Quick Links: Overview | Route | Beneficiaries

Overview:
Bike & Build's Central United States (CUS) ride showcases the immense variety of the American landscape. Starting in beautiful Virginia Beach, riders will spend their first week exploring the ruggedness of the Virginia Blue Ridge Mountains. As the days continue, the ever-stretching Heartland will emerge before them, giving way to the majesty of the Rockies. The final weeks of the route explore Oregon, as riders head to their well-earned view of the famous Haystack Rock, located just off the coast of Cannon Beach.

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Important 2010 End of Trip Information:
The CUS 2010 team will arrive at Cannon Beach on the afternoon of Saturday, July 31st. Following the wheel dip ceremony, Bike & Build will host a reception and celebration for all the 2010 riders and well wishers. Since travel options from Cannon Beach are limited, on Sunday, August 1st, everyone will pack up and head back to Portland, OR. Every year we have been fortunate that enough parents and friends were present at the celebration to assist in transporting everyone's gear and bike back to Portland. More information about the celebration and a request for shuttle volunteers will be sent to enrolled riders in the coming months. Riders will have accommodations provided for them the night of August 1st, and are asked to make their own arrangements starting at noon on August 2nd.

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Route:
After a two-day orientation at Virginia Beach, the route will head West through Virginia, stopping to build in Suffolk and Lynchburg. Eastern Virginia will help beef up quad muscles before crossing over the Blue Ridge Mountains and into West Virginia. From there, it's flat all the way across the Midwest and the Heartland (via Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas) until the Rockies in western Colorado. A brief two-day stop in Denver, CO prepares the group for the breathtaking ascents (and descents) on the roads leading to Rocky Mountain National Park. The climb up Trail Ridge Pass, voted by many year after year as a trip highlight, will see elevation markers pass 12,000 feet before the top. The final weeks of the route cross Idaho and Oregon, and finally on to the Pacific.

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Beneficiaries:
Proceeds from Bike & Build's Central U.S. tour will be distributed to affordable housing groups throughout the United States to finance projects executed by young adults. Prior to the summer, Bike & Build will solicit grant proposals from housing organizations. During the course of the event, the members of Central U.S. will evaluate and discuss the applications, and - as a group - decide which proposals to fund.

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