You're never bored when you are cycle touring, unless you're dull.

This crappy photo from Wikipedia has been getting a lot of play. Mostly because there probably isn't any other readily available images of Boring.

Boring, Oregon. Yes, it's a real place.

It's down in rural Clackamas County, Clackamas County being the county south of Multnomah, which Portland is in. As a small rural community on the outer fringe of Portland's metro area, there ain't much going on there. It definitely lives up to its name. And yes, it is the brunt of jokes.

But!

Boring is getting its time in the spotlight. The news broke yesterday about the international (yes, international!) movement to get Boring a sister "city". (I use city in italics since it's an unincorporated community.) With where? Well, Dull, Scotland of course. Get it?

And this tidbit of news has been making the rounds. Not just NPR (which talked about it twice -twice- today!) or USA Today, but also the people who brought you Doctor Who, the BBC!  (And The Telegraph too.)

This ones for you, Mr. C!

Now besides the fact that I get to talk about a town near me and drag out a picture of Tom Baker on a bike (again), there is a little bit more significance to this story. What's that, you ask? Well, here's an excerpt from The Telegraph piece, emphasis mine:

The idea to 'twin' Dull, in Perthshire, and Boring, in the US state of Oregon, came about after Scots cyclist Elizabeth Leighton pedalled through Boring during a holiday.

Fancy that! This whole business came about because someone was on a bike tour! Who says we cyclists can't make the world a more interesting place?

So hey Clackamas County! Look at what work we cyclists are doing for you! We're bringing you attention! Now can you finish the Springwater Corridor trail, pretty please? Thank you!