Early October presents cyclists with crisp, clear skies, afternoon sunshine, and some of the best riding of the year. The 7th Annual Harvest Century, presented by Showers Pass, displays spectacular fall beauty over 100, 75, 45, and three-mile looped routes from Washington County Fairgrounds.

Pumpkins mark the way to a finish line worthy of your effort. Highlights include a free massage, a tasty barbecue dinner, cold microbrews, sweet treats and live music. Each route boasts superb rest stop food, mechanic support, and easy to follow course markings. Invite the rest of the family out for the free three-mile route featuring a safe, inclusive walk and roll to a nearby park and back.

Every dollar raised from the Harvest Century goes to Community Vision, celebrating 20 years of providing one-to-one individualized support for adults with developmental disabilities - the most underserved and under-represented population in the community. Participation in the Harvest Century and (optional) additional fundraising dollars will help eradicate that injustice - one person at a time. The pre-registration deadline has been extended to Wednesday, October 7th. Registration will also be available at Washington County Fairgrounds on the day of the event.

( Register ) ( More info )

Interbike is the annual industry expo where companies come out to show off their latest gear and innnovations. For gearheads, it's kind of like a dream come true, with gear all day and parties all night (it's held in Las Vegas so...). But in truth, not everyone can get to Interbike and not everyone can tolerate endless aisles of product booths.

So we're making it easy for you to peruse some of the latest technology, newest gear and great releases from top companies. We've culled through the reviews from people who were at Interbike and compiled a whole slew of them that we'll broadcast on Twitter from 9-4pm on Saturday and Sunday. Our special thanks goes to everyone who sent out the reviews that are included in this series.

There are three easy ways to follow the Gearheads Geek Out series:
1) Stay tuned to the ORbike front page left column where our Twitter feed runs live and you'll see each of the product reviews, four at a time.

2) Our full series will be broadcast on Twitter

3) If you miss it this weekend, you can find all of the articles here.

( Ride with us on Twitter ) ( Twitter feed on ORbike )

Let's face it: that heat wave last week surely was nice, but summer is over. It's time to close the windows, put fenders on your bike, check your rain gear and keep riding. Yes, keep riding.

There is a wealth of momentum for cycling across the nation, and Oregon is at the forefront. We don't have it as easy as the temperate climates of some areas, but we don't have it a bad as Minneapolis (another great biking area). It is absolutely feasible to ride through Oregon winters without being hardcore, especially if you're not in a snow zone.

That's why we're starting our #KeepRiding informational and motivational campaign. We'll be sharing stories of people riding through the winter and offering tips for staying safe, keeping dry and having fun. We'll include gear advice, riding suggestions and lots of information on events so you don't have to ride alone.

Stay tuned to the front page of our website or ride with us on Twitter.

Have fun, #KeepRiding!

( #KeepRiding ) ( Winter riding article on our blog )

ARTCRANK is a showcase of bicycle-inspired original poster artwork that is dubbed "a poster party for bike people". The traveling exhibition is in Portland tonight during First Thursday. The work is up at The Cleaners gallery at Ace Hotel. ARTCRANK's goal is to showcase artwork that people can enjoy looking at and afford to take home. The exhibition began in Minneapolis in 2007, and has expanded to Denver, St. Louis, Portland and San Francisco. Each show features posters created by local artists from the host city. Admission is always free, and posters are modestly priced.

Curator Charles Youel arrive in Portland a few days ago and immediately took to the Portland culture: drinking Stumptown coffee, trying to get to too many events, geeking out on bike corrals and, of course, preparing his show. The exhibition features a variety of artists, some well known for their bicycle art, including Melissa Anders, Shawn Granton and Tiago Dejerk.

( About the Portland show ) ( Poster previews )

Oregon Manifest celebrates the craft and culture of cycling. They value the process of making, the spirit of ingenuity and the passion of brave undertakings - and they're celebrating with an entire month-plus of activities.

Last year Oregon Manifest was an innovative weekend show featuring bike builders. It was exciting, the displays were beautiful and the expo was a chance to interact with builders to learn more about their craft. But the folks of Oregon Manifest dream big, as do the builders they honor, and this year Oregon Manifest will do more than put builders in a building together.

With their Constructors' Design Challenge, Oregon Manifest seeks the next-wave transportation bike. They have challenged frame builders from around the country to design and build an innovative, modern transportation bike in this technical trial of engineering dexterity and fabrication mettle. Over 30 custom bike builders have developed integrated and spectacular solutions for the everyday rider. The top 12 winners will be displayed at the Oregon Manifest Bike Union during the six weekends. But the bikes must do way more: Each builder's skill will be put to the test as the bike is ridden through a course of dirt, gravel, elevation climbs and urban technical trials on the route to Bike Victory.

There are plenty of other activities, including a tour of constructors' shops, parties, a fashion show and more.

( More info ) ( Schedule )