/>
Eight percent of Portland's workforce now commutes by bike. That does great things for a city. Drivers get used to sharing "their" road with cyclists, bike paths proliferate and cool new bike facilities are planned. Bikes you can't even find in most places turn up in dedicated shops like Coventry Cycleworks Portland's recumbent-only dealer run by committed and knowledgeable 'bent experts. I stopped by for a day of test rides and took home a new Rans Stratus XP, a fast, dialed in and superbly ergonomic bike, shown here near the Willamette River.
Ken Thiessen turned up on the morning of my 70th birthday, December 11.
/>It was the perfect time to explore new territory-- what better way to break in the new bike than a 15 mile ride along the river? We crossed the Willamette on a dedicated bike lane and headed south on along the East bank bike trail. Cars were relegated to a separate road. Minutes into the ride I got a lesson in what its like to ride a LWB recumbent: the laws of physics were suspended as both the train and its smoke rushed toward Ken.
/>
/>
/>Ken brought his own camera along for the ride (see above) and rode his stalwart Civia. Fitted with disc brakes, it's a bike for all seasons. The Stratus is all set up for a possible disc brake upgrade.
/>
/>Interstate Route 5 cut Portland off from part of its waterfront. In a few months this bike elevator will take bike commuters to an elevated bike path over the freeway. This is not science fiction, it's Portland 2011. And do stay tuned because they've many more great bike projects in the works.
/>
/>
/>
/>I came back to our hotel feeling positively elated. As the sun began to set my wife Iris and I headed out on foot to hear Devin Phillips at Jimmy Mak's, a great jazz club in Portland's Old Town.
Gordon, It is great to see these photos of our ride.
ReplyDeleteWe traversed bicycle routes dating from the 1980s to a 2011 cycle-track that will be dedicated in 2012. This history of Portland bike routes also illustrates the evolution of how bikes are viewed and used. The oldest bike path we followed is narrow, bumpy, and meanders through parks and alleys along the waterfront. The 2011 cycle track we rode, is an express lane to allow hundreds of bicycle commuters to get to work on time.
The steam locomotive was huge! This beast has 80" diameter driving wheels. The roar, steam hiss, LOUD whistle and ground shaking were from a time when we thought very differently about energy use.
Thanks again for the ride, Gordon.
Ken Thiessen
.
Happy Birthday, Gordan! What a great way to celebrate. It sure would be wonderful to have a Latte ride in the enlightened city of Portland. I am looking forward to riding with you when you get back from your trip.
ReplyDeleteSteve
Great report, Gordon. I enjoyed seeing your beautiful new machine on Sunday and I look forward to taking it for a spin early in the new year.
ReplyDelete