Silverton Oregon

It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to get out and ride an organized cycling event but with this one so close to home I thought that maybe it could mark the beginning of a return to riding events. This ride starts at the fabulous Oregon Garden, just outside Silverton Oregon. The forecast was for a 100% chance of rain, but being an optimist I just assumed that the weatherman would be wrong again!

Gallon House Bridge over Abiqua Creek

It was also a good opportunity to get one of the old bikes out for a longer ride. In this case a 1980 Holdsworth, a touring bike built with Shimano components. Though it is pretty basic in most regards it does ride nicely and is a reliable machine. I chose it mainly because it is one of my nicer riding bikes with full fenders. The only thing I needed to add was some blinky lights for the road. More info on the Holdsworth here.

Based on the weather forecast I chose to ride the 50 mile route, hoping to get at least halfway before the rain came. The days route started out skirting the foothills north and east of Silverton, following Abiqua Creek before arriving at Scotts Mills and the location of the first food stop. It was just spitting a little rain as per the forecast but it was expected to be much heavier later. This first rest stop was pretty basic fare so I filled my water and departed.

The next section headed across the valley and into the Elliott Prairie, a region of mostly rolling farm land and quiet country roads. These “prairie” areas of the Willamette Valley seem poorly defined and are probably a remnant of the pioneer era. Crossing the Pudding River brought us into the Howell Prairie and the next rest stop at Bauman Farms with lunch and their tasty homemade hand pies! The hosts here were very hospitable, but looking out to the south it appeared that the rain was coming so I snarfed my food and got rolling again.

Winding our way south again we crossed back over the Pudding River and then on to Abiqua Creek at the Gallon House bridge. This is where the rain started in, lightly at first but picking up steadily. In my favor the roads in this area were lined with large trees which at this point still offered some protection from the rain. With not far to go now I thought that I would just put my head down and finish without bothering with rain gear. This was a decision that began to make less sense the farther I went, but the road soon brought me back to the Oregon Garden at the end of the ride and the after party!

Just as I returned to the start/finish the rain really started to cut loose so my timing was pretty good this time. For the riders after me, well not so much! The post ride meal was quite good and for doing the 50 mile route my reward was to be among the first served. A tasty Hopworks beer completed the setting and life was good.

I believe that there were only 300 or 400 riders out for this event due to the dismal weather forecast. In better weather this ride would easily be twice as many! Thanks to OR Bike for putting together a great route with good support.