I had the opportunity to ride this yesterday, and it was lovely. However, as a note to anyone else riding it, from the workcamp/Alma, across the Oxbow summit, and all the way to the Smith River store, the road is very bumpy. On 28mm tyres i could not average more than about 10-13mph without having my brain jitter too much (to the point of loss-of-vision), or my hands going completely numb (and i even ride a steel frame). I'd have to recommend 35mm tyres, and even then i'm not certain. I guess just go extra slow, and really take in the sights! Not such a bad thing if you're not on a timetable like i was.

However, traffic is low, and it's really a beautiful ride. From Eugene to the Oxbow summit it took me just under 2.5 hours, but from the summit to Winchester Bay (next to Reedsport), with the road surface conditions and the relentless headwind (constant 5-10mph, with higher gusts the day i went) it took nearly 4 hours to cover the 45 miles to Reedsport. Once in Reedsport, despite the busyness of the 101, speeds pick back up, and i was able to ride back between 17-21mph---heartening considering it was the final stretch of the century.

I ride that road quite often. In fact, my favorite rides are to either turn onto the M-line from the Oxbow summit and return via Esmonds Creek Rd and Siulslaw River road to Alma. (Road closure until this friday, so don't do it this week. Some of the M-line isn't paved, but is very hard-packed) or turn right at Alma, turn onto Esmonds Creek Rd, continue to the Smith River via West Fork Smith River Rd and then come on back via the same roads you took to Oxbow summit. M-line, West Fork, and Esmonds Creek roads usually have bears feeding along them, but they have always left when I yelled at them.

I have never found the chipseal road to be excessively rough even on 25C tires. I usually just bomb along at 18-24 mph. Maybe I just don't notice the loss of vision because I am so old my vision sucks anyway. And brain? What brain; no brain no pain. You can avoid the headwind by making a very early start of it. The fifty miles of slight descent from the Oxbow Summit to Gardiner is much more fun in the early morning before the on-shore breeze picks up. Of course, that means riding in darkness, but I prefer the low traffic conditions of the wee hours. Bubba can't hit you when he is in bed.

Okay, all the talk of Eugene to coast and vice versa has me enthused. Back in the early 70's I did 2 trips from Eugene to Honeyman and back, both on 126. Yes, I was alot younger (17-18) but I enjoyed both trips. Now I'm thinking about a 2 day cruise to coast, and meet wife with van for return..... Tim

choteau: it's a great ride. i rode out one-way to meet my wife on the coast, so i was afforded the luxury of traveling pretty light.

b.car: now i'm curious. is your front fork straight or curved? are you riding your 25mm at full psi, or less? i really wanted to go faster, but the rattling was miserable; but it could be my setup.

My 700X25 tires are indeed fully inflated (115 psi), but they are Schwalbes, so there is a lot of rubber there to cushion the bumps. My bike is a 1982 Trek 720. This bike has a bit of fork curve, but its signature feature is the looooooooong chain stays. They really smooth things out. I like this frame so much that when Paul's bike shop stole my original (while it was in for warranty repair) I hunted high and low until I found a NOS for sale. Did I mention the loooooong chain stays? Some of the flex may be buffered by the fact that I always leave my racks mounted, but I doubt they have much effect. Perhaps the real smoothing factor is my weight (200 lb). Those little chipseal rocks just can't get me off the ground.

Maybe you were having one of those situations where if you went just a bit faster you would have bounced less. It's kind of hard to crank up the output when your brain is being banged about your skull, but I find it can helps on certain roads. Sometimes I'll ride at a slightly lower cadence than normal to get my bum unglued from the saddle. I won't do this for too long unless my ancient knees are having a particularly good month.

There really are a lot of nice rides in the O&C lands. While the chipseal will never be mistaken for a smooth surface, I am pretty grateful the BLM actually paved it. In the winter the roads out there fill with organic matter which makes them smoother but dangerously slick. Some of them, like the West Fork Smith River Rd often have a few sticks and branches from the overhanging trees, which does tend to keep me from getting inattentive. One can, and I often have, just ride all day out there. I always keep track of how far I go without a car passing me in my direction. So far my record is 92 miles. I hope to get it over 100 soon.

ah, that makes much more sense. yes, our setups are different enough to realize very different rides: i have straight CX forks with a large metal rotor (disc brakes), rode without a rack (no rear weight), and weigh-in at 150#. the straight forks probably caused the greatest discomfort on the road---after all, they're designed to provide stiff no-flex feedback.

i bet those long stays are nice! not to mention those nice curved forks. sounds like a perfect setup for those coast range roads!

i tried going faster. really, i tried my normal 18-20mph, i even gunned it up to 22-23mph briefly (on the flats mind you; bombing the summit was brake-only-to-preserve-life speed), but all to no avail. it was smoothest at 8-10mph (hence going up to the summit posed no problems since i stayed between 8-12mph), but i had a deadline to make, so 10-13mph was the best i could do without conking out. really. i even swore at the road several times i was so frustrated that i couldn't go faster! (it did me no good.)

just the same, it's the best route to the coast from EUG that i've found, and if i did it again, i'd just put my 35mm Schwalbes on. at the very least i wouldn't need to worry about getting a flat. those tyres do ride extra smooth!