Portland Spoke – The Official Blog of Travel Portland

Cyclists with a yen for fine food and drink are gearing up now for a highlight of the summer – the Chris King Gourmet Century. On July 28, Chris King Precision Components hosts this challenging ride over Portland’s West Hills; cyclists will be amply rewarded by pastoral views and tasty vittles all along the way. A team of the city’s renowned chefs, led by Jason French of Ned Ludd, will be cooking up breakfast, lunch and – at the end of the line – a full sit-down dinner with Oregon wine and beer on tap.

The ride begins and ends at Chris King headquarters, tucked into a corner of industrial Northwest Portland. Aficionados of Chris King’s high-end bicycle parts will relish the opportunity to visit the facilities where metal bar stock is transformed into hubs, headsets and bottom brackets, and the workshop where Cielo bicycles are lovingly handcrafted. Chris King, an avid foodie himself, will be on hand to join the company’s staff in serving meals and cheering on the riders.

With just 300 spots available, now is the time to race to register – and get ready to ride!

That mountain is a lot closer than it looks. With Portland Bicycle Tours’ new shuttle service, you and a mountain bike can be up on Mount Hood’s west side in just 90 minutes. There the Sandy Ridge Trail System awaits with its spectacular views — and 15 miles of single track trails.

Even closer to town — in fact, in town — Pedal Bike Tours now offers a ride through Portland’s Forest Park, the largest forested park in within city limits in the U.S. Take their shuttle service to the top of the park and ride down in the cool of the canopy for 11 miles. Not sweaty enough? Ride back up!

Spoke art by Carye Bye.

Portland celebrates the bicycle all year ‘round, but summer is when our spoke cards really fly. The season gets up to speed with Pedalpalooza – “2+ weeks of bikey fun” – with events throughout the city in June. Feeling adventurous? Strip down for Portland’s World Naked Bike Ride (ours was the largest in the Americas last year) on June 18. Check the Pedalpalooza calendar for other events, including bike-in movies, mobile dance parties and unicycle jousting. (more…)

Not your usual tourism pitchman: My uncle J.R., visiting from Omaha.

Yes, we’ve seen the bicycle frames that decorate the popular, kid-friendly and ec0-minded Hopworks Urban Brewery on Southeast Powell Boulevard.

But for further proof of Hopworks’ commitment to bike culture (and, I suppose, a sign that my uncle is a too-willing photo subject), check out this picture of the banana-seat headrests affixed above the urinals in the men’s room.

Our pals at Travel Oregon have unveiled a cool new website dedicated to outdoor activities. The highlights include:

• information on cycling, golf and outdoor adventures in the Portland region – and around the state;
• a list of budget-friendly travel deals, including our own Portland Perks hotel package; and
• the “Win an Oregon Adventurecation Contest.” Among the prizes: a cycling tour of Portland and the Oregon wine country. Enter to win by July 18, 2010.  See website for contest details.

Need further inspiration? Check out TheIntertwine.org, an online guide to the Portland’s regional network of trails, parks and natural areas.

Travel Portland / John Hughel

The accolades for Portland’s bike scene are flattering and many.  However, flying with a bike can strain your wallet … plus, there’s the additional stress of carting a bike and tools through the airport.

Thankfully, Portland’s bike-friendliness extends to its plethora of bike-rental options.  Mountain bikes, road bikes, cruiser bikes, even cargo bikes — you can rent them here for an hour, a day, a week or even a month. Some hotels even include a free bike rental when you stay. There are so many rental options, we created a guide to them all. Here are details on some of my favorites: (more…)

The 2010 Portland Jazz Festival just finished. We’ll let the winners of a trip to the 2010 festival explain why you should visit Portland next February for the experience. Chicagoans Jonathan and Melissa won an Alaska Airlines non-stop flight and full festival passes; here’s an excerpt from Jonathan’s e-mail about their visit:

Tracing Lewis and Clark’s expedition as our plane followed the dramatic Columbia River east yesterday morning, we left PDX (and PDX Jazz Festival) with the sounds of Dave Douglas’ Brass Ecstasy still in our heads.  Different sounds than Meriwether and William heard some 200 years ago, but perhaps with the same appreciation for the grandeur of Oregon and its resourceful peoples.

 60 hours in Portland is certainly not enough but in that short time span, you welcomed these Chicago visitors with groove, verve, and voice and gave us an unforgettable weekend.  

Portland Jazz Festival is impressive not only for its innovative programming, its focus of educating its listeners, and its wonderful venues but one clearly gets the feeling that all of Portland is connected to this festival.  Banners, hotel lobbies with music, clubs, restaurants, and streetscape sound their proverbial instruments.  As I once heard Dizzy say of the Bird’s music, “it’s deep”.   And you do it all with smiles and warmth. 

Portland itself is a gem.  As we mentioned, we toured Portland the way Portlanders travel — by bicycle.  My transit interests also took us on the MAX and streetcars, which are frequent, clean, and fast; with a great information system.  We sampled three of your four liquids:  Coffee, pinot noir and beer — the fourth, rainwater, stayed away.  Restaurants were memorable not only for their food but also for their artwork.  Powell’s, Pearl District, Japanese Garden, Northwest, Nob Hill, East Side, riverfront; we riffed on your city and we dig it.

 I couldn’t have said it any better myself!

Rep. Earl Blumenauer; photo courtesy of BikePortland.org via Flickr

Portland’s bike-friendliness extends beyond our borders. U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) is the state’s — if not the nation’s — most involved congressman when it comes to bike issues.

In this short video by Streetfilms, Blumenauer explores biking in the Big Apple. Here’s the introduction from the Streetsblog post:

Blumenauer’s bike commute to the Capitol has become as much a personal hallmark as his predilection for bowties. So when he came to New York City … to stump for a progressive federal transportation bill, the congressman didn’t pass up the chance to tour the city’s evolving bike infrastructure with Paul Steely White and Noah Budnick of Transportation Alternatives.

I especially like Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Paul Steely White’s comment that their organization started with aspirations to “be Portland.”  Awwww … we’re touched!

A tip of the hat bike helmet to our friends at Travel Oregon, whose new online resource, RideOregonRide.com, was named Communication Arts’ “webpick of the week.”

The bicycle-centric site provides interactive maps of visitor-friendly rides throughout Portland — and around the state. The site also links riders with bike shops, bike maps, tour companies and shuttle services across Oregon.

The official launch date is Oct. 21, but you can take it out for a spin now.

Cafe Velo at Portland Farmers Market (photo credit: Sarah Gilbert)

One of my favorite things about the Wednesday farmers market is fresh-brewed Stumptown Coffee from Café Velo. The coffee, which is brewed to order using porcelain filter cups and hand-stirring, is superb — it’s the best way I’ve found to savor Stumptown’s varietals. The price for a 16-ounce cup is a bit steep at $2.50, but the coffee is so good, it’s worth it. Plus that money goes to a creative entrepreneur.

Speaking of creative, the number-one coolest thing about Café Velo is that it’s not just a coffee stand — it’s a bike. The owner rides his 800-pound Dutch cargo bike to the market twice a week (he’s also at the Portland State farmers market on Saturdays), then folds out the counters and sets up burners to heat giant kettles of water. It’s innovative and fun … and a great wake-up call.

Another note on bicycling — September marks Portland’s annual Bike Commute Challenge, so this month there are even more cyclists on the streets than usual. If you’re driving (or riding) around town this month, please keep an eye out and travel safely!