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Cycling from Sisters to Smith Rock

written by Sebastian Foltz

Brisk mornings, less traffic and changing leaves make fall in the High Desert an ideal time for both road and mountain biking. You don’t have to travel far from Bend to be the only person on a road or trail. It’s what makes the fall shoulder season a favorite time among local riders. “To me, fall in Central Oregon is the nicest time,” said Brad Boyd, owner of Eurosports bike shop in Sisters. “Cooler temperatures, less wind; I’m always amazed how quiet it is.” While in spring you might still be waiting for snow to melt at higher elevations, and summer heat can make riding a bear, the right fall day is without equal. With that in mind we’re focusing on the Sisters area and offering up three fall road rides that you don’t need to have Tour de France-level conditioning to enjoy.

MCKENZIE PASS

The thirty-mile, out-and-back ride from Sisters culminates at the historic Dee Wright observatory lookout, a one-of-a-kind structure carved out of solid lava rock by members of the Civilian Conservation Corps, some eighty years ago. The intrepid explorer will also find distinct remnants of the 1860 wagon trail that was similarly carved out of the unyielding lava beds and remains largely as it was when the route was abandoned in the 1920s.

While it gains roughly 2,100 feet of elevation, the climb is spread gradually throughout the ride, particularly on the final eleven miles.

“For someone who is comfortable riding on roads and can handle a hill, it’s great ride,” said Alex Phillips, Oregon Parks & Recreation Department bicycle recreation specialist.

From Sisters, the ride cruises past horse ranches and into a thick forest of tall Ponderosa pines. The real climb begins roughly four miles in, but continues at a steady, manageable rate. The final five miles open up with views of the expansive lava fields. Mount Jefferson looms in the distance.

Boyd suggested continuing on an additional five miles of rolling highway to Scott Lake, before the pass begins the lion share of its 3,600-foot decent to the McKenzie River Valley.

“That section, in both directions, is just fantastic,” he said.

Bend Magazine, Fall 2016, Metolious River/Camp Serman, Photo by Duncan Galvin — Photo by Duncan Galvin

METOLIOUS RIVER/CAMP SHERMAN

If climbing isn’t your thing, consider the Metolius River/Camp Sherman area. Formerly designated a Scenic Bikeway by the state, the region has a hidden gem quality, especially in the fall.

“It’s a beautiful area. People love riding there,” said Phillips. With the crystal-clear headwaters of the Metolius, historic Camp Sherman and a variety of roads are scattered through Ponderosa pine forest, offering loops from three miles to around twenty miles with options for thirty-mile plus rides. There’s something for everyone with minimal elevation gain and occasional mountain vistas.

“We tell people September and October are the best months to be here,” said Camp Sherman Store owner Roger White.

“Everything lines up perfectly. Once we start into fall the colors start and the weather gets even better. Traffic drops off a lot. Come the start of school, there will be a lot less people.”

Boyd agreed.

“There’re some beautiful colors there,” he added, describing fall. “There’s nothing going on. You’re pretty much by yourself.”

ALONG THE WAY
Each of our three fall rides offer a variety of stops and sites along the way. Consider starting your day in Sisters with a morning coffee at Sisters Coffee Company or breakfast at Sisters Bakery. For additional ride information visit Brad Boyd’s Eurosports bike shop in town or nearby Blazing Saddles bike shop. Boyd, a longtime area resident, offers a number of beers on tap for post-ride celebration in the shop’s beer garden. In the summer, the shop hosts a number of food carts, which Boyd said may remain open on weekends through the fall. Three Creeks Brewery, just outside of Sisters on the way to Bend, also makes a solid option for a post-ride bite and brew.

Dee Wright Observatory — Photo by Sebastian Foltz

SISTERS TO SMITH ROCK

The lesser known Sisters to Smith Rock Scenic Bike Ride also makes for a great fall ride. Less prone to fall colors, the route from Sisters east through Terrebonne gives a taste of the High Desert without the blazing summer heat.

“People don’t tend to focus on it, and it’s spectacularly beautiful,” said Phillips. “A lot of people think it’s all downhill one way. It’s really not. It’s a lot of rolling hills.”

The thirty-seven-mile route (one-way) fluctuates within a range of 660 feet of elevation gains and losses. Phillips recommends it as a great introduction to bike touring, with camping options on either end of the route.

Boyd also suggested shortening it to an out-and-back by turning around where the route crosses the Deschutes River, a little more than halfway through the ride.

With its high desert climate, this route remains a solid option through much of the winter and long after snow has begun to fall on the Metolius area and McKenzie Pass.

Chips that Change the Game

Sarah Pool, Kale Chips, photo by Duncan Galvin — Photo by Duncan Galvin

Pacific Superfood Snacks reinvents vegetable chips for healthier snacking

Interview by Kelly Kearsley

After finishing her collegiate basketball career, Sarah Pool started running marathons and doing triathlons. She was focused on eating clean, and became obsessed with kale chips as her go-to snack.

But the CEO of Pacific Superfood Snacks wanted an even more affordable and healthier version than what was available. So she decided to make them herself. “I’d never made a kale chip before in my life,” said Pool. What started as an experiment with food dehydrators in 2012 has since grown into a multi-million-dollar company, now based in Bend, with kale chips sold in 7,000 stores.

Building a Business

While Pool loved greens, she didn’t love that most of the chips on the market were baked or fried, which takes away from the nutritional integrity of the vegetable. “Our goal was to create a healthy chip that we could bring to the mass market,” said Pool. The company developed a way to dry the kale at low temperatures over long periods to extract the moisture, but leave the vitamins, minerals and enzymes.

Equally as important: The Bend-native wanted the chips to be delicious. “We wanted our flavors to be really exciting,” she said. Chip flavors now include hatch chile, sriracha and (vegan) pepperoni.

She began making chips at home and selling them at farmers’ markets in Portland. She then targeted grocery stores, visiting at least one location daily to offer samples to customers. “We worked so hard; we didn’t sleep,” she recalled. “We were just hustling and begging people to try them.”

Her passion paid off. In short order, the company landed a spot in Whole Foods. “At one point, we had forty small food dehydrators going at once,” she said. Then Made in Nature, an organic snack foods company from Colorado, asked if they could partner to create kale chips for Costco.

New Kitchen, New Ideas

Made in Nature helped Pool scale her startup operation for larger customers, and ultimately acquired the kale chip company in 2014. The company’s growth skyrocketed. However, as a designated Benefit Corporation, Pacific Superfood Snacks has a mission beyond profit. “We wanted to commit ourselves to the highest level of transparency in every aspect of our business, from our suppliers to the actual ingredients that go into the product to the way the food is produced,” said Pool.

“We wanted to provide customers real food that they know they can trust without ever having to flip over to the ingredient panel, because they know we only use whole, organic, truly healthy ingredients.”

Looking to come back to her hometown, Pool moved the company to Bend last year. “Bend is probably the most special place in the world for startup companies,” said Pool. “I’ve been able to reach out to so many people; the community support is unparalleled.”

Excellence @ Bistro 28

When springtime arrives in the high desert, al fresco dining offers a taste of the outdoors and is arguably one of the best parts of living in Bend. With an approachable atmosphere and quality food, Bistro 28 at the Athletic Club of Bend stretches the idea of a sports club and goes all out in the summers. Huge glass windows open onto an outdoor deck area dotted with comfortable couches and long board tables, making this a great sprawling spot. Meanwhile, the club’s Peak Summer Nights Concert Series exposes the Bistro as one of the hottest outdoor venues.

In January 2015, Cheri and Steve Helt, owners of Bend’s five star Zydeco curated a new arena for their expertise. Less than a mile from the concrete corridors of Bond and Wall Street, Bistro 28 rivals all the delicacies of downtown and offers patio seating with a view of the adjacent, rolling lawn. To clarify lingering confusion, the Bistro’s policy for non-members is simple: anyone with an appetite can enter, eat and enjoy.

The Bistro accommodates a brick pizza oven alongside an authentic firewood rotisserie where chickens roast “low and slow” over the fire. On the weekends generous baskets of seasoned beef churn methodically creating the often-sold out prime rib special. A multi-plate experience, the menu and wine cellars feature something for every palate.

Catering performances at the Peak Summer Nights Concert Series from July through September, Bistro 28 still serves meals poolside with Gatsbyesque flair for non-concertgoers. Step onto the lawn in the evenings for for an intimate musical experience and enjoy a three-course dinner before the show or a nightcap at the whisky bar under the stars. -Andes Hruby

Dinner Monday-Sunday, 4:30pm to close.
Make reservations at 541.728.0065 or bistro28.com

Surfing on GolfBoards

Editors Note: This article was originally published April, 2016

Jeff Dowell grew up in Bend, playing golf for Bend High School and Central Oregon Community College before moving on to Indiana State. His career in product innovation, technology and startups led him around the world and then ultimately back home nearly three decades later to his first love: golf.

Dowell became president of fast-growing GolfBoard in 2014. Originally inspired by surfing, the GolfBoard is a four-wheeled board that allows golfers to smoothly ride around the course, speeding up the game and adding another element of fun. In two years, the GolfBoard went from a relatively unknown product to a coveted novelty among hundreds of courses ordering up fleets of them.

“It’s been a crazy ride,” Dowell said. “We’ve had tremendous exposure and a significant amount of orders. Now we’re really crossing the chasm from early adopters into mainstream.”

Surfing Roots

The idea began with surfers who love to golf. Don Wildman, founder of Bally Total Fitness, and renowned surfer and athlete Laird Hamilton began experimenting with riding homemade electric boards around courses in Malibu and Hawaii years ago. They teamed up with Paul Hodge, a startup veteran who had moved to Central Oregon, as well as electric vehicle enthusiasts Star Faraon and Mike Radenbaugh, to help further develop the technology.

Hodge, a co-founder and board member of GolfBoard, described it thusly to American Golf magazine in 2013: “We initially used the boards for personal enjoyment, but every time we played on the courses, we were mobbed by people who wanted them. Eventually, we decided to develop a safe, fun, and easy-to-ride board that everyone could enjoy.”

The product has since gone through several iterations and improvements, Dowell says. The company honed in on the board’s safety, ensuring it was stable, and added a handlebar for balance. Most people get the hang of it within a few minutes. “It’s really intuitive,” Dowell said.

Golfboards_RF_PC_Duncan_Galvin_09 — Photo by Duncan Galvin

A Breakout Year

The concerns that Dowell initially fielded about the boards–that they’d be unsafe or hard to use—have abated after thousands of golfers have tried it and enjoyed it. None of the courses renting GolfBoards has reported injuries from them, Dowell said.

Indeed, the golf community appears to be embracing a product that not only speeds up the game, but has the potential to attract more young people to golf. GolfBoard has been featured on national television shows, has had a presence at tournaments, and is getting interest from international golf course management companies.

GolfBoard primarily sells fleets of the boards to courses and Dowell projects that nearly 200 golf courses will offer the product this year. Central Oregon courses include Tetherow, Awbrey Glen and Aspen Lakes.

Dowell anticipates that 2016 will be the company’s biggest sales year yet. “It’s been really well received, and people are excited about the potential for injecting new life and fun into the game.” he said.

Score Big Downtown at Classic Arcade Vector Volcano

During the nearly two decades in which Brett Pulliam worked with high-tech animation studio Pixar, he pursued a decidedly lower-tech passion in his off-time. Instead of IMAX 3D, think Q*bert, Pac-Man and Centipede.

Today the passion has become a profession, as Pulliam delights video gamers and newcomers alike with his downtown Bend business Vector Volcano Arcade. The space catapults visitors back to the early ’80s, complete with pinball machines, joystick-and-fire-button video games and a jukebox stocked with selections curated from his collection of nearly a thousand 45 records.

“I’m still a collector,” said Pulliam, age 45. “But it’s all about if the game is fun, not if it’s rare. If it’s not fun to play, it’s not here.”

The focus is on games that are easy to play and family-friendly. For instance, in Bubbles, you’re a soap bubble with the object of cleaning the sink. In Journey, your mission is to reunite Steve Perry with his microphone. While arguably part of a burgeoning ’80s “barcades” trend around the nation (beer and wine are available at Volcano, too) Pulliam puts the emphasis on the games rather than the snacks and drinks. Patrons pay $5 for an hour and need not plug the machines, allowing a try at everything from destroying the Death Star to saving the damsel from Donkey Kong.

“New game” signs regularly signal a rotation from Pulliam’s personal collection of about 100 video games. And Pulliam happily shares his vast knowledge about the early ’80s video game experience. He even admits that it’s not unusual for him to stay until midnight after the arcade closes, trying for high scores on Tapper and Galaga.

“It’s time-consuming, but I love it,” he said. “I still feel like it’s my hobby. I hope the customers can feel that passion.” — Heidi Hagemeier

Owner Brett Pulliam plays one of his favorite games, Robotron. Photo by Duncan Galvin

“Early 80’s arcade games are nostalgic, simple, and social,” says Pulliam, “They survived on simple gameplay and were hard to master.” Photo by Duncan Galvin

Moving to Bend to be close to mountain biking and snow, Pulliam set up his classic arcade in downtown Bend in 2015. Photo by Duncan Galvin

“Talking to customers about classic games and pinball is my favorite part of the job.” says Pulliam, who worked with Pixar for almost 20 years. Photo by Duncan Galvin

According to Pulliam, the limited technology of 80’s games, with joysticks and fire buttons, added an extra challenge for players. Photo by Duncan Galvin

No quarters required- five dollars at Vector lasts an hour, allowing gamers to play multiple games. Photo by Duncan Galvin

Vector also offers game repair and maintainence classes for pinball and video game enthusiasts. Photo by Duncan Galvin

Riding Bamboo

Article originally published January 2016

SnoPlanks began in James Nicol’s garage. He and his college friend Ryan Holmes wanted to create a different type of snowboard. “We were looking for something that was more surf style and that really lent itself to Mt. Bachelor, which isn’t super steep,” Nicol said.

In search of something light, flexible and beautiful, they began making boards from bamboo. What started as a passion project has exploded into one of Bend’s most talked about new companies. SnoPlanks won the $15,000 early stage award at the Bend Venture Conference in October. Now the founders want to show the rest of the world what bamboo boards and skis can do.

Keeping It Simple

Both Holmes and Nicol grew up in the Pacific Northwest and spent their childhood vacations in Central Oregon. They reconvened in Bend within the past few years and started contemplating the potential for a new type of board while riding at Mt. Bachelor.

In 2012, they started experimenting with maple and birch woods. They’d test their creations, giving boards to friends and well-known local riders and incorporating that feedback into their subsequent models. Bamboo was a revelation. In their shop in Northeast Bend, Holmes grabbed a newly made board and easily bent it into an arc. “These just float,” he said. “They’re solid, but super responsive.”

They touted the simplicity of their product. No crazy colors. No wild designs. Just the beauty of the wood combined with a unique ride, especially made for powder. It wasn’t long before their ski and boards grabbed people’s attention. Other riders wanted to know what these wooden boards were all about.

A Business Born

Nicol and Holmes have come a long way from the garage mentality. They sponsored the Big Wave Challenge at Mt. Bachelor last April. They added skis to their SKUs, then tapped into Bend’s startup community. Bend Outdoor Worx, an incubator program for outdoor industry companies, selected SnoPlanks for its third cohort. “That was a turning point,” Holmes said. “We knew that we’d have a network of people who could really drive our growth.”

Their first big order came last fall—160 snowboards for Deschutes Brewery, which is using them as part of its Red Chair promotions. Holmes and Nicol, along with their employee, made all of the boards by hand. They believe this season could be a game changer for SnoPlanks, as they invest in production efficiency marketing. They’d already sold 200 boards by the end of October. SnoPlanks are available on the company’s website and will also be in some local Bend shops.

In the meantime, the founders remain committed to crafting their products by hand, and doing it here. “Bend literally and figuratively shaped SnoPlanks,” Nicol said. “This is an Oregon brand through and through.” Learn more here.

Making a Life Out of Art

BENDmag_Winter-2016_Sheila-Dunn_Duncan-Galvin_001 — Photo by Duncan Galvin

Seeing an artist’s workspace is often a reminder of what it takes to make it as an artist. Sheila Dunn used to paint in a friend’s garage where she dressed warmly to combat the chill. These days, her studio is in a second-story bedroom with a futon that sleeps the occasional guest. This studio, perhaps just another stepping stone, is a snapshot of a young painter with a part-time job and a full-time passion for canvas.

The former yoga instructor from Colorado lives and paints in an apartment off a busy Bend residential street. She offers tea and then leads the way up a narrow staircase to her studio. The room is small but the painting in progress is large—six feet by five feet—and occupies the majority of the wall. It’s hard to imagine her getting the canvas up the stairs.

BENDmag_Winter-2016_Sheila-Dunn_Duncan-Galvin_005 — Photo by Duncan Galvin

Women are a common theme in her art, although she does occasional male portraits and admits that she’s even done a few dog commissions. She said her work explores the integration of living subjects with the environment. Lines between a figure and the background get blurred. Bodies are fractured, pixilated into shimmering colors and geometric brushstrokes. “I try to stay loose and not overwork my paintings,” said Dunn.

Mentor and fellow painter, Stefan Kleinschuster of Los Angeles, said, “Sheila’s paintings display mastery in both ‘abstract patternistic’ beauty and the deep ‘correctness’ or ‘rightness’ of the realism of her subjects. This makes for a very rich and satisfying visual and visceral experience, and a melting, sumptuous sensation communicating deeper truths.”

When Dunn is in the studio, the process consumes her. “Painting is something I have to do,” she said. “I can’t imagine not doing it.” Balance is sometimes difficult to achieve but a part-time job as a graphic designer for Mosaic Medical helps ward off isolation.

At thirty-two, Dunn feels that she’s at a point where art could fully sustain her. Her work can be found all over Central Oregon, including the Bend Visitor Center and in fifty private collections. She avoids galleries and prefers to sell directly to people on Etsy, her website (sheiladunnart.com) or showings in businesses such as Velvet, Deschutes Brewery, Naked Winery and Bellatazza.

With a bachelor’s degree in fine art from Colorado State University, a body of growing work, including prints and wall murals, Dunn will continue exploring new ideas and styles. “I have a whole lifetime to create,” she said.

bendmag_winter-2016_sheila-dunn_Talia-Galvin_010 — Photo by Duncan Galvin

Kollective Migration

Last year, Kollective CEO Dan Vetras offered to fly his thirty-five Bay Area employees to Bend on a weekend relocation scouting mission. As the head of a fast-growing cloud-based video software startup, Vetras wanted to find a place with affordable office space and a high quality of life for his employees.

Bend provided both. First, however, Vetras needed to know whether a critical mass of his staff would be willing to move. After visiting, a dozen employees indicated they’d relocate. Kollective opened its Bend office in the 1001 Tech Center this past summer and immediately started hiring. Vetras expects the office will have twenty-five employees by year’s end.

“It’s proving the thesis that we can recruit for and build out a software company in Bend,” said Vetras.

The company kept a smaller California office, but the move helped cut its real estate costs by 65 percent, freeing up capital that Kollective can use to grow. The CEO noted that the long-term success of Bend’s tech companies depends largely on OSU-Cascades creating a pipeline of computer engineers who come for school and stick around.

“In the interim, we’re going to have to sell people on why they want to be here,” he said. “That’s not hard, we just have to get them on a plane for a weekend.”

Carson’s American Kitchen: Travis Taylor

Sunriver Resort underwent an overhaul, and the culinary delights at Carson’s American Kitchen are on trend and authentic thanks to head chef Travis Taylor.

When legendary mountain man Kit Carson guided explorers westward nearly 200 years ago, he camped below a meadow that today is the panorama from Sunriver Resort’s revamped signature restaurant. At Carson’s American Kitchen, chef Travis Taylor is leading a culinary corps of discovery. He brought the resort’s dining scene into vogue, deftly walking a fine ridgeline between trendy and authentic.

“What’s going to tell our story?” asked Taylor, who has crafted a compelling narrative based on the area’s local bounty. “Whether it’s local fish and what’s running, or farmers’ markets or going to [Bend’s] Windflower Farm … with produce, I’m like a kid in a candy store.”

Carson’s menu focuses on Oregon flavors in dishes that are “unintimidating,” said Taylor. Dinner may begin with a flatbread with Rogue Creamery blue cheese, roasted apples, roasted garlic, candied walnuts and arugula or Oregon-raised charcuterie served with local honey, dried fruits, pickled vegetables, marionberry mustard and cherry chutney.

One of the best entrées served anywhere in Central Oregon is Carson’s perfectly prepared herb-and-butter poached salmon with “American mole” dark-chocolate barbeque sauce, lobster mashed potatoes, spiced shrimp and garlic wilted spinach. You will count the days until you can return to have it again.

Taylor, who took his first cooking class at age 16, began his career as an apprentice at the Jacksonville Inn and then Jacksonville’s McCully House Inn, where he discovered the possibilities that come with preparing dishes with produce grown on-site. He began cooking at Sunriver’s The Grille at Crosswater in 2002, and last year was named resort executive chef, overseeing the destination’s eleven dining outlets.

Editors Note: Although he left Sunriver in 2019, you can still find Travis Taylor Chef in Central Oregon. As of 2023, find him at Riverhouse on the Deschutes.

Click here to read more about our local food and restaurant scene.