Texas Bicycling News Digest July 14th 2018

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Denton names new bike coordinator

By Peggy Heinkel-Wolfe | www.dentonrc.com


Denton officials announced this week that Marc Oliphant has joined the city’s capital projects division as the bicycle and pedestrian coordinator.

Oliphant moved to Denton from the Washington, D.C., area where he worked as a master planner in the Naval District, as well as the employee transportation coordinator and …

Recon Tour de Gap 100k course

Bill Minter | www.strava.com

Kendalia with Cyclones

Eduardo Salas (Cyclones) | www.strava.com

Saturday Morning Ride

Chuck Tracy | www.strava.com

Saturday Fever Express

Brad Didier | www.strava.com

SWCC Hog & Solo

Kevin Comeaux | www.strava.com

phenom phiddy

Monica Merced | www.strava.com

Fighting cancer one pedal at a time: Texas 4000 rides through Fergus Falls

By Emily Carlson | www.fergusfallsjournal.com


Over the mountains and through the woods to Anchorage, Alaska they go. As 80 students bike their way across the United States and Canada, the students are passionate about their mission to bring hope, knowledge and charity to the fight against cancer.

Texas 4000 for Cancer is a …

$1.2-million grant to fund Arroyo trail extension

By FERNANDO DEL VALLE | www.valleymorningstar.com


HARLINGEN — The city is moving on its goal to connect its trails with its shopping district.

Along the banks of the Arroyo Colorado, the city is planning to carve a 2.4-mile trail connecting four parks and the Valle Vista Mall shopping district.

“Our goal is to connect the entire city,” Javier Mendez, the …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/m_vince/status/1018262848403894277

https://twitter.com/m_vince/status/1018142009620664321

7:35 am Start, Changed Route, Other Cyclists Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

I missed my planned start time by 5 minutes with wheels down at 7:35 am.Riding this early the sun shined through the trees making for a beautiful setting. I messed up though by not wearing my wrist bands because the humidity was high and the sweat flowed freely.

Weather during the bike ride: start 75 (99% humidity), a few clouds, wind calm. Finish 89 (62% humidity), mostly cloudy, wind 5 mph.

The planned route was “Atascocita – Walden – Huffman” but I altered this to “Kingwood to Ramsey Road – Huffman” when I realized the usual cyclists were running later than I expected. I first realized this might be the case at the right turn onto Fairlake Drive with a man in a Ride Marshal jersey putting out a route direction sign for the Tour de Cure. I wasn’t aware of this ride (shame on me) and as I turned back to talk to him I asked when the ride start (7:30 am) and where (Bike Barn Atascocita). This explained why no other cyclists showed up yet. I think the route went south on W. Lake Houston Parkway through Summerwood, Crosby and then the back roads from Crosby to Atascocita.

Before I knew this I thought of stopping at the church on Fairlake Drive and take photos of bikers as they passed but now I rode on to Old Atascocita Road where I saw the first bikers coming from the east. The photos I took along Old Atascocita Road at several stops.

I missed one large group and there were probably others after I left their route to ride to Huffman. Later I saw a couple of cyclists cross FM 1960 from Fairlake Drive to head west but they were about half a mile in front of me.

At the turn around on Ramsey Road a lone man with an awning and a table full of snacks and drinks waited for riders to stop but I don’t think anyone did. I rode a short distance north on Ramsey Road and looped back to return to FM 2100. I had worked my overall average speed up to 14.4 mph but keeping it there riding west on Old Atascocita Road was harder than the east bound leg. I saw several cyclists riding east and they probably were the usual Saturday morning crew not in the Tour de Cure because of the different flow of riders.

As I rode to FM 2100 I noticed how wet my gloves were from perspiration. They were soaked and when I got to the Huffman Chevron I took them off. I was going to use the water hose by the pumps but the handle was covered with pipe insulation so I dipped my hands in the windshield water bucket and then wrung out the water. I laid them on the milk crates to dry while I went inside to get ice and water. They felt drier. I was only there a few minutes and left to finish the last 11+ miles of the ride.

Again biking to the west the wind provided more resistance than the east bound part of the ride but I managed to keep my overall average speed at 14.4 mph. The right hand turn onto Atascocita Shores Drive shifted the wind some and it wasn’t as hard but the street is rough which makes it hard to maintain speed. At the first stop sign a crew is replacing several panels of the street with white marks leading me to believe there is more planned. Maybe they will take care of all of the roughness over time.

On W Lake Houston Parkway I followed it north all the way to Kingwood Drive rather than take the loop through Kingwood Greens. Traffic wasn’t too heavy and I moved to the side streets to finish the ride at 10:24 am. This is earlier than I start many rides. Now to watch the TdF.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

portTracks Bike Ride Summary

Texas Bicycling News Digest July 13th 2018

Texbiker.net Posted on by

“Commute Solutions: Tackling Traffic”

H-GAC’s Commute Solutions Program

Encouraging commuters to consider alternatives to driving alone, which reduces the number of cars on the road and improves air quality, is the focus of H-GAC’s Commute Solutions program.

Join Veronica Baxter-Lamb, Isaac Perez, and Joshua Shideler at this month’s Brown Bag Lunch Series to learn what the Commute Solutions team is working on this year, and hear what they have planned for residents, local employers, and transportation agencies going forward.

When: Monday, July 16, 2018 Noon to 1:00 p.m.
Where: H-GAC Offices
3555 Timmons Ln. 2nd Floor, Rm B
Houston, TX 77027

Bring your lunch, bring a friend, and join us! RSVPs are not necessary.

Walnut + Antigua Cruz Tequila Primes.

Raul E. | www.strava.com

Evening Ride

Ed Bustillos | www.strava.com

This weekend’s rides: El Diablo! Red Horn!

by Thomas | steinerranchcycling.com

Saturday we will be joining the Bicycle Sport Shop El Diablo Ride! Some people will be riding to the start, others will be driving. Everyone is encouraged to coordinate on our GroupMe channel prior to the ride. Otherwise we will see you at the start! WEAR WHITE 🙂 Details here: …

GET A FREE KID’S BIKE HELMET JULY 19TH AT CHILDREN’S MUSEUM OF HOUSTON

by Brett T | www.houstononthecheap.com


The Children’s Museum of Houston remains one of the best ways to entertain and educate kids on the cheap. To start, the Children’s Museum hosts a free Free Family Night each Thursday beginning at 5:00 p.m., offering the whole family a chance to experience some of Houston’s best family-friendly entertainment without breaking the budget. It gets even better, though: the Children’s Museum of Houston is giving away free bicycle helmets to area children this month. …

He crashed on Stage 1 of Tour de France, but Austin’s Lawson Craddock is still pedaling

Pam LeBlanc | fitness.blog.austin360.com


Austin cyclist Lawson Craddock, who crashed midway through the first stage of the Tour de France, finished the seventh stage of the race Friday, despite a broken scapula and nine stitches in his eyebrow.

That’s good news for cyclists back in Texas, because for every stage he completes, Craddock has vowed to make a donation to help repair the Alkek Velodrome in Houston, where he learned to race. The facility suffered damage during Hurricane Harvey last year. …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/zesty_texas/status/1017729249984352257

Dodging Construction Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

A little earlier start today (10:44 am) because I stopped watching stage 7 of the TdF with 50.5KM to go with the plan of rejoining it after the bike ride. I chose the “New Caney – Tavola – Valley Ranch” route and rode 33.99 miles. I should’ve went a little farther to get 34+ miles but the Elemnt computer showed 34 miles so I thought I went enough. For the week I am at 180.47 miles and 396.88 miles for July. My goal for July is 800 miles.

Saturday (tomorrow) I plan on getting up and leaving on the bike ride by 7:30 am which will takes lots of effort on my part. The TdF will be on NBC instead of NBCSN and I have the DVR set to record and I will watch after my ride.

Weather during today’s bike ride: start 89 (64% humidity), partly cloudy, wind W 5 mph. Finish 90 (58% humidity), mostly cloudy, wind NW 5 mph. Before I paused watching the TdF there was a section where the peloton was split by 15+ mph wind and some top GC riders had to work hard to close the gap. No such problem on my ride with the wind a gentle breeze. Since I started earlier the temperature wasn’t up to the mid 90’s yet.

Biking through Woodridge Forest I had to work my way through the construction activity. A backhoe had a street almost blocked while they dug a hole for some utilities. Next a dump truck was depositing a load of dirt in the street in front of a home. And then a forklift was unloading bricks and mortar at a house under construction. The streets had mud from rain yesterday which we didn’t get though we are only 3 or 4 miles away.

Once I got my overall average speed up to 14.4 mph at Tavola I was able to maintain it until I got back into Kingwood at around 32 miles into the ride. I made a stop at the Checkout station in Porter at FM 1314 to refill my water bottle but they didn’t have a fountain machine like they did several years ago. I altered the route some and didn’t ride by the Stripes station on FM 1314. I did stop at the Circle K store at Northpark Drive and refilled the bottle with ice and water for the 7+ miles to the finish. Leaving there I rode west on Northpark Drive which I haven’t done in awhile. Normally I ride onto Northpark as I exit Oakhurst. Traffic can be heavy on Northpark at times as trucks go to the sand pits. From there I made my way to the finish at 1:16 pm, the earliest I finished this week.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary