Portland Providence Bridge Pedal 2009

To write about summer in Portland is often going to involve writing about bicycles. The Portland Providence Bridge Pedal is a quintessential Portland event. It truly embodies the spirit of Portland. Thousands of folks ride together criss-crossing over the Wilamette River on their chosen course: 11 Bridge, 38-mile; 8 Bridge, 24-mile; or 6 Bridge, 14-mile. The highlights of the day are crossing the Marquam and Fremont Bridges normally reserved for interstate traffic. Most people take a break atop these bridges to relish the height, the accomplishment, the views, the freedom and the scene. Live music and refreshments make the moment sweeter. Portland mayor, Sam Adams, greets riders on the Fremont Bridge handing out pocket-sized Portland by Bike maps and has his photo taken with eager participants. Down at the finish line Sunshine Dairy hands out chocolate milk and popcicles. Ahhhhh victory! And all for a good cause, too. Partial proceeds go to the Providence Heart and Vascular Institute.

Sunday Parkways

Photo: Benjamin Rue

Even from far away, I still love Portland. Today NE Portland hosted the event Sunday Parkways. The city closed off 7.5 miles of streets to car traffic. I wasn't there. I'm in Nashville right now, but I can imagine the scene. People biked, walked, jogged, maybe even stilted their way around the route. This is Portland's 2nd year to host the event. (See a really awesome movie of last year's event) And this year they added 2 more dates and 2 more quadrants of the city. NoPo hosted the event in June. And SE will host the event in August. Sunday Parkways is aimed at bringing communities together for a fun-filled, relaxed Sunday. The route joins public parks that are hubs for the days activities and food vendors as well as informational booths.

The idea of Sunday Parkways was inspired by Ciclovia, an event in Bogota, Columbia. Every week on Sunday, from 5am to 5pm, the city closes 70 miles of streets to traffic and nearly 2 million people fill the streets. People bike, walk, run, skate, dance and build community. You can watch the Bogota event on Streetfilms. What an amazing and awesome event to bring people out of their homes and bring them together!