Texas Bicycling News July 25th 2016

Texbiker.net Posted on by

AEP Texas spokesman dies after hit-and-run

By Natalia Contreras of the Caller-Times

www.caller.com


When power went out in the Coastal Bend, Andy Heines’ cellphone would ring.
The same was true when residents’ favorite shows were interrupted by power outages from rain and thunderstorms, or when fierce winds dragged down power lines.
He worked behind the scenes to reassure residents that someone was on the job trying to fix the problem.
Heines, AEP Texas communications director, died Monday after he was hit by a …

Ride of the Barrio – Fun social bicycle ride!

Friday, Aug 12, 2016, 7:00 PM

Southwest Schwinn
6607 S Braeswood Blvd Houston, TX

14 Members Went

Ride of the Barrio.We are a ride at your own pace, fun social bicycle ride.We are just a group of people riding for fun.Meet Times: 2nd Friday of every month. At 6607 Braeswood Houston Texas 77096Start time is around 7:00 pm The ride is 15 to 20 miles long with a stop along the way.We ride rain, shine, hot or cold. Helmets, clothes, ext. are a…

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Sunday morning ride

Sunday, Jul 31, 2016, 8:00 AM

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

5 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.

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CCPD Reminds Drivers to Share the Road

www.kiiitv.com


CORPUS CHRISTI (Kiii News) – Earlier this year, the Corpus Christi Police Department released a public service announcement urging drivers to share the road, and in light of this city’s most recent hit and run fatality, they want to remind drivers to do just that.
61-year old Andy Heines, the victim in a July 20 hit and run accident, died Monday from his injuries. He was struck by a driver while riding his bicycle along the SPID access road near Paul Jones Avenue. …

Longest annual charity bike ride in the world rolls through Peace

www.cjdccountry.com

The numbers are fairly staggering.
66 riders, over 4000 miles, and almost $500,000 raised for cancer research, treatment and prevention.
The Texas 4000 journey is the longest annual charity bike ride in world, which starts in Austin, Texas and ends in Anchorage, Alaska. The group of students passed through the Peace region this weekend on the back stretch of their 70-day journey.
“It’s been really amazing. So I think you have a lot of conceptions of what it’s going to be like to meet people all along the South or the Midwest or Canada or whatever it may be. And the first thing you realize is we’re all a lot more similar than you think we would be. One thing that’s been this huge current through all the people we’ve met is generosity,” said rider Fred Tally-Foos. …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

Point-to-Point Bike Ride With Drama

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Today’s ride was a rare point to point route. I cannot remember the last time I rode a point to point route. One that comes to mind was back in the 1990’s when I biked from Kingwood to Corrigan to visit my in-laws. My wife drove there and I drove back. Today the route from was Cleveland, TX to Kingwood. Our 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee is part of the a factory recall. I drove to the dealer in Cleveland, left the Jeep and rode back to Kingwood. I guessed the route would be around 29 to 30 miles and I biked 30.72 miles. The ride put me over my 765 mile goal for July!!

I wore my bike clothes and once the car was checked in I unloaded the bike and started riding at 8:54. I didn’t know there was a back road from the dealer to SH 105 so I rode the shoulder of the service road north to the Burger King and cut through to SH 105. As I did that I saw a UPS truck turn onto the back road to the dealer. If I do this again I hope to remember that. Many years ago I biked on SH 105 and the shoulder was not very wide across the east fork of the San Jacinto River west of I-69/US59. Now the shoulder is wide but not very smooth. Until the 3.8 mile point the shoulder was a rough chip’n seal. It changed when I entered Montgomery County. My body appreciated the smoother ride. I turned left onto Fostoria Road headed to I-69/US59. Again I haven’t biked this road for several years. Many new houses line the road which could mean dogs. I kept a watchful eye as I rode by but no dogs, thankfully.

The wind was coming from my back to right rear quarter helping me up the speed. Riding south on the service road I built my average speed up to 16.2 mph. Riding through Splendora the road was now more familiar. The ride was going well until I crossed over Roman Forest Blvd. I heard a clicking sound as a wheel turned and quickly stopped to check. I looked at the rear tire first and found a nail sticking out. I pulled it out to keep it from going through the tire/tube twice. I looked for a shady place to fix the flat and walked back a couple of hundred feet to sit under the I-69/US59 overpass. There was a place to sit by the traffic light control box. This was 16.2 miles into the ride and around 9:58. Removing the tube I found the hole and applied the patch. I aired the tire up and it looked good. Putting it back in the tire I pumped it up but the air would not stay. My technique is to patch a flat at least twice and this was no exception today. I pulled the tube out, removed the patch (no problem finding it), sanded the area, applied new glue and after it dried another patch. Checking my work it appeared it was fixed this time. The tube went back in the tire and the tire bead back on the rim. Pumping the tire to a hard condition the air stayed this time. I put the wheel back on the bike and was off again at 10:34. I count this as a 36 minute rest stop. I was able to cool down some and quick pouring sweat. I drank all my ice water.

In New Caney I made a quick stop at the Mobil station to refill my water bottle and wash my hands. the soap dispenser didn’t work so I rinsed my hands and headed off again. I was making good progress when a phone call alert popped up on the Elemnt from my wife. She was going to drive the Jeep Wrangler to her hair appointment but ti wouldn’t start. As she described what was happening I remember the same symptoms when my key wouldn’t work from the WCM module failure last year. I told her to use my key and it worked. I forgot about reprogramming her key.

Back on the bike again I rode south to Kingwood Drive and then made my way home. About 2 miles from home it started to rain lightly. I was wet already so it didn’t really matter. Once I was on Woodbridge Drive the rain stopped and I finished the ride at 11:44. I was wet but okay. I aired up the rear tire to 110 psi, replaced the patch kit and went inside to cooler and drier air.

Hopefully getting the Grand Cherokee from the dealer goes smoother.

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Weather at the end of the ride

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Texas Bicycling News July 24th 2016

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Pedal South: Four Austin storytellers bicycle from Alaska to Argentina

by Pam LeBlanc

www.mystatesman.com


Four bicycles. Fourteen countries. More than 14,000 miles.
When Thomas Allison, Dyar Bentz, Riley Engemoen and Ricardo Palomares dipped the tires of their bikes into the ocean at Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego on March 18, it marked the end of a 21-month adventure that took them from the edge of the Arctic Circle to the southernmost city on the planet.
Along the way, the four University of Texas graduates and storytellers survived armed robberies, slept anywhere they could pitch a tent or hang a hammock, ate hundreds of cans of refried beans and, one sleepy morning, woke up in the middle of a Zumba exercise class in Guadalajara. …

Huntsville biker to compete in Portugal

By Glen Schorr

www.itemonline.com


RIDERWOOD, Md. × Sarah Ginsbach, a seasoned athlete from Huntsville will soon be competing in the World Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships. The competition begins today and ends on July 30 in Agueda, Portugal.
Mountain Bike Orienteering (MTBO), a challenging sport which involves using a map and compass to race across terrain on a mountain bike, is highly competitive abroad. Ginsbach, 32, was chosen for the U.S. Mountain Bike Orienteering Team earlier this year. This will be her third consecutive year on the U.S. MTBO Team. …

Circle C Cruise 1/2 hour earlier by agreement.

Sunday, Jul 31, 2016, 8:00 AM

Dick Nichols District Park
8011 Beckett Rd, Austin, TX 78749 Austin, TX

5 Austin Cyclists Went

We will meet before 8:00 wheels down 8:00 at Dick Nichols Park for about two hours of casual rambling around SW Austin. Gary knows the area like the back of his hand.

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Circle C Cruise

Sunday, Aug 7, 2016, 8:00 AM

Dick Nichols District Park
8011 Beckett Rd, Austin, TX 78749 Austin, TX

6 Austin Cyclists Went

We will meet before 8:00, wheels down 8:00 at Dick Nichols Park for about two hours of casual rambling around SW Austin. Gary knows the area like the back of his hand.

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Go for an easy beginner ride

Saturday, Jul 30, 2016, 7:30 AM

Performance Bicycle
7549 Westheimer Rd Houston, TX

6 Cycling Enthusiasts Went

You’re invited to join our Saturday morning, beginners group ride starting from and ending at our W. Houston, Performance Bicycle store. The ride is for beginners and those getting back on the saddle. The average pace will be between 10 and 14 miles per hour and the ride will last approximately one hour. We’ll explore some of the local bike paths a…

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RIDE THE CAR-FREE WALNUT CREEK TRAIL ALL THE WAY

Saturday, Aug 13, 2016, 7:45 AM

Don’s Automotive Repair
1636 S 1st St Austin, TX

15 Austin Cyclists Went

OK, we are going to ride the very mellow car-free Walnut Creek trail.  We leave from Don’s Automotive on South First, meet 7:45, WHEELS DOWN 8:00 Five miles to the trail head, trail is about 10-15 miles out. (??)   So about 32 miles total.  BUT, you can fall in at the Govalle Park parking lot on Bolm Rd. alternatively.  Please RSVP with comment pos…

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Saturday Beginner Ride

Saturday, Jul 30, 2016, 8:00 AM

Performance Bicycle
4750 Fm 1960 Rd W Houston, TX

4 Bicycle Enthusiasts Went

“We are moving our bike ride back to the shop! Every Saturday morning meet up at the store at 8 AM to get ready to leave on our weekly group ride. Please bring a helmet, water and a positive attitude and be ready to have fun! We will leave from the store parking lot and go through the neighborhoods behind the shop away from the busy traffic of 1960…

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Cotton Patch Challenge announces new routes

www.heraldbanner.com


The Cotton Patch Challenge, a major bicycling ride, today announced it will mark its 20th anniversary with new routes that will traverse the southern part of Hunt County, showcasing growing areas of Hunt County and allowing riders to have the wind at their backs in the homecoming stretch.
Ô—eÓ¶e heard from our riders over the years how they would like to finish the tours without riding into the wind,Ô said YMCA of Greenville & Hunt County CEO Christa Compton. Ô—ith the new routes, they can …

Bird of Prey Park – Leon Creek – Mountain Bike

Mitch Bynum

youtube.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1HnTCO03PE

ARR ~ July 22, 2016 Walnut Creek Hike & Bike Trail Austin, TX

Karen Daniel

youtube.com

Sonya Nathan and Terry at River Legacy

Terry Hervey

youtube.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1h9HTt0R9Xk

Mountain bike at Bay Area Park & University of Houston Clear Lake

Coleman Ashworth

youtube.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynMROibP9Ss

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

102 Degrees On Trails Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Today’s ride was a change of pace as I rode my Motobecane 700HT MTB on the Kingwood greenbelt trails (some streets too) for a total of 18.28 miles. It might have been a good choice with the shade keeping the sun and heat down some. It is super dry around here so I thought it would be good to stop and take a picture of some running water on the trails.

The picture doesn’t include sound but water is running under the bridge from somewhere. From there I rode through Woodridge Forest to check on the new streets coming. These might be another way to exit Kingwood to I-69/US59 for rides to the north. Leaving there I went south of Northpark Drive on the trails. Eventually I was riding beside Kingwood Drive to the east and came to Riverwood Middle School. this sign says it all.

Continuing to ride east I turned left onto Mills Branch Drive. The trail parallels the street and at the elementary school I crossed over to the east side after the west trail ends. The west side goes through some over grown sections that need to be trimmed back. My wide handlebars just made it through. At Northpark Drive I turned left on the trail. Not long after a lady riding a big fat tire bike came from the opposite direction. That is the first fat tire bike I can remember seeing on the trails. I rode through Mills Branch Village, Elm Grove Village and then back home.

I started riding at 12:28 and finished at 2:14. The A/C felt good when I got inside.

I am only 4 miles away from the 765 mile goal for July. With a week to go I think I will reach the goal.

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Link to Strava data.

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