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Over the weekend I was at Portland’s innagural Distaster Relief Trials, one of the more impressive and well-coordinated Pedalpalooza events I’ve ever experienced.

If you haven’t heard of the Distaster Relief Trials (DRT) there’s a run-down of the ride on TransportLand.org.

The event (sponsored by Joe Bike, Xtracycles, Skedco, Yuba, Metrofiets, and VeloCult) was a race to simulate a post-disaster Portland where people on bikes will need to carry supplies over rough terrain. Riders were given about 100 lbs of cargo to carry on a course that covered around 30 miles of streets and trails.

I was stationed a “Checkpoint: ROCK” where riders were subjected to a series of obstacles representing some of the hazards they might experience in a real disaster.

The first obstacle in their way was single-person lift where they had to lift their vehicle and cargo over a tall barrier.

 
The second obstacle was a series of boulders they had to get across, only this time they could get help from other riders.

 
There was also a pot-holed path, worse than any Portland streets, each rider had to traverse.

 
But just before that potholed path, riders had to forge a small lake.

 
The event also served as a training exercise for local amateur radio Neighborhood Emergency Teams (NETs).

After finishing “Checkpoint: ROCK” and visiting six other checkpoints to load, unload, and transfer cargo, riders and their friends and family gathered at VeloCult for a celebration.

There were lots of cargo bikes to see and test ride and Metrofiets brought along their Beer Bike.

 
I was impressed at how many people turned out with their friends and families to experience the event. The turnout was a pleasant surprise for everyone, including the event’s organizers

The results of the race will be posted at TransportLand.org soon and a full gallery of photos from the Disaster Relief Trials is available on Flickr.

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