biker-in-chief Todd Roll. So they decided to save themselves some time and just create their own map.

The map is oriented by neighborhoods, and it includes more than 100 favorite spots picked by Pedal’s eight tour guides. The list includes culinary stars like Nostrana as well as bohemian haunts like The Bye and Bye, gems that really highlight Portland’s unique culture and livable neighborhoods.

“The city bike maps do a great job of showing people how to get around,” Todd says. “What was missing was where to go. This map solves that. Now they can experience America’s Bicycle Capital like a local.”

Pedal’s Picks costs $2, and you can pick it up at Pedal Bike Tours’ gift shop in Old Town.

Pedal offers sightseeing tours by bicycle of Portland and Northwest Oregon, plus bike rentals and a gift shop featuring locally made bike crafts. Their tours include Historic Downtown, The Columbia Gorge, Bites By Bike (a culinary tour), Wine Country, The Oregon Coast and Forest Park.

For more information on Pedal Bike Tours, including tour and rental rates and tour descriptions, visit www.pedalbiketours.com, or call 503.243.2453.

Photo courtesy PDXCross

What does the future of bicycling look like? You can see for yourself during the Oregon Manifest Constructor’s Design Challenge Sept. 23-24 in Portland. Not only can you see the transportation dreams and visions of some of the most talented bike builders on the planet – you can take a shot at riding alongside them as they test their creations in the real world.

The Oregon Manifest challenge: build the ultimate utility bike. The contestants: 34 bike craftsmen from 11 states, plus six student teams from universities. This event is a unique forum for design innovation, and it will push the boundaries of two-wheeled transportation.

And it’s not just a bike show where people stroll by the entries and say, “Hmm… interesting.” No, these bikes are going to get tested. In a tradition harking back to the legendary French bike trials of the early 20th century, each builder must take his bike out for a rigorous 51-mile test of its overall capabilities – including road and off-road segments, carrying a rider and a load, on flats and hills.

And you can ride with them. Just sign up for an account here on Ride Oregon, submit your own route to the site, and then go here to leave your username and route name – you’ll be entered for a spot in this private ride with bike-design superheroes!

The Oregon Manifest builders are creating transportation for people who want bikes as part of their everyday lives – but don’t see themselves as “cyclists.” Utility bikes are designed for transportation as opposed to just recreation. They’re called utility bikes because they fill multiple needs for their riders.

The 2011 Oregon Manifest challenge will take place over two days. Come take a look at the bikes on Friday, Sept. 23, at the Pacific Northwest College of Art, located at 1241 NW Johnson St. in Portland – preliminary judging will be going on then.

And on Saturday, Sept. 24, the bikes will hit the road for the 50-mile Oregon Manifest Field Test. The route – which will be a secret until it’s announced on Ride Oregon Ride and the Oregon Manifest website on Sept. 22 – includes various checkpoints along the way that will test the mandatory criteria each builder had to integrate into the bike’s design.

Finally, on Saturday evening participants will gather for the Oregon Manifest awards gala at Chris King Precision Components, at 2801 NW Nela St. in Portland. Awards will be given to the top three entrants, with an additional two honorable mentions and a student design winner. All the bikes will be on display during the gala as well.

To learn more about the 2011 Oregon Manifest challenge or to see a list of participants, visit the Oregon Manifest website.

Also, check out this great video about the event, plus the Oregon Manifest blog on Core77.

Photo courtesy MBO

Mountain Bike Oregon (MBO), the biggest, baddest trail event in the state, recently finished its two Summer 2011 celebrations of bikes, brews, trees and trails in Oakridge.

This year’s MBO events drew riders from 20 states plus Ireland and Russia. More than 500 people took part in each of the two iterations – roughly 350 riders, 100 guides and 50 industry reps gathered for each event. Dozens of rides on dozens of trails were offered each day, with free shuttles to trailheads, plus three meals a day and free beer every evening.

Photo courtesy MBO

Oregon congressman Peter DeFazio, along with reps from Oregon breweries and vineyards and GOATS (Greater Oakridge Area Trail Stewards) joined MBO for a separate ride in August to discuss the future of the Oakridge area as a mecca for fat-tire enthusiasts. And the events themselves raised approximately $10,000 for GOATS.

Photo courtesy MBO

This event gets better every year – and sells out faster – so start marking your calendar for 2012. www.mtbikeoregon.com.