Tried a Different Rest Stop on Today’s Ride

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Back on the road bike for today’s ride on the “New Caney – Gene Campbell Road” route. I rode 38.21 miles today which was the 9th time I biked the route this year. The summary of all the rides on this route is below.

The weather is still summer with 85 degrees when i left home at 10:21 and 94 degrees when I got back home at 1:30. I got an earlier start than usual because today was a rest day for the Vuelta a Espana. I may try to start early tomorrow and watch the replay when I get back home. The mostly cloudy sky didn’t help keeping cool though. I stopped at the station in New Caney to top off my waterbottle to get me to the next stop. While I was there one of the employees (her name tag said Brenda)was sweeping the porch outside and she asked how far I was riding today. At the time I thought the ride would be about 35 miles and told her that. She replied that was a long way and asked where all I ride. I told her and she said she was Alaska where they had lots of bike trails. I told her most of the FM roads around have a decent shoulder and it was good to bike. I also mentioned the Kingwood trails. I left and she wished me a safe ride.

I was able to ride at a 18 to 19 mph pace thanks to airing up the tires yesterday. There is a connection to riding faster when the tires are at 110 psi versus 70 to 80 psi the pump shows when I connect the air hose. Lately I try to air the tires every 6 to 7 days.

Normally I stop at the Stripes station for a rest break but the fountain drink sale ended and today I stopped at the Shell station at Cumberland Blvd/Painted Blvd on FM1314. The fountain drinks are $.99. It was noon when I got there (23.7 miles into the ride). The station was busy because it is beside the Grand Parkway construction path with many workers coming there for lunch and there is a Church’s Chicken too. I didn’t find a good place to sit in the shade and leaned against a trash can under the store overhang. Next time I will need to find a better resting spot. The weather while I was stopped there.

I left the Shell station at 12:30 to complete the ride. It was 15 miles to home. I had to grip the handlebar firmly when I rode past the Stripes station and turned right onto Old Sorters Road. School was in session and traffic was not a problem except for the paper recycling truck loading a bin at the middle school. The ride went smoothly to home.

Wednesday weather looks good for biking early in the day but Thursday a “cool” front could pass through lowering the temperature into the 80’s and possibly rain. I am on track to reach my 340 mile goal for September with 244.89 miles so far. Sunday is the last biking day for the month.

Summary for all the rides in 2015 on the route I rode today.

Activity Name Start Time Distance Elevation Gain Avg Speed(Avg Pace) Max Speed(Best Pace) Avg HR Max HR Calories Total Strokes
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Tue, Sep 8, 2015 10:21 AM 2:31:53 38.21 564 15.1 20.4 — — 2065 9717
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Wed, Sep 2, 2015 12:09 PM 2:33:36 37.44 587 14.6 19.9 — — 2042 9730
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Tue, Aug 11, 2015 11:00 AM 2:37:54 37.48 577 14.2 19.5 — — 1995 9763
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Wed, Aug 5, 2015 10:42 AM 2:38:14 38.68 748 14.7 19.7 — — 2139 9788
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Wed, Jul 29, 2015 10:30 AM 2:27:08 35.6 390 14.5 18.9 — — 1867 9183
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Tue, Jul 21, 2015 10:46 AM 2:36:04 37.53 472 14.4 20.1 — — 2001 9652
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Mon, Jul 13, 2015 9:55 AM 2:29:57 36.54 495 14.6 21 — — 1935 9283
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Mon, Jun 22, 2015 12:04 PM 2:32:39 37.71 653 14.8 20.8 — — 2076 9021
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Wed, Jan 28, 2015 12:00 PM 2:30:14 35.48 584 14.2 19.5 — — 1928 9396
New Caney – Gene Campbell Road Sat, Nov 29, 2014 11:33 AM 2:17:47 35.25 1093 15.3 22.2 — — 2130 8893

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Texas Bicycle News September 7th

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Cycling with Shimano Ultegra Di2

by Ray Garza        rgvcycling.com


My local bike shop had a bike on display last year that had electronic shifting on it. I recall seeing the external battery pack on it and thought how cool to have. I knew of the benefits of the electronic shifting such as precise shifting all the time. Gone are the days of cable stretch and skipping shifting. I knew I wanted it but didn’t have the funds to buy it. It was not until recently that the same bike shop had another bike on display. What really struck me was the paint job on it! I loved it. I then noticed that it too had the electronic shifting system as well. Icing on the cake I felt. A few days later I had the bike in my home. The bike that I got was the Specialized Roubaix SL4 Comp Ultegra Di2 (see Bike Upgrades).
This being my first electronic shifting system I started to read up on it. The first thing I realized that the …

Sunset Biking at Brushy Creek Trail

hillcountryoutdoors.com


The trail runs along Brushy creek. Most of the trail is tree-lined so you can really get a sense of seclusion. Along the trail are at least 5 parks – a skate park, water-sprinkler park, canoe rental, dinosaur sand park, and plenty of playgrounds for the kids. The trails are wide and great for biking.

Get Smart Bike Ride

Sunday, Sep 13, 2015, 7:45 AM

Location details are available to members only.

9 Cyclists Went

Campus Tour Get Smart Bike RideAKA: “Get Smart Bike Ride”Houston is home to several beautiful educational campuses, and we are touring them in hopes of gaining a bit of knowledge just by being there…Feeling the need for a little “after school” education?Interested in an IQ update?Let”s hit the campuses and see what we can learn! We will mee…

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Rules of the road

www.dentonrc.com


The start of the school year brings more motorists and bicyclists to Denton streets. Consider these three important facts from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 2009 data: The greater Dallas-Fort Worth area is considered the 10th deadliest metro area for cyclists and pedestrians; 70 percent of bicyclist fatalities are in urban areas; and 13 percent of bicyclists killed were children.
TOP 5 RULES FOR BICYCLISTS
• Be visible, even conspicuous. Wear bright clothes. When it’s cloudy or foggy, turn on a white light in front, and red in back (And it’s the …

Pedernales Cycle Track Nearing Completion

austinonabike.com


The Pedernales cycle track, which we have admitted having ambivalent feelings toward, is nearing a completion this month. After having ridden this path more and more over the recent months, my reservations have waned somewhat, though the section between 7th and Cesar Chavez remains…problematic for me. Anywho.
According to Nathan Wilkes, who I ran into along the trail the other day, the trail will likely be complete in the coming weeks, with the lanes already painted and the …

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Last Swim at the Village Pools Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

A change of pace on today’s ride. I rode my Motobecane 700HT on the Kingwood greenbelt trails. The trails I chose took me by most of the Kingwood village pools where a few people were getting the last swim in before they close for the season. I rode 20.38 miles among trees with darting squirrels every so often. The squirrels managed to avoid my spinning wheels thankfully.

Summer only lasts another 2 weeks so I thought it would be cooling down at least a tiny bit but when I got ready to walk to the garage (12:22) I looked at my home weather station and 100 degrees. It dropped to 99 as I watched but that is still hot. BY the time I got back home (2:23) it had “cooled” to 98. Riding on the trails in the shade helped to keep me somewhat cooler but I still drank a full water bottle and stopped at the Greentree Village pool to top of the water.

Earlier I rode through Kingwood Park at the southern end of Woodland Hills Drive. A bunch of cars and trucks were parked with empty boat trailers with the occupants out on San Jacinto river and Lake Houston enjoying the sun and heat. I took these pictures.

9-7-2015 Bike Ride Kingwood Park 1

9-7-2015 Bike Ride Kingwood Park 2

In the second picture there is a boat moving beyond the sandbar with some people and their dog on the sandbar.

I circled through the park and headed north back onto the trails. As I rode the trails there were a number of walkers and other bike riders. One group coming towards me on the trail near the Kings forest Village pool had 5 or 6 riders in jerseys. A couple were on road bikes and I could hear the leading woman telling the other people about the trails. Later as I rode along side Kingwood Drive east of W. Lake Houston Parkway I caught with a man and woman riding the same direction. I waited for a place to announce “on your left” but the traffic drowned out my voice. As I rode behind then I couldn’t help but notice the rear wheel of the woman’s bike had a severe wobble. I rode behind them for about a mile until I turned into a church parking lot and circled around it to give them time to get further ahead of me. I got back on the trail but I caught up with them at one of the traffic lights. After going through the intersection I found a spot to yell “on your left” and startled the woman. They moved over and I passed. After that there weren’t many encounters with other riders. A couple of times i came around curves in the trails to greet other bikers coming. Fortunately we were keeping to the right and passed without issues.

The Motobecane has disc brakes and the front disc was not adjusted correctly. When I squeeze the lever the brake engages but does not slow the bike by itself. This was a problem when I exited a trail to cross the street to continue the trail. I saw a car approaching from the right and slowed to let him pass but on my left the trees blocked my view until I was at the street. The brakes would stop in time if I rode straight so I turned to the right along the curb as the car passed on my left. They slowed down as the passed which helped. When I got home I looked at the disc brakes and figured out how to tighten the action. Now the brake lever stops the front wheel from turning.

Tomorrow I am back on the road bike riding to reach my 340 mile goal for September. As of today I am at 206.67 miles.

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Texas Bicycling News September 6th

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Cycling club is on the moo-ve

by Ronald Erdich        www.gosanangelo.com

No bull on Heart of Texas Cyclists’ rides

BROWNWOOD — You might like beef, you might like chicken. But playing chicken? Probably not, especially with a bull.
About a month ago, Matthew Hinman was enjoying himself on a typical bicycle ride down Indian Creek Road. Hinman is a member of the Heart of Texas Cyclists and this street on the south edge of town, where it turns into County Road 237, is a favorite among the group. It offers light traffic and somewhat challenging terrain, all with a scenic, country ride.
Hinman had already ridden most of the route and was on the return leg where the pavement had narrowed. Looking up, he spotted …

Submit Results/Points

www.texashighschoolcycling.org

Team Leaders, submit the team points HERE no later than the Tuesday after the race date by 9pm. No results will be accepted and applied after the cut off date and time.
The top FOUR highest placing finishers for each team will determine the team’s total score for each race event.  The team’s best THREE out of FOUR race events will count for the overall team standings and an …

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