Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for August 14th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

The Alligator Ride
Lone Star Cyclists
Pace: Touring with a Fast Pace Option
Date: Saturday, August 18, 2012 – 7:30am
Location: Lowe’s Home Improvement, 4444 N Galloway Ave, Mesquite (Google 32.824358, -96.621881)
Please park as close as possible to Barnes Bridge Road.

Every year the Mesquite Rodeo Ride offers up some great roads to travel, and this weekend we are going to ride on some of them. We have a couple of routes to choose from: 36 and 59 miles. Come enjoy some pretty, rolling countryside in a setting that is a change of pace for us.

Why the funny name? Somewhere on the long route a sign once warned of alligators. You will stand a much better…

Bike Plan update, Oak/Hickory $35,000 study proposed
by bikedenton
At the city council 2:30PM work session today, Public Works staff will report Bike Plan progress to the council, and the council members will discuss and give direction back to staff. The new priorities are listed as:

1. Windsor (Old North to Bonnie Brae)
2. Sycamore (DCTA station to UNT)
3. To Be Determined
4. Oak & Hickory.

The Windsor proposal is simply a redirection of county bike plan funds, and it will add bike lanes without removing any parking. The Sycamore route also uses county money, but from Commissioner Andy Eads, and the focus is on designating a route between the downtown transit center and UNT. Since Sycamore has no…

5 Bike Repair Stations Across UT Dallas Campus
by dickdavid        Bike Friendly Richardson

Thea Junt, Energy Conservation & Sustainability Manager for UT Dallas Facilities Management, contacted us with some fantastic news about the UT Dallas campus, located in Richardson.

They just installed 5 Bike Repair stations across campus! According to Thea, the stations are for anyone who needs them – even if you aren’t a student. They are fixed units with a number of tools attached to them. There is…

The Spirit of Texas Ride Benefits Wimberley Band
by Susan Wilcox            biketexas.org
In a situation familiar to schools and parents across the state, Andrea McBeath watched as Wimberley High School’s Spirit of Texas Band budget was cut– twice. “We’re making do,” she says, “but we have a lot less to make do with.”

The band’s usual fundraisers, like poinsettia sales and a concession stand at football games, weren’t quite cutting it for all the…

It’ll Be Getting Easier To Bicycle Tour San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
www.nationalparkstraveler.com

Even if you don’t have a bike, it’ll soon be possible to pedal between the Alamo in downtown San Antonio and the four beautiful missions that stretch south of the city—thanks to a bike share program.

The city’s existing Bike Share program was the first in Texas and is part of an aggressively expanding cycling program. In just more than a year 23 bike stations offer more than 200 bikes for use around town. A Federal Transportation Grant is funding the oft-requested expansion of…

Great American cities for cycling
By ShermansTravel.com        itineraries.nbcnews.com
Pedaling through a major U.S. city is not just the province of daredevil bike messengers. With warmer weather and rising gas prices, there’s never been a better time to hop on a bicycle, especially while you’re on vacation. “It’s also a way to really be local,” suggests Nicole Freedman, director of bicycling programs for the City of Boston, “because when you bike you can stop wherever you want, you can talk to people.”

…1. Austin
Home to seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, Austin is a bike lover’s mecca: The city estimates that more than 6,000 people ride bikes here each day. The Lance Armstrong Bikeway will soon connect East and West Austin with a dedicated bike path for the first time (4.6 miles of the planned 6-mile path is now complete), and the Barton Creek Greenbelt offers a 7-mile mountain biking trail right in the heart of the city. These are just two of the reasons Austin is recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Community by the…

Steven Anthony Steinley
Rapid City Journal
CONROE, Texas | Steven Anthony Steinley died Aug. 10, 2012, at his home in Conroe, Texas. He was 48.
He was born Jan. 18, 1964, in Chowchilla, Calif.

Steve graduated Rapid City (SD) Central High School in 1982. He attended South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City. He graduated from Colorado Technical Institute in Broomfield, Colo. Steve was a Continental Airlines (now United) technician where he celebrated 25 years of employment in June. Steve started his long work career as a Bumper Boy Boss at the Rapid City, SD, Cosmos of the Black Hills before working for several years at the Rapid City Dairy Queen.

Steve was a keen fitness enthusiast, completing marathons and several half marathons; and, he was an avid cyclist. He was a member of The Woodlands Running Club and Bike Lane Cycling Team of Conroe, Texas. Mountain biking, snow skiing, tennis, soccer and swimming were also…

https://twitter.com/BikeMS_DFW/status/235386938461409282

New Route Ending – August 14th Bicycle Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

In my book a good bicycle route does not overlap streets and roads. This can cause a problem where there are limited ways to get from one place to another. Today I planned on overlapping streets on the return leg but changed my mind for the last 7 miles and chose some streets I have biked for many months if not years. The rest of the route was a tried and true one going to New Caney, Valley Ranch and then back home. As I rode through Valley Ranch I began to think of the options I could take to avoid the overlap and remembered Forest Cove. This would allow me to add a couple of miles and avoid repeating streets altogether. So I put the revised plan into action.

Back in 1980’s before US59 was widened and the service roads upgraded I would ride from our house in New Caney south to the San Jacinto River and then go through Forest Cove to get back home. Round trip was about 20 to 22 miles. The riding options going south are limited now with all of the traffic around Humble south of the river.

The new route variation totaled 32.36 miles which put me at 81.33 miles after two rides this week. August miles total 329.09 and 4264.05 miles YTD. Average speed was 15.1 mph (SportTracks) or 15.2 mph using Garmin Connect figures. Max speed was 21.4 mph and 80.6 RPM average cadence. Riding time was much less than yesterday’s: 2:08:22 not including 4:31 time stopped. Probably the longest time I stopped was in Oakhurst when I paused a minute or so to wring out the sweat from my gloves. Again the pavement almost showed a puddle but the heat made sure it didn’t last long. It was 95 degrees when I got home at 12:08. The sky was almost totally blue except for some small clouds in the far distance. Humidity was 46% at the end of the ride. When I started the ride I noticed that even though it was 87 degrees the air did not burn like it can do later in the day. Now that we are almost 2/3 of the way through summer the intensity of the heat might be letting up just a little. This makes me wonder if the HH100 will be a scorcher this year. There was a section of Hamblen Road where the asphalt was soft and tried to stick to my tires.

I spotted another bicyclist in New Caney walking under US59. There didn’t appear to be anything wrong with her bike. The traffic an be heavy there and she may have been walking from the north bound service road to the south bound one. When I turned onto the south bound service road I lost sight of her. She fit my definition of a serious bicyclist because she had on bike shorts and a helmet.

Tomorrow gets an early start with the first meeting of a men’s group from my church at 6:00 AM at the Denny’s in Humble. Maybe this will get me out the door early on a ride after the meeting ends at 7:0 AM.

Link to RideWithGPS.com data and map.

8-14-2012 Bike Ride Data and Map
8-14-2012 Cadence-Distance
8-14-2012 Elevation-Distance
8-14-2012 Home Weather Station End
8-14-2012 IAH Weather End
8-14-2012 Speed-Distance
8-14-2012 Splits-Time

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Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for August 13th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

2012 Cyclesomatic Sponsorship Opportunities
Bike Friendly Oak Cliff
2012 Cyclesomatic  Sponsorship Levels
September 29th – October 28th 2012
Bike Friendly Oak Cliff was established in 2008, and is an all-volunteer run, non-profit for bicycle advocacy in Dallas, TX. As a premium local advertisement opportunity, you’re certain to maximize your sponsorship dollars with the event that helped launch BFOC’s name recognition.

Cyclesomatic is a celebration of the bicycle in all forms. This month long event will consist of a bicycle fair & performance, cycle cross race, bike-in movie &r photo scavenger hunt, cargo bike build workshop, bicycle camping trip, a bicycle…

Request from Don in Austin — cycling visitors to Austin please read!
by Don in Austin            www.bikeforums.net
I am semi-retired and work three days/week. The other four days I am ALWAYS ready to ride short of hailstorms. Showing people from out of town some of my routes is extremely rewarding to me. Now if you cruise at 25 mph I might be a little slow for you, but I am not adverse to going up the steepest hills or staying out 50+ miles. Or I can ride laid back, too. So send me a PM. Cycling in Austin is much more than the hike & bike trail downtown or riding out Parmer Lane. (Not that there’s anything wrong with…

BWORTH Request for Proposals: Children’s Bike/Ped Safety Education Project
BikeTexas.org
BikeTexas Education Fund (BikeTexas) is requesting proposals for the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Bike/Walk Our Rich Texas History (BWORTH) program to support the goals and strategies of the Texas Department of Transportation Statewide Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program to reduce the number of crashes, injuries and fatalities involving Texas children bicycling and walking to and from schools and other venues. The BWORTH program seeks to contract development of an on-line digital tool for bicycling and walking safety education and…

Harlingen MPO Updating Bike Plan
BikeTexas.org
The Harlingen-San Benito Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is updating the Bicycle and Pedestrian plan, and they need your help!

If you live in the area and would like to comment on the plan, the public comment period is now open. You can send your comments via…

Bragg: San Marcos is biking where we fear to tread
Roy Bragg            www.mysanantonio.com
SAN MARCOS — Clay Hollingsworth, shirtless and out of breath, burst through the doors of the Bike Cave on a hot morning, rolling his bicycle with him.

“What’s up?” student worker Colin Bromley asked, looking up from a conversation.

“Broken pedal.”

“Come on in.”

Within minutes, Hollingsworth had his pedal. Had he been a new customer, Cromley would’ve sold him a used pedal for $1. Since Hollingsworth bought the bike…

Health calendar: Mountain bike basics, preventing injuries and more
www.dallasnews.com
PEDAL POWER: Learn what to look for in a mountain bike, what to wear, safety tips and where to ride when you attend a basic mountain bike course from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday at REI Dallas, 4515 LBJ Freeway, west of the Dallas North Tollway. The free session will also cover how to balance, climb, corner and…

2012 DORBA Fall Series Race At Erwin Park
by Shawn McAfee            Texas Mountain Bike Trails
Erwin Park, DORBA Fall Series 2012 Race #2 – The first race of the fall series at Oak Cliff Nature Preserve (OCNP) is behind us. For results  of the OCNP race check out The links below.

CAT 1 Results from OCNP
CAT 2 Results from OCNP
CAT 3 Results from OCNP

Now it’s time to turn our focus to the site of race #2 at Erwin Park in McKinney Texas.

 

I have trail footage from our exact race course, if you haven’t had a chance to get out and…

The Racing Post August 2012

The Racing Post August 2012

https://twitter.com/MindfulLearner/status/235141139068510208

Long Ride with Heat – August 13th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

After two days off I wanted to go for a longer ride. Choosing the route always presents a challenge so today I rode one I don’t do very often. It fit with the construction on the causeway over Lake Houston on FM1960 since I rode the east bound shoulder where the construction was supposed to be finished. Well it isn’t finished at least in a short section near the east side of the causeway. The shoulder was blocked for a couple hundred yards but fortunately traffic did not cause a problem while I rode in the main lanes. Once I passed that section the next construction popped up in Crosby on FM2100. I know the back streets well enough to get around the work zone from earlier rides so no problem. After getting through Crosby the roads were construction free all the way home.

The weather was hot (98 degrees when I got home) with mostly cloudy skies and variable breeze at 5 mph. Humidity is rather low for us at 40% so sweat was not quite as troublesome as other rides. I still was able to wring out my gloves when I stopped at the Shell station in Summerwood. This was around the 35 mile point so I took advantage of the McDonald’s $1 soft drinks to get a very large Diet Coke and ice refill for my CamelBak. This would carry me to the finish. When I left the station on W. Lake Houston Parkway heading north the tailwind or lack of headwind allowed me to kick up my speed to the 18 to 20 mph range. I think I finished the ride at a quicker pace from that point on. The route totaled 48.97 miles at a 15.4 mph average speed, 24.7 mph max speed, and 77.2 RPM average cadence. Riding time was 3:10:39 plus 44:37 time stopped. August miles now stand at 296.73 and YTD miles are 4231.69. Link to RideWithGPS.com data and map.

The last time I rode a route almost like this was May 14, 2012. The route was about the same distance but my average speed was 16.1 mph. The temperature was 86 degrees then which may account for some of the higher speed. The roads are okay bit there are stretches with rough surfaces and sometimes the shoulders are covered with dirt, gravel and sand. The sand can be tricky with 700 x 25 tires if it is very thick but I was able to get around those sections.

8-13-2012 Bike Ride Data and Map
8-13-2012 Cadence-Distance
8-13-2012 Elevation-Distance
8-13-2012 Home Weather Station End
8-13-2012 IAH Weather End
8-13-2012 Speed-Distance
8-13-2012 Splits-Time

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