What were life and logging like along the McKenzie River in western Oregon in generations past? This picture history includes photos from the late 1800s and early 1900s.
WebCyclery, a bike shop in Bend, Oregon is celebrating their 25th anniversary. Let’s catch up with Owner, Kevin Gorman, as he talks about how it all began. What makes WebCyclery different and the story behind moving the shop into a former church. How has his family been involved in building […]
The Sumpter Valley Gold Dredge is one of the last remaining giant gold dredges in the US. In this 10-minute video learn a bit about the history, current status, and how the dredge worked.
What was life really like on the Oregon Trail? Learn about the risks and dangers of being on the trail, what a day in the life of a pioneer was like, and what equipment and supplies were used. This video is really worth 14 minutes of your time!
The Milky Way is a stainless steel sculpture that is located at Shevlin Park Road and Mt Washington Drive in Bend, Oregon. In this podcast, Pete Stein interviews Devin Field who was the artist behind this fun piece. Listen in as we learn about how the art was commissioned and then how we designed and built this sculpture. Also, The Milky […]
Riding on obscure Tuscon trails, we ran across amazing art that was created out of rocks carefully arranged in the sand to form very cool figures. A huge rabbit, a heart, a wolf howling in a moonlight, a horse, a hummingbird …. we also ran across the original artist, Karen Garno, who was busy working on her latest masterpiece. Listen […]
A historical look at the ownership and the headquarters building of Empire Ranch. It started as a 4-room adobe structure that transitioned into a 29-room ranch home. All built in the late 1800s.
We all know about the iconic pseudo “Red Chicken” sculpture within the Phil’s Trail System which is a mountain biking area in Bend, Oregon. But … do you know the story of the actual sculpture, the Phoenix Rising, located at Galveston and 14th street? And what’s the connection to the Red Chicken, the mini […]
In this podcast, we talk with John Flemming, who created the High Desert Spiral sculpture located at the intersection of Simpson and Mt Washington just at the entrance to Broken Top in Bend, Oregon. We hear about his inspiration and some of the trials and […]
The retro “Greetings From” murals across Central Oregon bring back fond memories of the postcards that were a huge hit with tourists in the mid-20th century. These playful murals are part of The Central Oregon Mural Trail and were created by Karen Eland and Katie Daisy for […]
At Sasabe, ~ 165 vehicles cross the US-Mexico border each day, making it the least used crossing. At one time, Sasabe was positioned to be one of the largest legal crossing points of the border, as large as that of Nogales, Arizona where billions of dollars of goods cross each year. Learn what did and did not happen. A must watch! But … […]
How do you make a 27 foot tall steel bear for the town of Madras, Oregon? Dial in with Chris Buffalo Fulsom who talks about the inspiration for the mother bear with her three cubs. You’ll find this amazing sculpture on Dirty Freehub’s Poke The Bear gravel bike […]
Today we will be talking how Bend, bikes and bike shops have evolved in the last 50 years. Who knows better than Susan Conner who is the owner of Sunnyside Sports here in Bend. This year marks their 50-year anniversary since the shop opened in 1972!
In this episode, we talk about the art of mountain bike trail building in Central Oregon. For us, gravel cyclists, some of these trails are super sweet to ride. Our guest is Kent Howes who is a master trail builder and has been building trails for over 30 years, he’s also been a professional trail builder since 2007.
Learn all about the Wallowa Barn Tour. In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Piper of the Wallowa Chamber of Commerce and Alana Carollo of the Eastern Oregon Visitors Association. Learn how the Barn Tour got started, what you will see. We also talk about two other ways to experience the culture of the area: Farm Trails and a historic […]
Bend, now a town of outdoor enthusiasts, microbreweries, and technology, used to be the center of timber production. The Old Mill District was the heart of this activity, with two active mills, one on the east bank of the river and one on the west bank. In the 1950s, over 50 rail cars per day would off-load timber into the river. On […]
Today we talk beer, malt, farming and what it looks like when you combine them all in one place. Our guest is Seth Klann who is a master brewer and the owner and operator of Mecca Grade Estate Malt located in Madras, Oregon. (Part of Dirty Freehub‘s Over the Rainbow route.) This podcast was recorded onsite at Mecca Grade Estate Malt in […]
Learn more about Forest Service road decommissioning, how this impacts us as cyclists, and what we can do to help. Joining us is Brock McCormick who is a Biologist with the Deschutes National Forest in Central Oregon.
There is a rugged, gnarly gravel road, the only road, through the Grapevine Mountains in Death Valley National Park. It is the Titus Canyon Road – a great gravel bike ride, 25 miles with an elevation loss of over 5000 feet. But … how did that road come to be? In this podcast, we talk with Jeremy Stoltzfus, a Death Valley Park Ranger who […]
Hear from the early trail builders Eric Vickers and Ben Husaby about the master plan at the Phil’s complex (or lack thereof), finding trails before maps, and what it meant to be a trail author. These trails are located in Bend, Oregon.
Have you ever been riding at Phil’s and wondered, what do all these trail names mean and who came up with these? Eric L. Vickers, who was one of the pioneers responsible for the early formation of the Phil’s trail network, is going to answer these burning questions, many of us have. These trails are located in Bend, Oregon.
Did you know that Ben’s Trail wasn’t built initially for mountain biking but as a training trail for nordic skiing? Hear from Ben Husaby, the creator of Ben’s Trail. These trails are located in Bend, Oregon.
Voodoo is a short trail segment that runs roughly along a contour line in Phil’s trail system in Bend, Oregon. Do you know why that is? Hear from Ben Husaby, one of the creators of the Voodoo Trail.
In this podcast, we talk with Mike Hollern, the Chairman of the Board for Brooks Resources, about the early days of roundabouts in the city of Bend. Learn about the first roundabout, some of the challenges in building the first, and some of the unique benefits.
Learn about the history of the Old Mill, how it influenced the name of the town of Bend, Oregon and what it looked and felt like when the mills were operating. Joining us is Kelly Cannon Miller, the Executive Director of the Deschutes Historical Museum and Vanessa Ivey the Manager of the Deschutes Historical Museum.
Learn more about the history of Drake Park!. Joining us today is Kelly Cannon Miller, the Executive Director of the Deschutes Historical Museum and Vanessa Ivey the Manager of the Deschutes Historical Museum. Drake Park is located in Bend, Oregon.
We’re going to learn about the oldest existing structure in Deschutes County and how homesteading impacts us today. Joining us once again is Kelly Cannon Miller, the Executive Director of the Deschutes Historical Museum and Vanessa Ivey the Manager of the Deschutes Historical Museum. Deschutes County is located in Central Oregon.
Have you ever wondered about the backstory of the gnomes on the ELV trail in Bend, Oregon. Eric L Vickers talks a bit about how this all happened. Did you make the connection? ELV. Eric L Vickers.
Hear from the artist Douglas Robertson who created the mural of Women of Discovery near Discovery Park on the west side of Bend, Oregon. What was the inspiration for the piece? How was the work done? Where can you find more of his work.
A short micro-cast with Kevin English, one of the founders of Dirty Freehub, where he talks about what he learned of the early history of Granite, Oregon. A small town in the NE quadrant of the state.
Eight scouting rides. Two community rides. More than a dozen mapped variations.
We just published the McCool route—but getting it ready took time. We rode it again and again, tested multiple options, and refined every mile before publishing it.
That’s the Dirty Freehub difference: routes that are vetted, curated, and maintained. If you value that kind of fieldwork, please support Dirty Freehub with a donation.
