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Mysterious Oregon Coast 2025 Part 2

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

Release Date: 09/04/2025

The 2025 Holiday Spectacular show art The 2025 Holiday Spectacular

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

Shifty the Elf returns for the annual holiday spectacular! 2025 was... a year. And as Shifty and I pack up for Seattle, there's a bunch of things we're going through and boxing up as we bid adieu to the year! Happy Holidays and see you in 2026!

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Honolulu and Seattle show art Honolulu and Seattle

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

A walk along Elliot Bay to discuss the short trip to Honolulu and more on the transition to Seattle and all the bikey adventures to come. Honolulu and Seattle A walk along Elliot Bay Honolulu thoughts More Seattle impressions N+1 thoughts on bikes

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Pedalshift's New Basecamp show art Pedalshift's New Basecamp

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

Big news for the show: The Pedalshift Project is setting up camp in a new city! This episode breaks down what that means for future tours, how this opens up brand-new riding possibilities, and why the destination may be a bit of a surprise and also not a surprise at all.   My new home: Seattle! Why? This move is all about geography, access, and expanding the Pedalshift touring sandbox. Seattle places world-class touring terrain right outside the door and increases the show’s ability to cover more routes, more often. And yes—this is a return to the broader PNW. Think of it as a new...

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Best of Pedalshift 291: Working Remotely on Bike Adventures show art Best of Pedalshift 291: Working Remotely on Bike Adventures

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

It used to be that a bike adventure meant taking paid time off or quitting your job. Now that remote work is a reality for many of us, there’s a new option. But is bike travel while working remotely right for you? Originally podcast July 28, 2022.

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Thanksgiving Eve Live show art Thanksgiving Eve Live

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

A repodcast of our Thanksgiving Eve live show: following up on your comments on the state of bicycle touring, plus a bunch of great questions in an Ask Me Anything segment! Followup: Is Bicycle Touring in Decline? More emails on this than any topic in a while. Some selected thoughts from listeners: Regarding ACA Multiple listeners: Could ACA  be losing older members in its attempts to expand into younger audiences, but worse… might not be succeeding on either front? It’s hard to do both, and that’s the challenge… you need to find what drives your constituencies and sometimes you...

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Is Bicycle Touring in Decline? show art Is Bicycle Touring in Decline?

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

Bicycle touring numbers feel like they’re down—fewer loaded panniers on the road, Adventure Cycling Association facing major financial headwinds, and a lot of long-time tourers quietly aging out. But is touring actually in decline, or is it just shifting into something that looks different—like bikepacking, gravel, and shorter, more flexible trips? In this episode I dig into Adventure Cycling’s recent membership and financial update, talk through generational and economic trends, and explore whether we’re seeing the end of an era… or just the end of one version of it. Is Bicycle...

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Bike Adventure Goals Scorecard show art Bike Adventure Goals Scorecard

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

Way back in January - and what feels like ten years ago to me - I set out a bunch of bicycle adventure goals for me in 2025. In a challenging year, I wasn't sure how I'd measure up but as I always like to do, I gave the goals a once over to see how I did. So on this episode we give it a scorecard treatment, but also a sneak preview of the final piece of 2025 adventuring that manages to check one of the boxes! 2025 Bike Adventure Goals Scorecard Celebrating plans already made, and taking care of yourself Sort of? A big ebike trip – maybe two. Taking the bike on a ride only the ebike can do…...

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Best of Pedalshift 249: Solo Touring Women show art Best of Pedalshift 249: Solo Touring Women

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

A chat with Sylva Florence, an experienced bicycle tourist and author of many things (including her blog The Sylva Lining) on touring as a solo woman, how people who want to be allies to solo women touring can do that without being creepy, and some of her favorite adventures. .

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The Ultralight Challenge show art The Ultralight Challenge

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

What if you could tour with just what fits in a single dry bag? No panniers. Just the essentials. On this episode, we take this as a challenge - borrowing from the ultralight backpacking folks, we cut off our toothbrush handles and weigh every gram for the ultralight bikepacking challenge! “What if you could tour with just what fits in your handlebar bag? No panniers. No rack. Just the essentials.” Why: curiosity, simplicity, nimble handling, testing limits for overnighters or credit card touring. Rules: one mid-size drybag (say 10–12L). No extra frame or seat bags. Trip assumptions:...

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A Game of Chance Revisited show art A Game of Chance Revisited

The Pedalshift Project: Bicycle Travel Adventures

We're bringing back one of the wackiest ideas in Pedalshift history — the Game of Chance! Using random number generators and the excellent Adventure Cycling Association routes, it's an unpredictable coast-to-coast bike tour from the Pacific to the Atlantic. When every turn is determined by chance the results are... surprisingly awesome? In This Episode:   Revisiting the “Game of Chance” touring experiment from 2021 Using randomness to pick routes across ACA’s national network Riding (and re-riding) the Pacific Coast, Northern Tier, Lewis & Clark, TransAm, and more ...

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More Episodes

Day two and three of the Oregon Coast tour evolve into an epic quest for an elusive bicycle part. Is this a mere repair mission or a saga worthy of Greek mythology with adaptive problem-solving, multiple contingency plans, long-distance bus adventures, heat stroke avoidance, and kind bike shop professionals who go above and beyond?

 

Day Two Morning - Plan Multiplication 

  • Late wake-up due to flexible schedule
  • Pig and Pancake breakfast at classic Oregon Coast institution
  • 10:30 AM: First Seaside shop call - negative result
  • 12:00 PM: Multiple plan permutations discussed off-mic
  • Decision to purchase additional campsite night for gear security

The Great Plan Cascade

  • Plan A: Dead on arrival (Seaside shop #1)
  • Plan B: Dead at noon (Seaside shop #2)
  • Multiple Portland options considered and analyzed
  • Ian consultation reveals Monday/Tuesday availability conflicts
  • Plan F: Warrenton option with Ed the Legend emerges
  • 50/50 assessment of success probability based on Ed's memory

Day Two Leisure Activities

  • Haystack Rock exploration and beach time
  • Two consecutive meals at Pelican Brewery
  • Server confusion when Tim and James reversed their lunch/dinner orders
  • Extended campsite stay and gear planning sessions

Day Three - The Portland Pivot 

  • Early morning departure preparation and coffee
  • Bus route research reveals 2.8-inch tire compatibility issues
  • Warrenton bus only runs twice daily, next departure at 5:50 PM
  • Strategic decision: Portland certainty over Warrenton uncertainty
  • Critical discovery: Portland bus stops in Beaverton near Universal Cycles

The Beaverton Solution 

  • Successful mid-route bus exit in Beaverton
  • 12-18 minute walk to Universal Cycles in 90-degree heat
  • Online inventory confirmation: 8 units in stock
  • Successful charm deployment for installation service
  • Same-day return bus to Cannon Beach secured

 

Statistics

  • Plan iterations reached:  26 maybe 100
  • Bus route options analyzed: 3
  • Bike shops contacted/visited: 5 
  • Days with minimal cycling: 2 
  • Temperature differential: 30 From a chilly marine layer in Cannon Beach to 90°F blazing sun in Beaverton
  • Flats: 0

 

Notable Quotes

  • "Plan F. We think from plan double Z" - Tim on the ever-evolving situation
  • "It's a coin flip" - James assessing Warrenton success probability
  • "Don't let us down. Don't let us down." - High expectations for Universal Cycles
  • "We need a win" - Emotional state after multiple plan failures