Mountain Bike Oregon
There’s been alot of talk and high-fiving around the Mountain Bike Oregon weekends and I have to say, I don’t get it yet. I mean, I have heard that it’s fun and the trails are great but there are great trails in alot of places. It could be the wonderful event planning skills of the organizers but I’ve read plenty of people who complain about how little you get for your $300 entry fee. Maybe it’s the “big” crowds (limited to around 300 riders for each of 2 weekend sessions). Nope, that can’t be it - the Fruita Fat Tire Festival attracts thousands.
Some of Mudhunny’s friends from Cali went out a couple years ago and they loved it and I suspect I know why: Californians aren’t used to remote, wild singletrack. Of course there are tons of great bike trails in CA but the ones most people have access to boast less than 10 miles of trail and are hemmed into county open spaces or state parks. To string together 20+ miles (let alone hundreds of miles) of singletrack is unheard of outside of spots like Tahoe. For Californians a trip to Oregon is like a trip to the country. Plus for Northern Californians it’s a much easier drive than Utah or Colorado.
My impression is that Mountain Bike Oregon is more convenient than it is “epic,” but of course I could be completely wrong. East-coasters always have a way of misunderstanding the west 
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July 31st, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Our trails are in GREAT condition and we work hard to keep them that way so I for one and VERY glad that that mtbike oregon limits the ride to 300 people. plus, how cool is that, I get to know many of the riders and it’s a really cool crowd, not a bunch of jerks and a huge event that’s confusing and too big.
so why is this event so great? we RIDE, we just RIDE, they take care of all the crap a rider doesn’t want to deal with. I don’t make a lot of money at all, working at a non-profit, but I’ll throw down those 3 c notes nada prob.
July 31st, 2007 at 3:46 pm
by the way, who would say how little you get for $300? first off, it’s a lot cheaper if you plan ahead and register earlier in the year.
all meals, camping at a place where you can’t usually camp, shuttles, free stuff and a beer garden that is 100% free all night long. shit, that alone is almost worth it!
August 1st, 2007 at 1:23 am
Anyone who worries about the cost of 3 days and 3 nights of fully catered mountain biking indulgence doesn’t get it. Sure, you could go it alone and save some dough, but that’s not what MBO is all about. It’s about leaving your cares behind and leaving the planning up to the organizers. Just show up with your bike and let them do the rest. This way, you are completely at ease and can really enjoy a steady diet of riding, camping, and hanging out with friends.
The trails are some of the best you will ever ride: smooth, technical, fast, gnarly, steep, scenic, well-maintained, foot/horse/motorcycle free, remote, wild, close and accessible, etc. I’ve never been a shuttle guy, but 60 miles of gravity driven single-track in 3 days later, I’m hooked on MBO’s program. It’s one cool, unforgettable weekend. Bring a group of friends, escape, and enjoy the hospitality!
August 1st, 2007 at 9:40 am
What is it with price gouging in general at events? Not talking about this one specifically, but a lot of events have tripled in cost in the last 5 years with no real reason for it…. What makes a 24 hr race worth $325 a person solo or $135 a person as a 4 person team… Even lamer are the rides like Elephant Rock that charge over $50 a person to ride 100 miles on busy and not exciting roads, and don’t even start on how much they price gouge their 24 hour race and a completely lame course… What really do the riders get for their entry fee?