Bike Centennial Route Washington State Line to Border Of Mexico; Up for it?

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A long time ago, but not longer than memory some friends and I rode from Oregon to Mexico to raise some money for Special Olympics and some local service clubs in our community. The kids needed a 10-passenger van to afford to drive to the next town for bowling because the bowling alley had closed. This was one of their favorite activities.

We chose to get sponsors at between $.01 and $.10 per mile and make the trek. If you do this I recommend flying to Portland and taking the bus to Astoria, OR and then crossing the bridge to Washington State and then turning around and never looking back.

The coastline along the way is the most scenic ride in the United States and you will have a quarter tailwind nearly the entire way. The Bike Centennial Route has maps the entire way; 3-maps in all. Pretty easy to follow and once you get going you must concentrate on your cadence.

Once your body adjusts to the cadence or "Pace" it is amazing how many miles you can go and the speeds you can produce. I think I was averaging 35 mph or something like that and at the time the newest electronic odometer meters had come out and we started the 1,000 plus mile journey giving us 10-days. 10 started out only 3 finished.

We raised some money and a great time with great memories and it sure made it worth doing. Perhaps this is something you might consider especially if you live on the West Coast of the United States. Consider all this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

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