Race Across Oregon Blog


Meet the 2009 RAO Racers

Saturday June 6, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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Lots of new faces this year – many of whom I’m not familiar with. This one will be fun!

The SOLO RACERS

100 Peter Correy – Chase, British Columbia, CANADA – Serving as brother Ryan Correy’s crew chief during RAO 2007 and RAAM 2008 has give Peter the opportunity to nail the logistics of this sport down. Peter is a frequent participant in BC Randonneur events. The crew experience will be invaluable. He’s spent so many miles and hours following a rider we’re excited to see Peter leading the van this time around.

101 Laurence Kluck – Eureka, CA – The 60 year old Californian is going to be a tough competitor. Dick Weber’s 60+ record is going to get a serious challenge this year. Kluck is a rookie to RAO but one of the most experienced ultracyclists in our field with multiple 508s and THREE Paris-Brest-Paris finishes under his lycra.

102 Ross Muecke – Kennewick, WA – Muecke (pronounce it “Mickey” or face the wrath!) avenged his 2007 DNF with a solid third place finish in 2008. Ross rode an impressive race last year – he was consistent throughout and steadily moved through the field for his podium finish. Ross has put in mega miles since then and posted strong finishes at (to name a few) DRVTT, Davis 24 and the Lewis & Clark 24. Ross also holds the Washington border to border record and gained the ever important crew experience at last year’s Race Across the West. Muecke should do well on the new route and I will not be surprised at all to see him pedaling with the leaders.

103 Christopher OKeefe – Mountain View, WA – I found O’Keefe listed among finishers of the California Doubles. These events are GREAT stepping stones for those wanting to attempt the 500 milers. Riders who have done well there have generally done well at RAO. With rides such as The Terrible Two on Chris’ resume I expect him to make the transition nicely to racing an RQ. And he’s proven he can do these just fine with an official finish at The 508 and a 6th place finish at the Hoodoo 500.

104 John Pearch – Olympia, WA – Amazing ride at RAO last year. John was our male Rookie of the Year – doing so in his first bike race. Pearch’s background is in ultradistance running (Western States, etc) and he is tough. He has trained up this year by taking part in a number of Seattle Randonneur events and is following his plan from last year of spending time out on the route. Pearch knows he can finish now and this should help him through the inevitable low periods. I would say I expect him to finish faster than last year but (and I don’t mean this in any way as an insult!!!) I have no idea how fast this course will ride. Let’s just say I’m expecting a top finish from Pearch this year.

105 Kenneth Philbrick – Keizer, OR – Kenneth is one of the few people to win RAO his rookie year – and by rookie I mean complete newbie to ultracycling. The kilted one beat Gregg Geser’s 2 year old solo record by one minute in ’05, came back in ’06 to obliterate the then 2 person record. He placed 7th at The 508 and last year, after bowing out of RAO prior to the start due to flu, took first place at Ring of Fire and at The Hoodoo 500. Kenneth had signed up to race RAO in ’04 but pulled out prior to the start due to a knee injury. Will history repeat itself in ’09?

108 Brian Martin – Kelowna, Canada – Brian Martin is a rookie to the solo event but did a fantastic job racing as part of the 2 Man Relay Team Grime and Punishment in RAO 2004. Brian should find the weather MUCH different this go round. Brian is looking for an official finish this year and I will not be surprised at all to see him find one.

109 Nelson Snyder – Hood River, OR – Local racer Nelson Snyder is a man of many talents and he excels at all of them. Snyder has a strong reputation around here and he’s earned it. I look for him to do exceedingly well in his first RAAM Qualifier.

110 David Rowe – Lake Oswego, OR – David is another rookie who brings miles of experience with him to RAO. Rowe runs the Ready to Ride website (check it out at www.readytoride.biz) He was thinking of entering RoF last year but his training didn’t go quite as planned. He is ready for RAO and I think he will put in a strong performance.

111 James Cox – Portland, OR – Top Chef is my favorite show on television and Chef James is an acquaintance of the season three winner. I’m looking forward to hearing more about this… Like John Pearch, Cox has been participating in the NW randonneur rides this spring. After a PAC Tour or one of our Training Camp weekends I think the local randonneuring rides are some of the best things a racer can do to prepare for an ultra. The last weekend Terri and I were out on course the Seattle Randos were having a 600k on a portion of the RAO route. James name came up (in a good way) among a number of the riders we spoke with. I think he will be a rookie to watch!

112 Chad Swanson – The Dalles, OR – Swanson has a strong background racing OBRA events. Another racer who I’ve heard a number of good things about from other riders making him yet another rookie who I’m expecting to do very well.

114 Michael Maughan – Moscow, ID – Until the Lewis & Clark Ultra on Memorial Day Weekend, Maughan’s farthest ride had been 140 miles. He went over 300 on the mountainous LaC route and from all accounts rode well. How will Michael hold up for another 16 – 20 hours of racing on top of that 24? I look forward to finding out!

115 Ian Fillinger – Kamloops, CANADA
116 Kelly Hegar – Portland, OR
118 Fabio Biasiolo – Italy
120 Pat Layton, Corvallis, OR
154 Bruce Carroll – Oakland, CA
155 Gregg Gesser – Sisters, OR

With Guest Introduction Specialist, Sandy Earl filling in for the women’s field while George is away at RAW and RAAM:

Women’s Solo
140 Karen Armstrong – Spokane, WA
Karen is one strong rider! I watched her closely at Furnace Creek in 2007, when she won the womens’ division with a time of 36:58 – until she got away from the rider I was crewing for, that is…Coached by ultramarathon cycling superstar Michael Emde, she is tough and disciplined. If she brings her “A” game – and I can’t imagine she won’t – she’s the odds-on favorite to take the division. Good news for everyone else is that she’s already RAAM-qualified.

141 Sandy Earl (Solo Recupright) – Hillsboro, OR – If experience counts for anything…Well, this is Sandy’s 10th appearance at RAO – 5 behind the windshield, and now 5 in front – without a DNF. Don’t expect that to change this year – she’s on a bit of a roll, with 2 strong finishes at 24-hour races in the month of May, taking on the womens’ field at Davis with 351 miles, and establishing a womens’ (and recumbent!) record of 302 miles at Lewis & Clark. Recupright??? Woo-hoo! It’s a BIKE!

142 Erin Beresini – Hermosa Beach, CA – Move over, Shanna Banana – there’s a new kid on the block, ready to take the ultra distance cycling world by storm! It would be TOO easy to pass Erin off as another Malibu Barbie, garden-variety triathlete. My advice? Don’t. She’s young, sure, and she’s enthusiastic…She’s also smart and focused, and she’s recently completed a sub 12:00 Ironman (Coeur D’Alene, 2008). In short, she’s got legs – and she knows how to use ‘em.

143 Joan Grant – Sunnyvale, CA – Joan has had a very strong early season, washing down her sub-13-hour finish at Ironman New Zealand with strong finishes at the Devil Mountain Double AND the Davis 24 in rapid succession. Joan also had a strong finish at Furnace Creek last year, and as a past California Triple Crown winner she’s definitely got the base miles in. Expect a strong finish here.

Men’s Solo Recumbent
106 Keith Kohan – Salem, OR
107 Alex Kohan (Solo Recupright) – Salem, OR
117 Dennis Johnson – Houston, TX

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Monday Night Banquet

Wednesday June 3, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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I’ve been fielding a few emails regarding our Monday night banquet and festivities – since we moved the race out to Hood River I have been stumped about the banquet location – I always thought we had great turnout at the party because it was in Portland – which made it easier for the PDX’ers and easy for those who needed to hit the airport the following day.

So I’ve signed up with the Portland Airport Holiday Inn again – until this year they’ve been our RAO start hotel since 2002 – so while we will miss their hospitality and generosity before the race begins this year we;ll be back in the atrium for another exciting RAO party.

As last year, tickets will be $20.00 each. You can purchase either at the registration on Friday (preferred) or before the party starts on Monday night (not so preferred! :)

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2009 Course Description

Monday June 1, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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Last Fri, Sat, Sun marked the fourth of the last five weekends that we’ve been out on the new RAO route. The more we’re out on course the more we love the change. This route has a completely different feel than the old loop. The Portland – Timberline Loop began in civilization and I always loved it once the racers left Hwy 26 for Hwy 35 – sort of like when Dorothy leaves the black and white of Kansas for the technicolor Oz (from all the cool wildlife we saw on course last weekend you may see a flying monkey or two). I was always kind of bummed when we had to get back to populated areas on day 2. The 2009 re-route removes that aspect completely. The terrain and isolation are going to make RAO 2009 an extreme test of mental and physical endurance. I think relays will be substantially faster on this route (even though the climbing is virtually the same) but I have a feeling the solo racers will be similar to the old route or even, possibly, a bit slower. So – you’ve waited long enough:

Start – Hood River, OR Best Western to Time Station #1 Tygh Valley (@70 miles)
Solos start at 5AM. ALL relays (excepting the tandem team which will be allowed the option of leaving at either the 5AM solo start or at 9AM with the relays) will start at 9AM. Upon leaving the parking lot, we’ll coast for about 50 yards to a stop sign underneath I-84. Enjoy this as it is only one of a handful of downhill sections for the next 30 miles. Crews must drive directly down Hwy 35 to the large parking area near Baseline Road just past the town of Mt. Hood. Racers will take the hairpins to the agonizingly steep Highline Drive which parallels 35. Highline merges with Eastside as it winds through gradually climbing orchard country. The views of Mt. Hood are spectacular through here. Upon reaching Hwy 35 the riders will mass at a stop sign. We’ll turn left and I will yell “go” signaling the end of the neutral start. You are climbing from 400 ft at the Best Western to the summit of Bennett Pass at 4,674 in the first 30 miles. From here it’s a short descent to the left turn onto FR 48 at White River. Aside from a couple of grunt climbs you are on a long descent to Tygh Valley. The frost heaves will drive you crazy if you let them – some people bunny hop – I just lay on the aero bars and make sure I never let my tongue get between my teeth. Don’t worry about calling in (although write your time down and make sure the official gets your time) from TS #1 Tygh Valley General Store. Pay phones are almost as hard to find as cell service. It will be manned.

Time Station #1 Tygh Valley to Time Station #2 Moro (@45 miles)
Exit Tygh Valley and cross Hwy 197. You are now riding the back section of the night loop/Stage one of Ring of Fire/Deschutes River Valley TT. This is a rolling farm road with a terrific descent to the Deschutes River (please obey the 15 mph slow sign under the railroad trestle – we don’t want you to go into the river). Sherar’s Falls are actually a Class VI rapid and you will ride right next to them. When you cross Sherar’s Bridge you’ll stay left on 216 toward Grass Valley. There are a couple of good pull outs before you begin the Grass Valley climb (crossing a second bridge signals the start of the climb) and A NO EXCHANGE ZONE. RELAY TEAMS TAKE NOTE****I highly recommend doing an exchange a couple of miles in on 216 prior to Sherar’s Bridge. This will give your climber a bit of a warmup prior to taking on the Grass Valley climb. It looks MUCH worse than it rides. In fact everyone who rode during our September preview, post Ring of Fire, post Deschutes TT Festival and during Training Camp thought it was an easy climb….but it looks really tough. That being said – it wasn’t 100+ degrees which it may well be July 11. The road is in excellent shape but it is narrow, guard rails are lacking and the drop off is shear. Spectacular ride – let your racer “enjoy” it. GV climb is 4 miles long and once over the top racers will be challenged with fast, rolling terrain and probably cross winds. At the town of Grass Valley you will be sorely tempted to turn toward Moro on Hwy 97. However, the course turns RIGHT on Hwy 97 toward Shaniko/Madras. Sorry, but you have to ride 97 for one mile before taking a left turn on Rutledge. Rutledge is all big rollers – your left turn on Lone Rock Rd is on a descent so keep a look out as you’ll most likely be enjoying a tail wind and rippin’. Kiss the tail wind goodbye on Lone Rock. More long rollers followed by a quick descent to Moro take you to Time Station # 2 – Husky’s Mini Mart. There is a working pay phone outside that allows our toll free however the station should be manned. None of us had AT&T cell service in Moro – our lone Verizon camper had excellent coverage. Husky’s is stocking up on ice, water and Gatorade for everyone – just remember they only accept CASH – no debit or credit cards.

Time Station #2 Moro to Time Station #3 Shell Station Heppner (86 miles).
Now the race really starts. You have to get on Hwy 97 a second time and ride one mile to Monkland Road where you’ll take a right. You are entering the canyon lands of the John Day River and the terrain is unrelenting. The course description for the old route states that there are no flat sections between Shaniko and Fossil – the same holds true here – there are no flat sections between Moro and Heppner (In fact, there are no flat sections between Moro and Monument but more on that later) but here you have nothing but 4, 5, 6 and 9 mile climbs followed by equally long descents. It will be HOT through this section. The canyon walls along with the road will radiate heat nicely – eliminating any final stigma RAO may have as being a snowy event. Crew – in between hydrating and icing your racer, take a moment to check out the behind your back view of Bachelor, the Three Sisters, Jefferson, Washington, Three Fingered Jack, Hood, St. Helens, Baker and Rainier.
Though not a mandatory time station we’d appreciate a phone in from Condon as there is excellent cell coverage and we’d like to know when you passed through so we can keep your fans updated. The highway splits as you leave Condon – follow the signs to Heppner and more hills.
Good food alert!!! When you top the hill past Ruggs (town is nothing more than a house and a covered soda machine with pay phone – we wanted to use it as a time station but the phone didn’t work and there is no cell service) – call ahead to the Willow Creek Diner & Bakery (541) 676-5023 to order some dinner to go for the crew and maybe a reward for your rider. The descent to Heppner is steep, twisting and a blast. The diner is directly across the street from the Time Station #3 Shell Gas. Full cell service is available in Heppner but we’re making the TS at the Shell as it is IMPERATIVE that you BUY GAS IN HEPPNER!!!!!!! There is no gas available between Heppner and Spray – and depending on how fast you ride through the night Spray might be closed when you get there. Both the Shell and Willow Creek Diner will have extra ice on hand for RAO. Shell is staying open till 11PM. Willow Creek is staying open late for us – 8PM. This place has seriously good food and it’s inexpensive. Homemade bread, grind their own meat for burgers, etc…

TS #3 Heppner to TS #4 Spray (130 miles)
It’s a long way and there is nothing in between. The tiny town of Ukiah is off route and you wouldn’t find anything open anyway. Dale is an old gas station and a pay phone. The pay phone is out of order and the pumps will have been shut down for a loooooooooooong time when you arrive. Long Creek is dying. Motel is still open but there are no pay phones and there is no gas – you will find limited cell service between Long Creek and the summit of the Monument climb however.
Anyway back to the route – If you rode the September pre-ride or Training Camp disregard how you previously went through Heppner. From the Shell Station you’ll turn into a neighborhood and through an elementary school parking lot to avoid road construction and pop back out on the highway. You will now find yourself grinding along a false flat toward a totally exposed 5 mile climb featuring some hairpins and beautiful high desert vistas. Night will be falling and you’ll see the tell tale flashing amber lights of your competitors. When you summit Franklin Hill – one of my favorite climbs on the entire route – you’ll be greeted with new chip seal which was put down the week following Training Camp. Last weekend I found the road surface gravelly but I was spun out in my 53×12 on the descent and rode my aero bars through most of the curves. There’s a five mile bump to test your climbing skills as soon as you finish the Franklin Hill descent then it’s a mile of coasting to the right turn onto 395. ODOT is laying sections of fresh chip seal for us along 395. You are now riding toward the summit of Battle Mountain (elev 4,270) in the Blue Mountains. There’s an 11 mile descent and upon reaching the Ukiah intersection you will be very happy that we spent the extra time doing a re-route. Rather than turning you onto a Forest Road featuring an immediate 15 mile climb, you will continue straight on 395 south toward Long Creek. This is an AMAZING ride. As you will be racing this section at night you’ll miss the spectacular scenery but will enjoy to the long, gradual descent. There are two climbs – each around 5 miles at 5 – 6% – during the 40 miles to Long Creek but the field will have a chance to come together again and your legs will get a well earned and well deserved break. Turn right at the flashing light onto RT 402 when you arrive in Long Creek. No need to stop because there’s nothing to stop for here. You’ll immediately start climbing – those of you who have raced RAO in prior years are now riding the old course backward. Consensus is that the Monument climb and ensuing descent is much more fun in this direction. Enjoy your relatively flat ride along the John Day River to Spray! There is gas here at the Lone Wolf station – I think he opens around 7 or 8AM Sunday morning. The time station is at the cafe/bar on the left just as you are leaving town. A real working pay phone – they are getting rare!

TS #4 Spray to TS #5 Imperial River Company Maupin
You have another 11 miles of flat road along the John Day to Service Creek. Remember that fun 10 mile downhill leading to Service Creek where Team RAO Speedwagon hit 70 mph??? You get to go up it this time! Welcome to the backside of Butte Creek Summit. 10 miles of 6% get you over the top – look for mile marker 69 just prior to the summit. 5 miles of downhill and another 5 miles of rollers/flat take you to Fossil. Gas is available about 2 blocks off the route. Racers turn left on 216 toward Antelope/Shaniko. The Fossil climb is much more rider friendly this direction. 4 miles get you to the top of this beast and you’ll enjoy a fast 12 mile descent into the Painted Hills. The scenery is beautiful but if it’s mid day you can count on high temperatures. Don’t thank us for the Fossil descent because you’ll pay for it with Clarno. Clarno used to be a relatively gentle climb – no more. This is another 10 mile climb with a constant gradient. Mile marker 15 signals your arrival at the summit. You’ll descend to Antelope climb a twisting 5 miles and cruise through Shaniko. Turn left on hwy 97 toward Madras and after 2 miles turn right on Bakeoven Road for the headwind hindered descent to Maupin. Imperial River Company is located on your right at the bottom of the descent just past a small bridge. Phone is just to the side of the main entrance. ICE available!

TS #5 Maupin to Cooper Spur FINISH!
If you’ve done Ring of Fire you’ll feel right at home. Exit the Imperial and turn right on hwy 197 and cross over the Deschutes River Bridge. The course climbs through Maupin and takes you right past an operational gas station. It will likely be windy at the top of the ridge and you’ll grind toward a nice 2 mile descent. The flashing yellow light will bring back memories of the day before when you crossed 197 on your way to Sherar’s Bridge. This time you continue straight north on 197 and immediately begin the 7 mile climb to Tygh Ridge. We’re not detouring onto Dufur Gap Rd this year – continue straight to the left just prior to the town of Dufur. This will take you to the climb up FR 44. Like Clarno this one is much more difficult going in this direction. You’ll have a nice descent to Hwy 35 and a continued nice descent to the left turn at Cooper Spur Rd. You are oh so close to the finish – 3 miles of tree lined 5% – 6% curves will lead you to the small family ski area which is Cooper Spur Resort and an athletic accomplishment you can truly be proud of!

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ok, ok

Thursday May 28, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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I know I said that I would post the route book for the new route as soon as we received our permits from ODOT and the Forest Service…..I KNOW. But then three weeks ago we had to drive the route to get ready for camp – and then two weeks ago we rode the route again with the RAO Training Camp – since all of the Forest roads were still snow covered we had to take a few detours. George and I talked seriously of making some radical changes to the route – giving it a much easier start for instance by going out the old Columbia Highway to the Dalles (ok, ask the campers how easy that was with the howling cross wind the first day….Martha said it was her worst day on a bike, ever….that’s pretty bad)

Well the one change that seems to have stuck is one that leaves out FR53 out of Ukiah – instead we will stay on 395S until Long Creek where we will turn right onto 402. We will retrace the RAO route from that lonely intersection – instead of taking the forest road and doubling back on a portion of the route before we turned toward Hardman and Spray. This section of 395 is probably the most beautiful spot on the entire 395 highway. Of course most racers will be on it at night….figures.

George and I are headed out on the route again this weekend to drive and ride it all again – yes AGAIN…. I’ve already got my change request into ODOT and it looks good for the approval. I’ve also received notice that 395 will be chipsealed or re-chipped this month – but all should be finished by June 30. I just hope the road gets enough traffic to get the excess off the shoulder by race time.

Thanks everyone for your patience while we sort out the new route – it’s much harder than I anticipated changing things up like this…everyone on camp agreed however that the new route is expectational in it’s beauty and remote-ness. I guess I might have to steal the 508’s tag line – cause we’re really going to be ‘out there’

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Hill Country Update

Sunday February 15, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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Much of the course you’ll be riding just over a month from now consists of many of my most memorable training rides when I lived in San Antonio. The challenge of putting on a new race – especially one that’s about 2,800 miles from where we live – has been pretty, well – uh challenging. The final decision to do this was made at the beginning of December so putting together a race that meets our standard of quality in such a short time is daunting. The only thing I’m a little bummed about is that Terri will be unable to attend – which also means you won’t get to meet our daughter Amelia. So – on with the update.

The course: I think you will love it. It is a great mix of fast rollers, slow rollers, tough climbs, long descents and even some nice flat sections. With tailwinds in the right places there will be some very fast times posted. One thing I do want is honest feedback after the race. We’ve altered the RAO route every year based on rider input. I want to know what you liked and what you didn’t like ((no complaining about the climbs from Medina to Camp Wood however!). My intent was to ride the route non-stop in December as a two person relay. Work and Oregon weather made that impossible but I made a scout trip in January to drive and GPS the course. The majority of the route has very low traffic. Shoulder width and road quality vary but for the most part it’s good to excellent.

Time Stations: BRING YOUR CELL PHONES. Almost the entire route has great cell coverage. The only place I didn’t get a signal was on the section between Medina and Camp Wood. Pay phones were harder to locate than a cell signal. If you have your mobile phone you DO NOT HAVE TO STOP for a time station. Just make sure your crew calls in as you ride past.

The route book: The mileage and directions are complete but the book is undergoing some final touches – David Bradley is adding maps, satellite photos and elevation profiles. We’re following the format of the RAAM and RAO route book which gives total mileage and also Time Station to Time Station mileage. As car odometers register mileage differently (there was a 7 mile difference between our van and the GPS by the finish) I strongly recommend zeroing out your odometer at each time station to stay as close to the route book mileage as possible. This is very important on this route as the majority of turns occur after 300 miles – if your mileage is off at this point those turns will be easy to miss. As soon as we get the book back from David it will be posted for download on the Hill Country page.

The day before the race: Sadly, Helotes was recently ranked as the third fastest growing city in America. While houses are springing up all over the place (fortunately you won’t ride by many of them) there is only one motel in town. It is a Quality Inn & Suites about two miles from the start. As this motel chain isn’t known for having wonderful meeting space we’re having the race check in as well as bike/vehicle inspections at Roger Soler’s Tri Shop and Helotes Bicycle both of which are located a few feet from the start/finish line. We’ll also hold a couple of brief pre-race meetings at this location. Since questions tend to be so different solo and tandems will meet for about 20 minutes @ 6:00 p.m. Teams will meet at 6:30. HOWEVER, if you are participating in Hell Week and will be staying in Fredricksburg please let me know in advance. We will hold bicycle and vehicle inspections early evening Friday for your convenience. If you elect to have your inspections in Fred you will need to show up an hour before the start so we can go over what you’ll miss at the pre-race meeting. Though it’s recommended that as many of your crew/rider(s) come to the meeting, I require only one rider and one crew member represent you at the pre-race. I’ll post contact info for motels in the surrounding vicinity this weekend.

Qualifying for RAAM: You have 36 hours to be considered an official finisher. However, to qualify for RAAM we will be using the current qualification rules of being within 15% of the first non-RAAM qualified finishers’ time in your division. Teams do not have to qualify in order to enter Race Across America.

That’s all for now. I have a busy work schedule this week but will be focusing the majority of my time on the race from then till the you are all safely across the finish line and the post race party comes to a close.

Here are some nearby motels I’d recommend (first choice would be Bandera Pointe):

Quality Inn & Suites
Bandera Pointe
9522 Brimhall Road
2.3 miles from Helotes
(210) 372-9900

or

Quality Inn & Suites
Fiesta Park
10950 Laureate
6.7 miles from Helotes
(210) 249 – 4800

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Scouting Trip to Texas

Sunday January 4, 2009 by Terri Gooch
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I will be making a trip to Helotes in three weeks to scout and finalize the Hill Country route. I’m looking forward to getting back to Texas!

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Another Great Weekend

Sunday September 7, 2008 by Terri Gooch
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in Maupin – I am uploading some photos now to Flickr from the weekend’s race – stay tuned for some great shots, wonderful scenery, and a peak at our fabulous racers!

Thanks again to everyone for racing and crewing. Thanks to our super duper volunteers this weekend; Gregg Geser – who should be a partner in Race Across Oregon, LLC he does so much to make our events happen. Lynn Harris, volunteer extraordinare, who always lends a hand to help out at our event in Maupin. Jane Nicolai, who is just an amazing human being and wonderful to be around!

Race Across Oregon would also like to thank our sponsors:
Co-Motion Cycles This year’s ultra cup winner and recipient of the Co-Motion Espresso Frameset is Glen Johnson.

Hammer Nutrition – we simply could not run our events with out them – and especially Steve Born, who has been a tireless supporter of George and I in both our racing lives and our events.

Detours Sports- whose killer line of bags makes giving our prizes so fun! DECIDE 2 RIDE and check them out – they make the best gear for the road!

We were lucky enough this year to have some wonderful prizes given to us in the spirit of racing:
Mike Olson of Olson’s Bicycles sponsored the first place prize to the 12 Hour winner Chip Keyes – a wonderful Spiuk helmet – George and I both got our helmets from Mike last year – and I LOVE the Spiuk stuff – it’s the best fitting helmet I’ve ever owned.

Mick Walsh donated a really cool pair of Smith sunglasses to the prize pile. It was awarded to Joanne Heilinger for putting in the slowest lap of the day! (JoAnne was also our 50+ 12 hour women’s winner)

Again, thank you to everyone who supports our events through the year – we couldn’t do it without you!

Best
Terri & George

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We're Here

Friday September 5, 2008 by Terri Gooch
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We’re Crazy! Get use to it!

It’s the eve of Ring of Fire version 2008 – and I can’t wait to see how it will all turn out. The crowd racing this year looks tougher than ever – lots of new faces and a couple we’ve seen before!

I think some new records are going to be set in the next 36 hours…..

Stay tuned!

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Riding for a Cause

Thursday August 21, 2008 by Terri Gooch
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Riding For Guiding Paws

September 6, 2008, Angela Horton Gapay will be riding the Ring of Fire to benefit Guiding Paws, a local club of puppy raisers for Guide Dogs for the Blind. The Ring of Fire is a 12/24 Time Trail in which cyclists try to ride as many miles as possible on a course that begins and ends in Maupin, OR. After the initial day loop of 112 miles for 12-hour riders, and 157 miles for 24-hour riders, the night loop of 26 miles begins. The Ring of Fire Time Trial is put on by Race Across Oregon, LLC, headquarted in Hood River, Oregon. Race Directors are George Thomas and Terri Gooch. Check out race detail and get live updates at: http://www.raceacrossoregon.com/roftt.

Guiding Paws, a Forest Grove, OR club of Guide Dogs for the Blind is lead by Kristin Tarnowski who began raising puppies as a student at Forest Grove High School. More recently she has inspired a number of children and families to get involved in raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. You can learn more about the organization at: Guidedogs.com.

As a teacher at Elizabeth Perry Montessori School, Ms. Tarnowski, has included the students in the raising of her last three puppies. In turn several families have joined the club and serve as puppy sitters. Many of the children plan to become primary puppy raisers when they are old/responsible enough. In the meantime, Horton Gapay, mother of two of those students, is riding to raise money to support the efforts of the local club. In fact, Ms. Tarnowski, along with Dewitt her 8 month old guide dog in training, will join the families and support crews at this year’s Ring of Fire.

You can support the Guiding Paws club and inspire Horton Gapay to ride diligently for 12 hours by pledging your support. While our goal is to raise at least $10.00 from fifty people, you can also make a per/mile pledge. Considering inspiring Angela with a $1.00/mi. pledge. Your donation is tax deductible. Please make checks out to: Guide Dogs for the Blind w/a memo “GUIDING PAWS” and send them to: Guiding Paws, C/O Krisitn Tarnowski, 1737 Birch St. Forest Grove, OR 97116. For further information or to pledge your support contact Angela at ahgapay@comcast.net or 971.235.0432.

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Picture Updates

Thursday July 24, 2008 by Terri Gooch
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Hey Everyone! I’ve continued to update the pictures on Flickr – and will continue to do so as people send me more images – thank you all for doing so!
Please keep checking in as I add more!

Best wishes for a speedy recovery to Brian Ecker who spent Sunday night in the ICU at the Gresham Hospital – appears that he was suffering from pulmonary edema.

I’d love to have links to blogs, updates, photos – all of it – please send it all my way!

Thank you all again for making RAO such a wonderful special event for George, Amelia and I.

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