Portland is preparing a mass ride on electric bikes for a Guinness World Records attempt. In the mountains of Washington, the bodies of two missing tourists have been found. Seattle temporarily cleaned things up for the World Cup, but has not solved the problem of homelessness and drugs.
Portland aims to beat Seattle’s record: a mass e-bike ride and party must top 405
The city of Portland is preparing for a major event that is meant not only to mark the tenth anniversary of the BIKETOWN bike-share system, but also to enter the Guinness World Records book. The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is organizing an attempt to set a new record for the largest mass ride and party on electric bikes. The event is scheduled for Sunday, July 19—exactly ten years after the first group ride of BIKETOWN crossed the Willamette River. The current record, set in Seattle in 2018, is 405 electric bikes—an exact figure Portlanders plan to surpass.
Participants will gather at the Salmon Springs fountain in Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m., and the ride itself begins at 9:30 a.m. at the intersection of Southwest Naito Parkway and Southwest Salmon Street. The roughly two-mile (about 3.2 kilometers) route will pass by notable landmarks: over the Tilikum Crossing bridge, along the east waterfront of the Esplanade, and over the Hawthorne Bridge. Organizers warn that the pace will be slow, with stops, and ask riders not to leave the route so they are counted, as well as to be mindful of pedestrians and other cyclists.
For the attempt, riders can use either their own electric bikes or regular bikes, but only electric models will count toward the record. Those without an e-bike will be able to rent one from BIKETOWN on a “first come, first served” basis. Registration must be completed in advance—it ensures that a rider is included. You will also need to state the make and model of your electric bike. The age requirement to use BIKETOWN is 16+.
After the ride, there will be a celebration with vendors, refreshments, and partner performances. The official Guinness World Records judge is expected to confirm the result. In addition, the first 1,000 people to register will receive free admission to the Portland Pride Parade and Festival, which will take place the same day. This became possible thanks to support from Nike—the title sponsor and co-founder of BIKETOWN—along with Lyft and the City of Portland.
As PBOT director Millicent Williams said: “I can’t wait to see all of Portland come out on the streets to celebrate how BIKETOWN has changed our community. Since 2016, BIKETOWN has introduced thousands of Portlanders to cycling, and specifically electric bikes, making biking more accessible to more people. By setting this world record, we’ll remind everyone of Portland’s place at the forefront of the country’s leading biking cities.”
An electric bike (e-bike) is a bicycle with an electric motor that assists when you pedal. In the BIKETOWN system, riders use what’s known as “pedal-assist” models, meaning the motor turns on only when you pedal—not when you twist a throttle. This makes rides less tiring and opens cycling up to people with different levels of physical fitness. The BIKETOWN system launched on July 19, 2016 with 1,000 regular bikes, and today the fleet includes 3,000 electric models serving an area of more than 130 square kilometers, including eastern parts of Portland. The partnership between the city’s PBOT, Nike, and the operator Lyft is an example of successful integration of micromobility into urban infrastructure.
The record attempt is not just a piece of entertainment. It highlights the growing popularity of electric bikes as an alternative to cars and public transportation. Portland, known for its cycling culture, wants to cement its reputation as one of the best bike cities in the United States. If the attempt is successful, the record will draw attention to sustainable transportation and show that even in the era of cars, two-wheeled electric machines can bring thousands of people together. As reported by KATU, PBOT strongly recommends registering in advance so all participants are counted, and arriving early to get a start number. If everything goes according to plan, Portland will be able to say proudly: we didn’t just catch up to Seattle—we did it with flair and a party.
Tragedy in Washington’s mountains: bodies of two missing tourists found in a national forest
In Whatcom County, Washington, the search for two tourists reported missing at the end of June has ended. The bodies of both men were found days apart, and a medical examiner’s investigation is now working to determine the circumstances of their deaths. As reported by The Seattle Times, the cases involve two unrelated incidents, but both serve as a reminder of how harsh and unpredictable the wilderness can be.
The body of 34-year-old Canadian citizen Gursimran Singh, also known as Gursimran Randhawa, was found by rescuers on Monday on the grounds of the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. The man from British Columbia was expected to return home as early as June 29, and his last known location was South Twin Mountain in the Twin Sisters mountain range. These are two parallel peaks just over 2,100 meters high, located west of Mount Baker. Singh’s disappearance sparked a large-scale search, which unfortunately ended in tragedy: first, an experienced hiker spotted what may have been remains on the north side of the mountain, and then a helicopter rescue team from neighboring Snohomish County recovered the body.
Just days earlier, on Saturday, rescuers flew by helicopter to recover the body of 55-year-old Steven Dorsett. He stopped responding on June 24, when he set out from the Canyon Creek trail near Crater Mountain. According to the sheriff’s office, Dorsett planned to spend up to ten days in the wilderness—possibly traveling many miles east to the Coral Lake area in the Pasayten Wilderness. Ground search teams found his gear in the national forest, including a green backpack and a tent. Following those clues, rescuers found Dorsett’s body in shallow water of a river, about 30 meters below the rocks.
Hard-to-grasp details: Twin Sisters is not a volcano, but two adjoining peaks made up of olivine—a green-colored mineral. The Pasayten Wilderness is a vast protected area with minimal human impact, with no roads or buildings, which makes hiking there especially dangerous. The Whatcom County medical examiner’s office will determine the cause and circumstances of both men’s deaths, but the fact that the bodies were found in remote, hard-to-reach locations suggests the serious risks even experienced hikers face. The sheriff’s office offered condolences to the families of the deceased, emphasizing that these tragedies are a harsh reminder of the need for careful preparation, accounting for weather conditions, and knowing one’s real capabilities before setting out on a route.
Seattle cleaned up for the world championship, but only temporarily hid the problem
Seattle made an impression on World Cup visitors: streets became cleaner and public spaces more well-kept. But once the final whistle sounded, the crisis of open drug use returned to its familiar place. In a column, Charlie Harger, a host on KIRO Newsradio’s morning show, wrote that the city only moved the problem out of sight—it didn’t solve it. “Addiction didn’t get better over those few weeks. Mental illness didn’t go away. Permanent supportive housing suddenly didn’t fix what couldn’t be fixed for years. People were moved. People were pushed away from corners where a visitor might see them. I understand why the city did that. But if we only moved them, we didn’t solve anything. We just cleaned up the appearance,” Harger said, citing Yahoo News.
Seattle hosted six World Cup matches at Lumen Field, where the local Seahawks play. Harger emphasizes that the city has no results to show for the “billions” spent on addressing the crisis.
According to Seattle.gov, in 2024 the city allocated $153.8 million for services for people experiencing homelessness through its Department of Human Services. And in 2023, KOMO News reported that over ten years Seattle spent nearly $1 billion on the homelessness problem, while the number of people sleeping outside continues to rise. According to estimates by King County, about 16,000 people are without shelter each night. Harger sharply criticizes both sides of the political spectrum: “Too many people on the left confuse tolerance with compassion, as if letting someone use fentanyl on the sidewalk is kindness. Too many people on the right justifiably demand order, but sometimes talk as if expulsion alone is the solution. I don’t accept either one. It would be nice if at least one of them proved they were right in practice. But that didn’t happen. We spent a decade and billions of dollars on one version—and overdoses kept increasing every year. Places that tried the right version just moved the same people to another sidewalk.”
The author’s personal perspective is especially striking. “I look at it like a parent, because that’s what I am. When I pass someone curled up in a doorway, gray and staring into nothing, politics is the last thing on my mind. First, I think: this person used to be a four-year-old child. Someone packed them lunch. Someone checked for monsters under the bed. Someone looked at that child and saw a whole life ahead. And now that child is slowly dying in front of Walgreens, and we’ve built an entire dictionary to convince ourselves that watching it is merciful.” Harger admits that if his son were lying in a doorway, he wouldn’t want the city to protect his right to die. He would want someone to bring him inside, give him warmth, cleanliness—enough time to remember who he was before drugs erased his identity. “Call it cruelty if you want. Any parent who has ever pulled a child out of that hole calls it love.”
Key concepts in the text: “Permanent supportive housing” is a program that provides people experiencing homelessness not only with a roof over their heads, but also with social services, addiction treatment, and psychological support; it is viewed as a humane—but costly—approach that is often criticized for being ineffective. “Dough Slough” is an unofficial name for one of Seattle’s largest tent encampments mentioned in reports. Harger insists that the solution to the crisis doesn’t lie in compassion or repression—it lies in accountability. The city knows how to quickly clean up for major events—so it can do that all the time. But for now, in the author’s view, Seattle is only managing appearances, not saving people.
