Texas Bicycling News Digest December 8th 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

What’s next for the hike-and-bike trail? Leaders unveil 15 projects

By Pam LeBlanc | www.mystatesman.com

Plans call for playgrounds, trailheads, restrooms — and maybe a pedestrian bridge across the lake

New trailheads, restrooms, playgrounds and a study for a potential pedestrian bridge over Lady Bird Lake east of Interstate 35 top a list of projects the Trail Foundation will announce Friday.
The 15 projects are scheduled for completion in the next five years, said Heidi Anderson (formerly Cohn), executive director of the Trail Foundation, the nonprofit organization created to maintain and enhance the 10-mile Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail around the lake. …

Spyglass Trailhead

Endo-err | www.bikemojo.com

Big News! Spyglass Trailhead
Dear Neighbors, we have three new developments to report!

1) Construction has begun on improvements to the Spyglass Trailhead improvements!

2) The Project has been awarded a Neighborhood Partnering Program grant which, together with the Austin City Limits Festival Grant from the Austin Parks Foundation and the community match we are raising from friends and neighbors, will fully fund the project.

3) Thanks to the …

Something to do while you wait for the weather to warm up!

How to set your saddle height at home

Michelle Arthurs-Brennan | www.cyclingweekly.com


Setting your saddle height correctly is crucial to comfort, injury prevention and performance – it’s the very foundation of good bike fit.

It’s not uncommon to see riders getting this adjustment wrong, the warning sign of which is often knee pain. The good news is that with the right guidance it’s fairly easy to get it right at home.
Why saddle height matters

We spoke to former pro rider Jimmy George – whose new career is in bike fitting …

How you can help Austin kids in need get bikes this holiday season

By Chris Davis | kxan.com

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A group that provides bikes to kids in need during the holidays needs your help to make Christmas a little merrier this year.

The Yellow Bike Project in east Austin has collected a lot of children’s bikes, but many are not in good enough condition to ride. The bike collective is working to fix them up, and they need your help to do it. …

Austin to Maine, by way of Anchorage

By Patrick Meaux | www.crazyguyonabike.com

Thursday December 7, 2017

Well continue to catch up on my reading while trying to hold my enormous appetite in check…reading part going quite well, ha!
The weather has stymied my progress and the fires in Southern California are an upcoming issue; so I have decided to take my anticipated winter layover now…I knew that I would have a couple of months slack time before ferrying to Anchorage and would decide en route when and where…I will train to …

This weekend’s rides: Liberty Hill Lollipop! Red Horn!

by Thomas | steinerranchcycling.com

This Saturday will be a treat like ice cream and peppermint patties! Let’s pop on over to Liberty Hill on about a 60 mile route (https://www.strava.com/routes/7664897). After the ride we meet up at Lakeside for some discounted burgers and beer!

Sunday is our usual Coffee Shop ride to Red Horn. It is 50 miles and is at an endurance pace typically finishing around a 17mph average speed overall. While we make great efforts to …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

With the cold and snowy weather I had time to update the bike shop list and map.

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Texas Bicycling News Digest December 7th 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Bicycling activity slows with many parts of Texas (including some of the Houston area) receiving snow. I have been staying inside due to the cold and rain.

Col. Armando G. San Diego

Beverly Vaughn | www.timesrecordnews.com


Colonel Armando G. San Diego, MD, 83, of Wichita Falls, Texas, a respected United States Air Force physician, passed away on December 2, 2017. A native of Batangas, Philippines, he was born to Dr. Amado and Vicenta San Diego.

… Following retirement, he remained active. He served the Wichita County Medical Alliance, performed medical missions in the Philippines, and volunteered in the medical tent of the Hotter’N Hell Hundred cycling events. He also served as president of the Filipino American Club of North Texas. He kept ties with fellow retired military …

Columbus Crew owners offer sketch of potential Austin soccer stadium

Kevin Lyttle | www.statesman.com

If Austin signs off on a privately financed stadium on city parkland near downtown, the owners of a Major League Soccer team see a facility that would have a small geographic footprint yet make a giant positive impact on the community.

… “We want to improve it as a park site and play soccer matches there as well,” said PSV president Dave Greeley. “We could add a community plaza, and the hike-and-bike trail actually becomes more accessible from different vantage points around the stadium. This is a …

START LISTS: CYCLOCROSSERS LOOK TO STAR AT 2017 RESOLUTION CROSS CUP IN TEXAS

www.cxmagazine.com

The other half of the last weekend of UCI cyclocross racing in the U.S. is the 2017 Resolution Cross Cup in Garland, Texas. The race will be held at Winters Park in Garland, which is located just northeast of Dallas.

Courtenay McFadden (Pivot Cycles p/b DNA Cycling) is back to defend her 2016 weekend sweep in the Women’s races, and Canadian Michael van den Ham (Garneau-Easton p/b Transitions LifeCare) is looking to grab a win after two podium finishes last year.

Start lists are below. Lists are current as of 3 p.m. MST on Thursday, December 7. …

Austin to Maine, by way of Anchorage

By Patrick Meaux | www.crazyguyonabike.com

Day 14 Sanderson to Marathon TX
Tuesday November 28, 2017, 55 miles (89 km) – Total so far: 441 miles (710 km)
This was the most interesting day so far…left at 10:30 am due to heavy fog…had a great hamburger at Stripes before leaving…the road was chip seal with varying degrees of rumble…1st 38 miles or so climbing…wind from all different directions throughout the ride…last 18 miles or so goodly amounts of downhill.
Overall a hard but good day with that beautiful West Texas scenery of Plains mixed with Mountains. I met a Swiss couple, David & Isabella, who have been cycling since 2008…living off of cash flow from their Swiss house…very interesting people, pics below.

Stayed at the La Loma Del Chivo Hostel… Ingrid and Gil owners…tremendously interesting and talented artist/travelers…it is truly a unique place and the community is also.

Cramping and a good place to stay will keep me here another day and then on to Alpine…I’m told I will be delighted there as well. Life Is good on the Southern Tier.

Hoping your week is a good one. …

Day 15 Wednesday Marathon in Place
Wednesday November 29, 2017, 8 miles (13 km) – Total so far: 449 miles (723 km)

Day 16 Thursday Marathon to Alpine.
Thursday November 30, 2017, 35 miles (56 km) – Total so far: 484 miles (779 km)

Day 17 Alpine to Marfa
Friday December 1, 2017, 30 miles (48 km) – Total so far: 514 miles (827 km)

Day 18 Marfa in Place
Saturday December 2, 2017, 10 miles (16 km) – Total so far: 524 miles (843 km)

Day 19 Marfa to Van Horn
Sunday December 3, 2017, 78 miles (126 km) – Total so far: 602 miles (969 km)

Day 20 Monday Van Horn to Sierra Blanca
Monday December 4, 2017, 32 miles (51 km) – Total so far: 634 miles (1,020 km)

Day 21 Tuesday Sierra Blanca to Clint TX
Tuesday December 5, 2017, 74 miles (119 km) – Total so far: 708 miles (1,139 km)

Day 22 Wednesday Clint TX in Place
Wednesday December 6, 2017
Wet, windy, cold with dangerous roads…stayed put, read and loafed…life is good…re-evaluate tomorrow…good day to all…thanks for following. …

Bike share head jumps to dockless company

By Dug Begley | www.chron.com


Carter Stern, left, and Stephen Costello pose for a photo at the Family Houston luncheon at The Briar Club on May 10. Stern, the head of Houston Bike Share, is leaving to work for ofo, a dockless bike sharing company

With a flurry of dockless bike sharing companies considering coming to Houston, the head of the city’s nonprofit that has lobbied to manage local bike operations has opted to work for one of the firms.
Carter Stern, executive director of Houston Bike Share, the agency that manages B-Cycle kiosks in the city, told board members on Thursday he was taking a job with ofo, after 19 months heading the agency.
“Since then, the Houston B-Cycle program has doubled in …

FRIDAY 12 NOON Start! Tour de Southern Walnut Creek Trail

rides.bikeaustin.org

POSTPONED UNTIL FRIDAY 12 NOON DUE TO WEATHER
A moderate C-pace ride (roughly 11 to 14 mph) on The Southern Walnut Creek Trail from Govalle Park to the Abrupt End and return. Round trip is about 20 miles. The trail is paved for the entire distance, with a 1/2 mile hill on the outbound. We’ll regroup periodically on the outbound and at the Abrupt End. The return is mostly downhill. And you might even see Lance flashing by.

The trail is two-way and narrows down in spots, with a couple of blind corners. Single-file riding and moderate speed on the turns is recommended!

There are two significant road intersections that require caution to cross. …

Christmas on the Concho Ride thru the Lights

Pedal Pushers | roy-pedalpushers.blogspot.com

Ride Through the Lights
San Angelo Bicycle Association
December 3, 2017

Although sponsored by the San Angelo Bicycle Association, the Christmas Ride Through the Lights is open to all riders.

It has been estimated that 80 individuals turned out for the ride. A great number of parents brought their children to ride in a great, safe social setting. …

Step-Up Ride for Dec 9th, 9:30 AM Start

jtotaro | www.planobicycle.org

At this writing (Thursday, 3:30 PM, Dec 7th) the weather for Saturday morning, Dec 9th, across the ride area has it sunny with a 0% chance of rain, but there will be low temps and moderate winds. Making the trade off between temps in the 30s at 8 AM, and winds getting stronger as the sun gets higher has lead me to set a start time of 9:30 AM for the Step-Up ride on Saturday morning. The predicted temp at that start time is 44 degrees with a 38 degree wind chill. As always should reality turn out to be much worse than what’s now predicted, check the Step-Up page on the PBA Ride Forums webpage for any delay/cancellation notice that will be posted by 7:45 AM Saturday morning. If …

Fort Worthology: 10th Street’s Two-Way Cycle Track

By Kevin Buchanan | www.fwweekly.com


For the last several years, Fort Worth has been steadily building a network of on-street bike lanes to provide better connectivity and alternatives to driving. Bike lanes are now a larger part of city life in Fort Worth than ever before, particularly within the central city in places like the Near Southside. But for all the progress we’ve made on the bike-friendly front, we’ve been behind other cities in the form of bike lanes we’ve been building.

The majority of Fort Worth bike lanes are of the simple, …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Texas Bicycling News Digest December 6th 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

December Member Profile: Ed Menard

bikeaustin.org


When and why did you decide to become a Bike Austin member?
Which time? I was a member of ACA at least once or twice a few years back. I joined “Bike Austin” itself in the summer of 2016. Why? I was fortunate to be able to leave my career in 2015 (the word “retirement” makes me uncomfortable). Getting involved in bike advocacy had long been something I wanted to do after getting rid of the pesky demands of my traveling sales engineer job.
What benefits or positive outcomes have you enjoyed as a Bike Austin member?
Bike Austin membership literally pays for itself, considering the Go Local card, Bicycle Sport Shop gift card, and the other discounts. Not to mention …

UPDATED Weatherford Town Creek Trails

www.texasbids.net

Police ID bicyclist killed in Beaumont

Krista Chandler | www.beaumontenterprise.com

Police have identified a bicyclist killed in a Beaumont wreck early Tuesday.

Tam Trung Ngo, a 55-year-old transient, was on the 6200 block of Texas 347 at about 4:36 a.m. when the driver of a Mercury changed lanes and struck the bike.

Police said there were no lights on the bicycle and Ngo was not wearing reflective clothing.

Teen bicyclist killed in Prairie View crash

By Dug Begley | www.chron.com


A teenage bicyclist was killed Sunday during a ride in Waller County, which Prairie View Police said Wednesday remained under investigation.

Garrett Hardy, 19, was struck around 10:15 a.m. Sunday as he rode with other cyclists eastbound along the 44500 block of U.S. 290 Business, also known as Old 290. The spot, south of U.S. 290 near University Drive, is steps from Prairie View City Hall.

Old 290 is a popular riding spot for cyclists, and also a …

Kids in poverty will ride high on bikes from Mission Arlington

BY FAYE REEDER | www.star-telegram.com


It will be a milestone for a special hometown community initiative on Saturday when the crowd of parents and kids gather in the parking lot at 2229 W. Park Row at 9 a.m. On that special morning, it will mark the 10th anniversary of the Bikes for Mission Arlington program, and the decade of achievements from this initiative are impressive.

When a couple of dads back in 2007 decided they wanted their kids to experience the thrill of giving to those less fortunate, they took them shopping for bicycles and delivered six of …

ARR – East Williamson Creek Greenbelt – Pay Dirt

Saturday, Dec 9, 2017, 9:00 AM

Wagon Bend & Broken Spoke Trail
Wagon Bend Austin, TX

9 Mountain Bikers Went

Come help the Austin Ridge Riders build the newest trail in South Austin! We have permission to access the trail thru a neighbor’s yard so we will meet at the intersection of Wagon Bend and Broken Spoke. If you get there late call me at[masked]. We are building a new trail in the East Williamson Creek Greenbelt. The corridor is mostly rough cu…

Check out this Meetup →

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/GWCChuck/status/938286594141904896

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Texas Bicycling News Digest December 5th 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Research hopes to fill in the gaps for bicycle and pedestrian data

by Andrew Weber | www.austinmonitor.com


Traffic is terrible.

City and state officials are really good at counting cars to see how terrible traffic is and how it got that way, but that sort of data-collection infrastructure doesn’t exist for bike and pedestrian data. New research hopes to change that.

The project has a simple goal, but you wouldn’t glean that from its name: “Evaluation of Bicycle and Pedestrian Monitoring Equipment to Establish Collection Database Methodologies for Estimating Non-Motorized Transportation.” …

Bikes for Angels turns 10 years old

By Ashley Rose | www.cleburnetimesreview.com


Waking up on Christmas morning to a new bicycle can be a fond memory for any child. However, some children have never owned, let alone ridden one before.

One local organization wanted to change that.

The nonprofit organization Bikes for Angels turns 10 years old this year, and Rick and Dee Curlee of Joshua still can’t believe it.

The year before …

Opinion: It’s the end of the road for the IBD: Say hello to the IBS

By Dan Sotello | www.bicycleretailer.com


Editor’s note: Dan Sotello was the founder of Onza, the parts and accessories brand from the 1990s. He is the inventor of the mountain bike bar-end and worked with several bike brands including Shimano, Specialized, Maxxis and Panaracer. For 10 years, he’s operated a bike shop on Mercer Island, near Seattle, called Bike Lair.

Back in 1968, my career started as a proud Factory Trained Schwinn mechanic in Southern California. I can safely say this was the golden era for IBDs. Ever since, I’ve witnessed every great, surprising, and sometimes agonizing twist that IBDs had to endure to stay in business. And now I can honestly say, “This is the end of the road for IBD” … Welcome, IBS: Independent Bicycle Service

What the current IBDs need to do is …

Children’s Advocacy Center bicycle check

alzandar | www.planobicycle.org

It’s holiday bike giveaway time and you know that means opportunities for us to show off our bike building skills! This Thursday, December 7th, at 5:30 P.M., we have been asked by Children’s Advocacy Center to once again come out and double check all the bicycles that were donated to them to make sure they are put together properly. We may also be donating a few to them as well. Post below if you can make it out to help. Should be about 150 bikes to check. Thanks!

2205 Los Rios Blvd. Plano, 75074.

Shoal Creek, part trois (?)

dougmc | bicycleaustin.info


It’s not hard to tell which side of things the makers of this flyer are on.

In any event, somehow I suspect this may even be …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar