Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for November 6th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

CrossHouston2012
www.youtube.com

Videography of the 2012 Cross Houston cyclocross race.

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lOOKING FOR A WARM, SCENIC AREA FOR A FEW WEEKS IN DEC/JAN
by cymro            www.bikeforums.net
We’re thinking of escaping the cold here in Ontario for a while this winter and traveling south with our trailer. The Rio Grande valley is an area that we are looking at. Does anyone have any comments or suggestions. We like hiking and biking in scenic areas.

Any help will be appreciated!

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Austin Cycling Quarterly Newsletter
From the President
Some personal reflections on the changing of the guard by Gilbert D. Martinez, ACA President As I complete my third year as ACA president in December, I find myself reliving a range of emotions. I thought I would be ready to ride away from the responsibility of president with barely a glance in my ACA-branded helmet mirror. I couldn’t wait for the day when I didn’t feel the weight of the organization on my shoulders. I remember feeling angry at times. I’ve been angry about the senseless loss of cyclists’ lives on our roadways. I’ve been angry that some motorists haven’t been charged criminally, even though the facts appear to suggest otherwise. I’ve been angry when cycling facilities and support get short shrift from local journalists and…

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West Texas Cycling Association
Tour Das Hugel
Date: November 10, 2012
Location: Austin, TX
Contact: info@tourdashugel.com
Details: 108 Miles of Austin’s most painful hills… including more than 13,000 feet of climbing. Tour Das Hugel is an annual gathering of scores of riders who brave the steep climbs west of Austin.
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West Texas Championship Series MTB Race 6 of 7
Date: November 11, 2012
Location: Caprock Canyon State Park, TX
Contact: Team Kordestani
Details: West Texas Championship Series Race 6: Quitique Quest
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West Texas Championship Series MTB Race 7 of 7
Date: November 17, 2012
Location: Palo Duro Canyon, TX
Contact: Team Kordestani
Details: West Texas Championship Series Race 7: Palo Duro Marathon
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Cyclocross Cup Race 2 of 5 – Mae Simmons Park
Date: November 25, 2012
Location: Lubbock, TX
Contact: Sun adventure Sports806-351-2453
Details: $20 entry fee with cash payouts. Any bike can race. Best 4 of 5 races count for the series.
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Cyclocross Cup Race 3 of 5 – SE Park
Date: December 2, 2012
Location: Amarillo, TX
Contact: Sun adventure Sports806-351-2453
Details: $20 entry fee with cash payouts. Any bike can race. Best 4 of 5 races count for the series.

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Corinth Cycling Club

Mary completes her 73 mile ride (actually 74) on her 73rd birthday. Just plain awesome. Congrats Mary!

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LMRA Bike Club Morning Ride:
Walnut Creek Baptist Church, Reno – 9:00AM
All Day Event: Nov 09, 2012
Be a Positive Ambassador:
STOP – LOOK – and be SEEN
STOP at all traffic lights and signs.
LOOK before continuing to ensure its clear.
Be SEEN obeying the law while cycling safely.
… be safe and an ambassador for all other cyclists.

Helmets are required for club rides. Smiles encouraged. 😀
Scheduled rides are a go, unless wet or below 40 degrees.
Starting time is 9AM on Winter schedules.

Map to LMRA Bicycle Club ride start locations
This week’s ride start is from Walnut Creek Baptist Church in Reno, TX
220 West Reno Road, Reno, TX

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24 Hrs of Rocky Hill / Camp Eagle Trip 2012
by tonkster                Brazos Valley Mountain Bike Association
Joel’s Recap:
24 Hrs of Rocky Hill
Another successful race for the BVMBA.  Although some of our riders had a few bumps, bruises and sore spots we all left in ONE piece!!!

James and Mark Munnerlyn got the short end of the stick when there 4 man squad was cut in half.  None the less they both put in speedy times and finish with a total of 7 laps.

I finished each lap well within my designated goal time. I only crashed 4 times during my time on the trails with a major wreck on lap 6.  Felt really erie watching the rocks coming straight at me.  I was able to do 9 laps  putting me in10th place for my 2nd attempt at the 24 Hr race.

But the highlight of the 24 Hr wknd was the Dream Team (Mike, JP, Kim and Ali).  They competed in the 3-4 person…

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Bayou Parkland bike bridge honors conservancy founder
By Megan Mattingly-Arthur        www.chron.com
The Hermann Park Conservancy will host a dedication ceremony for the Bill Coats Memorial Bike Bridge at 4 p.m. Nov. 16 at Bayou Parkland on Almeda between South MacGregor and Holcombe.

The dedication, which will take place on the Almeda side of the bridge, will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a procession across the bridge and down to a meadow recently added near the new MacGregor pedestrian underpass.

The bridge honors conservancy and Trees for Houston founder Bill Coats, who died in 2010. It will span nearly 300 feet across Brays Bayou, connecting Hermann Park’s bike trails to the soon-to-be-completed 35-mile Project Brays trail system. …

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Taylor County Commissioners support Abilene federal bike route application
The Taylor County Commissioners’ Court approved a resolution Tuesday to support Abilene officials in an application for federal money that would fund a proposed bike route and sidewalk project along S. 11th Street.

County Judge Downing Bolls said its rare for Abilene to even ask for the county’s blessings, which doesn’t include any monetary support. “The county normally isn’t a part to these kinds of projects,” he said before the Tuesday meeting.

Abilene City Council voted for the application submittal for the Transportation Enhancement program at its Thursday meeting. The program is through…

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Austin, Texas Mountain Biking\Fun Suggestions
by slowwrx                 www.sorba.org/forum
So I’m headed to Austin next week for the F1 race. I’m scheduled to be there for a full week and I’ve already rented a bike.

I’m planning on hitting up Walnut Creek and the Barton Creek Green Belt trail.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for either Mountain Biking, Food, Or Dive Bars. …

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CHeWing ThE PHat: The Perfect Bike
by JaredS            Texas Mountain Bike Trails
I’m asked all the time what’s the perfect bike to ride.  I don’t know why my friends and co-workers ask me that question.  It’s probably because I ride thirty-three miles into work pulling my B.O.B. trailer.  Or because I ride a century on the weekends and return to the fire station with no muscle aches or joint pain.  Or maybe it’s because I can fix my own stuff since my first job was working in a bike shop way back in 1989 in upstate NY where I fell in love with cycling both on and off the road.  None of these things make me any kind of expert but…

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Feature: Southern Elite Cycling Race Team
by WB admin                The Wheel Brothers – Cycling in Texas

1. Who founded the club and how did it come to life?
The Southern Elite Cycling Race Team was originally founded by Bill Edwards around 1986 and was formed mainly to help mentor and coach junior riders to prepare them to compete. The team has great success with numerous national champions and world champions coming from the club.

2. What is your cycling clubs mission?
Formally our mission (as seen on website) is:
“Southern Elite is an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation with a serious long term commitment to maintaining a youth cycling race team. The purpose of the team is to provide financial, mentoring and coaching support to deserving young athletes in the development of their racing careers and in pursuit of the Olympic dream. Each year athletes who meet pre-established qualifying time standards will receive financial support for a…

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Tweets

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Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup November 5th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Bicycle Sport Shop – Cody Johnson, RIP
I regret to inform our community that Cody Johnson, our friend and staff member at Bicycle Sport Shop, was struck by a car while riding his bike on Riverside just after midnight Saturday morning, and has died due to the severe injuries he sustained. Cody joined our team in March of this year, but in that short time had become close friends with many of our staff, who are heart-broken about his untimely death.

In observance of Cody’s life we are organizing a short ceremony and bike ride on Sunday, November 11th at 9:30 am. We will gather at the Pfluger bridge over Lady Bird Lake to share our thoughts about Cody, and then take a short, casual bike ride around town. Please join us, even if you didn’t know Cody, but would like to let people in Austin know that every life is precious and that killing a cyclist will not be tolerated.

Hill Abell

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Most expensive chain ever.
by EmbraceTheHate            forums.mtbr.com
Broke a chain at walnut creek and ended up getting this
2012 kona cadabra
Atx bikes hooked me up. Good guys over there!

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HBC Urban Challenge Ride Ride
Houston Bicycle Club
Sunday 11/11/12        9:00AM
Starter: Daniel J. Lyons
The Urban Challenge Rides are in-town group rides, faster and longer than the EZ Rides, each time taking you to different parts of the city each time. You should be able to maintain a pace of 15 mph and above for a distance of 40 to 45 miles, usually with one rest stop.

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2012 Tour Das Hugel Event Information
We hope to have more information posted here soon, but for the most current happenings, always check our Facebook Page.

2012 Dates:
Nov. 10, 7 a.m.
2360 Stratford Drive, Austin, TX  (Parking lot by MoPac ped bridge at Zilker Park)
Alternate Date (small group ride for those who can’t make Nov. 10)
Nov. 10, 7 a.m.
2360 Stratford Drive, Austin, TX  (Parking lot by MoPac ped bridge at Zilker Park)

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24 Hours of Rocky Hill Recap – Piglets Point of View
Off-Camber Trains of Thought:
Ryan: When Kevin came to me and asked for a partner for 24 Hours of Rocky Hill, I was under the impression that he was joking. I’ve only heard, and seen, the likes of Rich Szecsy, Ray Porter, and the bearded wonder Mike Frazier even attempting this race. Surely two Cat 2 racers with minimal racing experience (in comparison to the field) do not belong at such an event. The inquiry came in around summer time, so October seemed like it would never come. I accepted, and started training.   With the experience and knowledge of Rich at our disposal, we made sure to pick his brain on training techniques, schedules, benchmarks and the…

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Tweets

https://twitter.com/TXSTsportclubs/status/265493335060402176

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Breaking the Barrier But Nothing to Show – November 5th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

A big difference in today’s weather versus last Saturday’s ride setting. Scattered clouds today while last Saturday I raced the rain clouds home. The temperature for today’s ride started at 79 degrees and ended up at 81 degrees when I finished around 1:40. The forecast calls for a 50% chance of rain today but during the ride no sign of that happening. The light WSW 8 mph breeze kept me from overheating. The wind seemed different today because only when I rode to the northwest did it feel like a headwind. All of the other directions the breeze pushed me along.

I rode one of my more frequent routes going up US59 to Porter and then jogging east to Loop 494 to continue to New Caney. I could tell when I headed northwest because the wind resistance picked up. I rode a short distance west on FM1485 to the US59 south service road. Once I was on the service road I continued to the Valley Ranch entrance and wound through Valley Ranch to FM1314 before riding south on Old Sorters Road through Briar Tree, Oakhurst to Northpark Drive. From there I took Kingwood Place south and thena side street back to US59 service road to Kingwood Drive. Taking the u-turn under US59 I went north for short distance and turned right to get to Loop 494. After that it wasn’t too far to get back into Kingwood and follow the residential streets and trails back home. At this time of day traffic was not an issue. The Garmin was faithfully recording my travels all this time.

I don’t have much ride data or map today because when I tried to download the data from my Garmin Edge 500 it would not connect to my computer. So after several tries I did a master reset which erased all of the ride data including today. Fortunately I remembered some of the ride data like the 31.4 miles but the rest went in the dark data hole. With that 31.4 miles I passed into the 6,000 miles for the year territory for the first time ever in biking career. I started riding in 1979 so there have been many years to try but when you work full time and have a long commute most of those years I thought I did great getting in the 4,000 mile range. The mileage standings: 90.42 for November and 6030.65 YTD. With almost 2 months to go I am not sure how many miles I will ride this year but each one will set a new record.

Now that daylight savings time has ended I need to start my rides no later than noon to give time to ride and then at least start writing about my trip with some daylight left. I accomplished that today starting around 11:25.

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for November 4th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Tweed Ride Update
Bike Friendly Oak Cliff

Many people have been asking about the BFOC Tweed Ride, which is usually held each November.  This ride has always been lead by one of BFOC’s co-founders, Jason Roberts.  As some of you may already know, he has recently been facing some serious health issues.  After discussing this year’s Tweed Ride at a recent meeting, the board of BFOC unanimously decided that we should postpone the ride until Jason will be back in action and ready to lead the ride as usual.  We all feel that it would not be the same without him.  We expect to hold the ride in January or February of 2013.  So you have a few extra months to get your tweed…

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Pace Bend – 11/03/12
www.austinbike.com

Today we hosted a group of people from Houston out at Pace Bend. With about 30-40 total riders, we broke into several groups, which kept the ride going and allowed everyone to have a stress free day.  The weather was perfect and the beer and snacks afterwards were well deserved. (many more pictures)

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Barton Creek Greenbelt Ride – 11-04-12
www.austinbike.com

Beautiful day, perfect weather, a great time to be out on the greenbelt.  Dennis and Crispy were determined to maximize their mileage and chose to start further upstream.

We netted out about 15-16 miles and they ended up around 22.  Great pictures from some of the places we stopped to session the obstacles. (many more pictures)

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James Webster, correspondent for Texbiker.net, sends this video and slide show report from Cross Houston at Houston Oaks Country Club on November 3 and 4, 2012.

Cross Houston
Course information: What is not to like about a CX race on a former links-style golf course? We have lots of grass, rollers, just the right amount of sand, barriers, double wheel pit, start line grid, and full course tape.

Cyclo Houson Nov. 2 2012 video

Cyclo cross Houston slide show

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HBC Cat Spring Ride
Sunday 11/11/12
distances: 28(A), 36(B), 40(B), 47(C) miles
Flat to moderate hilly ride about an hour west of Houston. Stores in Bernardo (not always open on Sundays) and New Ulm.

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Boys & Girls Club of the Austin Area Bike Club
The Ghisallo Foundation
ID: 2012-0011
Start Date: 2012-10-11
End Date: 2012-12-31
Status: ACTIVE
The continued growth of our youth programming led us to the Boys and Girls Club of Austin’s (BGCA) EAST campus. We had previously participated in a Bike Rodeo at Booker T Washington, a low-income housing complex in East Austin, as well as having surveyed the community as part of our Rosewood Neighborhood Bicycle Census. BGCA EAST primarily serves the youth of Booker T Washington and had been interested in restarting a pre-existing on-site bike maintenance workshop which had been in hibernation for a number of years due to lack of volunteers. …

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8:00am – Cup o Joe
Corinth Cycling Club
When: Sat Nov 24, 2012 8am to 9:30am  CST
Where: Ronny Crownover Middle School
Event Status: confirmed
Event Description: The Cup o’ Joe is a beginner level ride of around 15 miles. The ride heads south to Hickory Creek and stops for drinks at Starbucks on the way home. The ride leader for this ride is Bob Troyer. …

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Spooky Cross from Dallas Texas!
The Spooky Cross, hosted in Dallas this past weekend, was the third race on the CX racing calendar in Texas. It was held at two separate venues, both in the …

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Tweets

https://twitter.com/Whelchel/status/265165394401173504

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