Recently in the Mountain Biking Category

Mountain biking blogger Terry Richard writes about ten central Oregon bike trails that are perfect for novices and intermediate riders. His suggestions include Dry Canyon, Suttle Tie Trail, and the “graduation ride” at Peterson Ridge: “From Village Green Park, ride south of town on Elm Street, then enter the well-marked trail system at the city limit. The six-mile lower loop is a easy but fun, while the 17-mile upper loop will have you gaining 700 feet. You’ll be ready to ride just about anywhere after this.” On OregonLive.com.

The Oregonian’s Terry Richards points to the key spots for outdoors nuts in the central Cascades, including the head of the Metolius, the Badlands, and Newberry Crater: “The national volcanic monument near La Pine has two gorgeous mountain lakes with lodges, a giant mound of black obsidian and a classic mountain bike trail around the rim of the caldera.”

The League of American Bicyclists just published a detailed list — along with very interesting and elucidating commentary — of which U.S. politicians seem to have it in for bicycles and cyclists, . “On NPR’s morning news program ‘The Take Away,’ Senator Eric Cantor said, ‘To give you just an example, $3 million went to the District of Columbia. You know what they did with that money? They’re going to go build bike paths, and they’re going to increase the number of bike racks in neighborhoods like Georgetown. I don’t think that that’s a stimulative move.’”