Texas Bicycling News January 2nd 2017

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Eisenhower State Park event lets locals get taste of exercise, nature

By Dwayne Wilder | www.heralddemocrat.com


Some people may take offense to the phrase “take a hike,” but not those who gathered at Eisenhower State Park Sunday for the annual “First Day Hike at Ike’s.” The New Year’s Day tradition is a program of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and is in its sixth year. There were 95 parks participating in 2017 and six more held midnight hikes the night before. …

… Leisure added First Day Hikes “help visitors commit to their New Year’s resolution to lose weight and get healthy.” The First Day Hikes events range from brisk strolls on scenic trails, polar plunges, bike rides, short treks with …

City improves access to exercise

By Frank Garza | www.brownsvilleherald.com


Whether it is tossing discs at Monte Bella Park or riding a bike on the Belden Trail, residents of Brownsville may notice that their options have been greatly expanded.
In 2016, the City of Brownsville worked on several renovations that improved access to exercise.
One of the biggest projects was a …

Kingwood Fillies set to host annual Coldspring bike ride

By Jacob McAdams | www.chron.com


Cycling enthusiasts will have the chance to enjoy the beautiful countryside of Coldspring during the upcoming Bike Through the Forest and Hills.
The Bike Through the Forest and Hills is a cycling event that is hosted by the Kingwood Fillies, the dance team of Kingwood High School as a fundraiser for their events.
“The Kingwood Fillies are 19-time national champions,” said Fillies Booster Club President and Bike Director Chad Hoffman.
The Fillies are also known to …

Sunday morning ride

Sunday, Jan 8, 2017, 9:00 AM

Intersection of 19th and Nicholson
19th and Nicholson Houston, TX

0 HHRC members Went

Join us for a beautiful ride with brunch afterward. Meet at 19th and Nicholson. We will ride down the Heights and White Oak Bayou trails through downtown to Buffalo Bayou. Then brunch at Last Concert Cafe afterward.

Check out this Meetup →

Southern Tier Winter Tour

By David Hayes* | www.crazyguyonabike.com

Day 8 – DeRidder LA to Kountze TX: Sunken Treasure!
Tuesday January 3, 2017
Remember how yesterday I regretted not taking up that friendly offer to have breakfast with the family from St. Joseph’s? And how I then regretted not saying “Yes! To Life” as I’d agreed with myself a long time ago to do each time?
Turns out the universe was deeply interested in giving me a do-over on that cowardly decision.
I departed DeRidder this morning around 7:30 or so knowing I had at least 4 or 5 hours of rain-riding ahead of me. And, though it wasn’t raining at the exact moment I left, I was no more that 200 yards out of town when the rain started. But, no big deal as I was prepared (I’d already donned my rain outfit for the day) AND it was a relatively warm day (mid ’60s or so). So…I just kept on pedaling. Until…
Roughly 6 miles out of town, a beat up old Dodge pickup passes me going very slowly and pulls off to the side of the road well ahead of me. As I ride closer, I can see he rolls down his window. As I pull even with the driver, he asks me if I’m OK and do I need a ride? Hoping not to offend him I politely say I’m good and that I’m prepared for this kind of …

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Accurate Weather Forecast, Dry Roads Bike Ride

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For a change the weather forecast was pretty accurate. The first rain arrived about 5:30 AM and the second line of showers passed through about 8:30 AM. Not long after the last rain the sky started to clear and the wind shifted to the SW. By noon the streets were almost dry and I started today’s bike ride on the “Kingwood – SH 242 – Kingwood” route at 1:15 PM. I hesitated on my wardrobe selection first thinking the thermal jersey would be required but then I opted for the two jersey combo: a short and long sleeve set. I wondered if I made the right choice but as I warmed up I was okay. Later in the ride the shaded portions of the road were getting chilly especially when I rode into the wind. The bike ride went for a total of 35.41 miles pushing January to 62.06 miles, 21% of my 300 mile goal.

Weather conditions at my home station at the start and finish (4:04 PM).

Start
Finish

I stopped at the Stripes station at FM1314 with the intent of staying just long enough to eat a  trail mix bar but my son-in-law called me with a computer problem and we talked for about 15 minutes trying to figure out what was going on. By then i had cooled down enough to make riding chilly. Old Sorters Road was shaded so that made the wind chill stronger. Once I warmed up which didn’t take too long thanks to pedaling into the wind I was better.

Riding through Oakhurst, Kingwood Place went without any problems and I arrived in Kings Manor with my average speed at 15.5 mph. Slowing down navigating the streets, sidewalks and stop signs the average speed fell to 15.1 mph at the end of the ride. As I waited to cross Woodland Hills Drive another bicyclist rode by going south and we waved. With New Year’s holiday today many people were out jogging, walking and a few casual bike riding people.

Tuesday’s weather looks better than today so I am planning a bike ride.

Link to Strava map and data.

[iframe http://rwgps-embeds.com/trips/12441852/embed 700px 700px]

Interval lap splits

Texas Bicycling News January 1st 2017

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Whole Bunch of New Bike Ride

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With the start of a new year I moved to a bunch of new stuff. The bike ride followed the “Atascocita – Walden – E. Lake Houston Parkway” route for a total of 26.65 miles. The new equipment on the bike ride: Sidi Genius Mega shoes, Catlike Whisper helmet, Gildan socks, Voler thermal jersey (silver with white dots) and Shimano cleats. Speaking of cleats I had to stop at the 5.7 mile point to tighten the cleats. I noticed the first time I unclipped the right cleat was hard to come loose. The second time I felt it move. This dangerous situation was because I didn’t tighten them enough when I mounted them on the Sidi shoes. Stopping at Town Center Park I sat on a bench and fixed the problem. After that the unclipping was much easier and the cleats didn’t move.

Another “new” is no longer uploading my ride data to Garmin Connect. I don’t use a Garmin and I already upload the data to RideWithGPS and Strava plus a desktop program, SportTracks. This means the mileage I report will be from SportTracks which calculates the data differently from Garmin, usually a few hundredths of a mile less. I think this will make for quicker posts.

Weather continues to be mild for winter. The conditions at the beginning and end of the bike ride.


Start of the ride

End of the ride

The graphic shows sun peaking from behind the clouds but that was a rare event. The long sleeve thermal jersey was the right choice for the bike ride. At first I thought maybe another jersey over top was necessary but as I warmed up my body heat offset the wind chill.

My goal for January is 300 miles and for 2017 it is 6,800 miles. I am off to a good start for the month. Tomorrow’s weather calls for rain until around noon and then drying off. I don’t know if there will be enough daylight for riding after the rain. Tuesday and Wednesday look better though maybe not warm.

The link to Strava is to the right or at this link.

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