Day 79: 52 Miles

Blue River, OR to Eugene, OR

Sticking to my normal schedule, I was the last one awake and packed up this morning. I rolled out of my tent a little after 6:00. After packing up my tent and eating some food I started riding just after 7:00. Everyone else had a head start on me today, but we were all planning to stop 20 miles down the road to grab breakfast at a cafe in the town of Vida.

The ride to Vida was mostly downhill and easy except for the logging trucks that were zooming by. The road had a shoulder, but it wasn’t all that wide so I had to pay attention. After 20 quick miles I pulled into the parking lot of the Vida Cafe where I saw 4 bikes parked outside. I walked in and found Stephen, Charlie, Mike and Pat. They were still eating, so I wasn’t as far behind them as I originally thought. I ordered a breakfast sandwich and some oatmeal, but the other 4 guys were ready to go before my food came out. I said goodbye to the group once again and realized this time I really wouldn’t be running into them again along the route.

The traditional Trans Am route ends in Astoria, OR. I am ending in Florence, OR which is an alternate route on the map. Florence is directly west of Eugene, while the route to Astoria heads north of Eugene and is an extra couple hundred miles of riding. The other 4 guys are all headed to Astoria. I opted to end in Florence because of timing. I have a wedding to get to on the east coast next weekend and it would have been impossible to make it to the wedding and also do the longer route to Astoria.

After leaving the cafe, I had a little more than 30 miles to Eugene. Eugene is at an elevation of 430 feet, so there wasn’t any climbing today. It was an easy ride all the way into town. The temperature this morning was very cold, but after breakfast it had warmed up enough that I could take my jacket off. I got to the outside of Eugene and decided there were a few spots I wanted to check out before I got off my bike.

Eugene is also known as “Track Town U.S.A.” As a former track runner (admittedly not a very good one) there were a few points of interest that I wanted to check out. I got into town on a bike path that followed Pre’s Trail. Pre’s Trail is named after Steve Prefontaine and is a really nice 4 mile path that loops around a park next to a river. I then climbed a steep hill up to Skyline Boulevard where I found Pre’s Rock. The rock is a memorial to Prefontaine and marks the place on the road where he died in a car accident. It is amazing that there are still people leaving sneakers, medals and other keepsakes at the memorial. I took some time to take it all in and then headed back down the hill to my last stop at Hayward Field. Hayward field is where some of the largest track and field meets in the country take place. I know most people don’t find people running around a track to be a great spectator sport, but I’ve been watching track meets from Hayward field on TV for years, so it was cool to see in person.

After I was done riding around the University of Oregon, I got some lunch and then headed to a motel to shower and take a nap. Tonight I’ll probably find a quick place to grab dinner and then get to bed early. Tomorrow I’ve got about 75 miles of riding before I arrive at the Pacific Ocean. I’ll still have 50 miles of cycling up the coast before I’m done on the bike, but tomorrow is essentially the end point of what has been an amazing trip.