It’ll Change You for Good
We hear it a lot: “Cycling changed my life,” or “Bike touring changed my life,” or “Cycle Oregon changed my life.” But what does that actually mean for an adult? It’s much easier to understand the impact of cycling on kids. The joy of learning to balance, the broken body parts, and the sense of freedom it gave us all played an obvious role in making us who we are today.
However, those who stuck with the bike – or rediscovered it as an adult – know that this is just the beginning. If you live in a remotely bike-friendly urban area, spend a few minutes sitting by the side of a road or a bridge heavily used by self-propelled commuters. The smile-to-frown ratio is 10:1. Now take a look at the faces of the folks sitting in their cars.
I can vividly recall a beautifully voyeuristic moment when I once spotted a dear friend of mine on her ride home from work from the hidden vantage point of a restaurant where I was enjoying a bite with another cyclist friend. It was a beautiful spring day in Portland – one of those days that makes locals remember why we put up with nine straight months of rain. Her skirt flowed as her thick mane of vibrant red hair trailed behind an angelic face that registered sheer bliss and utter contentment. In that moment, she wasn’t commuting; she was living. It was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen. I know for a fact cycling has changed her life, just as introducing her and others to the joys of the bicycle has changed mine.
Cycling represents a lot of things to a lot of people. Those who have raised a stiff and defiant middle finger to cancer or other tragedies use it as a way to celebrate their victory and embrace life (and, yes, it’s still perfectly fine to be grateful to Lance if he gave you the idea or provided inspiration). The same goes for recovering addicts or even recovering couch potatoes. Many of us aren’t so lucky as to naturally have the urge to constantly stay active, and the threat of slipping into sedentary mode is always there. Riding provides an ideal way to stay on the primrose path.
Just ask future Cycle Oregon rider Audra Hermes. Fewer than two years ago, she was suffering from Type 2 diabetes and obesity, and realized it was time for a change. She changed her diet, took up riding and has since dropped 37 pounds. She is diabetes-free and recently bagged her first half-century. She’s getting ready for her first metric century now (which she’ll do on a mountain bike, no less). Where she goes from there is anybody’s guess, but she’s got the bug pretty bad. Don’t be surprised to see her whiz by you some day on her first double-century.
Like centuries (and marathons and other epic adventures), bike tours such as Cycle Oregon provide another treasure trove of life-altering possibilities. Tours give you a goal. They give you a reason to train all season long. They expose you to mind-blowing places and the equally mind-blowing people who live there. They also pose a significant challenge – particularly to first-timers who will spend several months wondering if they can do it (the answer, by the way, is a resounding “YES!”).
Events like this can and usually do transform recreational riders into bona fide, dyed-in-the wool and lifelong cyclists. Many a triumphant tear has been shed at the finish of big tours, and I’ve got dozens upon dozens of pictures of all types of folks to prove it.
But perhaps the very best part of cycling is the bonds you forge with your fellow riders – particularly those with whom you train regularly. Many of my most favorite people in the world are those I’ve met through cycling or converted to the Church of the Open Road. And I’m far from unique in this regard.
Friendships formed on bike tours very commonly blossom into romances, and it’s not uncommon for people who meet during a tour to be married on future versions of that very same ride.
Nora Auseklis met a towering Dutchman named Walter Moolenkamp in the dining tent on the first day of her first Cycle Oregon in 2008. The meeting quickly turned into a friendship, which then ignited into a full-blown international affair. We can’t go into the steamy details, but let’s just say a lot of frequent flyer miles were earned over the following months. By Cycle Oregon 2009 they were engaged, and by Cycle Oregon 2010 they were married. Today, Mr. and Mrs. Moolenkamp are living happily ever after in Hillsboro.
At the end of the day, it isn’t necessarily important why people ride – what matters is that they do. And if they do, chances are great that their lives have been changed for good.
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again — getting yourself ready for Cycle Oregon is one of the most important parts of the experience. We can all remember those awesome training rides where we have hit new heights and done things that previously seemed impossible, but, let’s face it, sometimes training can be a bit tedious.
It’s that time of year again: People realize they need to find gifts for the cyclists in their lives, and panic ensues. Well, fear not – the second annual Cycle Oregon Gift Guide is here in the St. Nick of time, and there’s no shortage of cool new stuff this year.
If you’re looking for something small, top-tube bags like the 
One of the first questions Cycle Oregon newcomers often have about the event is what kind of bike they need to complete the ride. The overwhelming majority of riders use a high-quality road bike with skinny tires. Why? Because these are the most efficient and effective machines to get from start to finish. And they’re fun to ride. And they’re functional works of art. However, on any given day of CO you’ll see a whole array of svelte steeds, precarious perches and crazy contraptions sharing the road.
There’s a large Bike Friday folding bike contingent. One would assume this is because so many people travel great distances to get to Cycle Oregon and folding bikes are more practical for travel. However, most of these riders are local. This would make no sense at all were it not for the fact that these oddly proportioned rigs are made in Eugene. One thing’s for sure – Bike Friday people are LOYAL. A lot of them are good riders, too, so before you go making fun, make sure you can back up your trash talk.
Most climb at a snail’s pace and wobble all over the place, but somehow transform themselves into nimble downhill machines at every summit. Some even have more than two wheels. These don’t wobble at all, and they can fly downhill. Around corners, they become two-wheeled machines. About the only thing “’bent bikes” have in common is they look WAY more comfortable than anything else on the road, which is something the people who ride them DELIGHT in telling people all about – especially people in search of chamois lube.
Finally, there are those do Cycle Oregon on mountain bikes, commuter bikes, cargo bikes (which may or may not be carrying pets or children), bikes pulling trailers and hybrids. Many of them do fine, but all of them are expending far more effort than they would if they were on a road bike. If you’re a first-timer and your goal is just to get through it, this isn’t the best way to go. However, at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how you ride. All that matters is that you ride.