Day 2 -- Over the mountains and through the woods . . .

June 21, 2005

ROUTE: St. Helens to Welches, OR           
DISTANCE:  75 miles                 
WINDS: Light tailwinds

WEATHER: Overcast and hazy with occasional drops of rain and occasional sunshine              TERRAIN: Easy early, gradual uphill for the last 30 miles or so    
TOTAL CLIMBING: 3200 feet

RIDE OVERVIEW: Is it Day 2 already?  I guess it is since here I sit at the base of the west slope of Mt. Hood at the lovely "Resort at the Mountain" in Welches, OR.  The village of Welches was founded in 1893 by Samuel Welch and his son as a campground.  In 1928, two golfing enthusiasts built a nine-hole golf course here, making Welches the first golf course in Oregon. The resort was purchased in 1938 during which time the new owner added a second nine-hole golf course.  In 1979 a company bought the resort and (you guessed it) added a third nine-hole golf course, thus creating the first 27-hole golf course in Oregon.  The Scottish motif of the present Resort at the Mountain was adopted throughout because of the similarity of the terrain to the Scottish Highlands and the history of golf.

I drove the SAG van today. Everyone was all smiles at the start of today’s 74-mile ride. They liked the way the elevation view on the route sheet looked—flat as the proverbial pancake for the first 42 miles -- many of which were on the Portland bike trail along the Columbia River . . . and then about 1,000 feet of climbing over the next 30 or so miles.  The day started sunny and breezy with a light tailwind.  It was almost a picture perfect day except for the fact that it was hazy all day and the beautiful views of Mt Hood were not happening as we neared Welches.  I hope we have a clear day tomorrow and get a close-up look of the mountain. 

Taking the exit ramp to the St John's Bridge

Today's route left St Helens on Hwy 30 and crossed the St John's bridge in Portland.  They are doing construction work on the bridge--as they were last year--but the riders all safely negotiated the nearly mile-long bridge and orange barrels to arrive in St. John’s at the first SAG stop, which was set up in a city park.

Though Portland is often called the “Microbrewery Capitol of the World,” none of the riders saw any of them as they skirted the city on a beautiful paved bike trail. They rode right by the Portland Airport and followed the Columbia River for quite some time, varying between streets and the paved bike path.

One thing I like about this part of the country is they have bike paths or bike lanes almost everywhere. You can go just about anywhere downtown in the major cities and be on a published bike route. But, anytime you try to navigate through a city with bike paths the route sheets get a bit confusing . . . and today was no exception.  Karen and I drove to the first SAG ahead of the riders, and from there Karen jumped onto her bike--spray paint can in pocket--and marked the route to guide everyone through the maze of Portland.  Everyone seemed to appreciate the easy navigation, but they better not get used to arrows everywhere.  In spite of our efforts, we had several riders leave the second SAG in the wrong direction.

When we reached S.E. Bluff Road, we had easy rolling and were flanked by tree nursery and tree nursery, many of them growing Japanese maples, among other trees. Several of the riders stopped for lunch in Sandy at Calamity Jane’s. It was here that riders helped Linda Mongold celebrate her 50th birthday.  Heard that the restaurant staff presented her with an ice cream birthday “cake” and stood her on a chair while they and the riders sang Happy Birthday.

Tonight's dinner was at Panda Panda, a Chinese restaurant where we also had route rap.  Tonight at route rap, Mike described the terrain and warned the riders that the toughest climb on this first leg to Boise is the last 150 yards to the motel in Kah-Nee-Ta. But I remember the road to Ka-Nee-Ta from last year and it is a beautiful road dropping from a plateau and winding in S-curves down through a box canyon and paralleled by a clear stream.

I think everyone is ready to do some real climbing tomorrow...they'd better be . . . and I get to ride!  I was supposed to ride Float, but switched with Josh to Sweep as all the climbing would have seen Josh riding Sweep on me I think. Shall wear my “Hill Slug” jersey tomorrow and no doubt everyone will see that it does not lie.

HEARD ON THE ROAD TODAY: 

• "Talk to me, talk to me!" (Carol on being passed unannounced by Big Bill from Portland.)  Later when describing this faux pas, Carol said, "Well, it's particularly important for someone your size [a big 6'7"]. Being passed by you is like being passed by a semi!"
• "Arrows? What arrows?"
• "I'm beginning to think that orange barrels are the Oregon state tree."

THE CHOICE: Today Craig asked Mechanic Mike to do something about his computer.  He has a Flight Deck and he kept inadvertently pushing the button and zeroing his data.  Mike said there was only three remedies for his problem.  He could either be more careful and not punch the button...he could duct tape a coke bottle cap over the button to keep from activating it when he had a spastic thumb jerk...OR...we could cut off his thumb.  Craig chose the first option since no one had a bottle cap or a knife.

DUH! OF THE DAY:  Goes to Matt and Paul F. who missed the exit to the St. John's bridge off SH-30--even though 1) it loomed large above them as they passed under it and there a large sign pointing them to it (see photo right above), 2) their route sheets marked the turn to the tenth of a mile, 3) they had a map on the back of their route sheets, and, of course, 4) the many other riders making the turn to guide them. To top it off, they did not see the error of their way (literally) for 10 miles, so won a whole 20-mile bonus! Mike has dubbed them Team Magellen for their navigation prowess. 

PHOTOS OF THE DAY:

Pete Cunningham demonstrates how to park a couple
of bikes sans kickstands or anything to lean the bike on

A rider passes an antique tractor on S.E. Bluff Road

It's only Day 2 and Jim and Pete decide that being 2 wasn't
all that bad, so decide to enroll in pre-school. They were not accepted . . .
the school required that their parents be present to sign the forms.

Val thinks that the little "Rs" on her route sheet mean 
pedal only with the right leg.

Steve decides to try out for the Rockettes. Trouble is, Steve,
the Rockettes did their synchronized routines while standing up!

Bikes outside Calamity Jane's . . .inside, Linda
Mongold's birthday bash rocked the house.