Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for May 29th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Cameron Park Beginner Mountain Bike Ride
Waco Bicycle Club
When:  Tuesday 05:30 PM
What:  Mountain/beginner
Contact: Dawn Hill
The pace of this ride is that of our slowest rider! This ride is all about getting new or inexperienced people on a mountain bike. No one should ever feel bad that they are the slowest one. If you are a slow rider, this ride is ESPECIALLY for you! You can ride as long as you want. When you are ready to quit, someone will get you back to the River Trail and point you toward the parking lot. All you…

Waco Dam
Waco Bicycle Club
When:  Tuesday 05:30 PM
What: Road/all levels
Contact: Jimmy Lawrence
Our Dam ride starts from the parking lot at the Lake Waco Dam near the Waco Airport. It is a no drop ride. Please stay off the aero or time trial bars when in the group.

What to expect: Neutral group roll out at around 14mph. Pace usually begins to pick up around mile 8 on Meandering Way. Pace: A — 18 plus mph, B — 16 to 18 mph, C — 15 to 16 mph, D —14 to 15 mph. Shortcuts: Shortcut 1 will give a 26.3 mile route. At about…

BIG DEED – Find your trail
Austin Ridge Riders
from Bodie Bell
Hey guys,
I’ve got a buddy, Scott Schroen, that just moved from the Austin area, love the riding there…I’m an avid mountain biker and over the last couple of years have been compiling a list of over 1500 trails nationwide that I have converted to the website below. If you like the site and want to add a link on your website for your members, send out an email blast or post about us on your Facebook page, feel free. Take a look, spread the word and add us to your favorites list. You are more than welcome to set up a profile, contribute trails, pictures and videos and promote your organization on…

Independence Day Ride in Fredericksburg
San Antonio Wheelmen
Date:     07/04/2012
Time:     08:30 AM-11:30 AM
Details: Wednesday, July 4th, 8:30 am, Fredericksburg 4th of July Ride (NW) [R to H].  PLEASE NOTE START TIME!!!  Routes of 36 and 50 miles.  Meet behind the Main Street Square (aka MarketPlatz) in downtown Fredericksburg on West Austin Street for a moderately hilly scenic ride through the beautiful Texas Hill Country.  From San Antonio, take I-10 West to Hwy 87 in Comfort.  Turn right (North) on Hwy 87 and go 22 miles to Fredericksburg.  Stay on…

@ImranCyclone        via Twitter
VIDEO UPDATE- cycling route 66, day 19
Day 19, heading for Vega, Texas

@PedalHouston        via Twitter
Started hearing that the @MemorialPark Crit Series has to find a new home for their 20th year anniversary of the event. Details anyone?

@dkcholo        via Twitter
Photo: Nurse redressing my stitches & road rash went overkill w/a meshy thing – now feel almost #pro – cant…

Cyclists taking to the trails
By John DeLapp        www.chron.com
Slowly but surely, bicycle paths are spreading across the Bay Area.

League City has a master hike-and-bike plan that involves 212 miles of trails. Phase 1 of the plan, which accounts for about 26 miles of paths, is under way now.

One stretch of trail runs near the intersections of FM 270, FM 518 and FM 2094. The path was once part of a proposed road project.

“Originally, there (was a) bypass going in and the trail was alongside of it,” said Chien Wei, League City’s director of…

Local mom, daughter, pitching in for charity bike ride
Cedar Park-Leander Statesman
Gloria Kressin, a Leander school district information technology master, will participate in her second year as a volunteer with the Texas 4000 as 46 riders take off with the annual Atlas Ride Saturday.
The Atlas Ride is part of the Texas 4000, an annual bike ride stretching 4,500 miles between Cedar Park and Anchorage, Alaska. The Atlas ride starts each year at Running Brushy Middle School and ends in Lampasas, marking the first stretch of the ride. More than 40 University of Texas at Austin students make the 70-day trip annually, raising money and awareness for cancer research. The event is sponsored by Livestrong and MD Anderson, and money raised benefits MD Anderson and…

Cyclists riding across the country to publicize suicide prevention
By Barry Shlachter        www.star-telegram.com
Two Arizonans stopped in Fort Worth on Monday, near the halfway point of their 7,100-mile transcontinental cycling trip to raise awareness about suicide prevention and the grief that survivors experience.

Both had brothers who took their own lives.

On Memorial Day, Thomas Brown, 34, of Scottsdale and Zachary “Zak” Chipps, 31, of Tempe received generous helpings of Texas barbecue and picnic fixings at a Trinity Park pavilion. Their hosts are affiliated…

Bike Month? Celebrate The Bike All Year Long!
by djcurtin            It’s Time To Ride!
It’s been a pretty nice Bike Month thus far. As we look to the end of May, we start to wonder, how can we keep it going? It’s somewhat easy for a bike shop to be all about bikes, all the time. But how can we encourage everyone to celebrate Bike Month every month? Talking with our friends over at BikeCaffe Austin, they had some thoughts that we’d like to share–guest blogging this week, BikeCaffe’s Jerry Strickland.

Live in Central Texas long enough and you realize May is a great month. It’s the month that cycling gets to showcase itself on a bigger stage. The pros may have the Giro in May, but us enthusiasts, commuters, and lifestylers–well, we get May to celebrate National Bike Month. It’s a month we celebrate everything great about…

Camouflage Pants and a Rifle – May 29th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Ordinarily my rides avoid unusual events but today as I rode south on Woodland Grove Drive on my way out of Kingwood I came upon three Houston Police cars parked on the left side with the officers talking to a man dressed in camouflage pants, no shirt and holding a rifle. I have no idea what put these people out in the front yard but my imagination came up with several scenarios. From then on the rest of the ride returned to normal.

I started the ride at 9:44 AM when the temperature was a “lowly” 81 degrees (humidity 71%) knowing that I should get back home before noon (actual finish time 11:50 AM) before the temperature gets cranked up to the 90’s. When I finished it was 88 degrees and 52% humidity. My gloves were soaked as usual even though I dried they some in New Caney at the Chevron station. I also used the high speed air dryer in the restroom to dry my arms but it didn’t last long. Scattered clouds and the SW 8.1 breeze felt cooling when I rode into it and did not slow me down too much since I averaged 15.7 mph over the 31.05 mile route. The 22.2 mph max speed was at the 19.1 mile point. Average cadence came in at 82.5 RPM, much better than yesterday 77.9 RPM. My right leg muscles responded better today as the soreness from blueberry picking eases up. That’s right, blueberry picking caused my right leg nerve or muscle soreness. I think I stood wrong near the end on some uneven ground and pinched a nerve.

Everyone must be back at work or hanging out at the voting boxes since I did not see any other bicyclist. My route only passed one voting place at the East Montgomery Courthouse Annex along US59 with plenty of candidates signs stuck in the ground. As May winds down my mileage stands at 793.67 for May and YTD 2729.33 miles.

Link to RideWithGPS.com data.

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Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup May 28th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

SA to Emma Long Park
by jbarr999            forums.mtbr.com
Hit Emma Long park for the first time this morning, what a great ride. Obviously I had to hike a bike the 2 ft steps, but what I did get to ride was fun. I love the trails that push you, especially since I ride solo. Highly recommend the park. Wish it would have been longer, those 6 miles went by quickly. Being from SA, I appreciate what austin has for trails. …

2012 Texas State XC Mountain Bike Championships Race Report by Joseph Lao, Cat 2 35-39
teambrainandspinecycling.com

Race Report for the final race of the 2012 Texas State XC Mountain Bike Championships. The race for CAT 2 Men’s age 35-39 started with a total of 30 racers who lined up. I was situated in 5th place for the season and got called up the front line of top ten season riders. Surveying the sheer volume of riders and my competition up front, I knew my only chance to be competitive was to start strong and dictate the pace in front long enough to…

@txarclub        via Twitter
Look at all those TXAR jerseys, gettin’ it done!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP1eqkYMvUk
Camp Eagle – Spread Your Wings Adventure Race 2012

HBC Columbus – Weimar Loops Ride
Houston Bicycle Club
Sunday 06/10/12 8:00 AM
Distances: 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.

2012 Racing Schedule now posted!
Alkek Velodrome
The track is one for training on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from around 6-8pm. For more information, check out the Track Calendar.

Injured veterans bicycle the road to recovery together
by Kathy Stewart, wtop.com

Retired Army Staff Sgt. Nathan Hunt, 31, before taking off on the Memorial Challenge. (WTOP/Kathy Stewart)
ARLINGTON, Va. – On Memorial Day, more than 300 bicycle riders and hand crank cyclists left on a rehabilitative ride.

The cycling event, Memorial Challenge, is a part of an alternative therapy program for wounded warriors who have suffered physical or mental disabilities.

The group will ride from Arlington to Virginia Beach over five days – trekking 325 miles, says Debora Spano, with Ride 2 Recovery, which sponsors the Memorial Challenge.

It was the fourth year Army Staff Sgt. Nathan Hunt, a 31-year-old from Texas, participated. He says his first year was the hardest. …

Knickerbocker Combination
by Roy and Christine        Pedal Pushers

Saturday, May 26, Memorial Day Weekend. The route was going to be a combination of going to Knickerbocker, Tankersley, Guinn Road, and return to the “equalization bridge” staging area. Thirteen of us were to start at this point. Pictured left to right: Dara Jones, Jeremy Jones, Christine Jones (we are not kin to Dara and Jeremy although it would be nice), Eddie Trevino (in green), Connie Dunagan, Mike Blakeman, Brian Backlund, Rick Ogan, Velma Ogan, Donna Durbin, and David Durbin…

Darn You Wind!!!
by Shawn        Texas Mountain Bike Trails
I was out riding today and I realized something that I thought was funny.

I’m on my road bike putting in a long 45 mile ride to try and build up some endurance before the fall race season. There was one thing nagging me the entire ride…
That Blasted Infernal Texas Wind!

SERIOUSLY! AAHHHH!

I spend most of my time on a mountain bike and it’s not something that you have to deal with. The trees block just about all of the wind, except for on open field sections. So fighting a headwind isn’t a problem. Lord knows here in DFW we have TONS of…

Memorial Day – May 28th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Now that the Giro d’Italia is over I can get back to riding earlier in the morning. I started at 8:53 with a pleasant 77 degrees but the humidity showed 78%. By the time I got back home the temperature hit 88 degrees and the humidity dropped to 52%. While I was biking the perspiration flowed freely. When I stopped in Huffman to add ice to my CamelBak my gloves were soaked. Five paper towels dried them out. Scattered clouds and a light 10 mph SSW breeze helped at times.

I saw 20 or more other bikers out today and even more US flags for Memorial Day. I have our flag out. Many years ago when WWI and WWII veterans were alive parades honored our fallen military. Today our memories are not quite so fresh.

My legs felt sluggish today after a rest day yesterday. The average speed came in at 14.9 mph over the 31.54 mile route and the max speed was 23.5 mph. Average cadence was 77.89 RPM. With a new week and May winding down my May miles total 762.61, YTD miles are 2698.28. Riding time: 2:07:25.

Links to Garmin Connect data and RideWithGPS.com data.

5-28-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

5-28-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map