Spring ride

1st day of spring ride
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Nikki was home early today (because she's a total genius and she aced her exam), so I got to go for a ride.

I went on a variation of my usual ride, the Hillsboro Hills. Spring was in the air, as tulips and daffodils were popping up everywhere and the smell of fresh manure was wafting through the freshly-turned fields

Within five minutes of starting, I was pelted by some rain and fierce winds. The rain stopped within a few minutes, but the winds stayed in my face all the way to the base of the hill. The usual, big-crank spin through the flats was an all-out grunt fest as I made my way slowly toward the climb.

I was spared the winds on my climb, as that was the leeward side of the mountain, and was even granted a nice wind at my back as I made my way home.

There are only two weeks left until the 2009 De Ronde Van Oeste Portlandia, a 47-mile ride with 5,400 feet of climbing. I'd like to say I'm planning on riding in it, but for now, it's a "we'll see" situation!

Today's ride was 20 miles with 2,200 feet of climbing, so I think I'll be able to handle it. I think....

Check out a map of my ride today (along with vertical and speed).

1st day of spring

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Bike Registration

A bill recently introduced to the Oregon Legislature would require all bicycles in Oregon to be registered. Registered!

House Bill 3008 proposes a $54 bi-annual “bicycle registration and licensing system.”

I'm not really sure why this bill has been introduced. Is it to solve some problem? Bike theft? The licensing system will somehow curb theft... Too many bikes? At $54 per bike, people may think twice about buying a bike.

All I know, is that it would cost way more to register my bikes than my car! I guess the bill only penalizes those over 18 for not registering, so I think we can get away with not registering the boys' bikes. That said, we're still looking at $324 every two years for our bikes, and $131 for our car (and $10 of that registration fee goes to the BTA!).

So of course I'm opposed to the bill.

Read about it at BikePortland.

[Update: Jonathan Maus, the Editor of Bike Portland interviewed the primary sponsor, Rep. Wayne Krieger (R-Gold Beach). Apparently, for Representative Krieger, it's a matter of equity. If bicyclists want to be treated equally, he believes we should pay our fair share. I could agree with him, but I believe $54 per bike is too steep. Perhaps it it be a percentage of the value of the bike, or something like that.]

spring beauty

looking back
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

I was able to get a ride in on Friday (March 6th). It was my first ride since getting the bike all tuned up a couple of weeks ago.

I thought I'd need a new drivetrain, but the guys at the shop said that all I needed was a new chain and a tune. (I like it when the shop-guys option is the cheapest!)

I went on my usual, Hillsboro Hills ride, and brought Nikki's iPhone with me. I had just installed the EveryTrail app and wanted to try it out.

It was a gorgeous spring day, with temperatures in the mid-60's and my bike riding like a sportscar, accelerating around corners and up hills - feeling that new-chain love!

You can see a map of my ride here (keep in mind, the ride-time and average speed are taking into account the long rests at the tops of the climbs to take in the beauty of nature - seriously, Mt,. Hood and Mt. Saint Helens were out. It was awesome!)

Hillsboro hills ride

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First Cyclocross event

in the maze
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

Nikki and Camper attended their first cyclocross race on Sunday. Liam and I are, of course, veterans.

We all went to the first of the Cross Crusade races; which will take place every Sunday for the next two months. Going in, I knew that I was already interested in trying out a race. It was fun to watch Nikki get increasingly drawn in, until she finally said that she too would like to give this cyclocross thing a try!

The race was fun to watch - lots of mud flying and people sliding - and the venue itself was a fun atmosphere.

The course looked challenging, but doable. There were the requisite obstacles, from stairs to muddy hills, some twisty, turny riding and some fast straightaways.

I'll be gone next weekend, and the Sunday after that, we're celebrating Liam's birthday, so it looks like our next chance to try a race would be Sunday the 25th in Astoria.

Bald Peak Ride

somewhere
Originally uploaded by Ben McLeod

In need of a different route, today I rode up and over Fern Hill and around the other side of Spring and Iowa Hills, passing through Gaston and Laurelwood before climbing up to Bald Peak State Park.

The route was 36 miles, with a little over 2600 feet of climbing and descending (click the "Elevation Profile" under the "Show" tab).

I've ridden much of the route before when I went around Hagg Lake. The scenery is beautiful, rolling wheat fields, nurseries and open space. The majority of the ride is big crank spinning, with speeds averaging about 20 mph.

The climb up and over Fern Hill is relatively easy, with a fun, winding downhill. The climb up to Bald Peak out of Laurelwood is one of the toughest I've ever encountered. My bike computer tells me that the road incline in some places was a 22% grade! For the most part, however, it's a sustained 12% grade for two miles, with a vertical gain of over a thousand feet.


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The view from the top of Bald Peak is amazing, with views of Mt. Ranier, Mt. Saint Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson.

PDX to Oxbow Park

sandy river amusements
Originally uploaded by Nikki McLeod

Bryce, his cousin-in-law Adam and myself rode from downtown Portland to Oxbow park. The route we took was something like this but with about 15 more miles added on.

The ride took us out the length of the Springwater Trail to Gresham, and from there, we zigged and we zagged through farmland (mainly huge nurseries; next time you're at Home Depot and wonder where all the little trees come from, wonder no more; they most likely come from all around Portland) until we finally found Oxbow Park (yeah... we got a little lost).

The park is on the shores of the Sandy River. Our wonderful wives and kids met us there with all sorts of yummy food (but no beer - we were dying for beer). After a nice picnic, we made our way down to the water for some swimming and rolling naked in the sand.

It was a great way to spend a day.

Spring Hill

A ride into the hills around Hillsboro. About 23 miles.

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Start by going down River Road and turning right onto Minter Bridge Road. Once you get past the "Entering Agricultural Zone" sign, you're on your own - seriously, be careful, the roads are narrow, and while they are not, in any way congested, they do tend to have rather large trucks on them!

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Turn right onto SW Grabel, and again onto Route 219. A quick ride on the wide shoulder, brings you to SW Tongue Road. Take a left. This whole area is a nice flat, big gear, crankfest. Ride Tongue Road out past the golf course.

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Left onto SW Iowa Hill Road and start to climb. Follow the road to SW Unger, drop down over the edge and hang on! The road drops a couple of hundred vertical feet in an almost straight drop, with an s-corner thrown in for good measure.

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Follow the road to Route 219. Take a right and ride to Route 10/208 (Farmington Road), and take a left.

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Left at Rood Bridge Road. This road is a blast to ride. The pavement is mostly new and smooth, and the road has a bunch of right-angle curves with perfectly banked corners.

Rood Bridge Road ends up back at River Road.

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Concord/Hopkinton

A little short of 25 miles, this quick ride includes two decent hill climbs (and descents), as well as some great scenery, fast pavement, and a bike path.


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Start out at Dewey School - at the intersection of Centre, Liberty and Auburn Streets. Ride up Auburn Street (northwest).

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Take a left at the intersection of Lake View and Carter Hill. And climb on up Carter Hill! It's a fast uphill with two pitches. The first climbs steeply and wraps around two corners. At the top of the second corner, the terrain levels out a bit and you face the rest of the climb in one straight shot.

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At the bottom of Carter Hill, take a left and ride over the river.

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Ride for a few miles, take a left at Penacook Road, and cross the river again.

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Take a left at Gould Hill Road - and go STRAIGHT up!

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Follow Gould Hill Road down to Hopkinton Road and ride into the center of Contoocook. Follow Main Street toward Concord, into the horrible, highway-like off ramp for I-89.

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Take a right on Jewett Road, cross over the highway and take a left on Farrington Corner Road. Farrington has a long, gradual downhill that's fun to crank down at high speeds. Turn left at the stop sign (Stickney Hill Road) and ride up a gradual, straight uphill, then down a hill. At the bottom of Stickney Hill, stay right and hop onto the bike path that rides perpendicular to I-89.

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At the end of the bike path, turn left on Silk Farm Road, and ride under the highway and around the crazy corner.

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Take a right at the end of the road and ride through St. Paul's. Take a right onto Pleasant Street and ride past the hospital. Turn left onto Warren Street and ride past the high school.

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Turn left on Liberty, go two streets over, and you're back where you started!