Texas Bicycle News September 5th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Fitness calendar

www.dallasnews.com


Cycle for Cystic Fibrosis, Make-A-Wish Foundation
The Sept. 12 CF Cycle for Life Dallas features 30- and 60-mile bike rides through scenic portions of North Texas, starting and finishing at The Shops at Highland Village, 1701 Shoal Creek, in Highland Village. The event is a rally, not a race, focused on fundraising for finding a cure for cystic fibrosis. Registration is $35 with a $150 fundraising minimum. Participants must be 16 to participate. Helmets are required. For information, call 214-871-2222 or visit fightcf.cff.org, then click on “Cycle for Life.”
The Oct. 3 Wish 100 bike rally starts and finishes in Historic Downtown McKinney, 111 N. Tennessee St. It features a family friendly 11.9-mile ride, along with 17.3-, 41.3- and 63.1-mile routes for cyclists of all ages and abilities. On-site registration and …

Traffic Skills 101 Classes In Richardson, Texas – September and October 2015

by dickdavid        bikefriendlyrichardson.org


Because Richardson is such a Bike Friendly Community, we thought it would be great to hold a couple of Traffic Skills 101 classes this fall.
Traffic Skills 101 (TS101) gives cyclists the confidence they need to ride safely and legally in traffic or on the trail. Through TS101, students learn how to conduct bicycle safety checks, fix a flat, on-bike skills and crash avoidance techniques. We recommended this class for adults and children above age fourteen. The curriculum is fast-paced, and prepares cyclists for a full understanding of …

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

https://twitter.com/MitchellGSides/status/640297468559814656

Texas Bicycling Event Reminders

No Singing In the Rain On This Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

I set out to ride the “Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman” route leaving home at 11:53. Before leaving I checked the weather radar for rain. There was a big patch over Baytown to the 35 miles southeast of where I live. My thought was the rain would move to the east out of the route area and all would be dry. Nice thought that lasted until I turned into Kingwood Greens off of W. Lake Houston Parkway. there was another biker doing the opposite headed where I came from in a big hurry. I rode on Kings View Drive about 100 feet and the rain start coming down. Maybe it was just a spot and I could ride out of it. Nope! It started raining harder so I moved to the sidewalk under the trees to get away from the rain. The trees went away and I rode back onto the street going fast to get back to W. Lake Houston Parkway.

Across W. Lake Houston Parkway sits Kings Harbor, a group of buildings with restaurants and shops and most importantly a parking garage. I waited for traffic to pass and darted to the parking garage but a slow pickup truck was in front of me waiting on a car that was backing up for some reason. The car stopped and I rode around the truck and ducked into the garage as the rain increased. I was dripping wet but I was out of the wind, kind of. With the rain the temperature dropped from the 96 degrees at my house to somewhere in the 80’s. Being wet I could feel the change. I waited in the parking garage for 20 minutes or more for the rain to at least slow down. Finally the puddles showed just a few drops landing in them and I left to continue the ride.

I wasn’t sure if I would ride the route I planned but as I approached FM1960 the streets were dry and I decided to stay the course until I ran into rain again. Riding through Walden the streets continued dry and I made it back to FM1960 to ride over Lake Houston. No rain so I stuck to the route. Once I was on the causeway the shoulder was damp but not enough to be a problem. Fairlake Drive and Old Atascocita Road were dry as well. Going north on FM2100 to Huffman the sun came out and I hoped I would dry off some. At Huffman I turned right onto FM1960 and began riding to Huffman – Eastgate where I would turn. As I got closer I saw some flashing lights near the turn. It was a wrecker pulling a pickup truck out of the west bound ditch. He wa heading east on the shoulder and I did not get a good view of the pickup truck until he made a u-turn and came my direction. The front of the pickup truck had connected with a pole and the smashed the front end quite a bit.

Making the turn onto Huffman – Eastgate the road was wet again because of the overhanging trees but once I was out from under the trees the road was dry. It stayed that way to the May community Center, from there back to FM2100 and then to the Huffman Chevron where I took a break at the 28 mile point. Waling inside the store I was hit by the cold air conditioned air against my soaking wet shorts and jersey. My new Pearl Izumi Elite Gel Vent gloves were soaked as was my wrist bands. I tried a bunch of paper towels to soak up the water from the wrist bands but it wasn’t too successful. Getting back outside quickly I sat down under the canopy on a Greensheet newspaper. I ate my snacks and drank some Powerade. I checked the weather on my phone:

The yellow and green rain was between me and home. I looked at the western sky and a dark patched moved over Huffman but no rain fell. I got up and the newspaper was soaked. I checked the weather radar again and the rain had moved to the north and I got ready to leave.

Riding back onto west bound FM1960 I felt a few rain drops and made a mental note of places to get out of the rain if it picked up. Fortunately the drops were few and I kept riding. Once I was on the causeway over Lake Houston there would be no place to hide from the rain. The drops continued but not enough to get me any wetter than I already was. I rode through Atascocita Shores and Kings River back to W. Lake Houston Parkway. The streets were damp until I got to the Parkway. It was dry until I turned left onto Kingwood Greens Drive. The streets were damp again. I made a big “U” back to W. Lake Houston Parkway on Kings View Drive for the final 3 miles home. From there no more rain drops to home.

I got back home at 3:45 and washed the bike. I am getting way to much practice washing a bike. This is the 3rd time in a week.

Where I stand after today’s ride:

  • 187.06 miles this week
  • 153.81 miles in September. My goal is 340 miles.
  • 5282 miles for the year. My goal is 6500 miles.

A summary of the rides on this route this year.

Activity Name Start Time Distance Elevation Gain Avg Speed(Avg Pace) Max Speed(Best Pace) Avg HR Max HR Calories Total Strokes
Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman Sat, Sep 5, 2015 11:53 AM 2:45:52 39.75 577 14.4 20.2 — — 2092 10613
Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman Wed, Aug 19, 2015 10:54 AM 2:44:33 40.92 650 14.9 20.1 — — 2246 10618
Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman Fri, Aug 7, 2015 10:09 AM 2:55:03 42.35 696 14.5 22 — — 2296 10599
Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman Mon, Jun 29, 2015 10:49 AM 2:52:31 42.38 801 14.7 21.4 — — 2341 10441

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Texas Bicycling News September 4th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Bicyclist critically hurt in hit-and-run collision

By Dale Lezon        www.chron.com


A woman was critically injured early Friday morning in a hit-and-run collision when a vehicle slammed into her as she rode a bicycle along a street in northwest Houston.
The incident happened about 3 a.m. on North Shepherd near 34th Street, according to the Houston Police Department.
Police said a person called 911 after seeing the injured woman lying in the southbound lanes of North Shepherd. When officers arrived, they determined from evidence at the scene, including the mangled bicycle, that a vehicle had rammed the woman. The driver left the scene.
The woman, whose …

Coming to a low-volume, low-speed street near you!

bikeabledallas.com


The bike network in Dallas is growing before our very eyes! We’ve added shared lane markings on a number of low-volume, low-speed streets in Oak Lawn, Lakewood, East Dallas, and North Dallas.
A year ago, we had 17.8 miles of bicycle facilities on the ground. As of today, we’re at 37.3 miles, and there is more progress on …

Tuesday: Intermediate/Advanced Mountain Bike Ride at the Ant Hills

Tuesday, Sep 8, 2015, 6:15 PM

15200 Memorial Dr
15200 Memorial Dr Houston, Te

2 cyclists Went

This will be a medium to fast pace ride through the Ant Hills of Hershey Park! Bring WATER, spare tube/tire, snacks, etc…Helmets required. Call if you are going to be late so we can wait for you. Wheels rolling by 6:30! See you there

Check out this Meetup →

Marvelous Massey Rd

Fort Worth Bicycling Association        www.fwbaclub.org

Monday, September 07, 2015 8:00 am
Ride some of the area’s most scenic terrain on the way to the Massey Rd hill climb.  Your prize at the top is a view of the whole world toward Granbury and Glen Rose.  One catch, you have to do the 66 or 82 mile route for Massey Rd.  The shorter routes both feature great low traffic country roads and beautiful scenery but no Massey Rd.
All are welcome! You do not have to be a club member to participate. There is no fee.  Just good roads and good ride riding companions.
And for those who care to take a …

Traffic Skills 101 Clinic

Plano Bicycle Association

Traffic Skills 101 (TS101) is a fast-paced class that will give you the confidence to ride safely and legally in traffic or on the trail. You will learn how to conduct bicycle safety checks, fix a flat, on-bike skills and crash avoidance techniques. We recommended this class for adults and children above age thirteen.  The classroom portion is completed online at www.bikeed.org prior to the class. You should expect to spend 1.5 – 2 hours doing this. The skills and riding portion will take 5 – 6 hours.
Date: September 13, 2015
Time: 9:30 am to 3:00 pm
Who:  All aged over 13 are welcome. Under 18? Then a parent or guardian must sign your waiver
What to bring: …

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

https://twitter.com/txbikeracing/status/639813953942499328

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Texas Bicycling Event Reminders

Waiting to Stay Dry

Texbiker.net Posted on by

This time the rain arrived before I left to ride. I got ready to leave around 11:30 and was eating a snack when the rain started. It didn’t last too long depositing .12″ according to my weather station. Since it was about 90 degrees I knew once the rain stopped it wouldn’t take too long for the streets to dry. I pressed the start button my Garmin 510 at 12:27 as I exited the driveway onto a mostly dry street to begin the “Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch” route. About 3 or 4 blocks later the streets were dry like the rain skipped them.

To make the route a little longer I added some streets taking me by Kingwood High School before heading to US59. Once I got to US59 I rode to Sorters Road and then north. The streets were dry and the mostly cloudy sky looked good for the rest of the ride. I made it to FM1314 and turned to the northwest to ride to Cumberland. At Cumberland I made the turnaround at the Grand Parkway overpass construction. Heading south east I stopped at the Stripes station 23.6 miles at Valley Ranch Parkway for a rest stop. Sitting under the pump canopy looking north the sky looked good.

The weather when I stopped at Stripes:

But when I looked to the southwest I saw dark clouds gathering. (The rain is just at the edge of the weather map above) I figured I could make a run for home riding through Valley Ranch as planned. I got to US59 and rode south on the service road keeping an eye to the west. The dark clouds were to the west but no rain. I made it home after biking 35.15 miles at 3:33.

This year I biked this route 12 times.

Activity Name Start Time Distance Elevation Gain Avg Speed(Avg Pace) Max Speed(Best Pace) Avg HR Max HR Calories Total Strokes
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Fri, Sep 4, 2015 12:27 PM 2:25:15 35.15 525 14.5 20.2 — — 1862 9092
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Thu, Aug 13, 2015 11:14 AM 2:26:13 35.15 479 14.4 19.9 — — 1889 8759
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Fri, Jul 10, 2015 10:56 AM 2:19:15 34.75 509 15 19.9 — — 1857 8765
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Tue, Jun 30, 2015 12:17 PM 2:15:45 32.9 463 14.5 21.5 — — 1772 8354
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Mon, Jun 15, 2015 9:59 AM 2:20:53 34.82 528 14.8 27.3 — — 1905 8491
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Wed, Jun 10, 2015 11:04 AM 2:27:33 35.28 417 14.3 19.7 — — 1857 8679
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Wed, Jun 3, 2015 9:30 AM 2:11:51 33.04 407 15 21.3 — — 1775 7962
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Thu, May 28, 2015 11:07 AM 2:12:14 32.76 482 14.9 20.5 — — 1780 8365
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Sun, May 3, 2015 11:19 AM 2:03:04 31.53 709 15.4 21.7 — — 1805 7891
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Wed, Apr 22, 2015 12:25 PM 2:13:56 32.78 646 14.7 21.2 — — 1818 8275
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Wed, Apr 8, 2015 11:06 AM 2:14:18 32.53 919 14.5 21.1 — — 1889 8192
Oakhurst – Cumberland – Valley Ranch Wed, Apr 1, 2015 11:57 AM 2:10:08 32.32 692 14.9 21.4 — — 1843 8096

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