Pedaling in Portland: City of Roses is a cyclist's paradise

PORTLAND — Hunched over on his racing bike, David Russell flies down a paved path paralleling the Columbia River — past houseboats and yachts and through a little Portland neighborhood that resembles a Cape Cod village.

Russell hangs a right onto a bike path that spills him onto the steel bridge carrying Interstate 5 across the Columbia — and then he zips into Vancouver, Wash.

No time today for a coffee at the Vancouver cafe where local cyclists hang out. The real-estate broker has a house to show and needs to get home. So he heads back to Portland — following the Washington side of the Columbia and recrossing the river on the I-205 bridge, taking him back into Oregon.

The City of Roses, at the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette rivers and in the shadow of the Cascades, has a growing reputation for convenient commuter trains, buses and streetcars. But it's also a haven for cyclists.

"There's nothing like being on a bike and covering ground with pretty scenery all around you," says 59-year-old Russell.

A cyclist's paradise

Portland's 220 miles of bike boulevards, bike paths and bike lanes take commuters and casual cyclists through leafy neighborhoods, along the Columbia and across bridges spanning the Willamette.

Those same routes are used by more serious cyclists, like Russell, to access country roads that twist through stunning scenery such as the Columbia River Gorge and the Cascades.

Portland has been declared one of America's best cities over the past few years by a number of publications, including Money magazine, which ranked it No. 1. And last year it was heralded as the best city for cycling by Bicycling magazine, a Bible for two-wheeling enthusiasts.

The magazine cheered the city's push to encourage cycling among Portland residents by investing money in a growing network of bike paths, resulting in easier cycling in the heart of the city. The city has had a master plan for building bikeways for the past five years.

Also lauded was Portland's "urban growth boundary," an invisible line that protects rural land on Portland's outskirts by making development off-limits outside of it. Areas outside the boundary are a favored cycling destination.

"You can point yourself in any direction and within half an hour be in the countryside," said Dave Kelley, a 55-year-old member of the Portland Wheelmen Touring Club.

As in Seattle, Portland city buses are equipped with bike carriers attached to their bumpers. Free maps of the city's network of bike paths and lanes are mailed to anyone who asks.

Portland is also the birthplace of the founder of the Congressional Bicycle Caucus — Rep. Earl Blumenauer, a Democrat who rides a bike to his office in the nation's capital each day. He doesn't even have a car there.

Some serious enthusiasts

Bicycling in Portland has grown substantially in the last 10 years, said Roger Geller, the city's bicycle coordinator.

There are several riding clubs in the Portland area — for hard-core racers, mountain-bike riders and recreational cyclists.

Quite possibly the most scenic bike path within Portland city limits is a long stretch following the Columbia River, along Marine Drive. Fishing boats bob in the water. Looming in the distance is 11,245-foot Mount Hood.

If the city's bike lanes are a symbol of Portland's cycling spirit, so are the Portland Wheelmen.

Numbering about 800 members, the recreational club appeals to cyclists with fast road bikes who won't be competing in the Tour de France anytime soon, but who view cycling as more than a casual hobby.

If you are driving along Marine Drive in a downpour and spot a cluster of cyclists, they are probably Wheelmen. Club members ride year-round.

Russell has ridden 15,000 miles so far this year and is shooting for 20,000 — more than many people put on their cars each year. He rode 92 miles in the rain on a recent Saturday, logged 90 more miles on Sunday and 90 more on Monday.

Paul Roscoe, at 78 one of the oldest members of the Wheelmen, rode across the United States in 1986, has ridden in 10 foreign countries, and last year biked from Brussels to Budapest — 1,240 miles.

The Wheelmen organize from 25 to 30 rides each week, varying from 30 to 90 miles. There are at least two rides each day of the week.

Some of the rides are casual jaunts around town, usually including a coffee stop where novices and veterans can get to know each other. But the cyclists seem fondest of longer trips that get them out of the city and onto country roads.

Before each ride, men and women belonging to the club meet at one of their traditional gathering spots, such as a city park or the parking lot of a bus terminal.

They unload their sleek, lightweight bikes from their cars and trucks. If it's raining, many of them will show up with their "rain bikes" — equipped with fenders to keep water from splashing onto their legs and backs.

Wearing cleated shoes that make them walk a little like ladies in high heels, the Wheelmen pump up their tires and cinch their aerodynamic helmets.

They take a few minutes to discuss their destination. It might be the towering waterfalls of the Columbia River Gorge. Or wine-growing country in the Willamette Valley. Or rural roads winding through backwoods over in Washington.

Then they take off en masse — a long column of popsicle-colored jerseys and black Lycra pants coursing through Portland neighborhoods before heading into the countryside.

If you go biking in Portland

Portland Wheelmen Touring Club has several organized bicycle rides per week, year-round. For a schedule, see www.pwtc.com or call the recorded hotline: 503-257-7982. The next two weekends include "Winter Munchies" rides to Jantzen Beach food court or Cafe D'Vine in Vancouver, Wash.; a 34-mile ride around Clark County; the flat Kelley Point/Two Bridge Loop; and a 95-mile challenger with 5,500 feet of climbing.

Other Portland bike groups: Portland United Mountain Pedalers, www.pumpclub.org; Bike Gallery Bike Club, bikegallery.com (check out their Worst Day of the Year Ride on Feb. 9, historically Portland's worst weather day, including a ride through a car wash to help fulfill the guarantee of rain); River City Bicycles, www.rivercitybicycles.com.

• For a Web map and a list of Portland-area bicycle maps, see www.trans.ci.portland.or.us/bicycles/bicyclemaps.htm.

• For free Portland bike-trail maps by mail, call 503-823-CYCL and specify: Portland bike commuter map; Portland Family-Friendly Bicycle Maps (North, Northeast and Southeast); Columbia River Gorge bike map.

• Or look for this guide: "Rubber to the Road, 30 Bicycle Rides Around Portland," by Peter Marsh, $10 in Portland bike shops or from www.powells.com.

• To rent bicycles in Portland: Citybikes Workers Cooperative, 734 S.E. Ankeny, 503-239-6951; Fat Tire Farm, 2714 N.W. Thurman, 503-222-3276; Northwest Bicycles, 916 N.W. 21st, 503-248-9142.

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