Small Oregon Towns Make Big Impact with Upcoming Events — Sport Oregon Voices

Sport Oregon Voices: Upcoming events like the Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament, Providence Hood to Coast and Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon showcase more rural Oregon communities in a big way

The Oregon cities of Seaside and Independence will never claim to be among the largest towns in the state, but they sure do pack a big punch when it comes to putting on first-class participation sporting events.

Over the next month, Seaside will be the center of two significant 40th anniversary celebrations, in the form of the annual Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament from Aug. 11-14, and again when it serves as the scenic finish line to this year’s Providence Hood to Coast and Portland to Coast relays, Aug. 26-27.

Inland, Independence will host the Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon for the first time on Sept. 4. 

The Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament is the largest of its kind in the United States, if not the world, and features 185 courts and more than 1,600 teams along the sandy beaches of the Oregon Coast. Every year thousands of amateur and semi-pro players from all over the world descend on the scenic beach town to take part in the four-day event, with many thousands more flocking to the area to take in the action as spectators.

The tournament event also offers a series of coaching clinics for college and adult players, featuring some of the top coaches in the country breaking down passing, setting, serving, approach, team strategy and other volleyball essentials.

Like the Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament, Hood to Coast has become a can’t-miss, holy-grail-status event for relay enthusiasts and those who pursue the event as a bonding experience. Started in 1982, it, too, is celebrating 40 years with its 2022 event. Over the years, it has just kept gaining popularity, as has its shorter companion relay, Portland to Coast.

“It’s grown into something that has this massive cult following and has sold out for 35 consecutive years,” said Dan Floyd, COO of Hood to Coast.

Starting at Mount Hood and ending in Seaside on the Oregon Coast, the event known as the “Mother of All Relays” is a centerpiece showcase for the natural beauty Oregon has to offer.

“The cool part is it shows off 200 miles of racecourse from Timberline to Seaside and draws participants from all 50 states and over 40 countries,” Floyd said.

The overall impact to the state of both events is widespread. Attracting so many participants and spectators from outside of the state certainly produces a substantial economic impact in a larger city like Portland from a travel, transportation, lodging and tourism perspective, but the boost it provides to the many smaller towns is massive.

Through its course, Hood to Coast brings upwards of 20,000 people through places like Sandy, Welches, Government Camp, St. Helen’s and Scappoose. Both the volleyball tournament and relay event produce a wide-ranging economic impact on Seaside and the surrounding North Coast towns such as Astoria and Warrenton, particularly in terms of lodging, dining and related services. Local business owners and residents alike are well-versed in the impact such an event annually produces for their respective towns, and rise to the occasion to help make the event a special one for all involved. 

Farther south, the city of Independence is a hidden jewel that prides itself on essentially providing a quintessential rural experience that leaves you feeling like you’re kind of in the middle of nowhere, yet in the middle of everything.

For representatives from Sport Oregon, which produces the annual Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon, there is a great deal of enthusiasm for the new partnership with Independence. In terms of an idyllic location that best reflects the spirt of Sport Oregon’s Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon, it’s difficult to imagine a more suitable host community than Independence and the welcoming spirit it provides.

“People like to come to Independence and just enjoy themselves,” said John McArdle, mayor of Independence. “I encourage people to come and see what small-town life is really like.”

The event, which is expected to attract more than 1,500 participants this year, will feature a lot of the familiar features from past races, including a 5K that Sport Oregon introduced in recent years to offer a more varied challenge to participants of all levels. It will feature a relatively flat course that is slated to begin on Main Street in downtown Independence before winding through the varied, lush agricultural landscape of the surrounding rural areas that features upwards of 170 specialty crops.

This year’s Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon also includes a wine festival. Visitors and residents, alike, are invited to raise a glass, sample some of the best pinot noir or pinot gris around, and toast the return of the popular in-person event, and for all the great sporting activities taking place in rural communities throughout Oregon this summer and early fall.

For More Information About The Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon
Registration for the 2022 Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon is now open. For more information and to secure your place in this year’s event, click here.