Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for December 21st

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Jan 1 – PBA New Year’s Day ride
Plano Bicycle Association
Tuesday, January 01, 2013, 10:00am
Date:  January 1, 2013
Time: 10 am
Start/finish location: TBD (probably NW corner of Coit and Spring Creek, Plano)
Distances:  TBD (probably 3 distances, say 30, 40 and 50 miles)
Pace packs: TBD (probably more than 1)
Ride leaders: TBD
Maps: Maybe
After ride food provided by Andrew Hoodwin: TBD (BBQ would be good)

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Feb 3 – Super Bowl Ride
Plano Bicycle Association
Sunday, February 03, 2013
Plano ride start time:  9:30 am
Plano Start/Finish location: NW corner of Coit and Spring Creek, Plano

Destination: Dallas West End for lunch at Dick’s Last Resort (Bring your lunch money and meet other Metro-plex cyclists at Dick’s). Don’t want to eat at Dick’s? OK, pick another local favorite (Hooters is next door).  Don’t want to stay for lunch? OK, a group may return to Plano after a quick pit stop.

Pace: Average speed for the entire ride 16-17 mph
Distance: 48 miles.  Back in plenty of time to nap through the super bowl Wink
Updated route map with cue sheet: Under construction
Ride leader:  Chris Mathews
Don’t want to leave from Plano? Then find other Metro-plex start locations on this list: …

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Fort Work Bicycle Association Rides
Baker Road Ride
Sunday, December 23, 2012 9:00 am
Aledo Middle School

The Rusty Chain Gang Ramble
Tuesday, December 25, 2012 9:00 am
Fort Worth: Columbus Trail City Building

Burleson and Beyond
Thursday, December 27, 2012 9:00 am
Burleson: Commerce Street

The Rusty Chain Gang Romp
Thursday, December 27, 2012 9:00 am
Benbrook: YMCA

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We lost some trails at Leon Creek…
by In-Yo-Grill                forums.mtbr.com/texas/
I went riding yesterday to give the new 29er a try. I had a great ride but it was cut short. As I was coming out of the Bird Sanctuary I ran into an older couple. They informed me that it was private property and they were going to start enforcing it.

Major bummer since that area has some great winding single track through the woods. … (with comments)

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Thursday Ride at Walnut Creek – Beginner/intermediate ride level
The Austin Mountain Bikers Meetup Group
Thursday, December 27, 2012        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…

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Congratulations to the USA Cycling 2012 CLUBS OF THE YEAR!
www.usacycling.org
Colorado Springs, Colo. (December 17, 2012) — USA Cycling is excited to announce the winners of its 2012 “Club of the Year” awards! Three clubs earned overall “Club of the Year” honors in divisions I, II, and III and an additional eight clubs earned special awards in the junior/interscholastic, masters, women’s, new club, track, mountain bike, cyclo-cross, and collegiate categories.

In addition to bragging rights, the winning clubs will receive a trophy and complimentary renewal fees for 2013. Congratulations to our winners!

Division I – Team Dayton Bicycling (Dayton, Ohio)
Division II – Northwest Cycling Club (Houston, Texas)
Division III – Ghisallo Foundation (Austin, Texas)…

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Tweets

https://twitter.com/MitchellGSides/status/282021943832625152

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Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for December 20th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

One year with my 2012 Specialized Sirrus Limited
RGV Cycling
Well, it’s been about a year and 3000 miles later that I have been using my 2012 Specialized Sirrus Limited. For those that don’t know, this is a carbon bike in a hybrid format (flat bar). It is also my first carbon bike and so far I love it. I have not made any changes to the components other that the pedals. Oh, yes I also changed out the tires to Maxxis Re-Fuse within two weeks after getting the bike. OK, one more change is in the Saddle. I now use the ISM Adamo saddle. Other than that, everything else is stock. Oh, shoot, just read the article and find out!

I’m not going to bore you with component specs (I’ll bore you some other way) as I’m not a component junkie as many cyclist are. If you are interested, go to Specialized website and check it out. The link is to their archives for that…

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New Year’s Detox Ride
AustinBike.com
Yes, it is that time of year again.  And, even though it has been at least a week since I have stopped drinking in Russia, I believe that I still have a large amount of vodka in my body.

Just like the annual post thanksgiving ride, we also have an annual detox ride in this town.  The greenbelt is the only appropriate place to hold such an important event, so that is where we will be again.

Start off the year right with some climbing.  Set a new years resolution that you can actually stick to; I said 100K of climbing this year and I am at 115K, hoping to hit 120 before the ball drops (either new years or my own.)

The ride details: …

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Down Twelve
by Steve A            DFW Point-to-Point
My v3 commute has proved remarkably consistent over time. As it turned out, commute mileage in 2012 is down twelve miles from 2011. In 2011, I drove in to work four times in February, but I took fewer full vacation days and also worked a few Saturdays. In 2012, I took more full vacation days and it was a leap year, but there were no…

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Harden Dental Team Ride
Corinth Cycling Club
Sat, January 5, 2013, 8am – 11am
Weekly on Saturday
Where    Ronny Crownover Middle School
Description
This is the weekly training ride for the Corinth Cycling/Harden Dental race team. This is a 62 mile loop on an established route. Expect a fast pace and be prepared to fix your own mechanicals. There are no stops on this ride.

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Deep Ellum Rocked Our Holiday Ride.
dallascyclestyle.com
We had such a great time Saturday, we’re still living in the afterglow. Aside from the great mix of shops we visited on our holiday boutique tour, there was a great group of folks, and the casual pace and booze at the stops really made for an entertaining afternoon! I wrapped up a good bulk of my shopping list, and a few of us even got ourselves Christmas gifts too!

There was even some talk of making this a monthly event, riding to locally-owned boutiques scattered throughout the in-town…

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Bike through Trail of Lights tonight
by By Pam LeBlanc            Fit City
Want a new perspective on the Trail of Lights? Hop on your bicycle and pedal through the blaze of bulbs tonight.

Cyclists will gather starting at 6 p.m. in front of the Zilker Botanical Garden, 2220 Barton Springs Road. The trail will open for cyclists at 6:30 p.m., before it opens to pedestrians.

The ride will proceed through the trail to Stratford Drive. There, cyclists may continue their ride on their own. …

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True Recovery Ride, Our Newest Sunday Pace Group
by sooner1            Shawnee Trail Cycling Club
We’ve seen it over and over as the club grows.  The ride groups get larger and more diverse and it doesn’t take long till there’s a demand from participants to form more pace groups so they can go faster, slower, shorter or longer distances.

We’ve reached that point once again on our Sunday morning rides.  Not long ago we formed the Hangover Ride, which has been a resounding success.  We’re now introducing the True Recovery Ride.  This ride will follow the Hangover route, but will be at a 13-15mph pace, same as that of our D group on…

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Wimps and Weenies Ride
by sooner1                    Shawnee Trail Cycling Club
Never let it be said that Shawnee Trail Cycling Club doesn’t listen to it’s members.  There’s a demand, although slight, for group ride that accommodates those cyclists that think there are days or nights that are TOO COLD to ride.  Some of you, and you know who you are, stay home and ride your trainer (yuk!) in the warmth and comfort of your favorite room – spinning, spinning, spinning – and going NOWHERE!

Just for you, we’ve put together the Wimps and Weenies Ride, although to call it a group ride we will have to turn this into an interactive online game so you can enjoy the…

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Tweets

https://twitter.com/DanielJardin/status/281885085018509312

https://twitter.com/JuliaBikes/status/281763567479422976

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Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for December 19th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Tip of the hat to NWCC
GHORBA.org
Congratulations to Northwest Cycling club for winning USA Cycling’s Club of the Year (Div II). Many of you may be members or ride with their members, but may not appreciate their contributions to mountain biking. NWCC, as mentioned in the link, has been very generous with its funds, including significant cash donations to help build the Huntsville and Double Lake expansions. In addition, the…

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Oak Cliff Cargo Bike Company
Bike Friendly Oak Cliff

The bicycle love continues to grow in Oak Cliff!  Oak Cliff Cargo Bicycles, started by Jonathan Braddick and Brennan Bechtol is a new startup company spurred on by the cargo bike workshop BFOC put on as part of Cyclesomatic 2012.   Oak Cliff Cargo Bicycles will be offering custom utilitarian cargo bikes to the masses. Get ready to leave the car at home…

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This article is not about Texas but it is very unusual for a bike manufacturer to makes bike parts in the US.

Portland Bike Maker Sees Made-in-USA Demand from Overseas
By Anthony Effinger            www.businessweek.com
Until this year, few people beyond his 96 employees saw inside Chris King’s bicycle factory in Portland, Ore.

The cagey manufacturer makes everything in an old coffee roasting plant on the edge of town, and he zealously guards the secrets that have helped his company thrive despite competition from China and Taiwan, where 99 percent of the 15.7 million bikes sold in the U.S. last year were made, according to the National Bicycle Dealers Association.

Now, as businesses in disparate industries, including Apple and General Electric, rediscover the appeal of Made in USA, King is letting visitors see at least some of the 80,000-square-foot place: the frame-welding floor, the room where…

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A Rare Tour of a Rare Business: Chris King’s Made-in-USA Bicycle Factory
By Anthony Effinger


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Tuesday: Intermediate/Advanced Mountain Bike Ride at the Ant Hills
Houston Cycling Club
Tuesday, December 25, 2012            6:15 PM
15200 Memorial Dr, Houston, Te (map)
Look for group and ask if it’s us! call me, Jeff @ [masked] if you have any questions or are going to be late.

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

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Walnut Creek Crossing is Armored 12/1/12, The Whole Story
by Rankintex            Austin Ridge Riders
Seventeen hardcore Rockaholics showed up on Saturday, December 12, 2012,  to help Rich “Big Pig” Szecsy,  ARR’s recently-appointed Walnut Creek Trail Steward, place 10,000 lbs of large limestone block and 3,000 lbs of decomposed granite on the Walnut Creek crossing by the far corner of the Maintenance Yard fence

Please thank all these volunteers for their efforts when you see them on the trail:  Rich “Big Pig” Szecsy, Charlie Riou, Charles “Jake” Carsten, Jim Rankin (with Preacher dog), “Digger Dan” Nelson (with Wombly dog), “Fix-It Todd”Johnson, Devin Wedward, Brock Dennison, Alejandro Gonzales, George Dawkins, Robert Wood, Justin Ogden, Ruben Ochoa, Anthony Chen, Erica Belmont, Chris Shea, and Marion Menet.

The crew was deep with trail building expertise including: Charlie Riou (ARR’s Board V.P. and  Resident Stone Whisperer), Rich “Big Pig” Szecsy (ARR’s WC Trail Steward and Experienced Wunderkind from Dallas), Charles “Jake” Carsten (IMBA’s…

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Bike and Brunch
El Paso Bicycle Club Ride
Saturday, December 22    9:30 am
Start at La Union (parking lot at NM 28/S. Vinton Rd. Moderate ride through valley, 30 to 35 miles. Brunch afterwards at Chuck and Wyona’s new home (off of Alvarez Road — we’ll drive there after ride). Linda Price, 915-433-xxxx, and Wyona Turner, 915-204-xxxx. (FYI: Coffee shop has reopened at NM 28/Vinton Rd. in case you need to caffeinate before the ride.)

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Upcoming Events
West Texas Randonneur
Short Bike Ride
Dec. 21, 2012
Midland
Really Slow Bike Ride
Dec. 25, 2012
Midland
long bike ride
Dec. 31, 2012
Midland

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Tweets

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Elf Ears and Reindeer Antlers – December 19th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

The Action sign time and temperature board kept flashing 81 degrees in Huffman. The cloudy sky did not stop the warm temperature and the wind did not cool it down either. when I left home I knew I would battle the wind on the this south and east route to Huffman and back. The IAH weather station on wunderground.com showed 15 mph from the south with 33.4 mph gusts (see the slide below). Pedaling was labored when I went into the wind and I really appreciated turns away from head on wind. Later tonight the wind is supposed to shift to the northwest and get much cooler maybe down to freezing Thursday night. The 70’s and 80’s will disappear for at least a few days. I will be staying inside those days.

I varied to the route to Huffman by not riding on Fairlake Drive and Old Atascocita Road. Instead I opted to go north on E. Lake Houston Parkway from FM1960 then east on Smith Road and then south on FM2100 to FM1960. The ride south on FM2100 moved slowly as the wind hit me straight on. I hoped the ride west on FM1960 would not be into a headwind but the side wind might as well been one. The 81 degrees did not make the wind coming off of Lake Houston feel warm. I was glad to get to the west side of the lake and away from the wind chill. The wind was so strong the cars with the elf ears and reindeer antlers on their side windows had them pinned down on the car when they were stopped. This route was 29.26 miles long and with the stiff wind my average speed dropped below 15 mph to 14.9 mph.

All of the slides and metrics for today’s ride come from the Golden Cheetah program. I am trying to learn all of the features and options. SportTracks is still in the picture while I try out Golden Cheetah. Garmin Connect and RideWithGPS.com still have my rides as well.

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