Can a bicycle built for two lead to a life together? Well, sometimes. It did for Anne Thiessen and Jim Lelong of Kane'ohe.

They met in 2005 at the seven-day Cycle Oregon event. She was the stoker (the person who rides in the back) of her brother's tandem bike. He was the captain (the person in front) with his former girlfriend as his stoker. She lived in Colorado, he in Hawai'i. After a year of long-distance romance ("We should have had stock in United Airlines and ATA," Lelong said), Thiessen moved to O'ahu. Now they're training together for his fourth and her fifth Cycle Oregon ride, which starts Saturday. They are two of the 15 Hawai'i residents who are participating.

Cycle Oregon is an endurance ride, not a race, and it requires rigorous training. The course is 435 miles over seven days, which may not sound too bad, but there are also 20,000 feet of elevation to climb.

That makes training on O'ahu quite a challenge. Riding around Kalaniana'ole Highway or up Young Street or through Waikiki does not provide the uphill obstacles needed to build stamina.

Thiessen, 48, and Lelong, 49, train on Tantalus, the Pali, Makapu'u near the lighthouse, Mariners Ridge, Pupukea and even Likelike. "Although there's a sidewalk on the left side, it's terrifying in the tunnel, but spectacular when you come out of it," Lelong said. They ride tandem 100 to 150 miles a week.

Although Lelong and Thiessen both have been lifelong athletes, their sports were formerly quite different. Lelong started cycling at age 14 as a means of getting to school at Kailua Intermediate and High School, and raced bikes all through the '70s and '80s. He was a competitive springboard diver in high school and completed the first Ironman in Kona in 1981. His number was 251.

Thiessen grew up in California, then moved to Colorado. Hiking and skiing were her primary sports. However, cycling has been an important part of her fitness regimen since her college days at the University of California-Davis, where she rode everywhere.

Now, in addition to cycling, Lelong and Thiessen kayak and hike together.

Lelong builds boats for Grove Farms for a living, while Thiessen is a nutritionist and herbalist at the Wai'anae Coast Comprehensive Health Center.

To fuel their athletic ambitions, Thiessen said, "We both eat really, really well. We spend every night cooking. In the morning, we eat eggs and vegetables — omelettes, frittatas or quiche I make ahead. For lunch, I plan ahead and make leftovers: taco salads, barbecue, lasagna, fish, enchiladas. We hardly ever have sandwiches. I try to go a little bit low-carb. Most of us need to go lower-carb than where we are pushed to go. I like to experiment with grains like barley or quinoa or other whole grains."

Thiessen has a sweet tooth and enjoys baking cookies and desserts for friends. "But I try not to have them around the house." Instead, she opts for yogurt with berries when her sweet tooth strikes. They never drink soda. "We love herbal teas. I make a mean ginger syrup, so I can make my own ginger ale," she said.

Since Thiessen is a nutritionist, we couldn't resist asking her about the biggest food mistake Island folks make. "Portion sizes," she said without hesitation. "Also relying on processed grains (white rice) and meats."

As for Cycle Oregon, Thiessen and Lelong will be given 6,000 calories a day. "It's a rolling party," Lelong said. But no worries. They'll be burning that off on those killer hills.