[Noah930]

Portland International Raceway is literally next door to the airport. Check out their website, as they post a schedule of events going on.

No recs for accomodations. But I lived in downtown Portland for a year, and the airport/racetrack were 15 minutes away from my door. Downtown is nice, as it's small enough to be walkable, and there are plenty of shops/restaurants/etc. Lots of good restaurants in Portland (both in downtown and in the 23rd Street area, as well as other neighborhoods). Let me know if you and your wife want any recs.

The Columbia River Gorge is incredible. Don't miss a drive along it, either on the Oregon side, or the Washington side. There are tons of waterfalls, state parks, and hiking trails, particularly along the Oregon side, out to Hood River. Multnomah Falls is impressive, and has a restaurant for brunch/lunch. You can park at any of the falls though, and go for hikes from there. The trails all link up, loosely. If you're willing to drive a little further, you can even go hiking up at Mount Hood, or Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Ranier. If you go south from Portland, you can try some wine tasting along 99, IIRC.

In PDX, I'd recommend seeing the Japanese Garden and Rose Garden. On Saturdays there's a large outdoor arts/crafts market along the riverfront. There's also a great farmer's market (on Sat) up by Portland Univ. (great for flowers for the wife?). And there are often festivals along the riverfront. Pearl District has a once-a-month night (First Thursday? or something like that) where all the galleries stay open late.

Out along the coast, my wife and I thought Astoria was a bit disappointing. Down south is Seaside, which is kinda touristy (like Cannon Beach, but somehow not as nice). There's an air museum down in Tillamook, I recall.

Drive the speed limit, as the Highway Patrol are pretty strict. Congrats.