Cross-country riders stop in Sisters

It had been 30 years since East Coast friends Chris Goelz and Mike Heil rode their bicycles across America, ending in San Francisco.

Chris now lives in Seattle and works at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Mike teaches middle school math in Eugene. They often get together and reminisce about their cycling adventure that changed their lives.

Mike's wife, Laurie Bernstein, recently retired from her Fisheries Biologist position with the Forest Service, so she suggested that she and Mike mark the 30th anniversary by riding across America this summer.

Mike's brothers, Rich Heil and Mike Heil, and surrogate uncle, 75-year-old Lloyd McIntyre, all of Eugene, along with Chris Goelz, decided to join them to Baker City where they would wave goodbye and wish the couple well on their 4,000-mile ride.

They will follow the recognized bicycle route that serpentines through small towns and rural countryside. In fact, Eugene is the largest city on the cross-country route.

Sisters folks may have seen the group as they rode up Santiam Pass in the rain on Saturday afternoon.

They planned to bicycle on Highway 242 over the old McKenzie Pass.

They called ODOT from Paradise Campground hoping that the crew had broken through the snow drifts on Friday, but they received the final word that the pass would not be open, even to the initial bicyclists, for some time due to remaining snow.

They turned north along the McKenzie to Highway 22 and Santiam Pass only to find it raining at Sahalie Falls. Hours later they were all relieved to ride safely into Sisters. The first to arrive were directed to Eurosports, where they were provided immediate and critical repairs to a broken spoke.

The group spent the night at the Adler-Edwards residence in Sisters and were on their way at 7 a.m. Sunday to the Union Creek campground at Phillips Reservoir.