Texas Bicycling News August 22nd 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

You could pay less to replace that worn out cassette

Industry wins landmark ruling overturning duties on cassettes

by Marc Sani | www.bicycleretailer.com


NEW YORK (BRAIN) — For duty purposes, bike cassettes are once again being treated just like freewheels — exempt from all duty requirements, thanks to a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of International Trade.
The dispute dates to June 2012, when the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Service rebuffed Trek Bicycle Corp.’s formal protest over a Customs decision to reclassify cassettes and levy a 10 percent duty on them. Trek, backed by the …

Special Olympics TX athletes to compete in HHH

By Samantha Forester | www.newschannel6now.com


WICHITA FALLS, TX (KAUZ) –
The Hotter’N Hell Hundred kicks off this weekend in Wichita Falls. Newschannel 6 has learned that eight Special Olympics Texas athletes from Wichita Falls will ride in various races, including the Criterium course with professional riders.
Six will compete in various events on Saturday, including the …

The Austin Mountain Bikers Meetup Group

Austin, TX
3,937 Mountain Bikers

Meet other local mountain bikers to organize rides, review trails, gear and trade tips. All skill-levels welcome. We’ll try to organize rides that fit all experience levels. M…

Check out this Meetup Group →

ARR Trail Crew Berm Building and Drainage work – Meet at Lincolnshire Trailhead

Wednesday, Aug 30, 2017, 6:00 PM

Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park
12138 North Lamar Boulevard Austin, TX

8 Mountain Bikers Went

Meet at the LIncolnshire Trailhead on the southern border of the Park.We will be building berms for turns and drainage diversions as the soil conditions should be ideal for dirt work.   If you are not allergic to poison ivy, we have a special hero job for you!  :)Please sign up here so we know how many to expectWear sturdy boots and bring water …

Check out this Meetup →

ARR Trail Crew Berm Building and Drainage work – Meet at Lincolnshire Trailhead

Tuesday, Aug 29, 2017, 6:00 PM

Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park
12138 North Lamar Boulevard Austin, TX

14 Mountain Bikers Went

Meet at the LIncolnshire Trailhead on the southern border of the Park.We will be building berms for turns and drainage diversions as the soil conditions should be ideal for dirt work.   If you are not allergic to poison ivy, we have a special hero job for you!  :)Please sign up here so we know how many to expectWear sturdy boots and bring water …

Check out this Meetup →

Abilene Wide Open: The Iron Rider and his scrappy hobby

Ronald W Erdrich | www.reporternews.com


I knew when I saw a bathtub behind the bicycle, there was only one guy who would pull something like that in a bicycle race – the Iron Rider.
Since around 2000, John Klemp has been seen on his bicycle towing a trailer stacked with scrap iron and appliances through Abilene to the salvage yards on Pine Street. Most people are surprised he owns a pickup; he’d just rather deliver the …

Top 10 Things to Do at the Hotter’N Hell Hundred

Richard Carter | www.timesrecordnews.com


The Hotter’N Hell Hundred has always been more than just riding bikes for 100 miles (or less, if you choose) in really hot weather.
Fun things to do beckon from the Multi-Purpose Event Center every day of the event, one that attracts some 10,000 to 12,000 bicyclers over four days to tackle the big Endurance Ride or the USA Cycling competitive Road Race.
The Hotter’N Hell, which runs through Aug. 27, also touts fun activities for those who don’t necessarily ride. If you want to check out some great food, watch live bands, eat a ton of spaghetti, watch thrilling bike races or just take in the annual spectacle, here is our list of Top 10 Things to Do at the Hotter’N Hell Hundred.
1. The Start …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/GWCChuck/status/900175722681171969

https://twitter.com/bicyclesplus/status/900094641839669249

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Love Bugs Pests Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Love bugs were a pain on the bike ride on the “Atascocita – Walden – Huffman” route today. Most of them were on Old Atascocita Road and later when I stopped at the Huffman Chevron for a rest stop.I could hear the pesky bugs hitting my helmet as I biked on Old Atascocita Road and FM 2100 on the way to Huffman.

Arriving at the chevron 21.6 miles into the ride I went inside to get more ice and water. Picking up the trusty Greensheet newspaper to sit on I headed outside to the shade and what turned out to be flying love bugs bothering me. Swatting them away kept me busy and thinking the stop might be a short one to get away from them. For some reason they liked to land on the nozzle of my water bottle and brushing them away only lasted a few minutes before they reappeared. After 20 minutes I refilled my water bottle and headed out glad to leave the bugs behind but their siblings were along FM 1960 but not as thick. At Lake Houston they seemed to stop and I didn’t miss them.

The weather was hot but some reason at the beginning the intensity of the heat felt less. Maybe the eclipse leftover some effect. I started biking at 11:22 am after a late finish to stage 4 of Vuelta a Espana. The temperature was 90 degrees with scattered clouds and lots of blue sky showing. The wind was an acceptable 5 mph from the SE and humidity was 65% (home weather station data).

After starting I remembered the sidewalk construction along Kingwood Drive in front of Kingwood High School and modified the route to avoid that area. When I got to Kingwood Drive the sidewalk on the east bound lane was poured so I think the next time I will go back to my usual route to test it. School starts next Monday and traffic will increase so I need to keep that in mind.

By the time I finished the bike ride at 2:14 pm the temperature moved up to 94 degrees, humidity dropped to 58% and I was sweating a lot.

I am getting closer to my goal of 800 miles in August after today’s 33.7 miles moved me to within 180 miles.

The next two days’ weather looks great for biking but Friday and Saturday could be very wet. I will need to change my plans to ride around 32 miles each day to 40 or so.

RideWithGPS.com map and metrics.

Strava Ride Summary

Strava Bicycle Ride Summary

Texas Bicycling News August 21st 2017

Texbiker.net Posted on by

The Austin Mountain Bikers Meetup Group

Austin, TX
3,937 Mountain Bikers

Meet other local mountain bikers to organize rides, review trails, gear and trade tips. All skill-levels welcome. We’ll try to organize rides that fit all experience levels. M…

Check out this Meetup Group →

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/GWCChuck/status/899757235185762305

https://twitter.com/GWCChuck/status/899711176426348550

Bicycle Ride During the Eclipse

Texbiker.net Posted on by

As I got ready for today’s bike ride I plotted the streets I would go on for the “Kingwood – SH 242 – Kingwood” route. It’s one thing to decide on the destination but the devil is in the details on which streets and roads will get you there. I wanted to ride at least 32 miles and I accomplished that with the ride coming in at 34.5 miles. I am now up to 586 miles for August leaving 214 miles to reach the goal of 800 miles. My plan is to ride about 32 miles each day this week.

Eclipse hysteria should be receding now. While I was biking I thought about the eclipse and whether it would be noticeable. I started biking at 11:06 am with the peak for the Houston area at 1:15 pm and completed by 2:45 pm. I didn’t notice any difference in the light until about 1:00 pm when the sunlight had a strange look on the ground (not looking directly at the sun). The sky had lots of blue and the clouds scattered about widely. I didn’t see anyone watching the eclipse until I was riding on Rockmead Drive in Kingwood where a man beside a landscape truck had something in front of his eyes looking towards the sun. At the start of the ride the temperature was 93 and when I finished at 1:45 pm it was 91. I wonder if the eclipse blocked enough sunshine to cause the lower temperature. The sun was bight but not full strength.

Other than the eclipse the ride went well. The wind was from the east at 12 mph and since I rode north and south mostly it wasn’t a big factor. I was able to get a top speed of 23 mph and keep my overall average at 15.0 mph from SH 242 until I entered Kings Manor and slowed for the residential streets and traffic.

I made a short stop at the New Caney Mobil station for ice and water to tide me over until I made it to the Valero station on Norhtpark Drive and I-69/US59 where I took a 20 minute break to eat a couple of fruit and grain cereal bars and drink more water. This was at the 27.4 mile point just a few minutes after 1:00. This is where I noticed the sun light change intensity and the shadows have a different look. After resting I rode on for the last 7 miles of the bike ride.

More great bicycle ride weather on Tuesday and I paln on taking advantage of it after I watch stage 4 of the Vuelta a Espana. I watched stage 3 before leaving on today’s ride. They climbed several mountain while I rode the flatland around Montgomery County.

RideWithGPS.com map and metrics

Strava Ride Summary (click on the image to go to Strava)

Strava Bicycle Ride Summary