Most of last week was spent being worn down with the flu. By Thursday I was getting itchy, I had been inside my house for 72 hours straight. I needed out. How about a little coffeeneuring adventure?
Many of you have heard about the closure of Portland’s venerable bike shop cafe, Velo Cult. I am sad about its demise, as it was an integral part of our local bike scene. But I can understand owner Sky Boyer’s frustrations and burnout after six years of the Portland operation.* I saw him last week and it seems like he’s a lot happier now that he doesn’t have to worry about running a bike shop.
But thankfully (and coincidentally, at about the same time Velo Cult was closing) another bike shop/cafe has opened. Golden Pliers is located in the Overlook neighborhood at N Interstate Ave and N Skidmore St. They do the full on bike shop thing plus serve coffee, beer, and a smattering of snacks and nibbles. I’ve been going there a bit over these last few months, both to get my bike(s) worked on and to enjoy libations. Oh, I also taught a Bike Touring Workshop here too!
So this is where I decided to aim myself when I left the house on the afternoon of Thursday October 18th. It’s a couple miles from my house to the shop, an easy enough ride in my diminished state. I rode my Raleigh Crested Butte since I wanted them to look over a couple issues I’d been having.
As for coffee, I decided to have pourover. After making the mistake of ordering drip coffee from coffee shops in the afternoon, I’ve learned to go with pourover to guarantee a fresh and good tasting cup for myself.** I managed to forget what type of coffee and roaster they were serving that day, so my apologies to the coffee nerds following along.***
And that was that! Now energized, I rode another six miles to Emee’s house, making a total ride of nine miles.
Next time join me for a Coffeeneuring adventure where I won’t be so sick and scattered…
*Yes, please tell me how you used to visit Velo Cult when it was in San Diego.
**I don’t like Americanos.
***I also neglected to take a photo of the whole pourover action. Horrors!
Urban Adventure League 