Riding with the pack

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Cycle Oregon riders pedal near Oakridge during last year’s tour. From intimate groups to rolling cities, numerous multi-day bike events cater to riders in Oregon.

Whether your landscape preference is coastline, mountains or high-desert outback, there is an organized bicycle event in Oregon that will spin your wheels. You can choose the intimacy of a small group, or you can ride with thousands of other cyclists as part of a rolling city across Oregon's wide-open spaces.

Oregon bicycling tours range in size from the Seattle to Portland Classic, with nearly 10,000 riders, to numerous tours that are limited to a dozen or so riders. In between are multi-day events such as Cycle Oregon, with 2,300 riders, and The Oregon Bicycle Ride, which cuts off registration at 250.

"One really isn't better than the other; it just depends on the atmosphere you are personally looking for," says Dennis Mathews of Vancouver, Wash., a veteran of 11 Cycle Oregon tours and several small supported rides. He likes the intimacy of smaller group rides and not having to wait in lines for bathrooms, showers or food. However, he also enjoys the high-octane energy of Cycle Oregon, with its big-production atmosphere, its own "daily newspaper," nightly entertainment, and its connectivity to local communities along the route. Cycle Oregon riders also have the advantage of support from the Oregon State Police, who accompany riders on motorcycles to help prevent accidents between motorists and cyclists.

Rick Berlet of Ashland, a past president of the Siskiyou Velo Bicycle Club, who has toured in Europe, New Zealand and the United States, gives high marks to the Oregon Bicycle Ride, which he rode in 2007.

"The ride was absolutely first class," Berlet says. "It was well organized, had a well-marked route, and provided lots of good food and drink."

With fewer riders in a group, people to get to know each other better, Berlet says. The Oregon Bicycle Ride is especially appealing to older cyclists because the daily mileage is shorter and the atmosphere is more "laid back" than in larger rides like Cycle Oregon.

Rides with fewer cyclists are more intimate and make a smaller imprint as they traverse the landscape, while still providing quality support for the riders. Larger group rides resemble moving cities and provide a more sophisticated infrastructure for the cyclists. The two best things about Cycle Oregon, Mathews says, are customer service and safety.

"Customer service is incredible," Mathews says. "Cycle Oregon staff and community volunteers are always available to assist the cyclists for whatever and whenever. But the best of the best are their bike techs. If your bike can't be fixed, they'll loan you a bike to use."

Bill Tout, a seasoned Ashland cyclist with many tours under his belt, recommends a smaller group ride (200 to 300 people) if you are going by yourself.

It is easier to meet other cyclists and you don't end up riding alone, he says. Larger rides do provide the opportunity to be with other riders and socialize if you are the kind of person who isn't shy about interacting with strangers, but the sheer numbers sort of swallow you up.

If you are more reserved and would feel more comfortable with fewer people, Tout suggests rides with about 20 people or so, but it might be a good idea to sign up with a friend.

"I would not recommend joining a very small group ride (10 to 20 riders) as a single rider, because the cyclists tend to get strung out and you can end up riding by yourself all day," Tout says. Taking a friend ensures you'll have some daily companionship on the road.

The nice thing about organized tours is that someone else plans the route, provides drinks and food, finds overnight accommodations, and provides sag wagons and other amenities. Instead of hauling your own gear in panniers or in a bike trailer, you load it into vans or trucks that haul your gear to each day's destination. However, Berlet says it's a good idea to take a small bag (handlebar or rear) to carry snacks, a light coat, camera and maps.

Organized rides normally stop for the night at campgrounds, city parks, schools, fairgrounds and community centers where tent cities are erected. Evening activities range from intimate campfires, hot showers and brew pubs to catered dinners, full-blown stage shows and musical concerts.

On the larger rides, expect to see crazy costumes, and riders of all shapes, sizes and states of physical conditioning. Some rides provide massage therapists, first-aid stations, micro-brew gardens and bicycle rodeos. Most routes are marked adequately so you don't get lost, and maps are normally provided that show each day's route.

Sharing living space with numerous other riders can have its nuances and pleasantries. Having personally ridden on several Cycle Oregons, my favorite experience is the symphony at sunrise as campers begin to stir in the tent city.

The concert begins with a few notes of soft mumbling, coughs and deep groans as cyclists awake to greet the new day. This is followed by a chorus of sleeping bag and tent zippers as riders emerge from their cocoons. The staccato slamming of porta-potty doors serves as the percussion section as their echoes, in stereo, can be heard coming from all directions of tent city. The music continues with shuffling, mumbling and stumbling as people wander through the maze of tent ropes, bikes, and gear on their way to the breakfast tent. The musical masterpiece climaxes with a swishing of air from numerous bicycle pumps as tires are topped off, followed by cleats clicking into pedals and the whirring of spokes as another day's ride begins.

Once you've selected a tour and confirmed your reservation, it's time to prepare yourself and your bike.

You don't have to be super-fit to ride an organized tour, but you will enjoy it more if you get in shape before you take on Oregon's outdoor spaces.

"It's imperative you get a lot of time in the saddle, especially for rides of longer duration, in order to prevent a tired, sore posterior," Mathews says.

Cyclists recommend building a base of at least 500 miles before starting on the multi-day rides. "The hills in particular will just kill you if you are not in shape," says Mathews. "You can't go to many places in Oregon without cycling over a few hills."

Tout recommends that cyclists build up their training miles until they are capable of riding at least three days in a row without problems. A good rule of thumb, he says, "is be able to ride multiple days of half the distance of the longest day of the organized ride."

Besides preparing the body, Tout strongly recommends that you give your bicycle a thorough tune-up before the ride, which includes starting with new or good-condition tires and tubes.

If you can't afford the time or expense of a supported tour, consider finding some friends to join you in a self-supported, multi-day ride, or look for a single-day century (100 miles or less) ride that covers new territory.

Long-distance bicycling across Oregon is an exhilarating experience not to be missed.

Bicycling enthusiast Bob Korfhage of Phoenix is a former president of Siskiyou Velo bicycle club.

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