Chris Horner loves Bend. The professional road cyclist, arguably one of the best in the world, races his bicycle all over the United States and Europe—enjoying the renowned beauty of locations like the French Riviera, the Swiss Alps, the Adriatic Coast and the Italian Dolomites—but Bend is home by choice. Horner moved here from San Diego in 2000 after coming to visit a teammate who repeatedly encouraged him to check it out. He bought a house the day after he arrived.

“I always enjoy coming back here,” says Horner, who returned early from Europe after crashing out of last month’s Tour de France. “There’s just something different about Bend. It’s just really easy going.”

Horner is showing his appreciation for his hometown by hosting the first-annual Cascade Gran Fondo, an 85-mile bicycle tour around Mt. Bachelor, on August 20. For the uninitiated, Horner explains that gran fondo is a fancy Italian name for a supported group ride.

As I sit here with a chipped tooth—the bizarre souvenir from a group road ride a few days ago when a rock shot out from under another rider’s rear tire like a BB and nailed my front tooth—and having religiously watched this year’s Tour de France, which was rife with an outrageous number of crashes, I can’t help but think of the risk-versus-reward element of playing outside.

While the pros get paid to take those risks, it’s still difficult to watch them suffer catastrophes like Chris Horner’s serious crash in Stage 7 of this year’s Tour de France, which forced him to abandon the race for which he trained diligently and smartly. Another, particularly acute incident for many cyclists, given our primal fear of cars, was the horrific crash during Stage 9 that occurred when the driver of a media vehicle swerved into a rider, who collided with another rider as he tumbled across the pavement. In both cases, the riders remounted despite significant injuries and finished the stage.

For mountain bikers who hate to ride uphill, Willamette Pass is a must-ride. Late in June, after the snow has melted from the mountain, the small ski resort off of Hwy. 58 near Oakridge converts its six-person chair to a gondola for mountain bikers, hikers, disc golfers and sightseers. The ski slopes give way to some intense singletrack riding with some killer Cascade mountain views, including those of nearby 8,678-foot Diamond Peak. “It’s a little slice of heaven,” says mountain biker Jeremy Fritts.

With a 360-degree view from the summit and an 18-hole disc golf course that winds down the mountain, it is also worth a stop for non-riders.  Located an hour and a half from Bend, Willamette Pass is one of only two mountains in Oregon that offers lift-serviced mountain biking, the other is Ski Bowl at Mt. Hood. While the resort restricts its mountain bike lift operations to the weekend, it’s still relatively crowd free.

But mountain bikers should take note: Willamette Pass is not for the faint of heart. While there are some relatively tame trails, the riding is geared more toward downhill-style biking.