Inside Texas Bicycling June 21st 2016

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Biking for transportation in Houston: It’s not crazy

By James Llamas

www.chron.com


Mention biking to work in Houston, and you’re likely to get a reaction somewhere between skepticism and outright hostility. It’s too hot; I’ll arrive at work drenched in sweat. It’s too far; the ride would take me hours. It’s too dangerous; I’ll be creamed by a speeding pickup.
Yet at the request of former mayor Annise Parker and with the continued support of Mayor Sylvester Turner, a team of local planners and engineers has spent the last year and a half developing a new Bicycle Master Plan for the City of Houston, laying out a …

A $56 million plan to connect 50 miles of DallasÒ trails will cost taxpayers only $20 million

Robert Wilonsky

cityhallblog.dallasnews.com


If you were hoping to get some bond money out of the city of Dallas next May, sorry, the list has grown mighty long. Like, Pecan Lodge-at-noon-line long. At this late date youÓ²e likely to wind up with DickeyÓ³.
The streets want their dollar bills × about a few hundred million of them, give or take, and theyÓ¬l take and take and take Ó¥m all if possible, because those are some greedy potholes.
Then thereÓ³ Fair Park × or, at least, the would-be foundation hoping to take over Fair Park, with $75 million in bonds as seed money. Downtown parks also …

Downtown Public Art Bike Tour

visitelpaso.travel


One way to discover El Paso and enjoy the great outdoors is on a bicycle! The celebrated Downtown Public Art Bike Art Tour includes it all: architecture, history, culture, and good times

Tour de Southern Walnut Creek Trail

Tuesday, Jun 28, 2016, 8:00 AM

Govalle Park
5200 Bolm Rd. Austin, TX

6 Austin Cyclists Went

Start Time is 8 AM!A D-pace ride (roughly 11 to 13 mph) on The Southern Walnut Creek Trail from the trailhead at Govalle Park up to the Abrupt End at Lindell Lane just north of Decker Lake.  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 an…

Check out this Meetup →

Mamma Jamma Training Ride #4 SFC Happy Kitchen 16, 25, & 32 mile

Saturday, Jul 9, 2016, 7:30 AM

Sustainable Food Center
2921 E. 17th Street Austin, TX

18 Austin Cyclists Went

Join us for this weekend’s training ride for the Texas Mamma Jamma 2016. with distances of 16, 25, 32 miles, no one is ever left behind.We offer routes of various lengths and difficulty to help you train for the Texas Mamma Jamma held on Sept 24, 2016.Meet up at 7:30AM, ride out at 8:00AM.If you’ve never been to one of our training rides, you ar…

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Let’s Meetup and Ride the Mountain Bike trails of Memorial Park

Monday, Jun 27, 2016, 6:00 PM

Memorial Park – Soccer/Rugby Pitch Parking lot
6501 Memorial Dr (29.765522, -95.444994) Houston, TX

1 Members Went

Intermediate MTB Ride – Every Monday at Memorial Park. 6pm until Danny gets tired or it gets too dark. (Usually about an hour) Join us every Monday for a fun, moderate pace ride through the Memorial Park Trails. We can do skills training or just play in the dirt.Meet at the parking lot by the Soccer/Rugby field. Bring your helmet and water. Add li…

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Texas 4000 To Stop In Sullivan

www.mysullivannews.com

The Texas 4000 is a unique organization that combines leadership development, physical training, cancer awareness out reach, volunteer opportunities, and philanthropic commitment. Each year, approximately 90 students are competitively selected for participation.
The Texas 4000 executes the longest annual charity bike ride in the world extending from Austin, TX to …

Upcoming Rides – Maverick Chain Gang

Maverick Chain Gang

June 25, 2016
Scottsville, Marshall/Leigh Rd. – 29.9 miles
Meet at: Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 4700 Victory Dr, Marshall, TX
– 7:00 a.m.

July 2, 2016
Scottsville, out and back – 21.7 miles
Meet at: Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 4700 Victory Dr, Marshall, TX
– 7:00 a.m.

July 9, 2016
Pope City – 32.1 miles
Meet at: North side of Walmart parking lot, 1701 SE End Blvd, Marshall,
TX – 7:00 a.m.

July 16, 2016
EF, Waskom, Jonesville – 45.5 miles
Meet at: Evangelical Presbyterian Church, 4700 Victory Dr, Marshall, TX
– 7:00 a.m.

Bike Lanes / Facilities » Great Northern plan

bicycleaustin.info

Great Northern has a pretty bad bicycling facility already–a two-way bike lane on one side of the street.
Pedestrians like to walk there too, bless them, and therein is the start of trouble.
Every cyclist is better off in the street than they are using it.
The proposed solution? Make it worse by putting up pylons. See the notice on the proposed plan here:
http://tinyurl.com/j4phbym
A cyclist riding on the path, as proposed, who must veer to avoid a dog-walker would have a new hazard to avoid too–the feel-good pylon. These kinds of pylons (1) easily …

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

I Heard “On Your Left” During Stroker Road – Huffman Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Today’s ride went to the southeast of Kingwood on the “Stroker Road – Huffman” route. The ride started just before noon under scattered clouds, 91 degrees and a light breeze. I thought there might be a chance to see the Amtrak train at the old Atascocita Road crossing and I was there about 1:08. I waited 13 minutes wait but did not connect with the passenger train. It must have taken the other track through Crosby. I ended up biking 40.3 miles even though I didn’t start the ride on the streets I usually take when I ride in that direction.

Riding east on Old Atascocita Road, crossing FM2100 and on to Ramsey Road I pedaled into the light wind. In my mirror I saw another biker gaining ground on me and at the turn onto Ramsey Road he caught with me not long after. He said it was a hot day for a ride and I agreed. He slowly pulled away from. I could see him in front until the curves approaching Stroker Road where he stayed on Ramsey Road and I took Stroker Road back to FM2100. Before that turn the sky to the south looked like it might be bringing some rain and the wind felt cooler and a little stronger but once I was on Stroker Road it left my sight and nothing came of it.

I drank the last of my water as I turned right onto FM2100 and stopped at the Shell station for ice and water. I planned on a rest stop at the usual place, the Huffman Chevron, about 3.5 miles farther. I pulled into the Chevron station at 2:10 and took these Elemnt screen shots before getting some paper towels to soak up some perspiration.

Waling inside the store I bought a fountain PowerAde to go along with a Clif bar and granola bar I brought with me. Back outside with a Greensheet newspaper I waited for a pickup to leave before sitting down at my favorite canopy pole in the shade. The wind was blowing nicely from my left and it felt great as it moved around my wet jersey, arms and shorts. I took this screen shot of the weather in between eating the Clif bar and the granola bar.

6-21-2016 Huffman Weather

Finishing the drink and food I got back on the Stradalli for the ride home. I was able to improve my overall average speed on this segment to 14.7 mph now that the wind wasn’t trying to slow me down. Riding the rough concrete of Atascocita Shores Drive told me my tires still have good air pressure but I will check them before tomorrow’s ride. I was back home at 3:38 when I pressed the stop button on the Elemnt and rode the driveway to the garage. Another hot Texas bike ride is in the books and websites.

I noticed that my year to date miles is up to 3737 miles, June is at 592 and the week is 75 miles. I could be close to 4000 miles for the year by the end of June. I have never been that high at that time of the year.

50% chance of rain in tomorrow’s forecast but I plan on biking. Summer is here and now the daylight starts getting shorter but not cooler.

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Inside Texas Bicycling June 20th 2016

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Bike Stolen from Briarcliff

by Manster

www.bikemojo.com


Last night my black & orange Trek Superfly 9.8 $5600 carbon fiber Mountain Bike got stolen from my driveway in Briarcliff. Briarcliff is the subdivision about 3 miles down the road from Pace Bend park. Two things semi-unique about the bike that may make it possible to identify are: a twist grip shifter on …

Open House & Public Hearing for North Texas Bicycle Plans

www.wherevent.com

411 W Arapaho Rd,Richardson
Tuesday 21 June 2016, 17:00 till Tuesday 21 June 2016, 19:00
Organized by : NCTCOG Transportation Department
The Regional Transportation Council (RTC) of the North Central Texas Council of Governments has served as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for regional transportation planning in the Dallas-Fort Worth area since 1974. The MPO works in cooperation with the regionÓ³ transportation provi…

Activities Richardson / Description
Learn about and provide input on the future of bicycle plans and projects in the Dallas area. The Texas Department of Transportation and North Central Texas Council of Governments are hosting an open house and public hearing June 21 in Richardson.
5 pm – Open House …

Cannondale team finding greener pastures

By Andrew Hood

velonews.competitor.com


Something funny started happening in the early days of the 2016 racing season: CannondaleÓ³ lime-green jersey began to pop up in the most unexpected of places. From grueling stage races, like the Vuelta al Paî³ Vasco, to the cobbled bergs of the Tour of Flanders, the team was in the mix. For a franchise that had become almost anonymous, being ubiquitous was something to cheer. …

… CannondaleÓ³ mash-up is paying dividends. WorldTour rookie Michael Woods started things off at the Santos Tour Down Under with a fifth overall. Lawson Craddock, the promising 24-year-old Texan, grasped his chances to lead, with a top-20 finish at Paris-Nice and then an even more impressive ninth overall at the Tour of the Basque Country. …

Bicycle supplier group endorses new mechanics association

by BRAIN Staff

www.bicycleretailer.com

AUSTIN, Texas (BRAIN) × At a board meeting last week, the Bicycle Product Suppliers Association endorsed the newly formed Professional Bicycle Mechanics Association.
The BPSA said, “The PBMA is a new organization dedicated to the promotion, development and advocacy for professional bicycle mechanics. A project that they are undertaking is a program focused on bicycle assembly protocol, which will improve the quality of the riding experience for all IBD customers. The BPSA, with most …

Bike plan finalized, now council approval sought

By Dug Begley

www.chron.com


HoustonÓ³ comprehensive plan for improving bicycling in the city is finalized, and now supporters are turning their attention to gaining City Council approval and bureaucratic changes that will make the long-term plan a reality.
Debuted in February, the Houston Bike Plan was changed after nearly 150 public meetings and events where the plan was displayed. After receiving a deluge of public reaction, officials added 133 more miles of bike trails or shared use paths to the long-term plan. Eventually, city planners and advocates hope for 1,789 miles of bike-friendly paths and trails, including …

Sunday Destination / Breakfast Ride – June 26th

Plano Bicycle Association

www.planobicycle.org

Hello Breakfast Ride Fans:
The Sunday Destination / Breakfast Ride has returned from vacation and will ride once again – Sunday, June 26th (7:30 departure!)
South of the Border Edition
HerreraÓ³ Cafe West Dallas
Amigos, sorry for the short notice but itÓ³ time to get things going again with a bit of adventure on our next Sunday Destination / Breakfast Ride. Breakfast fans will ride south of the Plano border to Dallas. The ride will test new routes west then south past the Trinity River to our destination – HerreraÓ³ Cafe Sylvan. Please come with a sense of adventure and discovery as we blaze new paths to West Dallas / Oak Cliff. …

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 →

Ready to Ride! Recovering FW Cop Matt Pearce Gets Brand New Bike

by Jake Young

cw33.com

HURST — He may not be fully fit quite yet, but Fort Worth Officer Matt Pearce is proving he’s ready to roll.
Last week, he was on stage at Texas Motor Speedway giving the call to start engines as the Firestone 600 IndyCar race grand marshal. This past weekend, though, he got something to ride that has a little less horsepower.
“He had shown interest in the past about riding,” FWPD Bike Patrol Officer Joe Spragins said. “We know that …

Photos: Houston Bicycle Museum

Cycling Space City

cyclingspacecity.blogspot.com

Some photos of the Houston Bicycle Museum. They are located at 1313 Binz St, near the Houston Kids Museum.

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

https://twitter.com/bicyclesplus/status/744957651566505985

Great Timing to Avoid Rain on Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

My timing was just right today to avoid the rain just as I walked inside the house at the end of the ride. It rained about 1/4″ which was enough to totally soak me if I wasn’t already wet from all of the sweat I generated on the ride. I almost got soaked earlier in the ride when I left the Cumberland Shell station after a rest break. I rode up to the traffic light at Painted Blvd. to get onto FM1314. The first obstacle was an 18 wheeler, well actually 17 wheeler, stuck in the left turn lane with the driver side front tire leaning up against the truck and the axle laying on the pavement. I rode around the truck and dashed across FM1314 to ride SE toward Porter. As soon as I cleared the intersection big rain drops starting falling but they only lasted a couple of hundred feet and then I was out of them. I should’ve been warned by what I saw when I arrived at the Shell station; I could see heavy rain in the west past the Grand Parkway overpass over FM1314. I was glad to not be riding that far.

All of this took place while I rode the “Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch” route. I haven’t biked this route since the Grand Parkway construction finished restricting the lanes on FM1314 while the overpass was being built. I started late (1:09) because I waited for the streets at home to dry some from a quick shower, an earlier doctor’s appointment and talking to my oldest daughter on the phone.

To help lengthen the ride I rode south to Kingwood Drive and then back north. In Kings Forest I stopped at a small park and took this picture.

6-20-2016 Bike Ride Kingwood-2

This is a small pocket park off one of the through streets. I don’t know the background of why Herb Hudson’s name is there though. From there I wove my way west to US59 and Sorters Road before riding in Kingwood Place. The weather was hot but not as much as yesterday. This is the weather at my home when I left.

6-20-2016 Home Weather Start 1259PM

When I started riding on Old Sorters Road I could see some small puddles in the low spots in the asphalt from a recent rain but I avoided them. Riding NW on FM1314 took me to the Shell station where I rested with Gatorade and a Clif bar. The Elemnt screens when I arrived there.

While I was resting at the pumps a lady went in the store and when she came out she walked towards me and asked if I had a problem or was resting. I told her I was resting and said her husband told her to ask when she a biker because he rides bikes too. I told her I was resting and thanked her.

Biking SE on FM1314 I turned north to ride through Valley Ranch and I could see some dark clouds to the north. I hoped I would turn east before I ran under them and I did heading back to US59. At US59 I rode the service road south to Northpark Drive and then north to start winding my way back into Kingwood. After I passed through Woodridge Forest and into Sherwood Trails i felt a couple of rain drops and could see some dark clouds nearby. Riding the greenbelt trail the last 1/2 mile was wet from earlier rain but it didn’t cause a problem. I was back home at 4:09.

Tuesday’s forecast has a 50% chance of rain so I might get wet then.

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