Mountain Bike Oregon is a sort of all-inclusive vacation for those of us with a warped sense of luxury and a thirst for epic singletrack. The brainchild of Randy Dreilling, lifelong resident of Oakridge, city councilman and mountain bike guide, MBO is wildly popular, now filling two summer weekends with over 250 riders at each session in only its fourth year. Basically, you show up with your tent and your bike and everything else is taken care of: three meals a day, free beer in the evenings, ride shuttles and guides, bike demos, clinics and even bike related giveaways.
Shane and Russ picked me up Thursday afternoon and we made the three-hour drive in record heat. Russ attended MBO last year and had nothing but great things to say about it, so I was looking forward to checking it out for myself. I had been to Oakridge a few times for mountain bike and adventure races, but was excited to visit just for fun with no race pressure. We wanted to arrive early so we could make camp, sign up for our weekend rides, enjoy a meal and a margarita in town and get a good night's sleep before the action began Friday morning. While Russ and Shane parked their pop-up trailer, I found a site in the tent city that was springing up along the bank of the Middle Fork Willamette River. Walking through camp on the way to register, I already had a bad case of bike envy—Tituses, Yetis, Ibises, Salsas, factory and custom, geared and single-speed—it was hard not to lust after something. After checking in and signing up for ride shuttles, we enjoyed the aforementioned Mexican meal and margarita, had a glass of wine or three in camp and hit the hay early.
I was up at 6:45 to establish my morning routine for the weekend: fill mug with coffee, make my lunch, wait in line for breakfast, fill Cambelback and water bottles, prepare bike. Members of the Oakridge Moose Lodge dished up eggs, sausage, biscuits, yogurt and granola for breakfast every morning. The make-your own lunch table was piled with loaves of Dave's Killer Bread, cold cuts, peanut butter and jelly, string cheese, fruit bars, chips and assorted snacks for long days in the saddle.
There are at least half a dozen ride options every day of various lengths and difficulty.. Shuttles typically depart at 9 a.m. and 12:15 p.m., but rides from camp are available as well. We chose a short, easy ride in the morning so we could be back in time for the afternoon shuttle to the Alpine Trail, the supposed “crown jewel” of Oakridge riding.
Flat Creek was a fun downhill, followed by five miles on the Salmon Creek trail, zipping through the trees along the creek, over roots and around rocks. We had a few minutes for lunch before the Alpine shuttle. Once on the trail, 42 riders quickly split into three smaller groups according to ability. Each group had two guides, one to lead and one to sweep. There was even a water drop haflway through so we could refill empty bottles. The trail dumped us out at the covered bridge in Westfir and we pedaled paved roads the five miles back to camp and the New Belgium Brewing beer garden for a well-deserved cold one. The challenge for the weekend: to polish off the 15 kegs provided for the event. But first, yoga class to stretch those tight hips and backs.
There was a shuttle to take us the half-mile to the high school gym for frigid showers. A sign admonished “No bikes in locker room.” Dinner consisted of disappointingly cold pizza and a nice fresh salad bar.
There was a shuttle to take us the half-mile to the high school gym for frigid showers. A sign admonished “No bikes in locker room.” Dinner consisted of disappointingly cold pizza and a nice fresh salad bar.
I usually shy away from large groups, but the MBO participants were friendly and relaxed. There was no ego on the trail and riders of all abilities were able to bike together without incident. Everyone seemed to sort themselves according to skill level and avoid pile-ups on the downhills. In camp, people introduced themselves and chatted about the days rides and where they were from. I ran into people I knew from other events and met plenty of new people as well. There was a core group that ended up on the same rides all three days and we got to know each other pretty well. One of those was Tom Morgan of Ibis Cycles and his wife and sister-in-law. They were also camped next to me. Of course they all three ride Ibises. Alexis is about my size and she let me ride her bike around camp to try it out. I think I found my next mountain bike!
Saturday was another hot one, so we drank plenty of water in the morning before boarding the Lawler-Hardesty double shuttle. Lawler started with a gentle climb up a gravel road and singletrack to an overlook for spectacular views of the three Sisters and the upper Willamette valley. Then fun traversing on pine-needle covered trails to the rocky top of Lawler where several tight, rocky switchbacks awaited. The trail continued down, steep at times, occasionally exposed, and often fast and twisting through the trees. After crossing a gravel road, the trail pitched up steeply for a few switchbacks before traversing a ridge and beginning a wild and hairy descent through lots of switchbacks and narrow exposures to trail's end. Then we rode downhill some more on a gravel road to the bus where we ate lunch in the shade before shuttling back up to Hardesty Mountain, which also began with a climb.
This was my favorite trail of the week with the perfect combination of tight twisting turns through the trees, steep pitches, switchbacks and root drops. Better yet, the lagoon at the lower trailhead made for a refreshing swim before the hot bus ride back to the now eagerly anticipated beer garden. As the bus pulled out of the parking lot, one of the guides saw another rider dropping out of the trail. He leaned out the window and yelled “Hey! Are you with MBO?” “No,” the rider replied. “Too bad!” said the guide and we all laughed as we pulled away.
The tri-tip sandwiches with asparagus served up by Chris King (high-end bike component manufacturer) looked delicious, but they ran out of both by the time I made it through the line. Portabello was a good substitute, though, along with potato salad and berry shortcake for desert. In the beer garden, things got rowdy with events like the Huffy toss and the kiddy bike criterium. After all the raffle goodies were given away, we got to watch video footage from the weekend. Russ, Shane and I even rallied for a night ride out the Salmon Creek trail.
The night was hot and thunderstorms threatened, so I put my rain fly on when I heard the first raindrops. Rain never materialized, though, and the fly only served to restrict airflow, turning my tent into my own personal sauna. Sunday dawned hot and humid. Russ and I opted for the Larison Creek ride from camp while Shane took the Hardesty shuttle for more downhill fun. I demoed a carbon Epic from the Specialized trailer and was eager to see if a $6,000 bike actually does the pedaling for you. It does not. It was light and efficient, though, so the 10-mile climb to the trailhead was noticeably easier than on my Stumpjumper Pro. The first mile of trail consisted of hairpin switchbacks, babypowder hillsides and wild rocky drops. I walked much of this, but then the trail became much more rideable with roots, rocks, creek crossings, twisting turns and short but steep climbs which the Epic scooted up seemingly unaided by me.
Back at camp, the tent city had disappeared and people were loading cars for drives home to California, Washington and Oregon or flights to Maine and North Carolina. We took one last cold shower before making the three-hour drive home, now looking forward to a day off the bike!
