Day 0, Elgin

We ran around Portland trying to clean the house, finish packing, run by the library, get the dog to the kennel, fill up on gas, and a million other things. We hoped to leave by 9, it was closer to noon by the time we were finally on the road. As we made the 5ish hour drive we constantly passed and were passed by other cars loaded down with bicycles headed toward the start of Cycle Oregon in Elgin.

We might have been late to get on the road, but with the camp site at Elgin high school's baseball and football fields, there were plenty of places to pitch our tent and we had plenty of time to get settled in and relax the night before the start of the ride.

Among the various check-in details (wrist band, t-shirt, bag labeling, etc.) each rider had the chance to fill in a faux-Oregon license plate for the back of their bike. Some people put their name, some their hometown, others a nick-name, etc. etc. I was "Honey" and my Christopher was "Moon." Throughout the week most people got it, but when we weren't riding right next to each other a few people didn't quite understand. I got a lot of "hey honey" calls and people thought Chris was either a hippy-child or maybe making a threat. I suggested he drop his shorts half-way on the big hill climbs (live up to the name and all), but he was too modest for that.