This article is the second of a two-part series kicking off cycling season. Read Part 1 Here ›
April Rides
April kicks off the cycling season! After the long cold winter, birds are singing and flowers are blooming. Time to get back on the bike and enjoy the freedom!
Please note that you MUST wear a helmet on ALL Umpqua Velo Club (UVC) rides.
Tuesday Night Easy Rides: This is the one for everybody: grandparents, grandkids, new riders, riders who haven't been on their bike in years and those who just want a slower pace. We meet at the Locomotive in Stewart Park (near the Half Shell and Pavillion) and plan to start riding at 6 p.m.. The first few of these rides will be slow and short. Depending on the ability of riders, we may only ride a couple miles then as the group progresses, will graduate to the full loop around Stewart Park, the VA and the Duck Pond. These rides are much longer by the end of the season with August distances in the teens. Also, the starting location will change on nights when there is a concert at the Half Shell. The alternate site is usually the Roseburg High School parking lot given its easy access and proximity to the bike path. Rides are free; non-members will need to sign a waiver. Helmets are required.
4/12 First Tuesday Easy Ride, Stewart Park Locomotive, 6 p.m.
4/19 Tuesday Easy Ride, Stewart Park Locomotive, 6 p.m.
4/26 Tuesday Easy Ride, Stewart Park Locomotive, 6 p.m.
Wednesday Club rides: In 2021, we varied the starting location of these weekly rides and will plan to do that in 2022. The first two April rides will start and end at My Coffee at 1700 NW Garden Valley and the rest will begin at the Locomotive In Stewart Park. Wednesday Club rides are recommended for intermediate riders due to distances and speed. Club members and non-members are invited but non-members will need to sign a waiver. We also ask that non-members join after the first "free" ride. Here are the dates and routes:
4/6 First Wednesday UVC Ride, My Coffee, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38579815
4/13 Wednesday UVC Ride, My Coffee, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38579839
4/20 UVC Ride, Stewart Park Train, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38579865
4/27 Wednesday UVC Ride, Stew. Park Train, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38579904
Thursday Mountain Bike Rides at Cooper Creek! Years of hard work and trail building at Cooper Creek have paid big dividends. LUMBR (Land of Umpqua Mountain Bikers) invite riders of all levels to join them on Thursdays starting in April. Note that this course may require beginning riders to walk their bikes in a few spots, but that's OK. It's also strongly suggested that if you've never ridden at Cooper Creek that you hike the trail first. The rides at Cooper Creek will begin and end in the West Parking lot (nearest the dam, bathrooms and the park host's residence). All riders will be required to wear a helmet and, as this is an Umpqua Velo Club sanctioned ride, non-members will need to complete a waiver of liability.
4/14 6 p.m. start. Meet at the West Parking Lot of Cooper Creek
4/21 6 p.m. start. Meet at the West Parking Lot of Cooper Creek
4/21 6 p.m. start. Meet at the West Parking Lot of Cooper Creek
Earth Day Ride! Saturday April 23 at 10:30AM. UVC has long held an Earth Day Ride that takes in Melqua and Garden Valley Roads and has a lunch stop at the Lighthouse Bakery in Umpqua. This year we will ride from the Discovery Garden at River Forks Park. The ride starts at 10:30AM. At 26.9 miles with 1199 feet of climbing, this is an admittedly ambitious early-season ride. We will practice "no rider left behind" and we'd love to see you. Here's the route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38732664
May Rides
May is National Bike Month, celebrated in communities from coast to coast. Established in 1956, National Bike Month is a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling — and encourage more folks to give biking a try. Bicycling in the Umpqua Valley and Douglas County really gets momentum in May as the weather warms up. In addition to the National Bike Month Activities, Thrive Umpqua (formerly Blue Zones Umpqua) and the Umpqua Velo Club are gearing up with a bunch of cool rides!
Grand Opening of the Completed Mountain Bike Loop of Cooper Creek! Saturday May 14 at Noon at Cooper Creek County Park. LUMBR expect to have the ENTIRE loop of Cooper Creek completed in May. This has been a very long time in the making! They will have a grand opening event with festivities and food available.
Bike and Dine! UVC and Thrive Umpqua invite you to ride your bike to a local restaurant on two Thursdays in May.
5/5 - 6 p.m. - Bike and Dine Salud! It's Cinco de Mayo! Where ELSE would we go? Exact route TBD
5/19 - 6 p.m. - Bike and Dine Alexanders! Exact route TBD
Tuesday Night Easy Rides will continue. Starting at 6 p.m. on Tuesdays from the Locomotive in Stewart Park. Moderate distances while we get back into the groove.
Wednesday Club Rides
5/4 Wednesday UVC Ride & Meeting, North Forty Beer Co., 530pm/700pm https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38579915
5/11 UVC Ride, Sutherlin Central Park, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38727406
5/18 UVC Ride, Sutherlin Central Park, 6 p.m. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38727424
5/25 UVC Ride, location and route TBD 6 p.m.
June Rides
Regularly scheduled Tuesday Easy Rides and Wednesday Club Rides will continue! Depending on the status of Concerts on the Half Shell, the location for Easy Rides may change to the RHS parking lot. Wednesday ride leaders and routes haven't yet been established, but calendars will be updated! Mountain bike rides haven't yet been planned, but keep watching for news of MTB events!
Cycle Travel Weekend! June 3 - June 5, 2022. The first weekend in June is designated Cycle Travel Weekend by the folks at Adventure Cycling. Not just another Hallmark Holiday, it's an adventure! Here's the announcement as it shows up on the Adventure Cycling Website: The Umpqua Velo Club is proud to participate in the 2022 Cycle Travel Weekend Event! All the close-to-town camping spots had already been taken, so we're going on an epic adventure this year. The ride will start Saturday Morning at 10AM from the Roseburg Public Library Parking Lot, then out beautiful Buckhorn Road and then onto Hwy 138 - the Rogue Umpqua Scenic Highway that parallels the mighty North Umpqua River and up Steamboat Creek Road. We'll camp overnight at the Scaredman Recreation site alongside Canton Creek and take the same route back on Sunday. Feel free to carry everything and make this a bikepacking trip OR toss your stuff into a truck to have it driven out for you. We'll have a pasta dinner Saturday night and a pancake breakfast Sunday morning. BYOB. The ride is open to non-club members who haven't ridden with UVC before, but everyone MUST sign a waiver and MUST wear a helmet! The route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/38433611