PORTLAND, Ore. — The parking lot at Timberline Lodge will be packed early Friday morning with runners gearing up for the first leg of the Hood to Coast relay. The 41st running of the annual relay race will cause some traffic impacts this weekend as the runners pass through the Portland metro area on their way out west.
There will be traffic impacts all along Highway 26 between Portland and Mount Hood, but with staggered start times for the racers, the disruptions should be relatively mild. Still, drivers should expect slow traffic through Sandy on Friday afternoon due to the regular high amount of car-based travelers heading out east at the start of the weekend.
The race route includes 35 exchanges along the route that stretches from Timberline to Portland and then out along Highway 30 to St. Helens before cutting through the coast range to finish in Seaside at the coast. Five of those handoffs are considered major exchange points, expected to have the greatest impact on traffic due to both vans from every team being on the roads nearby and hundreds of volunteers convening to staff the stations.
The first of the major exchanges is at Sandy High School, and nearby drivers should mind their speed and watch out for runners. The next major exchange point is at OMSI in Portland, and is expected to cause backups on the surrounding streets due to the many circling vans and the nearby railroad line with freight trains that often block the surrounding road crossings.
The next big exchange point is at the Columbia County fairgrounds in St. Helens, and drivers can also expect a steady stream of runners and van traffic along Highway 202 and Highway 47 through the coast range, making it better to avoid those areas if you don't want to risk getting stuck in a backup.
The race will finish in Seaside with an all-day party, bringing with it an all-day traffic jam along U.S. Route 101 near the coastal city.