Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for January 18th

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Thursday Ride at Walnut Creek – Beginner/intermediate ride level
The Austin Mountain Bikers Meetup Group
Thursday, January 24, 2013        4:30 PM
Walnut Creek Park
12138 N. Lamar Blvd., Austin, TX (map)
This will be a beginner ride and will be doing around 8 -10 miles.

If someone is willing to lead a faster group then we can have an intermediate group also.

Please be there and be ready to roll by 4:30 pm. We meet in the parking lot near the pool in the middle of the island.
Any question please call/text  me at [masked]
Beginner level ride with no drop.
Things to bring: …

Weekly Group Rides
BikeHouston
Looking for a group to ride with?
BikeHouston is compiling a list of regular weekly group rides for new and experienced riders. Please consult the group ride rules at the bottom of this page before you join a ride.

If your store or group hosts a weekly ride and you want it added to this list, please send us an email to get it added to our list.

Each location shown in the map below will have one or more rides associated with it. Refer to the numbered location in the list below to see which group rides start from that location (map is not clickable). …

Pearland Cycling Club
You’re invited to The Pearland Cycling Club Holiday Party
Friday, February 1, 2013, 6:00pm
Big Horn BBQ, 2300 Smith Ranch Road (@ SH 288 feeder)
Pearland, TX 77584
BBQ Meal (excluding alcohol)
and
Retul Bike Fit Seminar Sponsored by Fitness Solutions
***Please RSVP by 1/28/2013 to gmkoenning@….
– Prize Drawings to include 2 FREE Retul bike fits which we now offer in Pearland
– Discounts on Retul bike fits available to all in attendance at the seminar

Englishman Biking Across North America Stops in Navasota
Reporter: Shane McAuliffe        www.kbtx.com
When 23-year-old Englishman Dave Gill rolled into Navasota on his bike, he didn’t know what to expect.

After a quick meeting with the mayor, the man who’s on an 11,000 mile journey across the North American continent began his conversations with a few of the town’s most colorful folks.

“After reading things like Into The Wild and On The Road, there’s something about traveling through America that has become really appealing to me,” said Gill.

The reason for Gill’s incredible trek?

“Just a desire to have an adventure,” said Gill.

Starting in New York back in November, Gill has made his way down the east coast, to Florida and is now on his way to San Diego. After that, it’s north to Alaska where he’ll head back east to…

British Man Biking Across North America Stops in Navasota
www.kcentv.com

Frosty Adventure
by Eliot Landrum        Biking in Dallas

The holidays were over and the new year had begun, and I needed an outdoor adventure.

Obviously, a camping trip was in order. I spent a few hours googling s24o trips, made a couple of gear runs, then loaded up my mountain bike with a good sleeping bag, hammock, and plenty of layers of clothes. Did I mention that the temperature was supposed to drop to 24 °F the night of our trip? …

I have purposely not posted Lance Armstrong related news but with all of the racket I am including one now. Prior to part one showing on Thursday I got a phone call from a reporter at KHOU-TV in Houston asking if I knew of any places where people were going to watch the interview. The only ones I knew about were in Austin. I don’t know if she found any.

Cycling-In Armstrong’s Austin, beer-fueled disappointment
By Melanie Warner            www.reuters.com
AUSTIN, Texas
Jan 17 (Reuters) – At a bike shop in a hilly area of Austin, local cyclists gathered on Thursday over beer, wine and pizza to watch disgraced cyclist and Austinite Lance Armstrong confess to Oprah Winfrey that he used performance-enhancing drugs.

Surrounded by bicycles, dozens of people and a few dogs crowded around a single flat-screen television near the cash register at Nelo’s Cycles. They wore cycling gear or jeans, brought their own chips and salsa and were joined by television crews from everywhere from Texas to Denmark.

“Every time you hear the word ‘sorry,’ you have to chug a beer,” a Nelo’s employee yelled moments before the interview began. Groans floated…

Tweets

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Herd of Turtles – January 18th Bike Ride

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About 7:30 this morning I walked my niece to school in 39 degree weather. As I walked I wondered if it would warm up enough to go biking today. That walk covered about 2 miles three and back. Later about noon I decided to walk to the post office. Going to the post office and back was around 3 miles. As I walked back I noticed the nice sunny day warming up and I unzipped my jacket to let some of the heat out. When I got back home I checked the home weather station and 64 degrees stared back at me. So I decided a bike ride was in order. The last ride was a week ago on January 11th.

At one point on my walk back from the post office I was on a trail beside a bayou and I looked down to the opposite bank and saw a herd of turtles (probably 6 or 7) basking in the sun. I tried to get closer to take a picture but they saw me and scurried into the water.

As I got ready at first I thought the mountain bike would be my choice but I changed my mind because I can ride my road bike faster so I can go farther. The route through Atascocita and Walden at Lake Houston covered 21.61 miles in 1:29:26 time. My average speed was only 14.5 mph but with the wind chill I don’t know if I wanted to go too much faster. Even though the SSW 4 mph wind normally is not a problem wind chill at 64 degrees is. Fortunately I dressed pretty close to what I needed to keep warm: leg warmers, long sleeve jersey, short sleeve jersey, shorts and full finger gloves. The gloves were most appreciated because moving through the air and shade I could feel the chill trying to get a hold of my fingers. I only encountered one other bicyclist out in the cool but sunny weather.

January mileage is a paltry 70.99 miles, far below last year’s 267.25. I am beginning to think getting to that number will be a stretch with the cold weather and rain dominating January so far. The next three days are supposed to be in the 60’s so I might be able to add some more mileage.

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Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for January 17th

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PeopleForBikes.org survey underscores need for better infrastructure
People for Bikes Blog
Last fall, we surveyed PeopleForBikes.org supporters (about 500,000 of you at the time) about your bicycling habits, preferences, and behaviors. Our neighbors at the Leisure Trends Group crunched the data from the nearly 20,000 responses received. Here’s what they found. (If you prefer pictures to words, scroll down to the infographic.)

Not surprisingly, you like to ride bikes. On average, you’ve been riding for a while (16+ years) and you ride often (up to 13 times per month on average for some types of riding). Our survey respondents own three bikes on average and ninety percent self-identify as cyclists. Men and older riders are more likely than women and…

Triathlete to ride 75 miles to celebrate birthday, raise money for Prostate Cancer Foundation
By Pam LeBlanc        Fit City

Austin triathlete Jody Kelly will pedal 24 loops on the Veloway this Saturday to raise money to fight a disease that killed her father.

The fund-raiser, dubbed “75 Miles for 75 Years to Help Cure Prostate Cancer,” comes a few days before Kelly’s own 75th birthday. She’ll start her ride at 7:15 a.m. and hopes to finish at about 1:15 p.m. Friends will join her for some of the laps.
My%20Father.jpg

Kelly’s father died of prostate cancer in…

Bembrook Elementary Ride hosted by Tour de Hood, January 12, 2013
by Chris Lockwood            BikeHouston

On a not-so-rainy Saturday morning in January, some members of BikeHouston and folks from Tour de Hood, met up with some of the young recipients from this past year’s Elves and More bike program for a ten-mile bike ride.

Tweets

https://twitter.com/CyclingAtlas/status/291879550449750018

 

 

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for January 16th

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Houston Bicycle Club
Saturday 01/19/13     Zube Park    9:00am     Ronald & Lilette Britsch
Distances: 33(B), 40(C), 49(C) miles
Flat county roads in Harris, Waller, and Montgomery Counties. Pay attention to the map – there are a lot of turns. Only one store on the route.

Weekend Rides
San Antonio Cycling Club
Saturday, January 19th,
Blanco Road Ride
9:00 AM
Meet with Jim and Carlos at the Whataburger parking lot on Blanco Rd and Loop 1604 for this impromptu ride on Blanco Rd.

Sunday, January 20th,
Devine – Bigfoot Ride
9:00 AM
Meet at Triple C Steakhouse in Devine for a 30 mile flat to rolling hills ride. Map # W5. Lunch will be at Triple C Steakhouse. Great place to eat. Ride Leader: David 210-849-5663
Directions to Triple C: Take IH-35 South of San Antonio towards Laredo. Take exit 122 at Devine ( Hwy 173.) Right on 173 to Triple C on the left. (about 200 feet).

Start The Year Off Right With Traffic Skills 101
by dickdavid                Bike Friendly Richardson

Our neighbors, Bike Friendly Garland, are hosting the first Traffic Skills 101 class of the year. This is an official League of American Bicyclists course, taught by local instructors. This class is for any cyclists (with any experience level) who is interested in developing their knowledge in bicycling and build their confidence and competence on the road.

Here are the details:
Cost: $25 – due at the start of the on-site class.
Location: TBD
Date: Saturday, February 2, 2013
Time (parking lot/road course): 8:00 am – 2:00 pm
Course Description: 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…

Fitness in Central Texas
go20tx.wordpress.com
Every January, the number of 24 Hour Fitness, Lifetime Fitness and Gold’s Gym commercials skyrocket, as people make their fitness New Year’s resolutions. If you made a commitment to become healthier in 2013, or you just want to get out there and be more active, we’ve made a list of of places in Central Texas to help you to achieve these goals while enjoying the out-of-doors, and supporting local business.

…Other great locations for bicycling around Central Texas abound. AustinBike.com is a great resource for those interested in mountain biking, as the group travels around the area, testing out and reviewing mountain bike hot spots. Two such spots include the Madrone Trail in Canyon Lake and Rocky Hill Ranch in Smithville. The Madrone Trail takes bikers on an 8.4 mile loop along the scenic areas around Canyon Lake’s, well, lake! It’s ranked a “medium” as far as difficulty…

Feature: Neoteric Racing Club
by WB admin            The Wheel Brothers – Cycling in Texas

Today’s featured cycling club is more than just a cycling team. Sure, they ride for the love of the sport but they also ride for a cause; a cause that they are extremely passionate about- fighting cancer! One race, one revolution at a time, the Neoteric Racing team is not giving up. Each member of the club has been touched by the big bad C word and now they are using their passion for riding as a catalyst to fight back. The founder and president of the team, Gary Mc Alea, was kind enough to talk to us more about his inspiring club. Get ready to be motivated because by the end you’ll want to join forces with this amazing team and their new cancer fighting initiative EXTERMINATE CANCER to kick some serious cancer butt!!

1.     Who founded the club and how did it come to life?

After losing his mother to cancer, founder Gary Mc Alea was motivated to do everything possible to Exterminate Cancer. He ran Team Dell, the largest cancer charity team participating in the annual…

Tweets

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