Fall Weather Tryout But With Loud Noises

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Loud motorcycles were out in force today. Loud pickup trucks filled in the quiet times when the motorcycles weren’t around. I noticed this most when I stopped at the Huffman Chevron for a rest break while riding the “Stroker Road – Huffman” route for the 9th time this year. Two women were talking about four feet away from me while I was sitting on the curb under the pump canopy. For a period of time I could not hear their conversations for the procession of loud motorcycles and pickup trucks. Huffman is not a big time city but this is the intersection of two busy FM roads. At the time of the rest stop I biked 29.1 miles of the 40.75 miles I ended up riding.

Probably the fall like weather and sunny sky brought all of the motorcycles out but I am not sure why the loud pickups where out. A “cool” front arrived about noon today and the temperature stayed below 90 for most of the ride. The weather while I rested in Huffman:

Wind was another thing though. When I left home at 12:17 the wind was out of the NE at 13 mph. I battled it whenever I was going east or north but enjoyed when riding south and west. The worst time was when I was riding north on FM2100 from Stroker Road. The easy times were Stroker Road west to FM2100 and Huffman to Atascocita Shores Drive on FM1960. I built up the average speed to 15.4 mph during the easy places. Biking back through Atascocita Shores and into Kingwood I kept the 15.4 mph average until the 37 mile point when I hit the slow residential streets. I got back home at 3:42. The weather was so nice I didn’t sweat that much. I probably could’ve skipped the wrist bands.

I reached and surpassed my goal for September; 361.04 miles vs. the 340 mile goal. One more day to ride before I take a break until October. 5489 miles for 2015 so far.

[iframe https://connect.garmin.com/activity/embed/896457482 465px 500px] [iframe https://www.strava.com/activities/390805513/embed/374ae95e51446856750d68f6e3d9229d6551b09d 590px 500px]

Activity Name Start Time Distance Elevation Gain Avg Speed(Avg Pace) Max Speed(Best Pace) Avg HR Max HR Calories Total Strokes
Stroker Road – Huffman Sat, Sep 12, 2015 12:17 PM 2:43:01 40.75 866 15 20.6 — — 2296 10614
Stroker Road – Huffman Thu, Jul 2, 2015 9:43 AM 2:46:56 41.94 574 15.1 19.9 — — 2262 10392
Stroker Road – Huffman Thu, Jun 11, 2015 11:25 AM 2:40:25 40.33 587 15.1 20.1 — — 2152 9760
Stroker Road – Huffman Fri, Jun 5, 2015 10:06 AM 2:35:49 39.81 564 15.3 21.3 — — 2153 9861
Stroker Road – Huffman Sat, May 23, 2015 11:56 AM 2:37:20 39.34 840 15 20.9 — — 2238 10277
Stroker Road – Huffman Wed, May 6, 2015 2:53 PM 2:34:29 38.51 1273 15 22.3 — — 2352 9700
Stroker Road – Huffman Tue, Apr 21, 2015 12:47 PM 2:34:08 39.08 827 15.2 20.4 — — 2221 10280
Stroker Road – Huffman Mon, Mar 23, 2015 2:00 PM 2:34:27 38.13 574 14.8 21.2 — — 2087 10239
Stroker Road – Huffman Mon, Feb 9, 2015 12:18 PM 2:41:03 39.56 912 14.7 21.6 — — 2272 10102

 

Texas Bicycling News Digest September 11th

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First 15 road race titles claimed in Ogden

www.usacycling.org

Fifteen road race national champions were crowned on Thursday, as the 2015 USA Cycling Masters Road National Championships continued at Snowbasin Resort outside of Ogden, Utah.

The men’s 65-69 race came down to a sprint finish with Josef Lemire (r) edging David Hixson (l). (photo by Phil Beckman/www.pbcreativephoto.com)
Highlighting the day’s action were eight road race champions who added a second 2015 Stars-and-Stripes jerseys of the week to their collections, as Melinda Berge (Tucson, Ariz./Summit Velo), David Burnett (Norwich, Conn.), Donna Ingle (Las Vegas, Nev.), Josef Lemire (San Francisco, Calif./ThirstyBear p/b Akamai), William Meyers (Golden, Colo./Schwab Cycles Racing Team) and Anne Valta (Santa Clara, Calif./ThirstyBear p/b Akamai) followed up their individual time trial wins from the previous day with respective road race wins.

Mixed 70+ tandem time trial champions Irina Axelrod-Angres (Reno, Nev.) and Rich Staley (Reno, Nev.) and …
Men Master 80-84
1.      Frederic Schmid (Waco, Texas)       Bear Mountain Wolfpack       2:36:58
2.      Walter Axthelm (Durango, Colo.)       Durango Wheel Club       3:15:44 …

Q&A: Josh Daugherty

By Brittany Nunn        lakewood.advocatemag.com


Cyclists call it “The Holy Grail.” In the Tour Divide, racing riders begin in the snow-swept mountains of Banff in Alberta, Canada, before embarking on a grueling, 2,745-mile trek south until they reach the blistering deserts of Mexico. This summer, East Dallas neighbor Josh Daugherty began this arduous self-supported cycling journey with a goal to finish the race in less than three weeks. It took him just 18 days, 12 hours and 19 minutes, giving him 12th place in the race and earning him bragging rights as the fastest cyclist in Texas to complete the race.
How far did you have to ride each day to reach your goal?
On average I had to ride 135 miles a day, but I was never going to stop because I reached 135. Because you never know what’s going to happen later on down the …

This Sunday, go play in the street at VIVA! Streets Festival

by Pam LeBlanc        fitness.blog.austin360.com


This Sunday, go play in the street.
From noon to 5 p.m., a 1-mile stretch of East Sixth Street between Interstate 35 and Robert T. Martinez Jr. Street will be blocked to motor traffic for the fourth annual VIVA! Streets festival.
For five glorious hours, bicyclists and pedestrians will take over the road. Space will clear for ballroom dancing, yoga, zumba, soccer, basketball, giant chess, hula hooping, petanque and tennis. There will be an obstacle course, gardening classes, anti-bullying workshops, martial arts demonstrations, cane fishing, bird walks, a kids drum circle, a learn-to-ride bike course, chalk art, bike polo and more. SkyCandy will offer special …

APD arrests suspects in on-going bike theft ring

By Lindsay Bramson        kxan.com


AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Police have identified and arrested at least two men they say have been involved in an on-going bicycle theft ring in Austin.
Police say the value of the stolen bicycles is between $2,500 and $30,000. According to court documents, Austin Police arrested 51-year-old Mario Contreras accusing him of buying and selling stolen bicycles.
Investigators tell KXAN a confidential informant with Austin Police helped them crack the case, which they’ve been investigating since last …

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

https://twitter.com/MitchellGSides/status/642377018496028672

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Texas Bicycling Event Reminders

Texas Bicycling News September 10th

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Lance Armstrong rides in Canyon

By BY KAREN SMITH WELCH, Amarillo Globe-News         lubbockonline.com


Former professional cyclist Lance Armstrong pedaled Palo Duro Canyon on Wednesday with Amarillo National Bank biking enthusiasts.
“First time riding the Palo Duro Canyon today,” Armstrong posted on Facebook on Wednesday. “Thanks 2 the fellas from Amarillo National Bank for showing us around!”
The “fellas” are brothers William and Patrick Ware, executive vice presidents of the family-owned bank, and …

Cyclist seriously injured after being hit by car crossing Santa Fe Trail

by Claire Z. Cardona        crimeblog.dallasnews.com


A woman riding her bicycle on the Sante Fe Trail in Old East Dallas on Wednesday night was struck by a car that ran a red light, police say.
About 7:30 p.m., police said John Cullins of Royse City ran the light at the trail crossing with South Munger Boulevard and hit 26-year-old cyclist with his 1995 Toyota Camry.
The cyclist was transported by ambulance to Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas in serious but stable condition, police said.
Philip Haigh said he …

Flat Creek Ride n Build – Sat, Oct 3

by TAF        www.bikemojo.com

Folks, the work day in September was a great success – see the pic below which shows the ten poles we set. Thanks to all who helped! $400 in gate fees will go toward the hardware needed for the next step, which involves drilling in the upper beams, screwing lumber hangers and adding upper roof joists.
We’ll be having a second ride and build day on Saturday, October 3. Same deal – gates at 0800, feel free to ride and then stop by to help with the pavilion. If you have a charged cordless drill, all the better! There will be …
http://www.bikemojo.com/speak/attachments/10525d1441811859-flat-creek-ride-n-build-sat-oct-3-pav2.jpg

Man on Bike Struck by 18-Wheeler on US 67: Alvarado Police

By Todd L. Davis        www.nbcdfw.com


Police said a man was struck by an 18-wheeler when he tried to cross a highway in Alvarado overnight.
Investigators said a man on a bicycle was crossing U.S. 67 near Village Park Drive at about midnight Wednesday when he was struck by a passing 18 wheeler. …

31st Annual Skittles Waco Wild West Bicycle Tour

www.kbgo.com

BIG 95 KBGO invites you to the 31st Annual Skittles Waco Wild West 100 Bicycle Tour –“The Sweetest Ride in Texas” on Saturday, October 10th. Ride time is 8am on October 10th in downtown Waco. Early registration, before September 15th, is $30.
Registration after September 15th is $35. Onsite registration is $40, the morning of the ride. Routes include a 10-mile family friendly ride, a 25-mile, 50-mile, 67-mile and 100-mile route. Ride any …

Bike Sharing 101

www.huffingtonpost.com


What Consumers and Investors Need to Know
Auto sharing is becoming a more popular method of transportation, so why shouldn’t bike sharing follow suit? Quite a few consumers and companies agree with that statement. Bicycle-sharing systems have mushroomed over the last few years in large and medium-sized U.S. markets, from bustling New York City to the slower-paced McAllen, Texas. Motivate, B-Cycle, and Zagster are among the larger and more established companies in the field, managing bike-sharing efforts in multiple metropolitan areas.
Bike-sharing systems establish stations throughout a metro area where patrons can rent bicycles for use and return them to the station when they are finished. Typically, the rental is per day via a credit card on the unlocking station, or by …

A New Trail Brings North Texas Closer To A 64-Mile Bike Superhighway

By Stephanie Kuo        keranews.org


Cyclists and city planners dream of a 64-mile bike superhighway connecting Dallas and Fort Worth. With the opening of the new Lone Star-Campión Connection Trail between Irving and Grand Prairie, they’re inching closer to those dreams.
The weather wasn’t ideal for a bike ride: gray skies, endless drizzle and muddy pant legs. Still, dozens of city and county officials huddled under a single white tent at the Mountain Creek Preserve, northwest of Loop 12 and Interstate 30 in Irving, to celebrate the trail’s opening. …

Sunday Casual Ride George Bush Cinco Loop Route

Sunday, Oct 4, 2015, 7:15 AM

Barker Clodine Entrance to George Bush Park
1081 Barker-Clodine Road Houston, TX

13 Cyclists Went

Free ride. Casual, fun ride in George Bush Park and beyond to Cinco Ranch. Approximately 27  miles total. Can be more if the group wants.  Will stop at coffee in between.  See map at http://www.mapmyride.com/us/houston-tx/beginners-road-cycling-to-train-for-ms15-group-129191

Check out this Meetup →

Woodland Township Board – Answers Questions on Bicycles

bikehouston.org

Venue    Huntsman Corporation – Visitors’ parking at 8302 New Trails
Address    8302 New Trails Woodlands TX
Starts    Wed Sep 30 2015, 6:30pm CDT
Join Bike the Woodlands Coalition & Voters Awareness Council on Sept 30th to hear the candidates for The Woodlands Township Board answer questions about why they should be elected and how they would improve safety & accessibility for people riding bikes in & around The Woodlands.   You’ll have an opportunity to ask them your bicycling-related questions.  Don’t miss this unique opportunity to get informed and meet the candidates!   See you there!

9/12 & 9/13 Rides! Tour de Cure or ? Red Horn!

by Thomas        steinerranchcycling.com

Many of us will be doing the 2 day Tour de Cure ride this weekend. This leaves us with nobody officially leading the Saturday ride, but if you show up at Cups & Cones at the regular 7:30 am time, I bet there …

Killing Mesquite Trees With CX Bikes

by Bill Cullins        bcullins.blogspot.com

The CX Nationals tree fiasco from last January is behind us and here in West Texas, we’re taking the lessons learned from that weekend and putting them to good use for the upcoming cyclocross season.
We’ve partnered with a rouge group called ‘Leave No Mesquite Living’ to design the course for our local CX races and – based on the obviously superior research conducted by Austin’s Heritage Tree Foundation – we fully expect every dammed mesquite on our course to be dead by the end of this year’s racing season.
It’s a win-win. Race CX and kill bad trees at the same time.
The course design included the …

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

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A Blue Jersey With Lightening Come to Life

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My jersey choice for today’s ride probably could have been better: a blue jersey with a white lightening bolt. I knew I was taking a chance of riding in the rain when I left home at 12:14 but the rain activity on weather radar was widely scattered with no particular direction. It was 91 degrees at the start of riding the “Atascocita – Walden – Huffman” route. While riding south out of Kingwood I saw some dark gray clouds gathering to the east but I hoped to ride away from them. I shortened the ride by a couple of miles to 30.89 miles hoping this would get me back home before any rain arrived.

Riding past Kingwood High School I passed a man with an umbrella walking towards me on the sidewalk/trail and wondered if that meant rain ahead. It did but just sprinkles which stayed with me until I turned south on W. Lake Houston Parkway. I took my usual route through Kingwwod Greens exiting back on W. Lake Houston Parkway. On the bridge the shoulder showed signs of a recent rain but no standing water. Off the bridge I rode through Atascocita and Walden without rain. Coming to FM1960 to ride east over Lake Houston I saw more gray clouds but not over me nor where I was headed.

I reached the Huffman Chevron around 1:35 19.2 miles into the ride for a rest break. After going inside for a Powerade I sat under the canopy to eat snacks, cool down and look at the sky. Not too much later I started hearing thunder to the west where the sky was dark followed by lightening. Checking the weather on my phone I saw this:

I decided to wait at the Chevron store for the thunder and lightening to stop. Cars coming from the west had their windshield wipers on. I didn’t want to ride in the rain but it looked like I would. While waiting I could feel the temperature going down and my soaked jersey accentuated the drop. After the thunder and lightening stopped I left thinking I would leap frog from one shelter to another up to the causeway over Lake Houston. I made it to the Exxon station at E. Lake Houston where the rain was a little harder. I waited there again hoping the rain would stop or let up. Finally after waiting the clouds west of Lake Houston started to move north and I left the Exxon station even though it was raining lightly.

FM1960 was wet and passing traffic sprayed me with mist but I didn’t get too wet. Riding into Atascocita Shores the rain let up some and I got relief when I went under trees. By the time I got to W. Lake Houston the rain stopped. From there to home it didn’t rain but the streets were damp. After I got home at 3:53 I washed my bike and put it in the garage as a few more sprinkles fell.

With this ride I am closing in on my goal for September with only 21 miles needed. More rain on Friday in the forecast but Saturday and Sunday look dry. Today was the 32nd time riding this route in 2015. A summary of the rides is below.

[iframe https://connect.garmin.com/activity/embed/894462297 465px 500px] [iframe https://www.strava.com/activities/389448389/embed/a8f7a6b9394e5cc3838841d785ae604abe0dd629 590px 500px]

Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Thu, Sep 10, 2015 12:14 PM 2:08:30 30.89 581 14.4 20.2 — — 1719 8197
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Sep 6, 2015 12:29 PM 2:11:32 32.49 489 14.8 20 — — 1729 8410
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Fri, Aug 21, 2015 2:37 PM 2:10:45 32.97 591 15.1 20.5 — — 1796 8319
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Aug 2, 2015 12:12 PM 2:07:04 31.71 689 15 20.4 — — 1783 7864
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Fri, Jul 31, 2015 11:04 AM 2:10:29 31.72 673 14.6 21.1 — — 1797 7939
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Fri, Jul 24, 2015 11:39 AM 2:16:00 33.68 568 14.9 22.1 — — 1830 8607
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Thu, Jul 23, 2015 11:28 AM 2:17:37 33.58 604 14.6 21.1 — — 1853 8326
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Tue, Jul 14, 2015 11:04 AM 2:15:57 33.24 656 14.7 20.5 — — 1837 8043
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sat, Jul 11, 2015 8:54 AM 2:22:56 34.74 482 14.6 19.4 — — 1829 9148
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Jun 28, 2015 12:26 PM 2:06:30 31.41 479 14.9 20.4 — — 1672 7719
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Thu, Jun 18, 2015 12:27 PM 2:15:01 34.2 633 15.2 21.6 — — 1905 8532
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Jun 7, 2015 11:21 AM 2:04:21 31.33 486 15.1 21.3 — — 1692 7414
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Mon, Jun 1, 2015 10:34 AM 2:15:19 33.35 505 14.8 20.1 — — 1799 8611
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sat, May 16, 2015 11:09 AM 2:18:09 33.12 1004 14.4 21.1 — — 1966 8213
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Tue, May 5, 2015 2:12 PM 2:10:58 31.93 1296 14.6 21.1 — — 2050 7869
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sat, Apr 25, 2015 1:46 PM 2:19:42 34.26 732 14.7 21 — — 1939 8451
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Apr 19, 2015 12:03 PM 2:02:15 30.55 817 15 21.3 — — 1767 7846
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Wed, Apr 15, 2015 11:59 AM 2:13:52 33.85 574 15.2 20.6 — — 1829 8573
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Mon, Apr 13, 2015 11:45 AM 2:16:16 33.81 810 14.9 22.3 — — 1905 8395
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sat, Apr 11, 2015 12:23 PM 2:19:10 34.41 538 14.8 24 — — 1864 8483
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Mon, Apr 6, 2015 12:10 PM 2:13:18 32.86 751 14.8 21.3 — — 1900 8251
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Tue, Mar 31, 2015 11:49 AM 2:12:36 32.6 679 14.8 21 — — 1826 8105
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Fri, Mar 27, 2015 1:48 PM 2:11:50 32.32 955 14.7 21.9 — — 1885 8307
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Wed, Mar 25, 2015 2:12 PM 2:10:22 32.19 912 14.8 21.7 — — 1853 8142
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Fri, Mar 20, 2015 12:11 PM 2:04:13 31.41 614 15.2 21.7 — — 1717 7998
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Wed, Mar 18, 2015 2:11 PM 1:59:20 30.31 594 15.2 22.2 — — 1687 7697
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Mon, Mar 16, 2015 1:16 PM 2:10:40 32.14 568 14.8 21 — — 1743 8442
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Wed, Mar 4, 2015 11:21 AM 2:10:53 32.66 702 15 21.6 — — 1841 8203
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Tue, Mar 3, 2015 3:27 PM 1:59:27 29.34 659 14.7 21 — — 1641 7645
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Sun, Feb 8, 2015 12:17 PM 2:15:02 33.07 879 14.7 22.3 — — 1923 8234
Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Tue, Jan 27, 2015 12:17 PM 2:16:36 32.09 469 14.1 19.7 — — 1684 9011
Atasacocita – Walden – Huffman Sat, Jan 17, 2015 1:55 PM 2:02:54 29.84 686 14.6 21.2 — — 1686 8118