Portland is a hub for the car-free and carefree
PORTLAND, Ore. -- When guests at Portland's studiously hip Ace Hotel want to break away from their bedside turntables (yes, LPs) for urban exploring, they can borrow a Dutch-designed cruiser and a cycling map laced with hints: Do steer clear of train tracks and yield to pedestrians; don't blow through red lights or ride while using a cellphone.
"And remember," the map cautions. "Drinking and smoking while riding is for professionals only. Do not attempt!"
Good advice, considering this Pacific Northwest city is home to so many micro-breweries that it's been dubbed Beervana, and to enough artisanal distilleries that a walking tour of "Libation Alley" is in the offing.
But it certainly doesn't apply to the Zoo Bombers, a tribe of gonzo Portland cyclists (and sporadic intrepid visitors) that convene a few blocks from the Ace on Sunday evenings.
Their agenda: Climb aboard one of the light-rail MAX trains that crisscross the metro area, get off at the Oregon Zoo, and careen downhill on souped-up kiddie bikes. Bruises and broken speed limits — not to mention the occasional intoxicant — are par for the course.
No matter how you choose to get around this outpost of half a million free-wheeling souls, car keys aren't required.
Founded in the mid-19th century as a shipping and logging center (which prompted one of its first nicknames, Stumptown), Portland has been a poster child for progressive urban planning for decades. And as lofty fuel prices drive destinations to tout their pedestrian- and biker-friendly attributes, the city's extensive mass transit, green credentials and neighborhood-centric culture are garnering even more attention.
"We still have parking lots filled with SUVs," says Shelby Wood, who writes PDXgreen, a column and blog about sustainable living, for Portland's daily newspaper, The Oregonian. But here, she adds, "it seems normal to do things that still strike other parts of the country as awfully different" — from raising free-range chickens in backyards to creating crosswalk "bike boxes" that let cyclists get ahead of cars at busy intersections, with the goal of reducing collisions.
