New Event Formats & Cycle Oregon Grant Awards
2024 was both pivotal and transformative for Cycle Oregon as an organization. It was our first full year working under the guidance of the Cycle Oregon Foundation; the 501c3 purpose-built from Cycle Oregon’s humble beginnings as a 1988 bike ride to today’s mission of Bringing the Joy of Riding a Bicycle to all of Oregon. Cycle Oregon’s impact in 2024 extended beyond simply great rides and events as evidenced through this evolution into community programming and grants. We also delivered the Jump Start bike education program to over 20 schools across the state, co-managed Oregon’s Scenic Bikeways program (the first of its kind in the nation), and awarded over 40 event registration scholarships to deserving community members to ride with us.
About those great Cycle Oregon rides – in 2024 we introduced a new weekend-long format for our women-only Joyride event with two wonderful days of riding and community-building programming. We also held our first Rally in September; it’s a modern evolution of the signature Cycle Oregon Classic with a uniquely dynamic program featuring more community-based riding adventures and inclusive ranges of riding. Cycle Oregon also supported 60 volunteer organizations through our events with over $60,000 in stipends.
Cycle Oregon’s Community Grants program helps provide important support for communities. Our 2024 awards supported the work of these important community organizations whose work furthers the statewide development of bike education, access to bikes for all, and investments in safe places to ride:
2024 Cycle Oregon Grant Recipients
Chiloquin Teen Adventure Camps – Chiloquin Visions in Progress serves the greater Chiloquin community through programs, projects, and activities. The six-week Chiloquin Teen Adventure Camp series was developed exclusively for middle and high school students, including Native American youth many of whom came from the Klamath Tribes. The camp program offers free access to enjoyable learning experiences that will nurture skills, creativity, and well-being in areas from outdoor recreation to health and art through six thematic weeks. Cycle Oregon’s grant will be an added boost for Bike Skills Week, aiming to impart essential biking skills, safety practices, and mechanical skills.
Vale Grand Opera House Bike Repair & Reuse – The Drexel Foundation, based in Vale, Oregon, has a mission is to enrich the lives of Oregon youth and families by providing art, humanities, and multicultural experiences through programs related to restoration and preservation of historical rural buildings. Based in the Opera House, which has grown into an important community cultural and art center, a dedicated staff member will be put in place to oversee a bike repair and reuse program and promote bike programing in the area. Funding from this grant will further provide new bicycle and helmet donations to rural families in need while also driving tourism in the community through promotion of the Opera House’s free-to-the-public bicycle repair station.
Salmonberry Trail Foundation – 2024 marks the seventh Cycle Oregon Grant awarded to The Salmonberry Trail Foundation; their mission clearly aligns with our own and this is a project we are excited to see continue. This grant will fund the hiring of a Community Engagement Coordinator to oversee the Volunteer & Ambassador Program while performing essential tasks such as neighbor outreach, track scouting, evaluating native and nonnative species, leading guided hikes, and clearing sections of track for evaluation and development. The Community Engagement Coordinator will provide the public with a direct connection to volunteer opportunities that lower project costs while building strong public support in the efforts toward trail completion.
Klamath Falls Pump Track- “For Everything with Wheels” -The Sky Lakes Foundation is the philanthropic fundraising and community stewardship arm of the Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, Oregon. With an aim to support the redefinition of the region for outdoor recreation tourism, this inclusive, public facility will address the region’s limited access to physical activity opportunities, particularly for underserved communities, where poverty and health disparities are significant. With Klamath Falls residents experiencing higher rates of poor physical health and lower levels of physical activity than state averages, the pump track will provide a year-round, universally accessible space for outdoor exercise.
(A pump track is a continuous, hard-packed or paved closed loop trail designed for riding wheeled sports equipment, such as bikes, skateboards, and scooters, where riders generate momentum by pumping their bodies up and down instead of pedaling.)
The Cycle Oregon Foundation also received an award from the Cycle Oregon Fund held at the Oregon Community Foundation. This support was crucial in the development of the foundation and will power its growth for years to come.
So, THANK YOU to our sponsors, to our volunteers, to our donors and to our riders for a great 2024. We look forward to spreading more joy from the seat of a bicycle in 2025; join us for a ride, volunteer when you can and thank you for your gracious contributions!