Texas Bicycling News Digest June 1st

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Event teaches children how to ride a bike

By VICTORIA BRITO The Brownsville Herald

Over the years, Brownsville has become an increasingly more bicycle friendly community. And Saturday’s Bikes 4 Tikes encouraged children to become more active.
The event, which was at Linear Park, provided bicycles of all sizes to children and adults to borrow for the day and ride in the park.
Brownsville resident Carlos Cantu took his children — Martiza, 13; Carla, 11 and Carlos Jr., 7 — to the event to encourage them to be more active.
“I’m trying to stay healthy,” Cantu said. “I’m trying to…

Bike Brigade to ride to Capitol

By VICTORIA BRITO The Brownsville Herald

The Brownsville Bike Brigade will participate in a two-week bicycle ride to Austin in an effort to raise awareness for cyclists.
At 6 a.m. today, six cyclists will depart from the Brownsville Sports Park to the Capitol in Austin.
“I organized a group of people to do a benefit ride to Austin and back on bikes,” Brownsville resident Robert Ruiz said.
The cyclists who will be representing the ride are Ruiz, Adrian Mendoza, Desiree Bland, Marcelina Bocanegra, Lupe Vela and Brenda Sarah.
“The purpose of this ride is to…

Dos Lagos / Gap option

Saturday, Jun 7, 2014, 7:00 AM

Rio Plaza, 6205 Upper Valley Road
at Artcraft (parking lot next to Little Caesars_ El Paso, TX

13 Cyclists Went

7 a.m. Saturday, June 7: Meet at Rio Plaza and ride to Dos Lagos Golf Course and back (25 miles), with option to do Anthony Gap (10 more miles). 16-18 mph pace. Rick Rivas,[masked]

Check out this Meetup →

City Wide Bicycle Rodeo – Part 1

www.ksat.com

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GMSA was live at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center for the City Wide Bicycle Rodeo Saturday morning.

City Wide Bicycle Rodeo – Part 2

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GMSA was live at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center for the City Wide Bicycle Rodeo Saturday morning.

Bicycle Rodeo winners show off rides

www.ksat.com

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SAPD and the San Antonio Area Optimist Clubs held the event Saturday, showcasing the winners of the city-wide Bicycle Rodeo.

Geo & Aric Wedding Ride & Celebration

Saturday, Jun 7, 2014, 1:30 PM

Flat Creek Crossing Ranch
County Road 201 & Ulrich Road Johnson City, TX

35 Mountain Bikers Went

Join the Austin Ridge Riders as we gather to celebrate Geo & Aric’s marriage!Location: Flat Creek Crossing RanchEntrance to the ranch is free this day.Time: Ceremony will begin @ 2:00pm, followed by a group ride, dinner, & dancing.Immediately after the ceremony Geo & Aric will lead the wedding ride around Flat Creek Crossing Ranch’s trails.Ski…

Check out this Meetup →

HBC Ride Schedule

Houston Bicycle Club

Saturday 06/07/14 Zube Park 8:00am NEEDED
Saturday 06/14/14 Hempstead Melon Trail 8:00am Ronald & Lilette Britsch r.britsch@icloud.com 832-288-xxxx
Saturday 06/21/14 Columbus – Weimar Loops 8:00am Ronald & Lilette Britsch r.britsch@icloud.com 832-288-xxxx
Saturday 06/28/14 Pattison – Hempstead 8:00am Ronald & Lilette Britsch r.britsch@icloud.com 832-288-xxxx
Saturday 07/05/14 Chappell Hill West 8:00am Ronald & Lilette Britsch r.britsch@icloud.com 832-288-xxxx
Saturday 07/12/14 Zube Park 8:00am Ronald & Lilette Britsch r.britsch@icloud.com 832-288-xxxx

Ride Like A Girl – Zilker Park (ride and night swim)

Monday, Jun 23, 2014, 6:00 PM

Barton Creek Greenbelt – Zilker Park Entrance
2201 Barton Springs Rd Austin, TX

18 Mountain Bikers Went

Based on the theory that women learn new skills differently from men, these rides are designated as “for women only”.The concept is simple:  the “girls” meet at local bike trails for group rides and mountain biking skills instruction.  Riders break into small groups based on ability and then hit the trail.  After the ride, the ladies regroup for a…

Check out this Meetup →

Third Thursday Time Trial Series Race 4

West Texas Cycling Association

Date: June 19, 2014
Location: Lubbock, TX
Contact: Brian Alger
Details: Chapparal Cycling Club, as a part of the West Texas Cycling Association, will be hosting the 2014 Third Thursday Time Trial series. We will be looking for a few volunteers to help at each event as the series can not happen without you. No experience necessary. Time Trial will start at the intersection of HWY 84 & FM 1585 at 6:30pm

Ride Interview – White River Road Rally – West Texas

www.wheelbrothers.com

Ready for a busy summer of rides? We sure are! If you are having a hard time deciding which ones to do, our interviews are a great way to get the scoop on the latest and greatest rides in Texas. This interview, we spoke with Ainsley and David Nelson from West Texas Endurance about their ride on June 14th.
Why join your ride?
The ride takes place at White River, just a short 1 hour drive from Lubbock. It’s a beautiful setting that takes you away from the city and traffic.
How long has your ride been around?
This is the 2nd year for the White River Road Rally.
Logistically can you give us an idea of how many volunteers and planning it takes to put on this event?
A good race always is successful with the wonderful volunteers.  We have volunteers from the surrounding area, including the White River Municipal District and the Marina.We have been working on this event for months and are…

Energetically Rolling My Wheels In Gateway Park Thinking About Roadtripping To See Tacoma’s Chocolate Queen

Durango Texas


My handlebars are looking like they are in the same location in Gateway Park as they were two days ago.
Well, looks can be deceiving, a fact I am reminded of almost every time I look in a mirror, whatever that means, but this is not the same location. This location is about a…

Plano Bicycle Association

www.planoprofile.com


Do you remember when you first learned to ride a bike? I can still picture the scene: my dad giving up trying to teach me out of nervous exasperation and, instead of watching from the sidelines like my mom, has me choose a point far ahead and never let it out of my sight. I was flying down our street in no time. That thrill and the appeal of bicycling have long disappeared, but since speaking with a few core members of the Plano Bicycle Association (PBA), I’d be lying if I said an interest hadn’t been rekindled.
You’d feel the same! Their enthusiasm is infectious. And if you’ve never experienced that victoriously sweet sensation of learning to ride a bike, never fear. PBA members are eager to…

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Jumbled Route With Rain

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In an attempt to battle route boredom today’s route is a jumbled route. The one I had in mind when I left home at 11:43 is not the one I ended up riding. I exited Kingwood on the back way via Mills Branch and Ford Road. I thought when I got to the Stripes station on FM1314 I would head back towards home (should’ve done that) but I continued to Cumberland Blvd and then turned back to the Stripes station for a break. It wasn’t as many miles (15.4) when I usually take a rest stop but I wasn’t sure I would pass another place and the 32 oz Gatorade was $1.07. Sitting in the shade and drinking the Gatorade I looked at my phone because the sky was getting darker gray to the east. Radar showed rain to the east and south of Porter. Look at photo #5 in the slide show below and the rain is visible on the radar. I thought if I ride through Valley Ranch I might get around it and there is a Texaco station I could stop if the rain started.

It’s about 2.6 miles from the Stripes station to the Texaco station at Valley Ranch on the US59 south service road. Looking at the sky I figured I could get there and stay dry. Things went as planned while I was riding north on Valley Ranch Parkway but as I neared the turn onto Valley Ranch Bend Drive the wind picked up and the temperature dropped several degrees signaling rain was not too far away. I made it to the Texaco with only a few drops hitting me. Standing under the overhang at the Texaco I could see US59 to the north and the rain. I made a decision to stay at the Texaco thinking the rain would come south with the wind blowing strong enough to make the flag stand straight out. But the rain was slow coming. I probably could have rode to Porter on the service road before the rain caught me but that section has no place to get out of the rain for about 1.1 miles. I biked in the rain yesterday and I wanted to avoid that today if possible. So I waited and finally the rain moved over the Texaco store. It wasn’t heavy but the streets were wet enough that puddles formed. After about 30 minutes the rain slowed and almost stopped and the sun came out. I hoped the sun would dry things out enough that I would not get too wet. I didn’t mind riding on wet streets so much as long as I wasn’t in the rain.

Not too long after that the concrete at the Texaco showed some dry spots so I headed to the service road and went to Porter. From the Texaco to FM1314 the road was wet with some puddles. Cars stayed far enough to the left that I didn’t get splashed. South of FM1314 the road was a little drier without the puddles but occasional streams crossing the road. As I approached Northpark Drive the service road was almost dry and south of Northpark to Kingwood Drive the road was dry without any water in the gutter. At that point I turned onto the north service road to get back into Kingwood. Generally the streets were dry except under the trees. I made it home at 3:03 riding 29.2 miles averaging 15.6 mph. The Stradalli was dirty so I spent 15 minutes washing. I got everything cleaned up and as I write this it started raining again at home. Maybe tomorrow will be dry? Up until yesterday I managed to not ride the Stradalli in the rain. Now it has been in it two days in a row.

This week I biked 127.74 miles. Year to date I biked 2433 miles.

June is off to a wet start. Last year I biked 885 miles in June so I think I will make that the goal for this year.

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Texas Bicycling News and Blog Digest May 31st

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ATTENTION: MONDAY IS A BIG DAY FOR RICHARDSON CYCLISTS!

Bike Friendly Richardson

There are two big bike events happening on Monday, June 2. Please try to attend either one, or both.

…The next is the Bike Friendly Richardson, Bike Parking Initiative presentation to the Richardson City Council, that evening.
We were asked by City Council member, Scott Dunn, to present information about creating a functional and comprehensive bike parking plan that would…

Goodfluence Bicycle Tour Across America

By Darryl        lovingthebike.com


You all remember my Do Good bicycle friend, Rob Greenfield, right?  Rob’s the awesomely crazy one who cycled across the US last summer to promote sustainability.  It was one incredible journey and he captured a lot of attention along the way.
Here’s a brief summary of how minimal he was during his 4,700 mile tour:
created  just 2 pounds of trash (yeah, 2lbs through the entire trip)
used 160 gallons of water (the average family uses this in one day)
plugged into just 5 outlets
never turned on a light switch
Ate all local organic food or food that would have gone to waste (including a lot of dumpster diving)
Rob GreenfieldWell, he’s back at it again this summer, and…

Ride Interview – Club Fire-Ant 100K – Gatesville, TX

www.wheelbrothers.com

Well, Wheel Brothers, we had some amazing rides in May, but with June just around the corner, it’s time to get it in gear for the Fire Ant 100k on June 14th! To learn more about this exciting ride, we talked to Laura White, who spilled the beans on everything you need to know about the Fire Ant 100k.
Why join your ride?  We feel we offer some of the best “riding trails” in Central Texas, and give a choice of four lengths:  10 miles, 24 miles, 45 miles, and 100K.  We get riders off the highway as soon as possible, and onto county roads into the rolling hills of Coryell County, where there is minimal traffic.
How long has your ride been around?  Since 1996 – so this is Ride #19 for the Fire-Ant.
What was the motivation behind starting the ride and who benefits from it?  This is the Exchange Club’s keystone fund raiser for scholarships for graduating high school seniors.  At this time, we offer two scholarships of $1,000 each, and our goal is to increase this amount in the future.
How have they been able to utilize funds in the past?  The students use their $1,000 for tuition to the…
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Driveway Series – May 29, 2014 – Mens 4/5 Crashes

Turnin’ Cranks


Some footage of the crashes from the May 29 race at Austin Driveway Series

The Racing Post – June 2014 Edition

Wednesday Morning Ride

Wednesday, Jun 4, 2014, 8:30 AM

Richardson Bike Mart
1451 W. Campbell Rd Richardson, TX

4 Members Went

35-40 Mile Ride

Check out this Meetup →

Upcoming Rides

Corpus Christi Cycle Club

2nd Annual Tony Balboa Memorial Ride
A summer fesitval is scheduled for June 21, 2014. This ride replaces the “ride from hell” we did from the London ISD last year and will be held in Alice. The benefits from this ride will go to CYCLE Kids programs in Alice. The routes are currently in the design phase. Expect a DJ and a fun time. Alejandro “Tony” Balboa, 22, passed away May 27, 2011, after injuries sustained in a cycling accident. Tony’s final act of charity was donating his organs to give the gift of life to others. Tony believed that organ donation is a unique testimony of charity. We memorialize Tony every year in this event and ride.
Warriors on Wheels
Scheduled this year for November 11, 2014. Our veterans will be on their last leg of a week long trek from Wichita Falls. ONLY 24 RIDERS WILL BE ALLOWED to accompany our soldiers on the leg starting in Beeville coming into CC. SIGN UP IMMEDIATELY with Jim Clancy at jclancy@branscombpc.com to be considered. The week long adventure has reached maximum capacity and no more riders will be allowed to start in Wichita Falls. Those of us in the final day support group will all be wearing matching jerseys coming into CC for the grand celebratory arrival. This is going to be an awesome event!!!
11th Annual Conquer the Coast
imageThe Saturday event will be held on September 20th, 2014. There is a 65 mile, 25 mile and 10 mile event.  This is the usual great Saturday ride around the bay with a special addition, a Sunday criterium. The criterion is a joint CC Chamber of Commerce and Corpus Christi Cycle Club event and is a USA Cycling sanctioned event. This ride is currently slated to be held in the American Bank Center vicinity and more details will be provided as they become available. Please visit the Conquer the Coast website for more information and registration.  Join last year’s 65 mile winner Al Kline and the CC Cycle Club for this great event.

Day 4 Lufkin to Carthage

2 on a tandem

May 31, 2014
77.9  miles
5:29 ST
14.2 avg
Never, never, never, NEVER trust an old man who gets out of a big pick-up when he says the road ahead has hills that “aren’t too bad”. Never.
Don’t worry, we didn’t. We went out there totally expecting the opposite.
Let me back up. Did I mention that we entered the hill country yesterday? After two days of almost totally flat roads, we started into some gentle ups and downs. Today they turned a little more than gentle.
We got a good early start out of Lufkin, hitting some road construction fairly soon. Some of that was not real fun as we were riding in a two lane with…

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I Almost Made It To The Chevron Station

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I almost made it to the Huffman Chevron without getting caught in the rain. I was riding north on FM2100 headed to the Chevron station and as I rounded a bend I could see the rain ahead about 1/4 mile south of the railroad tracks. Having ridden this route many times I have mentally cataloged places where I can get out of the rain. I passed one at the storage place where a carport offers a quick place. The next one was Lake Houston United Methodist Church about 300 yards passed the storage place. I was going fast to reach the church and large rain drops started hitting my helmet. I thought the rain was going to be heavy so I rode to the porch at the church. This was about 1/2 mile from the Chevron station. A train had just went through the intersection so traffic was backed up too. I waited at the church about 15 minutes while the traffic cleared some and the rain slowed down.

The church parking lot is a mixture of gravel and concrete. I rode slowly through the gravel/mud to the concrete and then to FM2100 asphalt. To keep the mud and grim to a minimum I moved slowly to the FM2100 FM1960 intersection. The light changed so I did not have to stop in the rain. Weaving through some cars on FM2100 north of FM1960 I rode into the Chevron station and a dry area. The rain was not too hard but steady making puddles. It was a good time to have a snack and drink so Gatorade waiting for the rain to slow or stop. By the time I finished the rain stopped and the road started to dry off thanks to the 80 degree temperature. Leaving the station I rode on a wet FM1960 for about 1/2 mile to where the rain ended. From that point to home the streets were dry though the sky looked threatening to the west. The rain was just around Huffman.

I opted for a longer version of the Atascocita – Walden – Huffman route coming in at 33.32 miles. Average speed dropped down while I rode in the rain but I did manage to hit 15.1 mph. My starting at 11:07 probably helped get me in the rain. I was watching stage 20 of the Giro d’Italia live. I checked the weather before leaving and the rain spots were scattered around with nothing really too close. With the rain delay I did not finish until 2:20. The temperature when I started was 80 and 86 at the end. When I went inside the Chevron station to get the Gatorade the A/C was very cold thanks to my rain soaked jersey and shorts. One of the ladies said they would have got the Gatorade for me if I had went to the window. I will remember that if it happens again. After wiping off my bike I headed home.

May miles ended at 266.6, 98.54 miles this week and 2404 miles year to date.

Next week the weather is supposed to warm up to the 90’s and the rain goes away. I will work on my June goal.

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