STP Announcing Recap
We had 4,840 cyclists over the course of two days attend Cascade Bicycle Club’s Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic in its 45th year. Portland Bicycling Club has had the honor of partnering with CBC by working the Finish Line for decades, and this year’s talent didn’t disappoint at the Finish Line!
As the Announcing Team Leader for this annual event, I’m always on the lookout for good talent when it comes to public speaking. I was fortunate to discover two Clark County Courthouse employees, located in Vancouver, just over the bridge from Portland. Below is a little more information about our new PBC-STP volunteers Annie and Austin who have expressed sincere interest in returning to emcee the STP annual event in 2025. This is great news for Portland Bicycling Club, as we need volunteers if we want to continue supporting Cascade Bicycle Club at the STP Finish Line in the future. ✎
Annie Straight was born and raised in Vancouver, WA. Annie is currently a judicial proceeding specialist for Clark County Superior Court. Annie has a passion for volunteering and has won the titles in the Miss America program of Miss Clark County 2020 and Miss City of Roses 2022. She was also the recipient of the private interview award at Miss Oregon 2023. She now spends her time volunteering with Shared Hope International, and with her wonderful partner, and stepdaughter Ava. Welcome back to Portland, Annie!
Austin Haworth was born in Seattle, WA. Austin is currently a judicial proceeding specialist for Clark County Superior Court. Austin is no stranger to volunteering for STP. While living in Lewis County between 2006-2010, Austin volunteered with local groups to house STP two-day cyclists and to unload/load baggage trucks for Cascade Bicycle Club in Centralia. A former actor and vice-webmaster for Bulbapedia, Austin now finds himself living in Vancouver with his wife, Kelsey, where they enjoy meeting up with friends for weekly games of Dungeons & Dragons and helping to care for his grandparents. Austin maintains that his proudest achievement in life was jumping into the lead role of Neil Simon’s “Laughter on the 23rd Floor” only a week before opening night and learning the entire script in three days.
Annie and Austin tackled the exhausting task of emceeing in 90-degree heat with vigor and humor while welcoming in our STP one-day finishers, who left Seattle early Saturday morning and rode their bicycles 206 miles to experience a warm welcome at Holladay Park in Portland. They both genuinely possess remarkable public speaking skills. The feedback I received from Cascade Bicycle Club was heartwarming, and I look forward to working with Annie and Austin in 2025.
Lastly, special thanks to Allan Morrow, for emceeing a stint of the STP Finish Line. Allan is a long-time volunteer announcer for us and the son of PBC’s president, Ann Morrow. Allan is one of a kind! My face still hurts from laughing. We love it when Allan volunteers, and hopefully he will be back in 2025 too.
Please let me know if you’d like to give it a try next year. Thank you!
Kathleen Hellem, STP Announcing Team Leader