Bike to the Future is about so much more than just going for a ride: it is an opportunity for in-depth exploration of some of Portland’s most innovative sustainability projects. And because of the ride’s interactive elements, flat course and support along the way, this event is a great one to entice your friends and family who don’t ride very often. Come on, summer is almost over – make sure those sometimes-riders get out on their bikes! You’ll start the morning with pedal-powered fruit smoothies at Sunnyside Environmental School, where student volunteers will use their boundless energy to whip up a refreshing peach and yogurt treat especially for you. After a 28-mile ride on low-traffic streets with three destination rest stops, the course will guide you back to the school for lunch with Laughing Planet. Be a part of the future that is happening now. Bike to the Future.
To Register:
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The Peach of a Century. The ride includes a full century and a metric century. Both routes start and end at Chemeketa Community College. The 100-mile is a nice route goes through Jefferson, Roaring River, Mehama and Stayton. The 62-mile route is generally flat and passes through Jefferson and Stayton. There are three rest stops on the 100-mile route and two on the 62-mile route. All rest stops are stocked with food, water, sports drink and provide restrooms. Honey promised me it was a flat century. Well, its not flat, hardly any centuries in Oregon are flat. But for an Oregon century, I will admit it is flatter than most. Its a great ride, pretty route, and usually surprising good weather.
The Salem Bike Club is well known for their solidly organized rides with well planned courses, but if that’s not reason enough to sign up, then surely the famous finish line peach pie should get you on your bike.
To Register:
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Honey and I tooled down to the Portland waterfront to check out the Tour de Fat bike fair. We rode past the park during our Saturday ride, in which we tested out our Bike Fridays. Basically it is a celebration and gathering of bicyclists, combined with a promotion by a local beer microbrewery. Lots of different types bicyclers, and a varied collection bike types, and ages. Sort of a bicycle cruise-in. They had some great music by a blue grass/swamp rock band, but we did not catch their name. It was a good stop in the middle of our ride, and a fun way to spend part of the afternoon. The Bike Fridays performed great, and they are cleaned and tuned and ready to go. This week they will get folded up and put into their cases, and soon will look like any other suitcase on the airport turnstile.

Some very cool lights available at Reelight and developed in Denmark, a country that knows what bicycling is all about.

* The LEDs blink as you peddle, when magnets pass the light mounted on you bike wheel
* No need for batteries
* No maintenance of the lights
* No moving parts in the system and therefore long durability of lights and magnets
* No need to be concerned about forgetting them as they are fixed on the bicycle

C’mon down to the Tour de Fat this Saturday at Waterfront Park!

Noon – 6 pm, at Waterfront Park and SW Salmon St., FREE!

Tour de Fat is a traveling festival put on by the recreational geniuses at New Belgium Brewing, to benefit local bike advocacy groups! This Saturday, all proceeds from beer sales will go to the BTA, and all proceeds from gear sales will go to Portland United Mountain Pedalers.

This year’s theme is “Salvation from Dumpnation,” and one lucky Portlander will trade in her car – she’ll sign over the title right there – for a sweet commuter bike (and yes, we already know who she is).

Check out some crazily re-engineered bikes you can try and ride, a pre-event parade at 11 am, a kids’ helmet decorating table, and great live music from March Fourth Marching Band, the Yard Dogs Road Show, the Sprockettes, and others.

Hope to see you there! And big thanks to the BTA volunteers making it all go ’round.

Looking for a quiet bike-riding trail in Clark County? Want a safer route to ride to work in Portland?

Pedal over to Clark County’s Public Service Center, 1300 Franklin St., for your free copy of the updated Cycling the Cities map.

One side of the map, which folds to 4-inches-by-9-inches, shows routes along streets and roads in Clark County as far north as 159th Street and as far east as 242nd Avenue. Inserts also show routes to and across the Interstate 5 Bridge.
The map’s flip side shows routes and roads in Portland as far west as 91st Avenue and as far east as 148th Avenue, including the Glenn Jackson Bridge. It also shows rules of the road for bicycle riders and lists resources for bike riders on both sides of the Columbia River.

A paper version on the map is available at no cost in the county’s GIS Map Store in Suite 232 of the Public Service Center. A water- and tear-resistant version is on sale for $4.
The map also is available online at www.clark.wa.gov/
bikemap.

– Holley Gilbert: Oregon Live

The Bridge Pedal is an experience! Bikes and Bridges are two of my favorite things and together, they complement each other greatly. The route is great because you ride over some bridges that can only be done during this ride. Stopping to admire and photograph the views from the top deck of the Marquam Bridge (I-5) is not something you can do anytime. Well ya, you can do it any day during rush hour, but then it’s not a good idea to actually get out of your car in the midst of the stalled traffic, and you are likely not in the mood to admire the view. So, then this is the day. It is a hugely attended ride, which can make actual bike riding a bit more of a challenge, so you just have to be prepared for that.

If you don’t want to ride, then volunteering is a good activity choice for the day.

Here’s the word, direct from the BTA…..
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Can you help with BridgePedal on August 12th? We still need SIXTY volunteers to make it happen! (Are we freaking out? Absolutely.)BridgePedal is Portland’s famous city-wide bike ride that crosses all ten of our beautiful bridges. Yep, even the two freeway bridges! Last year 18,000 people hopped on their bikes and criss-crossed the river, and this year we expect 20,000 people or more.If you can help with the course on the morning of August 12th, we’ll be very grateful, and you’ll be making a big contribution towards bike friendliness in Portland and all over Oregon. Let us know which shift you prefer on Sunday, August 12th:
SW Kelly – 6:15 – 10:15 am

Downtown – 6:15 am – 10:30 am

Old Town – 6:15 – 11:00 am

Lovejoy – 7:15 am – 12:30 pm

Northwest – 7 am – 11 am

Volunteers are supplied with water, juice, snacks and a free BridgePedal tshirt. Plus, you get to ride free next year if you want!

BridgePedal is a benefit for the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, raising thousands of dollars for our work on good laws, lanes, paths, education, streets, parking, and classes that get more people biking more often. Each volunteer represents a contribution of $300 to the BTA – that’s huge! Besides that, BridgePedal is a chance for people who don’t normally get around by bike to reconnect with the joy of riding a bicycle in the city, and we want everyone to remember what a great feeling that is.

This could be a fun time, or it could be …… kinda weird.
This bicycle Ride will help to support the great work that the Community Cycling Center does for the kids in the Portland/Vancouver area, so that in itself makes it a good thing to do.
It looks like its going to be a great day for biking in Portland.

Here are some reasons to do this ride. You decide if any of them sound good.

* 15 mile urban loop
* A scenic, flat route
* Great for all types of riders
* Make-your-own sundae at the finish line
* A fun, easy group ride
* The city’s largest water fight at the finish line
* Beer for sale at the finish line !

Every winter, our opportunities to ride and workout seem to go down in proportion with the amount of food available to eat. And then summer comes and we begin to bike much more. It is then that we run in to the delicate balance between eating enough to fuel our extra caloric needs, while keeping the intake down to a level where we can shed the winters damage. Heres some tips that can help maintain that balance.

Biking Nutrition Tips

Provided by Health Net NUTRITIONAL MISTAKES MADE BY ACTIVE PEOPLE 1. Skipping breakfast. Not eating breakfast is like asking your car to get to work without any fuel in the tank. Experts agree – skipping breakfast just means you’ll be hungrier later, which can make it more difficult to control both your diet and weight. 2. Not eating before a workout. Providing the body with food for energy allows for a better, more productive exercise session. A pre-workout meal consisting of carbs, a little fat and some protein can also help improve endurance and hand-eye coordination. 3. Waiting too long after exercising to eat. One of the best things you can do to prepare for your next workout is eat a small meal that includes both carbohydrates and protein within two hours of your last session. The carbohydrates help replenish muscle glycogen stores and the protein facilitates the repair of damaged muscle tissue. 4. Replacing meals with energy bars or replacement drinks. Sure, they’re convenient, but too often energy bars offer little more nutrition than your average candy bar. Replacement drinks may lack adequate fiber. When it comes to eating nutritiously, there’s really no substitute for healthy foods. 5. Not consuming the right amount of calories for the amount of activity you do (i.e., too many or too few). Your caloric intake should be sufficient to support your active lifestyle, but not so abundant that weight control becomes a challenge. 6. Not drinking the right amount of fluids. Dehydration can be a serious problem, especially if you exercise in hot, humid environments. Drinking fluids before, during and after exercise will help you maintain adequate hydration levels. Just don’t take it to extremes – drinking too much may result in sodium deficiency, which, though rare, can also pose a danger to one’s health.