Chas Eberle
Pacific Coast
Astoria, OR
RhythmSince leaving Astoria, the trip has started to change for me. Although my legs and body are adapting to the mileage more and more each day, the rainy nights and "unusual" South Western headwind have upped the ante and added some new elements to the adventure. In Astoria, we also picked up my sister who got a ride up from Portland to ride for a week. We spent the first day resting and reflecting after a short ride to Canon Beach and saw that the weather forecast was changing. 100% chance of rain was coming our way, but the obvious decision was to ride until we were forced not to. This didn't happen until we were just outside of Tillamook, camping at my favorite state park of the trip so far; Cape Lookout. We were drying our clothes from the light rain we had had that day in the sun, and were caught off guard by a freak lightning storm that successfully soaked pretty much everything we had before we could stuff it all back in our dry-bags. The next day, we had a few monster hills and another rain storm, so it w
as time to put our pennies together and spring for a cheap motel in Lincoln City. It was a fresh start, but we still had to deal with wet gear until we could finally dry it out at the next campsite.
Since the rain hasn't constant, it has taught me some valuable lessons in touring strategies, like how to avoid the traffic and headwinds by leaving early, washing clothes in the shower and drying them in the back of the bike each day. Also getting more and more connected to my energy levels and how to balance the food intake accordingly (usually, the best rule of thumb is MORE FOOD). Each day requires repacking the bags in the morning and unloading them at the end of the day. The things with me seem less burdensome and more necessary with each changing condition...except for the slingshot, that's just fun.
The ride is feeling more like a journey than a trip. It was great having my sister along, not only for a chance to reconnect and go camping/cycling, but it also put the first week's experience in perspective and see someone with fresh legs go through the same physical and logistical processes that we did in the beginning. Now that we have passed through Florence, it looks like a wind shift is in order, and the rain may have passed. Looking forward to what's next!
- IMAGES OF THE ROAD -
Chas Eberle
Gear List
- My Blackburn Gear -
- MY TRUSTY STEED -
- • Frame: Salsa Fargo 3
- • Frame size: Medium
- • Fork: Salsa Fargo V2
- • Headset: FSA C4
- • Crank (make, model, length, chainrings): Shimano Deore, 175mm. 26T, 38T, 46T
- • Bottom bracket: Shimano cartridge 2300
- • Pedals: TDB – currently $20 Welgo flats.
- • Cassette (make, model and range): Shimano HG 9sp. 11-32
- • Shifters: Shimano Bar-end shifters, with Paul Shimano Road Thumbies.
- • Brakes: Avid BB7s
- • Wheels (size, hub, rim): Front: Shimano Alfine Generator Hub Rear: Shimano Deore XT hub
- • Tires: Front - WTB Weirwolf 2.55in. Rear – Continental Race King 2.2in (but will probably get new tires)
- • Seat post: Black.
- • Saddle: Koski Contour saddle
- • Stem: Raceface Evolve XC
- • Handlebar (and aerobars, grips, bartape, etc): Surley Open Bar, Ergo lock grips.
- • Bags (racks, panniers, or bikepacking bags): Blackburn: Outpost front/rear racks Barrier series front/rear panniers Handlebar bag
- • Spare parts list: Extra derailleur hanger , A couple of spokes, Chain bits, Tube x 2
- • Toolkit: Spoke wrench, Chain-breaker, Crescent wrench, Pliers, Rubber bits, Socket Y-wrench, Blackburn - Heist 10 multitool, Tire levers Tow straps, zip ties, electrical tape. Blackburn – Mammoth 2-stage mini pump
- • Accessories (lights, fenders, computer, etc.): Bell Blackburn Atom SL 3 computer, B & M IQ Headlight, Blackburn Central Front Smart Light
Chas Eberle
- FROM: Bellingham, WA
- DOB: 1986-11-19
- Not Married
- OCCUPATION: Currently a full-time student, getting ready for grad school to study Occupational Therapy. During the winter I am a Snowboard Trainer at Mt. Baker, and during the summer I am a Zipline Course Supervisor in Ketchikan, AK for a company called Alaska Canopy
- What was the genesis moment or inspiration for your upcoming adventure? This trip has been a long time coming. Back in 2008 I began spending a lot of time at my local community bike shop in Bellingham (the Hub). I was beginning to learn a bit about bicycle repair, and did the typical college kid thing and built up a fixie. Eventually, I found a bike in a ditch and it was my goal to rebuild it from used parts and ride it to Portland. My buddy and I chose to ride the Washington Peninsula because we had never seen it, and thought it might make a good story. (It also had an easy bus system if anything catastrophic happened to my makeshift bicycle and trailer). We made our way to Portland over 10 days, and by day 3 I decided that I wanted to do the entire coast. Unfortunately, our short timeframe prevented that from happening. The trip to Portland went flawlessly, and I rode the train back to Bellingham hoping to complete the journey some day.
- Have you traveled by bike in the past? I have done multiple other 2-3 day trips since the Portland trip, but nothing as substantial. Around town I commute to school/work every day, mountain bike 2-3 days per week, and have the weekly town/interurban rides with the gang (The Wetboyz).
- What is your goal for the route? I have never seen to Northern California! I want to ride my bike through a tree, do some beach touring, find more small community bike shops, and do some surfing. It is also my goal to find some dirt connectors instead of just doing road the entire time. I want to have a loose plan, but let the trip adapt and change as the journey goes on. I want to share stories with people on the road, and travel to places recommended to me by other people, instead of relying solely on the guidebook.
- What do you hope to get out of this journey? I hope to see some new places, make some new friends, and connect with myself in ways unknown at this point. I hope I can inspire people with this journey, and show them that it doesn’t take years of planning and thousands of dollars to see some of these beautiful places that are right in our back yard. I believe the biggest barrier for most people is simply getting out there, and I really believe in Blackburn’s mission statement. “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao-Tsu Yes, it’s cheesy but that quote has inspired me in many ways. It encourages me to be open-minded and go bold-headed into projects instead of holding back and being overly particular.
-
“What’s in my bag?”
1.) Pink/silver Kershaw Leek knives. I lost and recently refound the pink one for a year, and the silver one was a birthday gift from my girlfriend to replace the pink one.
2.) Fujifilm Instax 210 Camera + photo of my girlfriend and I from the Portage Glacier (Whittier, AK)
3.) Lucky Bike Shorts – Had ‘em since high school.
4.) Ratball. (a drinking game for the rats, developed by the Wetboyz) For making friends on the road.