The Seattle to Portland ride lived up to its Bucket List status. It is an amazingly well thought out, well executed and well supported event. If you had a question, they already had the answer. The variations of logistic support they provide is just incredible - you can pretty much design your own ride and everything works out. If anyone is looking to do their first multi-day high mileage group ride, this one is hard to beat.

I don't think I ever want to do the whole thing in one day, but I think I would make Kelso the stopping point on the first day and have fewer miles before the Route 30 slog in Oregon on Day 2.  

Food was plentiful and varied. Here's what I think I ate just on route and just on Day 1: PBJ sandwich, banana, Kind Bar, sesame noodles, fig bars, grapes, blueberries, oatmeal cookie, macadamia nut cookie, orange creamsicle bar, Kind bar. I tried Nuun for the first time - a funky caffeine infused fizzy orange drink that wasn't all that pleasant going down but did seem to power me along as it washed all that food down. All bike rides should incorporate those sesame noodles at the lunch stop!

The printed Ride Guide and the web site they have are fantastic and include some rider safety advice I wish more cyclists would follow - Ride SMART:

• Stay Alert
• Maintain Space
• Act Safely and Predictably
• Respect the Rules
• Think Ahead and Talk

I've done rides larger than the STP and a sizable portion of riders on any large ride don't ride SMART.  I don't think STP was any worse than other large rides but there were a few cringe-worth moments.