@Tom K. , the ride around Crater Lake was spectacular that day. Not a cloud in the sky. The first day was the worst, with cold (47*) rain for the first 37 uphill miles. Fortunately, it dried out for the downhill. It rained hard that night in camp but my tent stayed dry. The next morning was damp, but no rain, as we road over the old Willamette Pass road but sadly the clouds were low so we could not see the mountain views. We got a little rain on day three as we got into Lapine but the rest of the week had great weather.
The route this year obviously scared a lot of people off. The numbers were way down, only 1500 riders this year compared to the normal 2000. That is a $500,000 hit to the budget. I think that CO is learning and adapting to the aging demographic, though, as they have already announced next year will have more layover days and more choices for routes, short vs long. I would love to see an extra layover day or two because one of the worst things about the ride is packing up every morning, especially when there is a long day ahead. It will be interesting to see what the route is next year and if there numbers go back up.