We started out with Hurricane Lee coming ashore behind us as we drove through Baton Rouge and up to Hattiesburg, MS. The rain stayed with us for a few days and while we were in Chattanooga they recorded the most rain in a single day: 9.85″. We visited Rock City while this was happening and with our yellow ponchos we walked the rock trails, wading through the puddles and soaking our feet. The next day we went inside to see Ruby Falls, deep inside Lookout Mountain.

All told we visited The Biltmore in Asheville, NC. From there we went to Pigeon Forge, TN for country attractions. Driving to Boston was the next destination and where we got the history lessons we forgot from school. It was different walking and riding trollies where these events took place. One of our tour leaders was Paul Revere as we went from Concord to Lexington. A different tour was to program the GPS for local roads only and pick a place along the coast. We visited and walked in Marblehead, MA, Glouchester, MA., and Rockport, MA. Manhattan was the next stop and then on to Ohio.

While we staying Chattanooga I noticed most of the bikes on racks were mountain bikes. One morning while we were getting ready to go a man and woman walked their mountain bikes through the lobby decked out in their riding gear so I am guessing they were not too far from a trail or other destination. In Asheville I saw a mixture of road and mountain bikes. There was a serious road biker on a street coming into Asheville as well. And then when we were in Boston out trolley tour went by MIT. Almost every building entrance had a sea of bikes waiting for their rider to return. In Manhattan I saw many people riding Dahon folding type bicycles probably because space is a premium in most apartments.

Back to today’s ride I was planning on a 28 mile ride but between my muscles complaining and a time limit I decided 25 miles was a better goal. So I ended up going 24.88 miles at an average speed of 14.8 mph with a max speed of 20.5 mph. This was pretty good considering that I have not ridden for so long. My average cadence was 78.6 RPM.

With the amount of time gone I was hoping the temperature had moderated some but after my ride my home weather station was showing 101 degrees. My ride though was somewhat cooler at 96 degrees when I finished. Partly cloudy skies and an 8.6 mph southwest breeze helped it feel plenty warm. It did feel like fall though. Later this week the temperature is supposed to let up some. Rain seems to be a forgotten event in these parts.

9-26-2011 Biccle Ride Data and Route Map

9-26-2011 Home Weather Finish

The second picture gallery is a few shots of the Friday evening racers riding around the criterium course but not racing. I got there after a race or maybe before the race was to start but I could wait too long because my wife was waiting in the Jeep. She was not feeling well and we needed to check in at our hotel.

In place of riding I watched the finish of the USA Cycling National Championship Elite Women’s Cyclocross race. Later at 4:20 PM CST I will watch some of the men’s competition. The course was somewhat muddy but not extremely so like they are in Europe. The race was streamed on the USAcyclying.org website and Versus website (relay of the USAcycling.org stream).

12-12-2010 Weather

• A catchy theme or purpose gets my attention to first consider the ride.
• A convenient location. Close rides are more practical than driving across Texas. One exception I make on this one is the Hotter’n Hell Hundred in Wichita Falls. I drove to Harlingen several times for the Jalapeno 100.
• A reasonable price. When I first started going on rides in the 1980′s the typical cost was $10. Now the typical cost is $25. For rides during the year when the weather is questionable I hesitate pre-registering so I pay the late fee which I think $35 is the upper limit. When I see a ride is above these amounts I have a rough time considering them.
• Various route lengths. In the 1980′s a 100 mile route was my goal now that I am 25 years older the upper limit is 60 to 75 miles.
• Plenty of parking at the starting location. When parking is not in one spot having people direct the traffic is very helpful. Big signs are most appreciated.
• Quickly moving and easy to find packet pickup locations. Sometimes I go to rides where I cannot find the place to pickup the pre-ride materials and stuff.
• A clear starting lane for space and safety. If the start lane is small and has cars parked the chance of accidents increase a lot.
• Plain route markings. Each route length should have it’s own color and the markings should be painted on he roadway. I can remember one ride in Tyler when vandals moved the route signs and caused a major problem. Signs are good but markings on the road last longer. If the local authorities have a problem use paint that washes away after a few rains. A map should be included in the packet. Also it has to be detailed enough that you can actually make out the road names.
• Rest stops with cheery people and adequate supplies. It takes both. Supplies with no cheer make for a sad ride. At the same time continuing on a ride without water is not good. Ride organizers have a difficult time estimating how much supplies they will need at each rest stop so it is important for riders to mark which route they really plan on riding when they preregister.
• Sag wagons that are not too far away. This is one area that seems weak on many rides. There may be sag wagons but I never see one when you need them.
• Traffic spotters at dangerous intersections or places on the route. I have seen some near misses when there have not been spotters.
• Easy to find finish line. Do not hide the finish without signs and/or spotters to direct the riders. After riding high mental thought to find the finish line is not what is needed.
• A lunch at the finish. This is why I go to the Pineywoods Purgatory in Lufkin year after year. They have the best fajitas and there are plenty of them. The lunch does not have to be free but it helps.

Did I list all of the things you look for?

Apparently other people have issues riding in January since there are only a few organized rides during the month. I am eying the Jalapeno 100 in Harlingen on February 13th. This could be my opportunity to thaw out and still ride. I have seen a couple of fellow riders on the road. Later this week a major artic cold front is coming to southeast Texas so the riding will be limited.

Can you say “hello windtrainer?”

This is the hardest ride of the year for me. While the hills are not mountains they almost are. Several times (more than I can count) the hill ran out just before I ran out of oxygen. The hills on the 70 mile route just keep on coming. Weather today was nice with the temperature at the start around 62 degrees. By the time I finished the temperature was in the upper 70′s. A brisk wind from the southeast was trouble at time especially when it gusted to 18 mph. The multitude of jerseys and bikes is always interesting. I was unique though with my Texbiker.net jersey.

I enjoy this ride because of the challenging route but the fajitas at the finish are worth the sore muscles. While I was eating my 3 fajitas at the end I visited with two riders from the Houston area. One rider was from Bay City (all right this is not really the Houston area). Today was his second ride and he rode the 50 mile route. I told him he picked a tough ride for number 2.

Rest stops were well manned. One had homemade brownies and another was fixing ham or turkey croissant sandwiches. I had a brownie but skipped the sandwich so I could save room for the fajitas at the end. The t-shirt was different in that it listed all of the sponsors and the rest stop sponsors. The graphic design is always unique and this year was no exception.

The drive home was time to recover and be glad the rain I was driving in had not made it to Lufkin yet. Next year’s ride is already on my calendar.

According to her coach, Matt Koschara, “She’s the most complete rider I’ve ever come across.”

Velonews.com also wrote about Ms. Stevens in a July 14th article on their website. The author thinks Evelyn Stevens is a rising star.

Now what does that have to do with Texbiker.net and me? Well, I did not really find bicycle riding until 1979 when I was 32 years old. This was past the prime years for starting a racing career, even if I had some amount of talent. When I read one of the articles or hear a story about some athlete discovery I have a chance to do a little what-if dreaming.

As it is, I enjoy riding and though I am not a racer I do enjoy a fast downhill or a strong tailwind to speed me along.

I now have a better idea about how this will work for my next long ride. One of the problems I had was where to keep the Flip while I was not shooting. I ended up using the short cable that is attached to the camera and putting it on my wrist. This was handy but I am concerned about making sudden moves and the Flip getting caught on something on my bike or elsewhere. So after my ride I stopped by a Big Lots store to see what they had in cheap cellphone holsters and camera bags. I did not find a big enough cellphone holster so I settled for a small camera bag with a belt loop connector ($5.40) that I will attach to my Camelback shoulder strap. This should keep the Flip out of the way but handy enough for shooting.

Kingwood-Conroe-Kingwood

Now for the actual ride. I created a map at Bikely.com. (Click on the map image to go to the actual map at Bikely.com) While the route shows 60 miles it was actually 63.2 miles when I got to my house. Lately I have been trying to change up my routes even though I go on some of the same roads. This ride I rode in reverse of my typical direction. It is interesting that I saw some things that I did not remember from the other direction. Construction activity is almost gone. Last Saturday I saw many bikers on this route but this time I saw only one. There was a ride sponsored by Northwest Cycling so many of them may have went there. Most of the riders are probably from The Woodlands.

As you see in the video the road conditions are good and traffic was moderate and the weather was perfect, in my opinion. As I wrote earlier, this video is an experiment so there are times when you will see and hear some unexpected things. Right off you hear me clip into my pedals. There are a couple of sections where I show my bike computer for distance and such. I am not a threat to Hollywood, yet.