Worst Day of the Year ride report (w/ photos)
02-15-09, 10:34 PM
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Worst Day of the Year ride report (w/ photos)
Portland has an annual tradition in the Worst Day of the Year ride. It's an 18-mile urban trek through the city, with plenty of rest-stops, and is known for its costumed riders and a fun party atmosphere.
There is also a longer 40-mile "challenge loop" that sends you over the West Hills out to Hillboro and back. I had originally planned to do that ride, but this morning I went outside around 7 AM and experienced some chilly rain, and decided to stick with the 18-miler. Ironically the rain stopped by the 10 AM start time and it was sunny by the end of the ride. Oh well...
I did not show any Portland spirit with a costume, but I've decided that I definitely need to put one together for future rides. I'm thinking a Cthulhu (HP Lovecraft) themed outfit would be fun.
Anyway, onto the photos...
A sea of cyclists at the start. The total number of riders reached their limit of 3,000.
Bzzzzzz!
Riding along the waterfront MUP.
Crossing the Broadway Bridge.
Riding up N Williams.
Some showed more spirit than others...
A victory meal of spinach lentil soup and bread.
Enjoy,
Scott
There is also a longer 40-mile "challenge loop" that sends you over the West Hills out to Hillboro and back. I had originally planned to do that ride, but this morning I went outside around 7 AM and experienced some chilly rain, and decided to stick with the 18-miler. Ironically the rain stopped by the 10 AM start time and it was sunny by the end of the ride. Oh well...
I did not show any Portland spirit with a costume, but I've decided that I definitely need to put one together for future rides. I'm thinking a Cthulhu (HP Lovecraft) themed outfit would be fun.
Anyway, onto the photos...
A sea of cyclists at the start. The total number of riders reached their limit of 3,000.
Bzzzzzz!
Riding along the waterfront MUP.
Crossing the Broadway Bridge.
Riding up N Williams.
Some showed more spirit than others...
A victory meal of spinach lentil soup and bread.
Enjoy,
Scott
02-15-09, 11:18 PM
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Looking forward to it but mind those dangling tentacles 
Judging by the sand storm reports on bikeportland you've had the worst weather already.
Judging by the sand storm reports on bikeportland you've had the worst weather already.
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shameless POWERCRANK plug
Recommended reading for all cyclists - Cyclecraft - Effective Cycling
Condor Cycles - quite possibly the best bike shop in London
Don't run red lights, wear a helmet, use hand signals, get some cycle lights(front and rear) and, FFS, don't run red lights!
02-16-09, 12:52 AM
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I find it amusing that the last couple worst day rides had really nice weather.
02-17-09, 12:58 AM
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I had my hopes up when I left on the Worst Day Ride- dark, cold & windy. But the wind was a tailwind through the Pearl District and Washington Park. Great! A tailwind up a 10% grade! Ya-hoo-freakin'-skippy! I managed the whole climb with only one short stretch on the granny ring. The wind kicked me sideways a bit on the descent into Beaverton, but I was cruising comfortably when we hit the rest stop at REI in Hillsboro.
The climb going back was uneventful, but the overcast was breaking up by the time I got to Skyline Blvd. It wasn't enough to dry out the roads, so I took it easy on the descent back into town. It was getting sunny when I got back to REI in downtown, so the rest of the "urban" course was a yawner, aside from dodging a couple of parent/kidback/trailer trains.
Dang it, when they advertise the "Worst Day of the Year", I want to see some carnage! Rain! Hail! Plague of locusts! Cats living with dogs, genuine Armageddon stuff! If I wanted sunshine, I would have stayed in Southern California!
Oh, wait:
https://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/slides...63a5e2b4a1909/
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