No cars or bikes were stolen to make this post possible. Joyride is a  women’s “ride to unwind” that is organized by Cycle Oregon. Usually when I see anything from Cycle Oregon I assume it’s about the  7-day awesome ride in September that I can’t attend and I get sad and wish I had a different career outside of education, but last weekend I saw an ad on social media and I followed the trail to see that this ride was completely doable. Saturday, June 9th. I’m in. I registered and then I decided to head to Dayton, Oregon on Friday and I found a link to a go back in time. Doesn’t your Internet do that? Following another trail I saw a link for a place called Vinages Trailer Resort.

I was impatient for Friday. More than usual. I took a half-day personal leave. My husband got the car tanked up and he even cleaned the windows. We took off. Dayton is about an hour and a half away. We were on the road early enough to beat the traffic, or so we thought. I was glad to put the week behind me. I wanted a little adventure and this ride would be just what I needed.

 

We pulled into the Vintages lot and I was smitten with the place instantly. Admittedly I do have a fascination with trailers. I don’t come from camper people.

I’m not sure what I expected, but I’m thrilled with our trailer. We took our dog Max and apparently the other trailer I had reserved, The Ideal, was not ideal for pet people, so we were switched to the Shasta.

It was brilliant that we arrived earlier enough to settle in, order pizza and relax. The place is surprisingly quiet and serene. Even the heavy rain couldn’t dampen my excitement over this find. I was getting a tiny bit worried about the the rain stealing some joy from my Saturday ride, but what can you do? I had brought rain gear just in case.

A walk around the resort led to some bike envy. It was a feast from the past and even the bikes fit the theme.

 

All campers have a barbecue and bikes to ride around the site. There’s a general store with wine glasses, food and souvenirs.

We had all the amenities including wifi and Netflix.

By the time the twinkle lights came on in the resort I was thinking of skipping the bike ride and just hanging out in the camper.

But who am I kidding. We slept well. Even Max who gets up a few times at night slept until 6:30. None of us sleep in that late most days.

Joyride had various staggered times so I figured we’d get there and I’d pick up my packet. But first, coffee.

Then we loaded up the car and took off for the winery.

Dayton, Oregon is wine country and Joyride starts and ends at the Stoller Wine Estate. The flags! I’m excited to be participating in my first ever Cycle Oregon event.

We’re following the car in front of us trying to see where we should park.

Pretty amazing!

There’s a tree that blew down in the storm last night. Yeah… a big tree.

Guess that’s not registration.

The start line. What I love about a women’s only event is that there was a sort of constant chorus of “This isn’t a race. This isn’t a race.” There are three routes; short, medium and long.

I took off. I was thinking of the medium route which was 39 miles. Easy, peasy! I had a great pace and felt pretty good. I was riding my Trek Portland which my friends at Bike Gallery got spruced up. There were many compliments about my snazzy fenders. Most of my bikes are footloose and I don’t clip in. I seldom ride the road bike. I had a ride the week before and decided I wouldn’t take the Portland, but at the last minute I felt I should go with the road bike for a longer ride. I am not clipping in on the right side. I’m agitated by this and decide that at the next rest stop I’ll have someone help me with my cleats.

About 8.9 miles there’s a rest stop that is glorious. First off the food is amazing. Fresh fruit and chocolate covered hazelnuts and granola and live music. It’s spectacular. Women are talking and there’s a different vibe to the whole affair. It’s relaxed and mellow and “Are you here with a group of friends” or “You can join us if you want.” Also, “I love that jersey. Is that Primal? Where did you find that?” In a word it’s joyous.

Hummus, cream cheese, Nutella and almond butter on bagels and bread. I love that then men are there serving the women.

Lovely presentation of everything!

Yummy!

I left after about 20 minutes of resting. 

Heading back to the route I was feeling amazing. What a great day! I was excited about the 30 or so miles ahead. I was thinking about the other rest stops and what culinary treats would await.

As I got on the road there were some sprinkles or rain starting. Okay, sure, some drizzle. I started out with two rain jackets and it had proven to be too much. I shed one and then put it back on as I neared the road. It’s Oregon. It’s June. It’ll pass. I rode for about 4 miles. I took the medium and long route.

Then this happened.

There was a gust of wind that nearly took me down. I saw the group ahead of me get off the busy road and hide under a tree. I wanted to ride up to the tree but I also wanted to see my next birthday, so I pulled over into a field. I grabbed my phone and got a the video because it’s not that common to see white caps without being on the ocean. I put my back to the worst of the hail and then just waited to see what would happen. Would this pass? I saw the property owner get on his tractor and come down the hill. I thought he was going to yell at me to get off his property. I thought he was coming down to close his gate. Instead he yells out at me, “You can stay here as long as you want.” I could barely hear him over the din of the pelting hail. “What did you say?” I yelled. Again, “You can stay here as long as you want.” Then he waved and rode his tractor back up to his house.

After about 15 minutes some women came by and they asked if I wanted to join them. They weren’t sure if they were going to stick with the medium route but they thought they’d go for a few more miles and decide. We were surrounded by the black clouds and I still have school for another 13 days, and I don’t want to catch a cold. I was conflicted about what to do until I saw a truck speed by and decided I should head back to the short route. I made it about four miles before another drencher hit. I found a tree along with another group of five women. After about 15 more minutes and no blue sky in sight I texted my husband that I was doing the short route and I’d be back at the winery within the hour.

It ended up being a 20 mile day, but still eventful. I was kind of kicking myself about it but after we got home there was another hail storm and more rain.

I had a glass of Pinot and enjoyed the 20 miles.

Until next year. Most rides are joyous and wonderful. I had a great day despite the rain and I can’t wait for Joyride 2019.

Get out there and go for a ride!

Happy riding!
Bike Goddess