OK, so this is really just a teaser for now, but this is how I motivate myself for this one, my way of saying "I'm gonna do it, really I am!"
Ever since the Raid Californie-Orégon back in 2003, I've had ideas for a similar event floating around in my brain, and finally one of them has become lodged firmly enough for me to decide it's gonna happen.
The basic concept? Start in Portland, ride up to Olympic National Park in Washington, and ride around the park on Highway 101. Oh yeah, and there's checkpoints - various different stops on the roads (sometimes gravel or dirt) that head up from 101 to campgrounds in the park. Looking at things on paper, it appears to be around 750-800 miles, which means it should take. oh, i dunno - 4 or 5 days for most people?
Again, just like the Raid Californie-Orégon, this is not a race. Or rather, it is a race, but one you won't neccessarily be rewarded for winning, at least beyond the rest of us all thinking you're a freaking monster. But mostly it's an excuse to have a pseudo-competitive randonée through some amazingly beautiful country.
In case you're interested, here's some basic info:
a map of the area around ONP
a cleaned up version of the same map
the National Park Service's ONP home page.
This event is also currently looking for sponsors of every possible description - if this is something you are interested in being a part of, please contact us!