Set off warning: This story mentions sexual assault and underage rape normally phrases with out particulars of any particular incident.
Whereas I used to be on the current Downtown Sunday Parkways, I acquired a number of stories of a person strolling round with a large signal over his head that learn in huge, black letters: “Shift2bikes.org is Illegal” with the “terrible” half in crimson. I had a hunch who it is likely to be. And positive sufficient, I ultimately rolled as much as see Matt Landon peering excessive of it.
What the signal all about? It has to do with a number of issues, together with: the Thursday Evening Experience (TNR), Shift’s administration of their in style experience calendar, the truth that Shift has banned Landon from utilizing it, and Landon’s claims that Shift board members are protecting up stories of sexual assault that allegedly occurred on TNR. Landon, a self-described skilled activist and a former chief of TNR, alleges that Shift board members find out about a minimum of one incident of rape of a minor throughout a TNR experience, however that they didn’t report it to police. Shift says Landon’s claims are utterly unfaithful, based mostly solely on rumour, and that his anti-Shift marketing campaign is nothing greater than a vendetta.
Earlier than I’m going any additional: Please word that I’ve handled a number of intra-community points up to now and they’re at all times sophisticated, convoluted and delicate to these concerned. Every time my desire is to not share them extensively on BikePortland and to hope they get resolved amongst concerned events appearing in good religion. Nevertheless, when behaviors cross a line and persons are being harm or are susceptible to being harm, and a decision doesn’t seem imminent, I really feel airing issues out publicly might be useful. Given Landon’s behaviors up to now — and the truth that many people have requested me about this following his current Sunday Parkways demonstration; his spate of lengthy, mass emails detailing his grievances; his launch of a 10-page report and grievance that he’s handing out at occasions; and his attendance at Bike Glad Hour final night time — I really feel compelled to handle what’s occurring in larger element.
So right here goes…
To try to unravel what’s occurring, I’ve talked and emailed with Landon to listen to his considerations. I’ve additionally talked and emailed with 4 different folks from Shift, Umbrella (Shift’s fiscal sponsor) and elsewhere who’ve been immediately named in Landon’s allegations. First, some background…
Shift is among the many grassroots, all-volunteer organizations in our neighborhood that operates underneath the fiscal sponsorship of the nonprofit Umbrella. Shift began in 2002 to advertise “Bike Summer time,” which went on to turn out to be Pedalpalooza and has lately started calling itself Bike Summer time as soon as once more. Shift additionally hosts a extremely popular calendar of rides and occasions on their web site ShiftToBikes.org. That calendar is on the coronary heart of this dispute.
On condition that the experience calendar is a pillar of our neighborhood, one in all Shift’s largest tasks is to maintain it accessible and secure. Anybody can checklist rides, however Shift has a Code of Conduct committee (and a board) to handle considerations which may come up on rides and/or with particular experience listings. In 2021, Shift determined to delist TNR. This was an enormous deal as a result of if one thing’s not on the Shift Calendar, it’s nearly as if it doesn’t exist. And your complete purpose of a mass social experience is to make it huge and appeal to new riders every week. By that point, TNR had turn out to be an enormous experience, however Shift had a number of considerations about it — starting from a bonfire on the finish spot throughout a burn ban in 2020, an absence of consideration to Covid prevention and social distancing guidelines in 2021, and a common sentiment that folks on the experience and/or experience leaders themselves have been behaving in a approach that Shift doesn’t assist. These alleged behaviors included: unprovoked aggression towards drivers, ladies feeling uncomfortable (unverified stories of sexual assault have swirled across the experience since its early years), reckless driving, and intoxicated experience leaders.
TNR leaders responded to the delisting of their experience by promising Shift they’d tackle the issues. In Could 2021, two TNR leaders launched an effort to make the experience secure in hopes of getting put again on the calendar. In a four-page memo, they launched the Biking and Driving Pals Working Group, or BARF. Amongst BARF’s objectives was to, “create a secure area for feminine, trans, queer, folks of coloration, and all riders throughout TNR bike rides,” and, “create a zero tolerance coverage for sexual assault and home violence that happens throughout or instantly following TNR bike rides if the sufferer and perpetrator each attended the TNR bike experience.”
Landon was a type of two leaders and BARF was his child.
The great-faith effort from Landon and BARF bought TNR again on the calendar, and issues appeared to be going properly on the experience. However in late 2023, Shift says they began to listen to extra complaints about TNR. In an e mail from Shift leaders to Landon in November 2023, they wrote:
“These stories have included instances of non-public threats to riders, unsafe driving, fights, threats of mass shootings, possession of weapons, and many others. These threats have come from a number of people typically concerning utterly separate incidences and dates and have included a number of offenders… this isn’t nearly one unhealthy actor or a couple of folks displeased with the experience. There are a number of issues and too many stories and folks to depend. One or two a 12 months is predicted with massive weekly rides and oftentimes they’re simply small scuffles and private drama however there’s simply been too many which signifies a scientific or cultural drawback. These issues return additional than three weeks and BARF ought to have been addressing these issues as they happen.”
At that time Shift as soon as once more took TNR off their calendar for 3 months and requested experience organizers to develop a plan to treatment the problems. “This isn’t an try to cancel the experience, neither is it based mostly on any private emotions from any board members,” wrote Shift Board member Logan Vickery in an e mail to Landon on November 16, 2023. “This choice is predicated solely on neighborhood suggestions and we really feel that we’re pressured to take motion as a way to maintain our neighborhood secure. We acknowledge the influence that TNR has had through the years and hope to see it proceed on however provided that its influence is optimistic and in settlement with the Shift Code of Conduct.”
In February of 2024, Landon attended a Shift Board assembly in hopes of getting the experience reinstated. In response to two Shift board members who have been at that assembly, that’s when issues started to go off the rails. Whereas Landon seemed to be appearing in good religion at that assembly, one Shift board member mentioned he felt Landon’s perspective was, “O.Ok., I’ve been good, now put TNR again on the calendar.” The board member, who requested to stay nameless out of concern for his or her security, mentioned Shift felt extra course of was wanted earlier than the experience may very well be relisted: “I believe that assembly was the primary time we set a line and mentioned [to Landon], ‘No, you don’t get to dictate the phrases of this,’… and as quickly as we began placing in traces, he simply it ratcheted up in a short time from there. He didn’t appear to respect boundaries in anyway.”
One other Shift board member at that assembly, Logan Vickery, additionally advised me Landon appeared very keen to work with Shift to treatment the state of affairs with TNR, however, “After that assembly, he simply began getting bizarre.”
After that assembly, Landon appeared to go to warfare with Shift. Since TNR was unable to be listed on the calendar, Landon posted the same occasion that began close by at the same time. Landon additionally says he filed a proper grievance final 12 months with the Oregon Secretary of State resulting from his perception that Shift is in violation of their nonprofit bylaws. And in what would turn out to be a frequent tactic, he despatched out an extended e mail stuffed with allegations and speculations about Shift with a carbon copy despatched to a whole lot of people and organizations — lots of whom by no means gave Landon permission to make use of their private emails. Shift took specific offense to 1 e mail from Landon the place he claimed to be working a recruitment for Shift board members and citing nonexistent Shift insurance policies — regardless that he wasn’t affiliated with Shift in any approach.
Among the many allegations Landon made in opposition to Shift in these emails is that they have been hiding a secret database of assault incidents from TNR and that they have been conscious of an underage rape on the experience, however have been deliberately hiding all of it from the general public. Landon bases this accusation on the e-mail quoted above the place a Shift board member makes a passing reference to “stories” they acquired about TNR. Landon additionally cites different mentions of unverified, alleged sexual assaults on the experience from different people as being severe sufficient for Shift to have dropped at authorities. Shift has a course of for dealing with experience complaints and taking stories from contributors, however their said coverage is that Shift, “doesn’t interact with native regulation enforcement or in any other case aide regulation enforcement with their investigative issues.” Landon believes that coverage is illegal.
Requested to answer Landon’s allegations, one Shift volunteer advised me, “He was saying issues that have been wildly unfaithful. Clearly, he was not appearing in good religion at this level.” One other particular person, who additionally requested me to withhold their identify out of concern of retaliation by Landon mentioned, “He’s not been a simple particular person to collaborate with or to speak with. It doesn’t really feel prefer it’s in good religion.” As for Landon’s chief allegation, that Shift is hiding stories of underage rape that occurred on TNR, a Shift chief mentioned, “We don’t have any stories of these types of issues. We don’t know the place that’s coming from.”
In an e mail despatched to native media on March seventh, 2024, Landon wrote: “I’m asking that people please not donate to Shift2bikes.org since nobody will get to vote on something that Shift2bikes does right here in Portland.” Within the signature line of that e mail Landon referred to himself as, “the primary whistleblower illegally retaliated in opposition to by Shift2bikes.”
On March seventh, 2024, Shift determined to ban Landon from utilizing the calendar and attending any Shift occasions. Of their e mail to him they wrote that the ban was, “Because of misusing Shift assets, spamming Shift customers, and posting occasions/emails impersonating Shift even after a warning.”
Landon has lately escalated his public demonstrations in opposition to leaders of Shift. Not solely did Landon stroll round Sunday Parkways along with his signal, telling folks about his declare that the group is protecting up previous sexual assaults, he additionally spent a number of hours on the Shift desk the place he referred to as out Shift management by first and final identify and accused them of being a “prison group.” Shift volunteers who have been on the occasion requested Landon to cease participating with them, however they are saying he refused to go away. This habits has spooked a number of Shift leaders who really feel they’re being focused by Landon and are involved about their security.
In a 10-page report titled, Necessary reporter / Whistleblower Matt Landon grievance in opposition to Shift, Umbrella, and Willamette Week, that Landon started sharing with bike neighborhood leaders and native media on September 14th of this 12 months, he claims Shift has, “admitted through e mail that they acquired a number of (too many to depend) complaints from victims/survivors but didn’t comply with up on their authorized obligation to analyze the complaints or ahead these complaints to both authorized security workforce members nor the police.” “I’m involved as a result of underage drugged rape instances proceed to be introduced up, but no motion has occurred,” Landon wrote. “I concern that these are usually not the one cases of violence, home violence, and sexual violence that Shift and Umbrella have ignored.”
After I requested Landon to clarify his rape allegations in additional element, he referred me to his 10 web page report and the aforementioned emails the place folks seek advice from secondhand incidents and “stories” in a common sense with no verifiable particulars of any particular assault instances.
At Sunday Parkways earlier this month, I gave Landon the chance clarify his considerations with Shift (in video under). Right here’s what he mentioned:
“On September 14, 2025 I filed a grievance in opposition to Shift to Bikes and Umbrella and Willamette Weekly [sic], as a result of they’ve been ignoring their submitting of complaints from folks. And I’m submitting this as a compulsory reporter, as a result of there have been stories of underage rape that haven’t been reported by from Shift to the police, and that is unlawful. Additionally, Umbrella and Willamette Weekly have each recognized about this and haven’t reported this info to the police as properly.”
The point out of Willamette Week comes from Landon’s communications with James Hemphill, a freelancer who has labored for Willamette Week who has additionally ridden TNR and was, at one time, engaged on a narrative concerning the experience that was by no means revealed. In a dialog with Hemphill in the present day, he mentioned he thinks Landon is “making a mountain out of a molehill,” and that, “It’s apparent he’s he’s looking for vindication for one thing, and he simply actually must come clean with what he’s carried out and settle for it and go away.”
At Bike Glad Hour final night time I spoke to Landon at size. After I requested if he’s looking for revenge for being banned from utilizing the Shift Calendar, he mentioned that’s not why we was banned. He thinks the ban is an try to silence him and keep away from accountability.
It would take legal professionals to finally resolve this dispute; however I hope what I’ve shared right here offers you extra context on the place all sides stands.
And regardless of all this drama, you’ll be completely satisfied to know that TNR is alive in the present day and more healthy than ever. Earlier this spring, the experience put all this behind them underneath the steerage of a brand new chief; Bike Glad Hour common John “JR” Russell. Take a look at the main points of tonight’s experience and roll out to the Fountain to affix all of the enjoyable.
TNR is an important a part of our neighborhood. Like many massive, recurring rides, for a lot of contributors — particularly the regulars and leaders — it’s way more than only a bike experience. TNR is a powerful neighborhood and it means lots to lots of people. And like I at all times say, generally neighborhood is messy.
