Texas Bicycling News Digest June 5th 2019

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Bicyclist hit by car on West Side

By Ben Spicer | www.ksat.com

Incident occurred near Guadalupe Street, S. Zarzamora St.

SAN ANTONIO – A bicyclist was taken to an area hospital after he was hit by a vehicle overnight, San Antonio police said Wednesday.

The incident occurred just before 3:30 a.m. near Guadalupe Street and South Zarzamora Street on the city’s West Side. …

Lower Greenville bicycle shop with live-music leanings to close

lakewood.advocatemag.com

The only bike shop on Lower Greenville will close at the end of the month.

Transit Bicycle Co. opened originally in Uptown 10 years ago, taking over and rebranding the former West Village Cycles. The shop moved to Lower Greenville at Oram in 2013.

“It was an old bar. Not in great shape. A raw, grimy space for a raw, grimy bike shop,” says owner Fran Badgett.

Badgett says the …

A closer look at another HCAG-funded bike project: Heights MKT trail to White Oak Bayou Trial

Wilson | houstreets.com

Today I’m going to continue my series of bike infrastructure that is funded and coming, but you might now know about. This is another project that is being spearheaded by TxDOT Houston that was recently funded by the Houston-Galveston Area Council. These projects are typically majority funded by federal funds, with some percentage of local funds being used alongside. I recently detailed a similar project with a comparable timeline to connect the Heights MKT trail to Memorial Park.

Today, I want to look at the connector that is planned to connect the MKT Trail to the White Oak Bayou Trail. A 10′ wide sidewalk and bridge are to be constructed to link them utilizing existing TxDOT right-of-way (ROW). …

Surprising neighborhood support for white hockey-stick barriers

MichaelBluejay | bicycleaustin.info

On Nextdoor.com, a neighbor complained about the vertical white plastic barriers the City put in the street near some intersections, separating the car lane from the bike lane, saying they were an eyesore. Surprisingly, most neighbors disagreed with him, saying they enhance cyclist safety. Or maybe not so surprising: while the general public has a disdain for cyclists and their safety, people on Nextdoor.com are more likely to be community-minded, by definition.

Here’s the original complaint: …

Houston’s Near Northside neighborhood’s sidewalks, biking infrastructure surveyed by Kinder Institute

HEATHER LEIGHTON | kinder.rice.edu

On Saturday, Kinder Institute for Urban Research staff and community volunteers came together at the BakerRipley Leonel Castillo Community Center to conduct a walking and biking infrastructure survey of the Near Northside neighborhood.

Teams went out to canvas the condition of the neighborhood’s sidewalks — including whether they were clear of overgrowth and obstructions or had uneven pavement or breaks in the …

Team of UT students, grads biking to Alaska as part of nonprofit’s cancer fundraising, awareness effort

By Luke Henkhaus | www.theeagle.com

Students and recent graduates from the University of Texas take off on a day-long trek to Houston after breakfast at the Kettle restaurant in Bryan. After Houston, the group is headed to Arkansas, with their final destination being Anchorage, Alaska. The riders are part of Texas 4000, a nonprofit that offers prevention-focused education, support to those affected by cancer and funding for lifesaving research. Each summer, the group sends UT students on 70-day rides of more than 4,000 miles each. Since it was founded in 2004, the organization has raised more than $9.5 million for research and other cancer-fighting initiatives. …

BASTROP COUNTY Animal Center to host bicycle ride fundraiser

www.brownwoodtx.com

The Austin Animal Center will host its Ride for the Rescues fundraiser at 9 a.m. Sunday June 9th at Buescher State Park, 100 Park Road 1E, Smithville

The ride is about 25 miles on Park Road 1C to Bastrop State Park, and is open to all levels of cyclist, though there are a few steep hills. There will be no support or gear wagon.

The suggested donation is $25 in cash or check at the event. Reservations are requested at bit.ly/RidefortheRescues2.

Improvements to Longhorn Dam and a new bridge over Lady Bird Lake may be on their way

Author: Leslie Adami | www.kvue.com

The next community meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 10.

AUSTIN, Texas — On Monday, the City of Austin Public Works Department will be hosting its second community meeting over the Longhorn Dam Multimodal Improvement project.

Talks of change and improvements started in 2018 when the city began working on a preliminary engineering report to evaluate the possibility of a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge of Lady Bird Lake, as well as review some possible improvements to the existing bridge. …

Cycling with parrots Precious and Obedient

By Donna McCollum | www.ktre.com

NACOGDOCHES, Texas (KTRE) -Avid cyclist Craig Herman turns heads in Nacogdoches when he rides.

He has two special passengers, Precious and Obedient, that he takes with him just about everywhere, even on bike rides. Precious and Obedient are his pet parrots.

Donna McCollum talks to the parrot enthusiast in this Webxtra.

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

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Texas Bicycling News Digest June 4th 2019

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REINVENTING THE WHEEL

starlocalmedia.com

Cycling rally aims to change lives and culture

There’s a sports renaissance coming to Oak Point Park in Plano. On June 8 the 28th Annual Collin Classic Bike Rally, sponsored in part by the TAFF Foundation, will be held with a goal of fundraising $100,000 for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Collin County. The rally is set for 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at Oak Point Park in Plano. …

My Meh May 2019 Strava Statistics: Slowing, Not Stopping

A DUDE ABIKES | adudeabikes.com

May is the fifth month, the last one until October when we Texans can hope for a few cool, low humidity days. Melinda May – she goes by just May – is the name of kick-butt ABC television show MARVEL’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. played by Ming-Na Wen. I didn’t know it had come back on so I got caught up on the first four episodes. Silly, outlandish, preposterous, and not exactly the height of the performing arts, I enjoy it because of all that — it’s fun. And may …

Texas 4000 rides through the Brazos Valley

Author: Kacey Bowen | www.kagstv.com/

Over 20 University of Texas students rode through College Station in part of a 70-day cross country bike ride to fight cancer.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — It’s not all the time when a group of Longhorn fans ride into College Station and are greeted with praise.

But, that’s what it was for the 27 University of Texas students who came into town Monday afternoon as part of Texas 4000.

Texas 4000 is a cross-country bike ride that starts in Austin, Texas and ends in Anchorage, Alaska. Students who participate raise money and awareness for cancer. …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

Small Piece of Glass, Flat Tire, Will Install New Tires, Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Today’s bike ride started off well at 9:41 AM. I selected the “May Park Community Center – Huffman” route for distance which turned out to be 42.23 miles moving June’s total to 116.42 miles, 15% of my 800 mile goal. Strava tells me, This was harder than your usual effort.

The weather heated up but I dressed for it: shorts, short sleeve jersey, and arm sleeves. Weather during the bike ride: start 90 (66% humidity), mostly cloudy wind S 5 mph. Finish 94 (51% humidity), mostly cloudy, wind SE 9 mph.

I looked for changes along the route since the last time I rode this route was April 9th, 2019. The first 21 miles is on roads I ride frequently but once I turned right on FM 1960 from FM 2100 heading east the roads define this route. A went well until about the 23.5 mile point when I felt my rear tire going soft. I slowed, got of the bike and squeezed the rear tire, knowing what to expect, it was soft. I slowly spun the rear tire around looking for the culprit and didn’t see anything. Ahead on the shoulder were three parked trucks blocking the shoulder. The occupants were working under a railroad track bridge beside FM 1960. Watching the east bound traffic I walked around the trucks looking for a spot where I could work on the flat. Not far from the last truck the guardrail ended so I chose that place. I found a discarded washcloth to rest the rear derailleur on, shifted the rear cassette to the third ring, and removed the wheel.

My sunglasses are good for distance vision while riding but up closed I can’t see clearly so I removed them and inspected the rear tire looking for the problem. Starting at the valve stem I rotated the wheel to the left and about 10 inches from the stem I found the potential problem, a piece of glass sticking into the tire. Using my nail I dug it out and thought this must be it. I used the tire tools to get the bead loose from the rim, pulled the tube out around where the glass stuck and found the hole in the tube. Thinking that was easy I got the patch kit from my seat back and got concerned when I saw the glue tube looked like it was punctured making me think it wasn’t any good. Moving ahead I roughed up the tube, removed the lid from glue and was relieved when glue came out. I spread the glue around the puncture, waited for the glue to dry, and made a note to put a new patch kit in my seat bag when I get home. I applied the patch, pressed it on firmly and pushed the tube back in the tire. To be safe I inspected the rest of the tire and found a number of cuts and gashed before coming across a piece of wire buried in the tire. Using the sheetrock screw that I mark puncture holes with I dug out the piece of wire. Pulling the tube out again this time I didin’t find any damage to the tube from the wire. I guess I found it in time. With the tube back in the tire I remounted the bead, pumped up the tire and began putting all the stuff away giving the patch time to tell me if I did a good job or not. The patch held and the tire was firm so I got back on the Canyon and continued the bike ride. After the ride I will install new tires and probably new tubes. The front tire has 7,875 miles on it and the rear has 8,345 miles. I think this is the most miles I biked on a set of tire.

This route is on of the few I ride regularly that is 99.9% in Harris County. The only part not there is the few tenths of a mile into Liberty County before I turn around and ride back to the west. One day soon I need to continue east on FM 1960 to FM 686. I use to ride there frequently but the chip seal shoulder and dogs east of the railroad overpass lessen the appeal of biking there. Maybe the dogs have other things to keep them busy and I will tolerate the chip seal.

On Huffman-Eastgate Road the surface is smooth as is Willy Lane until I got to the Luce Bayou construction project. That doesn’t last but a short distance and then I stopped at the May Community Center to refill my waterbottle. That didn’t take long and I was off biking west on Wolf Road. At FM 2100 I stopped at the Texaco store and added ice to my water bottle.

Riding south on FM 2100 I wasn’t aware of the detour around the Luce Bayou project. The shoulder disappeared forcing me onto the main detour lanes with a concrete barrier on my right. Fortunately while I rode through the work zone no south bound traffic accompanied me until I got past the concrete barrier and moved back to the shoulder.

My thoughts were to stop at the Huddle House restaurant in Huffman and use my free waffle coupon but when I got there I wasn’t hungry and remembering the apple fritter from yesterday’s ride and the sugar overload I decided not to stop.

Biking south on FM 2100 into the headwind was taxing but making the right turn onto FM 1960 the wind shift to my left and pedaling became easier. The ride from there back to Kingwood went smoothly. At Fuddruckers I saw another cyclist as I waited to cross Kingwood Drive and we exchanged hellos. The last 2+ miles to the finish went well and I finished the ride at 1:29 PM.

Weather on Wednesday could be very wet as a tropical storm heads to the gulf around Houston. I probably will not be able to ride. It should move on by Thursday morning and maybe I can bike then.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

Strava Year Progressions YTD Bike Ride Miles

2019 and 2018 are separated by only 10 miles while 2017 and 2016 trail by larger margins.

Strava Year Progressions YTD Bike Ride Miles

Texas Bicycling News Digest June 3rd 2019

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Houston Ave. @ White Oak Dr. redesign complete

Wilson | houstreets.com

The Memorial Heights Redevelopment Authority / TIRZ #5 has recently completed the reconstruction of an intersection in the SE corner of the Heights area.

Houston Avenue @ White Oak Drive is a key ingress and egress point from the Woodland Heights area into Downtown Houston and the Near Northside communities.

The intersection as previously constructed operated a two-lane slip lane for …

Link planned to connect Memorial Park to Heights trails

Wilson | houstreets.com

The Houston-Galveston Area Council recently released their final funding list for their 2018 Call for Projects, and out of 188 submitted projects, the bicycle/pedestrian connection was ranked 10th.

The project would build a 10′ wide sidewalk/bike lane from the corner of Memorial Park along existing TxDOT right-of-way (ROW) on the berm along I-10, underneath a railroad bridge, and provide a connection to an existing pedestrian bridge across I-10. …

Man Arrested for Cutting Man’s Throat Over a Bicycle and a Phone

By Matt Tramell | sanangelolive.com

SAN ANGELO, TX – A man was arrested yesterday after breaking into a strangers home, cutting his throat, and stealing his phone and bicycle.

On June 2, the San Angelo Police Department was dispatched to the area of Preusser and Main for call about a man being robber. Once they arrived they met with the victim who was visibly bleeding right under his Adam’s Apple.

Police say that while the victim was sleeping a man entered the room and put a pocket …

Upcoming Rides

Chasing Watts | chasingwatts.com

Tuesday Night Intervals w/ South Texas Cycling Club Tuesday, June 4, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

MPPPL Tuesday, June 4, 2019 @ 5:30 AM

Smackdown TNE Tuesday, June 4, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

Paperclip Tuesday, June 4, 2019 @ 5:45 PM

Wednesday UBG Wednesday, June 5, 2019 @ 6:30 PM

Sugar Land WNW 2019 Wednesday, June 5, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

Memorial Park Crits (MPC) Wednesday, June 5, 2019 @ 5:00 PM

Cool Cat Cycles Wed Night Gravel Wednesday, June 5, 2019 @ 6:30 PM

Paperclip Thursday, June 6, 2019 @ 5:45 PM

Thursday Night Shop Ride – Short Route (12.5) Miles – Pearland Bicycles Thursday, June 6, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

Smackdown TNE Thursday, June 6, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

Pearland Bicycles Thursday Night Shop Ride 25.8 Miles Thursday, June 6, 2019 @ 6:00 PM

Zube NWCC ride – Multiple groups Saturday, June 8, 2019 @ 7:30 AM

Sugar Cycles (Short) Saturday, June 8, 2019 @ 7:30 AM

Sunday Hunday Sunday, June 9, 2019 @ 7:00 AM

Sugar Cycles MS150 Group Ride Sunday, June 9, 2019 @ 7:30 AM

UPCOMING RIDES

Fort Worth Bicycling Association | www.fwbaclub.org

Rusty Chain Gang Ramble Tue, June 04, 2019 8:00 AM 4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX
Lake Weatherford Sunday Ride Sun, June 09, 2019 4:00 PM E Lake and Mikus Rd, Weatherford Texas
Rusty Chain Gang Ramble Tue, June 11, 2019 8:00 AM 4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX
Willow West Sat, June 15, 2019 8:00 AM 5189 Interstate 20 Frontage Rd #101, Willow Park, TX 76087
No Wind No Hills Sun, June 16, 2019 8:00 AM 6240 U.S. 287 Frontage Rd, Arlington, TX 76001
Rusty Chain Gang Ramble Tue, June 18, 2019 8:00 AM 4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX
Rusty Chain Gang Ramble Tue, June 25, 2019 8:00 AM 4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX

Connect the Dots – Suburban Two Wheeled Adventure.

Noe Espinosa | www.strava.com

Waco: UT students to bike 4,000 miles to raise money for cancer research

By Royden Ogletree | www.kwtx.com

WACO, Texas (KWTX) A bright and sunny Texas summer day seems like good time for a casual bike ride. What about a 4,000 mile bike ride? That’s how far the non-profit organization ‘Texas 4000’ will be cycling in order to raise money for cancer research.The group, made up of University of Texas students, stopped in Waco Sunday night to rest after they completed the first leg of their 70 day journey from Austin to Alaska.

"If we can bike 70 days and make it to Alaska, then you can try to …

Investigation reopens into Dominion-area cycling death of surgeon Naji Kayruz

by Jim Lefko | news4sanantonio.com

SAN ANTONIO – Four months after an alleged drunk driver struck and killed prominent local surgeon Naji Kayruz, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission has reopened the investigation into where the suspect may have been drinking before the accident occurred.

"We have decided to go ahead and open the investigation again," Lt. Raul Salinas of the TABC confirmed today. …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar