Texas Bicycling News Digest March 10th 2018

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Beilue: City woman, 71, has 3,000 biking miles in front of her

Jon Mark Beilue | amarillo.com


Ann Wallace left Friday for California where she will be likely the only woman among nine sweaty men for the next eight weeks. Perhaps an explanation is needed.

Wallace will be on her touring bike as will the others. They will depart on Monday from San Diego and head east. And keep heading east all the way to St. Augustine, Florida, some 3,160 miles in all. …

Bid on Mcallen-Hidalgo Bridge Bicycle Parking Project in McAllen–Hidalgo Bridge

www.texasbids.net

Owner Solic Number: 03-18-C14-362 Status: bidding Report: 8482749
Country : United States State: TX County: Hidalgo
Location: McAllen–Hidalgo Bridge
Scope: Bicycle parking.
Notes: Requests for clarification are due Monday, March 19, 2018 5:00 PM.
Plans: From Owner. See outside link.
Outside Link:
https://mcallen.procureware.com/Bids?Id=fc749842-0db2-4ff5-9594-9a5f170970f1
Owner Type: Public

RIDE THE CAR-FREE WALNUT CREEK TRAIL–STILL EARLIER!

Saturday, Mar 17, 2018, 8:30 AM

Don’s Automotive Repair
1636 S 1st St Austin, TX

8 Austin Cyclists Went

OK, we are going to ride the very mellow car-free Walnut Creek trail. We leave from Don’s Automotive on South First, meet8:15, WHEELS DOWN 8:30 Five miles to the trail head, trail is about 10-15 miles out. (??) So about 32 miles total. BUT, you can fall in at the Govalle Park parking lot on Bolm Rd. alternatively. Please RSVP with comment posted if…

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Finally 83 Degrees Bike Ride

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The weather flipped from yesterday: start 78 (82% humidity) overcast, finish 83 (71% humidity) mostly cloudy, wind 5 mph variable. Nice to not be concerned with a wind chill. I selected the “Atascocita – Walden – Huffman” route and biked a total of 33.96 miles putting me 290 miles away from my 585 mile goal for March. With the warmer weather I adjusted my wardrobe: shorts, long sleeve jersey (probably not needed by the end of the ride), and a short sleeve jersey. Not fighting a strong wind (20 mph yesterday) made for a more relaxed ride though I still averaged 14.8 mph for a large portion of the ride.

With the 11:31 am start I figured it would likely to not see other cyclists but I did. First one was in Kings Forest around 5 miles into the ride. The next two were on Old Atascocita Road west for FM 2100. The final one was in Atascocita approaching Kings Park Way with him in front until our paths split at Kings Park Way.

No stops today for photos with the blooming azaleas which are really out in force.

Finishing at 1:56 pm I will catch up on the AAC semi final game between Cincinnati and Memphis thanks to the DVR and KHOU via an antenna.

Not sure if I will ride on Sunday with a “cool” front arriving and some rain possible.

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Texas Bicycling News Digest March 9th 2018

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TEXAS VIEW: A step in the right direction for Victoria

By Victoria Advocate | www.oaoa.com

Victoria is taking a big step forward with its plan for rebuilding Crestwood Drive.

The Victoria City Council recently approved a plan to add a 5-foot sidewalk and an 8-foot hike-and-bike trail to the street when it is rebuilt during the next few years. This move indicates our historic city is, at last, moving in the right direction. …

Austin B-cycle should provide helmets to riders

BY CALEB WONG | www.dailytexanonline.com


Austin B-cycle is a happy medium between wanting to ride a bike and dealing with the costs of owning one. I can get to a Sunday evening church service or a class without having to pull out the U-lock or worry about taking my bike home. Best of all, it’s free for students.

But we should also keep our safety in mind when we’re biking. …

At LBJ 100, pedal the roads a president once traveled

Pam LeBlanc | fitness.blog.austin360.com


Like wildflowers and a little presidential history when you’re out riding a bike?

All three are on tap March 24 at the 11th annual LBJ 100 Bicycle Ride at the LBJ Ranch near Stonewall.

Cyclists can choose from routes of 10, 30, 42 and 62 miles. The ride begins on the airstrip at the historic ranch and continues along quiet, gently rolling country roads.

Riders will pass the historic Texas White House, Lyndon B. Johnson’s birthplace and the family cemetery where President and Mrs. Johnson are buried. They’ll also see descendants of the …

A Border Ballad

By GRANT WISHARD | www.weeklystandard.com


The big lessons our reporter learned biking from San Diego to El Paso

El Paso, Texas

On January 17, I dipped a wheel in the Pacific in San Diego and set out to bike along America’s southern border. It was a six-week, 1,600-mile challenge, but on February 8 I fell off my bike in El Paso, doing my best impression, face to pavement, of a tire skidding to a stop. I fractured my elbow and have spent these last few weeks in a cast, facing down such herculean challenges as putting on a pair of socks and opening a bag of Doritos. It has at least left me ample time to ponder what I saw in northern Mexico. …

How Fort Worth and Arlington plan to avoid Dallas’ ‘piles of bikes dumped everywhere’

BY BILL HANNA AND SANDRA BAKER | www.star-telegram.com


DALLAS
In the heart of Dallas, bicycles are everywhere.

They’re parked side-by-side along sidewalks throughout downtown, Uptown and Deep Ellum.

They litter the ground and sidewalks along Lemmon Avenue and Mockingbird Lane and they’ve been unceremoniously dumped in random places, like an empty lot east of …

This weekend’s rides: MJ Dam Loop! Lamppost Coffee!

by Thomas | steinerranchcycling.com

Saturday could be awesome! Warm temperatures, finally. Let’s go on our expanded dam loop which takes us up Mt. Bonnell and over to MJs for refueling before Westlake and Cuernavaca finishing with a tailwind push home. The route is 62 miles and can be found here: …

Lancaster Country Ride 20th Anniversary Interview

www.wheelbrothers.com


The Lancaster Country Ride is everything you could ever want in a joy ride. My memories of pedaling it through the years include feeling like I stole a bike on the first, sun-shiny day of the year, careening wildly (at least on the descents) through the bluebonnets of Lancaster, Texas. By this point in the year, we’re certainly sick of winter and we’ve completely forgotten the sting of summer to come. It’s the perfect time for a ride like this one. …

Captain’s Blog – 3/09/18 – March Madness Challenge

by Sameer Gokhale | cycling.powweb.com

I’m pleased to announce that we have new riders from Austin that are joining us in October for Bike MS ride. Most, if not all work at pointb, a consulting firm with locations all across the country. They have a national presence and participate in multiple rides during the year. This year they have decided to join Velo Valero and raise funds for Bike MS.

March Madness Challenge
As part of pointb’s fundraising efforts, they have started a March Madness fantasy challenge. They have created a private group with …

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Lots of Assembly Required Bike Ride

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It was a good thing I grabbed the jacket as I left to start the bike ride on the “New Caney – Tavola – Valley Ranch” route. I got a late start (1:31 pm) because I watched the University of Cincinnati vs SMC quarterfinal basketball game which started at 11 am. UC won to advance to the semifinal round. After not biking yesterday (Thursday) I was ready to get out on the road to see how the out front mount worked and the Wahoo Elemnt computer did with the fixed mounting tabs (more on both of those in a moment).

When I left the temperature fluctuated between 73 and 75 depending on how much sun made it through the clouds. For the first 5 miles or so I felt overdressed with the jacket but as the sky changed to overcast the SE 20 mph wind made things chilly. Underneath the jacket I wore a long sleeve jersey and a short sleeve jersey atop shorts. I almost wore a thermal long sleeve jersey and skipped the short sleeve one but I didn’t.

On the way to Tavola the SE wind was my friend except for the occasional times heading into the wind. I knew the ride back to the south would be hard but I wasn’t thinking about the wind chill until I was in it. I built my average speed up to 14.9 mph and held it there until about 28 miles into the ride when the paced slowed getting into Kingwood. Biking 33.86 miles later in the afternoon I thought might put in the schools dismissal traffic but they were gone by the time I passed each school. With the 33.86 mile March now totals 260.9 miles out of the 585 mile goal.

I was glad to reach the end of the bike ride at 3:55 pm to get out of the chilly wind and inside.

Wednesday I received the out front mount via USPS from Japan. The “instructions” and other printed materials were in Japanese which meant I was on my own installing it. The pictures were helpful and with the Wahoo Elemnt insert clearly a baby blue. The screws were packed clearly and I got all of the parts arranged and started the assembly and installation. I attached the GoPro like finned mount to the bottom. This would hold the PowerPod once the mount attached to the Canyon H31 ergo handlebar. Not counting the Wahoo insert screws there were 4 screws in all. These pictures show the mount and installation.

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The Elemnt was not fixed yet when I attached the out front mount.

Thursday the Wahoo Elemnt mounting tab repair part arrived via FedEx. Opening the envelope I did not get what I expected. I thought the part would the mounting disc that sticks out of the back of the Elemnt. Instead I received the whole back of the Elemnt. No instructions were included like I asked. The screws holding the back on are T-5 Torx which are a special screw. I had a T-5 Torx screwdriver and used it to remove 7 of the 8 screws. The last one appeared to be stripped and I couldn’t get it out. After spending $12.05 for a set of Torx screwdrivers I opened the unit up and found the battery firmly attached to the back that I need to replace. How do I get the battery loose? The USB connector attached to the battery and back appeared to be glued as well as screwed to the back. Frustrated I sent an email to the person I exchanged emails with to get the part. This morning I got an email back with the missing instructions with pictures. After watching two European bike races I got a white piece of paper out, removed the screws and pried the battery loose. The screws holding the USB socket were next and using a sharp knife I pulled the USB connector out. I moved the two-side tape from the old part to the new one and reattached the cables and the USB connector. Before installing the 8 screws holding the back on I turned the Elemnt on and it started up. Turning it off I installed and tightened the 8 screws. Success and the Elemnt sits firmly in the out front mount. Pictures of the back and stuff.

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With this work done the Canyon is almost complete. The only thing missing is the carbon water bottle cages in route from China.

I am now able to monitor about every body function now with the PowerPod back in service, heart monitor in place and all of the other sensors working.

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