Cycle Oregon’s 30th anniversary ride?

[Tony]

Wife and I are considering doing Cycle Oregon’s 30th anniversary ride this year. I have not done this event, wondering if any here has and would not mind sharing your experiences, advice.

[donevwil]

This will be my wife's and my 9th (we met on CO 2001) and we love it. Riding in Oregon is awesome and the prep, planning and execution are typically nearly flawless. So many people takes some getting used to. Not an issue for most, but has been for some. This year's route is awesome and it's easy access for us NorCal'ers.

Some additional discussion in this thread (http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=199839&highlight=cycle+oregon).

[cnighbor1]

Great ride I did it twice
One complaint in the morning the portbodies start being used at 5 am and door slams big time so from 5 am till 8 am doors slaming so don't try to sleep in
Than the beer sells out in the closest town to that nite camp ground don't try to go to sleep early
Bring gloves has it can be in mid 20's temps in the morning than in 80's later

[kevinvc]

I've been on it once as a volunteer for one of the supporting organizations. The good: this year's route looks absolutely phenomenal. The food was good considering it was a giant mobile kitchen. The entertainment and beer garden was great. The local towns were very cool and the the locals very friendly. The riders we met were very interesting folks from all over the world and all age and riding abilities. the support was fantastic. They had bag drops at rest stations, good snacks, and good mechanical support.

My less favorable impressions: OMG it's a lot of people! Most riding days weren't too bad since the line tended to get strung out, but there were definitely some bottlenecks. Also, the tents are really really close together. Forget about any sense of privacy.

Personally, I would rather do a tour with a small group of friends or a smaller organized ride. But that's just preference. If you like the excitement of the crowds and meeting lots of people, it's hard to imagine a better setting. Also, the price is quite high. Not saying it's not worth it, but it sure isn't cheap.

Bottom line, know what you're getting into and you'll likely have a great time.

[donevwil]

More on what Kevin mentioned, it's not only the 1800, 2000, whatever the limit now is number of riders, but there are just as many workers, volunteers and rider guests.

[Tony]

Thanks to all those who responded. We are both (wife and i) being encourage to go by a friend, we're both on the fence. This advice is helpful!