Home 
News Local News Union prepares for Cycle Oregon
Union prepares for Cycle Oregon
|
 Cycle Oregon riders in 2006 pedal into Union. This year’s event brings riders once again to Union. - Observer file photo The cyclists will be greeted by a wave of hospitality and a sea of red during their overnight stay. “We want to do all we can to greet them,’’ said Sandra Patterson of Union’s Cycle Oregon welcoming committee. It all starts around 11 a.m. when the first cyclists are expected to roll into Union from Cove. The riders will be seeing red — the red of possibly hundreds of citizens who are being encouraged to dress in the hue to greet the cyclists. Community members will line both sides of Main Street to greet the cyclists as they roll in. They will be shaking red pom poms, blowing whistles, sounding sirens and more as the cyclists come in. They may even conduct a human wave like the kind seen at football games. The bikers will be completing their first day of Cycle Oregon, a week-long, 305-mile trip that begins Sunday morning in Elgin. The cyclists, who will sleep in a city of tents at Union High School’s athletic complex, will have plenty to do during their stay — the community will make sure of it. Things they will have a chance to enjoy include: • rides on a horse-drawn wagon that will take passengers to Union’s historic sites, including many of its old homes. • a barbecue conducted by a local church. • eat homemade desserts provided by the local VFW’s ladies auxiliary. • visit an information booth run by Union High School’s volleyball team. • check out exhibits at the Union County Museum, which will be open all day Sunday. • visit many businesses, a large number of which will remain open Sunday for Cycle Oregon riders. Some will be offering special services for cyclists. For example, one will be taking photographs of cyclists — photos that will look like historic tintype prints. Union School District students will also play a large role in helping the cyclists, who will leave Monday morning. The students will set up tents, help serve meals, do garbage duty, carry baggage off of trucks and more.
 Union High School’s athletic complex became a tent city in early September 2006 when Union last hosted Cycle Oregon. About 2,000 bikers with Cycle Oregon slept in tents at the complex. The complex will become a tent city for Cycle Oregon again on Sunday. - Observer file photo The Union community knows what to expect since Sunday is the second time in three years Cycle Oregon riders will be stopping in Union. Riders also stayed in September 2006. That year cyclists stayed two nights because they had a layover day in Union. The visit was successful although some organizations providing food ran short because of the hearty appetites of the cyclists. “We learned last time that they are a hungry bunch,’’ said Debbie Clark of Union’s Cycle Oregon committee. “They enjoy homemade things.’’ They also learned that many of the cyclists have an appetite for small community history. “They love to learn the history of little towns,’’ Clark said. She hopes that what the riders learn about Union’s past will entice them to make return visits. “We hope that this will draw them back so that they will further explore Union.’’ |
