Texas Bicycling News Digest June 14th

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Cyclist concerned about proposed federal funding change

by Kevin Cummings        starlocalmedia.com


Having the distinction of being the birthplace of Lance Armstrong, in 2013 Plano was named the most bicycle-friendly city in Texas. And as a weekend drive will show, many residents use cycling as both a recreational hobby and a means of transportation. However, recently introduced house resolution by U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson (R-TX) has some local cyclists concerned about the future of their mobility.
At the beginning of the month, Johnson introduced House Resolution 2609, or the “Right-of-Way for American Drivers Act of 2015,” to …

Texas 4000 stops in Vicksburg for night: Church of the Holy Trinity feeds, shelters riders

By Dylan Rubino        www.vicksburgpost.com


The Texas 4000 team made a stop in Vicksburg Friday night on Day 14 of their bicycle journey from Austin, Texas to Anchorage, Alaska to raise awareness for the fight against cancer.
The group rested for the night at the Church of the Holy Trinity Episcopal, where they were given a place to sleep for the night. The church provided the cyclists with dinner as soon as they got to the church after taking showers at the local YMCA.
The opportunity to be taken in by the people of Vicksburg for the night is something …

Even though rain has stopped, many DFW bike trails still unusable

By Christian Clark, Special to the Star-Telegram


Like the deluge that preceded them, the questions never seem to stop flooding in for Cash Anglin.
As the Dallas Off Road Bicycle Association’s Vice President of Trails, Anglin has been hit with a near-constant stream of inquiries from eager biking enthusiasts since the storms that pounded North Texas have subsided.
How are the bike trails? When will they be open?
The answers that Anglin gives have mostly been disappointing thus far. As of Friday, nine of DORBA’s 17 bike trails throughout the …

Another Bike Ride With The Village Creek Indian Ghosts With No Fox, Skunk Or Raccoon Reacting With Fear

by Durango Texas        durangotexas.blogspot.com


Seems like I just visited them, but, even so, this Flag Day Sunday seemed like a good day to visit the Indian Ghosts who haunt Arlington’s Village Creek Natural Historical Area.
Standing water in various locations and dirt that was dry a couple days ago had been turned back to mud, sticking to my bike tires, indicating, it would seem, that some …

Who cleans up Houston’s bayou trails after a flooding?

BikeHouston.org


This year Memorial Day weekend brought heavy rain to the greater Houston area, which caused the bayous to fill to the brim and beyond. When the water disappeared trails were left behind with debris and mud. Then it was time for a big clean up operation.
Bayou Greenway Conservation and Maintenance director Trent Rondot takes care of 50 miles of bayou trails in Houston. He says they have seen flooding of the trails already six times over the last year, so they have enough experience to know what to do. Rondot says as soon as the water recedes the clean up begins.
“The worst problem specifically connected to the flooding is silting. The mud that is deposited on …

Disabled cyclist trains for race

By Jacqueline Sarkissian        www.cbs19.tv


TYLER (KYTX) – A simple joy like cycling can be difficult for people with disabilities. Now some local groups are helping Caleb Daley achieve his goal of competing in a time trial. He tells us why that assistance is helping two brothers grow even closer.
27-year-old Caleb Daley calls himself an adrenaline junkie and his love of biking is part of that.
“Anytime I can go fast it’s a passion. If it goes fast, I’m down for it,” says Daley.
Daley was born with Spina Bifida and he’s been in this wheelchair all his life.
Daley says, “Throughout my life I’ve …

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

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Biking In Sun and Rain

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It’s always kind of strange to bike in the sun while it rains. I experienced that on today’s ride while on Rebawood Drive on the way back home. It started as a few sprinkles when I crossed Legend Oak Drive. The rain increased as I rode west on Rebawood until I reached the next intersection at Sunny Shores Drive. Then the rain stopped. The pavement on Sunny Shores was damp for a few hundred feet but then turned dry. I made a left onto Country Club Drive thinking I might need to look for shelter. I kept riding though and that was the last of the rain.

All this took place while I rode the “Atascocita South – Walden – Huffman” route. It was about 90 degrees over the 33.58 mile long ride. High clouds dominated the sky and the wind seemed a lot stronger than the 6 mph from the ENE. Every direction I rode felt like a headwind until I got to FM2100. My legs were not producing the power necessary to get my average speed above 15 mph. Riding north on FM2100 I was finally able to hit 18 to 20 mph and my average speed increased to 14.9 mph. When I stopped at the Chevron station for refreshments the breeze was cooling while I sat under the metal canopy. It didn’t take log for the perspiration to dry up. The newspaper I sat on though was soaked when I stood up to leave.

Riding towards home from Huffman I picked up my speed and lifted the average speed to 15.0 mph and at one point it was 15.1 mph. This segment enjoyed a tailwind and I was glad for it. While I was riding over Lake Houston I saw other bicyclists; one each going opposite me as I crossed. I waved but they didn’t return it as far as I could see.

Yesterday was a rain day. While I took the day off (it rained until around 11 AM) I researched on my rear wheel not staying centered. I found a few other people asking the same question. The conclusion is the rear skewer does hot hold the rim in place tight enough allowing the rim to slant towards the left chain stay. Two solutions I found: add a star washer to the rear skewer between the dropout and the threaded end of the skewer; or use a DT Swiss RWS skewer. The DT Swiss RWS uses a ratchet rather than a cam lever like most skewers. According to one website this increases the pressure by up to 50%. A secondary benefit is the red and black color goes with the Stradalli RP-14 colors. These are not inexpensive though. I ordered one and will see if this fixes the problem.

Sunday ends the week. A progress report: 230.45 miles for the week, 475.37 miles for the month, 2708 miles for this year. 493 miles left to reach my goal for June ((68 miles).

With today’s ride the Stradalli reached 7995 miles. Not bad since buying it on 3/5/2014.

Huffman Weather during the break

Huffman Weather during the break

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Texas Bicycling News June 13th

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Bryan Father/Daughter Team Biking Across the Country

By: Kessler McLaughlin        www.kbtx.com

A Bryan man is making the journey of a lifetime…and making history doing it!
Air Med 12 pilot Billy Rice is competing in a grueling bike race and he’s making the ride with his 16-year-old daughter.
This isn’t the first time he’s done the Tour Divide, which is a …

Security Officer on Bicycle Struck in Downtown Dallas

www.nbcdfw.com


A security patrol officer on a bicycle was struck by a vehicle and injured Friday evening in Downtown Dallas, police say.
Officers and medics were called about 8:30 p.m. to the intersection of Lamar Street and Ross Avenue. …

Possum Pedal Bike Ride, Graham, TX Comments

www.bicycle-stuff.com

I have done this ride before and reviewed it as a great ride. I think they made it better. They changed the routes some because of Tx DoT. I really didn’t notice or mind any of that. Road conditions were great. Sign in was ok, no problems. Rest stops,…? Fantastic. May I hold your bike ?, we are so glad you drove 2 hrs to be at our event, on and on. Plenty of snacks and drinks. You felt wanted and special. Ride promoters take note of this. When we feel wanted, and the ride is set up as good as this one,………well,……….we come back ! Road was well marked with colors for each route. And if you forgot, look at your wrist. The bands were the color you signed up for. Great idea IMO. As for the …

Mesquite Rodeo Ride, Mesquite, TX Comments

www.bicycle-stuff.com

I did this ride for the first time ever. I have heard good things about it, but the timing have never worked out until today. Everything I have heard about this ride is true! The course was really good(100K) and well planned with plenty of rollers. Great rest stops. For the most part, the roads were in good shape with most hazards clearing marked. signage was good, though I missed a turn due to my inattention. All major and more minor intersections were controlled by local law enforcement. Parking was easy, registration was efficient and fast. Thank you to all the volunteers from law enforcement, rest stops, registration, etc. You guys did a great job! This ride is on par with …

These DIY Bike Signals Are Easy to Make and Last For Ages on One Battery

by Alan Henry        lifehacker.com

Being seen when you’re biking is incredibly important, and while we’ve shown you some ways to add signals to your bike before, this method is easy, runs for ages on a single nine-volt battery, is bright as all getout, and is a perfect primer to electronics projects.
You’ll need about $20 worth of supplies to make this happen, and the finished product is extremely long-lasting (the circuit is completely off when not in use, so the battery doesn’t slowly discharge), it’s small and light so it doesn’t get in the way while you bike, and it’s super …

Getting Past Gateway Park’s Closed Trails I Found America’s Biggest Boondoggle Being Busy

by Durango Texas        durangotexas.blogspot.com


Before my regularly scheduled Saturday Town Talk treasure hunt my handlebars took me to Gateway Park for some trail inspecting.
As you can see the Trinity River is still roaring over Gateway Falls, making passage impossible across the river to continue on to beautiful downtown Fort Worth, or the …

Valley city project provides bike racks

www.valleymorningstar.com


The Brownsville Racks for Bikes project has installed 10 bike racks at locations throughout the city with the help of a $2,500 grant from People for Bikes.
The racks were placed outside the City’s Parks and Recreation Department, Market Square, Oliveira Park , Washington Park and Monte Bella Park, officials said.
People for Bikes is …

New Event Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

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Texas Bicycling News June 12th

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Local cyclist Craddock has uphill climb in Critérium

By Dale Robertson        www.houstonchronicle.com


PRA LOUP, France – Lawson Craddock has gotten his first true taste of what the Tour de France feels like this week, and truth to tell, he hasn’t found the flavor all that much to his liking.
To continue reading this story, you will need to be a digital subscriber to HoustonChronicle.com.

Alkek Velodrome

ATTENTION RIDERS – Masters and Junior Regional Championships are being postponed.
It pains me to say this as there has been so much work put into this weekend but weather conditions are going to deteriorate. We have several riders coming great distances and we can’t let it play out like we would for a FNR. The rain is expected to be prolonged and can be quite heavy over the weekend. We have a large number of events and delays would push us back to racing past Midnight Saturday. The outlook for Sunday is even worse. So we are postponing Master and Junior Regionals.
The new date is August 22 and 23. This is …

Council hears pitch for bike routes

By MATT DOTRAY    A-J MEDIA        lubbockonline.com


The City Council heard from Anne Epstein, chairperson of the Lubbock Board of Health, about the need for more bicycle lanes during an afternoon work session on Thursday.
Other representatives of the Board of Health and the West Texas Cycling Association were in attendance to showcase their support.
Epstein said the board recently passed a resolution in support of the restudy project based on two …

Houston Bike Plan Goals

BikeHouston.org


BikeHouston sets goal of building a network of safe, continuous bikeways within a half mile of all Houstonians. This network must work for people young and old, and reach all parts of the city. With a safe bicycle network we can address health and traffic concerns by tripling the share of people commuting by bicycle from 0.8 percent to 3 percent in five years. 33% of all trips in Houston are 3 miles or less, a distance which is easily and often faster taken on bicycle than car. If there were safe comfortable bikeways to travel on for these 3 miles, people would begin to use a bicycle rather than a car for these trips – taking cars off the road, reducing traffic, and getting people healthy and active.
The Houston Bike Plan should embrace these goals and detail how to get there.
BikeHouston’s recommended goals:
Expand and …

PJ’s first bicycle experience

by Matthew        bike4heck.com

Finding time to write
Well, today (June 10, 2015) I finished up my last continuing education class for my teacher certificate, so now I’ve got some time to devote to Bike4heck.com
Let’s start by backing up a little bit and see what changes have taken place in the past 6 months to a year. Well, a bunch of stuff happened, but this post is not about that. So let me sum it up like this: First Born (PJ) arrived in July 2014; Got a new Yuba Mundo 4.3 in February 2015; Purchased Yepp Maxi (Child Seat) last part of March, and PJ had his first ride on April 7th around the block, Then, his first family ride about a month ago and his first group ride this …

Tweets About Texas Bicycling

https://twitter.com/txbikeracing/status/609558423642902529

https://twitter.com/txbikeracing/status/609556937953292289

https://twitter.com/BBQ44/status/609378581945257984

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Texas Bicycling Upcoming Event Reminders