Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for October 8th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Time Trials
Waco Bicycle Club
Where:   Eastland Lakes Ln, Waco
When:   Monday 06:00 PM
What:  Road/race
Contact: Spencer Jewell.    Phone: 254-644-3803
Distance: 10.6        2nd Monday of every month.

Team LIVESTRONG Challenge Austin
October 19–21, 2012
Rider registration is $50.
Can’t attend, but still want to show your support?
Virtual Challenge registration is always free.

As our organization celebrates its 15th anniversary, the Team LIVESTRONG Challenge takes great pride in our history of cycling events. What started as a small ride called the Race for the Roses that Lance Armstrong began in 1997 has blossomed into a premiere fundraising event for LIVESTRONG.

We hope you’ll join us as we aim to make this year’s event a monumental cycling experience for LIVESTRONG. Leaving from the north side of Palmer Events Center on Riverside Drive in downtown Austin, our goal is to have over 4,000 cyclists raise…

Pics From Last Week’s Traffic Skills 101 Class In Richardson
by dickdavid            Bike Friendly Richardson

A , we had our first – in quite some time – Bike League Traffic Skill 101 class in Richardson, Texas. The class was lead by League Cycling Instructors Mike Freiberger, Warren Casteel and Renee Jordan.

They had a great group of students with a broad range of riding experience. Their bicycles ranged from super light road bikes to incredibly long and heavy utility bikes.

Since it was a really wet weekend, the parking lot drills were held in a parking garage. I was really impressed…

Anhills Moving Forward
by bobdole            GHORBA

It has been roughly two years since GHORBA folks started work on the Anthills mountain bike trails. The Anthills natural surface trails are located on the south side of Buffalo Bayou between the Eldridge and Wilcrest cross streets.

The first order of business was to get the major bridges repaired or replaced. Through a generous grant from REI to pay for tools and materials and lots of elbow grease by GHORBA trail work volunteers, eight bridges have been replaced or redecked. Of special note is the “Long Bridge” as it now provides a high water crossing when…

North Texas Bicycle Rally benefits children’s charities
By Susan McFarland            Fort Worth Star-Telegram
FORT WORTH – Ride Hard and Live Long is the motto for this year’s North Texas Bicycle Rally, set to begin at 9 a.m. Oct. 13 at 4800 Henrietta Creek Road in far north Fort Worth.

Routes include 5, 15, 30, 50 and 62 miles of rolling hills and off-the beaten path roads in north Texas.

The bicycle rally benefits North Texas Children’s Charities, a volunteer organization that…

Bee Cave to decide on adding bike lanes
Cycling groups to do awareness rides and benefits
by Ignacio Garcia             www.kxan.com
BEE CAVE, Texas (KXAN) – It’s a unique point of view, videotaping traffic while riding a bicycle. Tim Diven of the Lake Travis cycling club wanted to capture how dangerous cycling is on Bee Cave Parkway. He said the video made a big impact last August.

Bee Cave City Council decided to add bicycle signs on that busy roadway. On Tuesday, they’ll consider modifying the road to accommodate full bike lanes.

Diven said he hopes adding bike lanes will actually encourage more cyclists to ride and therefore…

Plano Pacesetters at the Texas Gran Fondo
Plano Bicycle Association

The Plano Pacesetters pose before the second day’s ride of the first Texas Gran Fondo, held October 6-7. This 2-day event traveled from Austin to Dallas being well represented by the PBA.  Way to go guys and gal!

Feature: McKinney Velo Club
by WB admin            The Wheel Brothers – Cycling in Texas

1. Who founded the McKinney Velo Club and how did it come to life?
The club was founded by 6 guys, Steve Weber, Paul Harrison, Jeff Steinman, Mitch Blackwell, Patrick Burke and Tony Nevotti, who were all neighbors. They were racing for one club and wanted to branch out and form a team and race the way they wanted to race. They also wanted to get back to the community and do things differently.

2. What is your cycling clubs mission?
McKinney Velo is a competitive cycling organization whose members share a passion for racing and a strong commitment to making a difference in the local community. Our members compete across multiple disciplines including; Road, Triathlons, Mountain Bike, Velodrome, Duathlons and Cyclocross.

In our Community the team is focused on cultivating a cycling culture in the Greater McKinney area through…

https://twitter.com/Erick_Correal/status/255496881730363392

Anhills Moving Forward

Texbiker.net Posted on by
Article category: 
Advocacy
Under deck structure of the new Long Bridge

It has been roughly two years since GHORBA folks started work on the Anthills mountain bike trails. The Anthills natural surface trails are located on the south side of Buffalo Bayou between the Eldridge and Wilcrest cross streets.

The first order of business was to get the major bridges repaired or replaced. Through a generous grant from REI to pay for tools and materials and lots of elbow grease by GHORBA trail work volunteers, eight bridges have been replaced or redecked. Of special note is the “Long Bridge” as it now provides a high water crossing when the Corps of Engineers is releasing water from the reservoirs. Now that the bridges are in place you can ride end to end on the high trails even when water is being released to empty the reservoirs. Please note though that big rain events may cause the river to run even higher right after a major rain.

The next order of business is to put in information kiosks and trail signage in place. After that, the fun stuff really begins as we can focus on creating new trails and technical features. This of course includes reroutes around several badly eroded sections of the old trail.
Many thanks to all of the people that have helped so far! We not only build new stuff but trim the trails and remove fallen trees. Please consider helping out on a trail crew!

Anthills Trail Steward: Eric Dickson

Posted in Uncategorized

Less Shade and More Sun – October 8th Bicycle Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Since April I relished riding in the shade but today I wished for more sun and less shade. According to the weather site the temperature was 66.4 degrees when I started my ride at 2:17 PM but my home weather station showed 72 degrees. Thankfully I wore a long sleeve jersey under my short sleeved one. When I rode in the shade the chill moved in. As I rode and warmed up the chill became less of an issue but if I stopped for a few minutes at traffic lights I cooled off and needed to warm up all over. At least the scattered clouds did not hold back too much sun and the light 4.6 mph breeze did not accentuate the chill too much.

I waited until the afternoon hoping for more warmth. With the later start I chose a shorter route going to Huffman and back. The route covered 29.54 miles at a 15.6 mph average speed, max speed of 25.4 mph and average cadence of 80.3 RPM. These numbers are according to SportTracks. Garmin Connect and RideWithGPS.com showed slightly different numbers like 15.7 mph average speed. Riding time totaled 1:53:21 with 14:25 time stopped.

The front wheel made the buzzing sound a couple of times. I tightened the front bearing some hoping this might solve the noise problem but as a backup I ordered some replacement bearings. I found a pair on ebay for $3.89 with free shipping.

October miles now stand at 228.43 and YTD totals 5525.28 miles.

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Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for October 7th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

HBC Columbus – Weimar Loops Ride
Houston Bicycle Club
Saturday 10/20/12
8:00am     Ronald & Lilette Britsch
Distance: 24(B), 36(C), 43(C), 50(C), 58(C) miles
Flat to rolling hills, open fields. Good roads and pretty scenery, very little traffic. Its worth the extra few minutes drive. Weimar cafe closes at 1:00 (old-fashioned shakes). Take plenty of water.

Tour de Tolerance
El Paso Bicycle Club Ride
Sunday, October 28        7:30AM
Description:     Annual event raising money for the El Paso Holocaust Museum. Ride will start at Ardovino’s Desert Crossing, 100K and 50K bike rides, and 5K walk/run. Follow the details on Facebook. You can register at www.tourdetolerance.com Or call 915-331-0048 ext 24 for more information.

Goliad Camp and Ride Weekend
Hill Country Bicycle Touring Club
November 10, 2012
106 Park Road 6, Goliad, TX
Come join us for this traditional weekend of riding, socializing around a campfire, and sharing meals together.  Rides are scheduled for Saturday at 9:30 (25 miles, 33miles and 51 miles) from the  library on the main square in Goliad. The ride will be followed by  informal activities, including more cycling on Sunday, kayaking, hiking, and fishing.  Those wishing to camp or to stay in a park cabin at Goliad State Park should reserve facilities by calling (512) 389-8900 or by going online at www.tpwd.state.tx.us/reserve.   When you make your reservations, indicate that you want to be in the Karankawa Area  (Shelters 1-5 or RV sites 1 -20 [electric, water & sewer]).  Tent…

Texas Custom Bicycle Show, Oct 27-28
by The Announcer Guy        Biking in Dallas

The Lone Star State’s finest Handmade Framebuilders in Dallas for 5th annual Texas Custom Bicycle Show, Oct 27-28
Contacts: Glenn Thompson (214) 226-5844 or Susan Reeves at (214) 796-4941
WHEN: Saturday, October 27, 10:00 AM-4:30 PM; Sunday, October 28, 10:00 AM-4:30 PM
WHERE: 2720 Elm St. Dallas, TX (Club Da Da)  FREE ADMISSION AND…

VeloTexas conference set for Oct. 18-19
By Pam LeBlanc            Fit City

Street designers, urban planners and anyone with an interest in bikes is invited to a conference next week that will focus on the best way to design cities so bicyclists and motorists can coexist.

The conference will open with a roundtable discussion of the benefits of better bicycling infrastructure from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct 18 in Room 0.102 of Garrison Hall at the University of Texas.

Friday’s sessions will take place in Salon F of the Hilton Hotel, 500 E. 4th St. Experts from San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth, Houston and Chicago will share details of…

Cycling Around The Globe: (Michael)
by Rudy Pospisil        blogs.theprovince.com

Just outside of Fort Stockton Texas today. I got an email yesterday from Michael in Phoenix.

This blog is dedicated to Michael. Michael’s parents saw the news clips on Channel 5 in Phoenix of me riding into the city to meet the Mayor for my cancer cycle.  Michael is 9 years old and he is in hospital getting treatment for a brain tumor. Unfortunately they cant operate and he is undergoing chemotherapy to get rid of it. The medicine is making him quite sick he says.

He is really enjoying reading my blogs and especially likes the ones with pictures of spiders and snakes and fun stuff like that. His dad reads him the blogs because he…

Full cycle: East Texas woman inducted into Texas BMX Hall of Fame
by STEVE KNIGHT  The Lufkin Daily News
LUFKIN, Texas — Patti Gammill was 10 years old when her family went to Wheel World in Lufkin in 1976 to buy her brother a bike for BMX racing.

“My brother wanted a bike and we went to Mike Maberry’s shop, Wheel World, that was there in Angelina Mall, and we ended up with a $99 Mongoose,” Gammill said. “They were having BMX cheerleaders and Mike asked me to try out.”

During Gammill’s first trip to the Lufkin BMX racetrack, it was her intention to try out to be a member of the Lufkin BMX Cheerleaders. She ended up…

Texas Sand Spurs, Hills and Star Lit Skies Make Bike Ride Memorable
Mile 1424:  Spirit of America Ride for Hydrocephalus – Day 29 Recap
celsiusbrightconnections.com
Mary and I are accustomed to cycling in Florida. Until now, the highest hill we had ever ridden on a bike ride was a highway on-ramp. We have been riding hills for the last three days and we have a sneaky suspicion that we have not even hit west Texas hill country yet. We have also noticed that sand spurs are as plentiful in Texas as sandy beaches are back home.

On Wednesday, we put in a good ride from Columbus to Shiner, Texas. We mentioned in our previous post that finding lodging has been difficult and we would have been in trouble without the incredible generosity…

Hundreds of cyclists pedal in Pineywoods Purgatory
By RHONDA OAKS/The Lufkin News (Subscription)
More than 600 cyclists took part in the 21st Annual Garland L. Parise Pineywoods Purgatory Saturday as they took to the roadways that sprawled a winding path through the pineywoods of East Texas.

Glen Arnold, chairman of the Pineywoods Purgatory, said he believed the turnout was one of the best in the ride’s 21-year history.