A Staycation is when you stay home and explore places near where you live, using your home as the "hotel." I have found as a mountain biker that a Staycation can be a great way to get in a lot of riding, try some new things and save some money. Typically when you are home you do one ride and then get on with your day, what a Staycation allows you to do is focus only on riding and it then lets you string multiple rides together in ways you thought about but never had the time.
And Corvallis (Oregon) is the perfect place for a Mountain Biking staycation. In fact, the local tourist board should promote Corvallis as a mountain biking destination. There are good places to eat, stay and plenty of bike shops. Because what makes a good biking destination are the trails and we have some great ones.
So, when a cousin and some of his riding buddies from Utah wanted to come and ride in the Willamette Valley the 2018 Staycation Ride was on.
Planning:
The first thing you need for a good Staycation is a plan. Layout the rides in your area and see what creates the best flow. Also, any part of a good ride includes good food, so map out the restaurants that you also want to showcase. When you travel you have to eat out, so when you stay home to vacation you should do the same thing. Here was our plan:
Day One
MRT (McKenzie River Trail) in the morning
Santiam Wagon Trail in the afternoon
Burgers at the Sweet Home A&W
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpQ4_YKzc5k
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| Santiam Wagon Trail at Tombstone |
Day Two
Mary's Peak in the Morning
Eats & Treats for Lunch
Black Rock in the Afternoon
Bread Board for Dinner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg2YuPXNNZA
Day Three
Alsea Falls in the Morning
Mary's Peak Shuttle in the Morning
Tour of the Mac - Roller Coaster, New Groove, Southside Slip
End of the trip BBQ at the house
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fEohlMmsy8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6HA6frkH9k
Execution:
Just like a real vacation, thinks can go wrong, but the nice thing about a staycation is that you know the local resources. So we had at least one trip to the bike shop for a major repair and since it was our local shop and Peak Sports staff knew us well they helped with a rush job so no one missed a ride.
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| Serious Bike Upgrades |
Other Thoughts:
Take consideration for the shuttle rigs to make sure you have enough racks and a good supply of drinks and treats for the "in between" ride times. And if you have people from out of town coming to join you, make sure you have some extras just in case, like a helmet, gloves, spare tubes, a tire, etc. so that nothing holds you up. Also take lots of pictures!
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| Splitting the Trees - Mary's Peak |
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| Shale Corner - Mary's Peak |
Picture Frame - Scream - Macdonald Forest
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| Mary's Peak Parking Log |
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| Picture Frame - Scream - Macdonald Forest |
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