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About Texbiker.net

Texbiker.net covers the news, events and resources for those interested in Texas bicycling.

My bicycling passion was rekindled in 1979 with a Huffy bicycle from Woolco. From early rides around my neighborhood my enthusiasm grew to tackle my unsupported first century. From there I discovered organized rides all over Texas, races and mountain bikes. Many bikes and miles later the enthusiasm is still there.

Thanks to my late wife, Hazel Marie, for her support over the many years, miles and rides.

My primary bike is the Cervelo Caledonia Rival AXS below. My titanium bike is the Lynskey Helix titanium. My newest bike is a Canyon Endurace CF 7 Rival eTap.

3-29-2022 Cervelo Caledonia Ramsey Road-1
3-29-2022 Cervelo Caledonia at a Ramsey Road Bridge
Lynksey Helex at a Kingwood Lake
10-18-2023 Canyon Endurace Valley Ranch-1
10-18-2023 Canyon Endurace CF 7 Valley Ranch

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Just a few love bugs – May 2nd Bicycle Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on May 2, 2012 by Rick AnkrumMay 2, 2012

One spring ritual in east Texas and southeast Texas is the arrival of the “love bugs”. Today on my bike ride as I turned off of Community Drive onto Loop 494 I started to see love bugs in the air. You may see cars and trucks with their front ends covered in multitudes of squished black bugs. These vehicles are doing their part to reduce the population of these little critters. As a biker riding into a swarm of these things can be annoying to say the least. After you get a bunch in your mouth and down your jersey the joy of biking can be tested. Fortunately today after I rode through the initial 30 or so they disappeared. The amount of rain we get seems to trigger their arrival and last year’s drought made them rare. So far today’s encounter is the most for the year. From past experience I learned the terminal velocity for a love bug is 19 mph so if you run into a swarm depending on your inclination you should go above or below that speed.

The ride began at 9:52 AM while the temperature hovered at a rather pleasant 75 degrees with mostly cloudy skies. As the ride progressed the temperature went up to 83 degrees and the clouds broke up some. Humidity of 64% made for a moist ride. Stopping at the New Caney Chevron station at US59 and FM1485 meant wiping my brow for sweat, refilling my waterbottle with ice water and using the high powered hand dryer in the rest room to remove sweat on my arms. I never tries that before and it was effective for about 10 minutes of riding. I think the real reason is the southeast breeze (6.9 mph) felt cool enough to make me think I was dry.

With 30.7 miles today my May looks like a good riding month but my wife told me yesterday she read that May is the month we usually get the most rain so I could have some rain outs. May miles total 63.31, this week totals 93.49 (1 April day included) and year to date 1998.97 miles. So close to hitting 2000. Riding time under 2 hours at 1:59:43, 11:37 time stopped and an average speed of 15.4 mph. I hit 22.7 mph as my max speed and 81.3 RPM as my average cadence.

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Posted in Bike Ride | Tagged Bike Ride Report, Motobecane Le Champion, New Caney - Valley Ranch, Road | Leave a reply

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for May 1st

Texbiker.net Posted on May 1, 2012 by Rick AnkrumMay 1, 2012

Cyclist Rally To Be Held At City Hall
www.myfoxaustin.com
After a cyclist is severely injured and another killed within a matter of days, the cycling community is rallying for change.

The man behind the group Please Be Kind to Cyclists wants stiffer penalties against drivers, who strike and kill people on bikes. He wants drivers to face the same punishment as if it were a DWI crash.

On Saturday afternoon, a 55-year-old man was killed, when he was struck by a driver off Highway 360 and…

Bike In Book Swap @ Twin Oaks Branch
library.austintexas.gov
Join us for the third annual Bike In Book Swap on Saturday, May 5 from 12 noon – 3 p.m. at Twin Oaks Branch to kick off Bike Month! We will have free bike tune-ups, courtesy of Bicycle Sports Shop, bicycle maintenance classes courtesy of The Yellow Bike Project (with free patch kits and tire levers for everyone who attends), a pannier-making class, bicycle registration with APD, a Kid’s Kup Bike Rodeo put on…

Lantana man gears up for MS bike ride
Written by John English           www.crosstimbersgazette.com
The 25th Annual Bike MS: Sam’s Club Ride from Frisco to Texas Motor Speedway will kick off this Saturday and Lantana resident Mark Lozano will be front and center for the event.

Lozano, who is a member of Team Dangerous Curves, will ride for more than 150 miles in the two day event on May 5 & 6 that supports multiple sclerosis research and said the way he came about participating in the event was through his new cycling buddies. …

Mark Eller called me at the Texbiker.net contact number and left a message about the following update on Big Bend National Park. The release addresses 5 errors circulating in various media. The April 30th Texbiker bicycling blog and news update included the information about Big Bend NP.

Recent Attacks on Big Bend National Park Trail Project Contain Numerous Errors
Contact Mark Eller        IMBA Communications Director        303-545-9011 ext.115
Since 2005, IMBA and the National Parks Service (NPS) have maintained a partnership agreement designed to enhance and expand opportunities for mountain biking in national parks. Under that agreement, IMBA and local mountain bikes groups near Big Bend National Park (TX) have advocated for the addition of a shared-use trail near the park’s visitor center. Recently, the trail design was completed and construction began, with the goal of providing a great user experience on Lone Mountain.

In April, the group Our Texas Wild issued an alert speaking out against the trail at Big Bend. Unfortunately, that alert offered several inaccurate statements about the nature of the trail. Making matters worse, several media outlets and the watchdog group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) have repeated much of the flawed analysis offered by the Our Texas Wild alert. …

4 out of 5 of Bike Sharers Don’t Wear Helmets
Study also finds that about half of cyclists overall skip the headgear
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
(Newser) – Bicycle-sharing programs are catching on around the country, which is good if you care about the environment, and bad if you care about people’s skulls. A new study from Boston’s Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that about half of all cyclists and more than 80% of bike-share riders specifically don’t bother with helmets, USA Today reports.

Researchers kept watch on 43 rental kiosks in Washington, DC, and Boston, keeping tabs on more than 3,000 riders. “Head injury accounts for about a third of all bicycle injuries and about…

Adopt A Highway: Community Service Day
Hill Country Bicycle Touring Club
Start:     June 23, 2012 8:00 am
End:     June 23, 2012 10:00 pm
Venue:     Government Canyon State Natural Area
Address:     Helotes, TX  78023
Saturday, June 23rd: Meet at 8:00 a.m. at the entrance to Government Canyon State Natural Area on Galm Road.  Bring your family and friends for our litter pickup along two miles of Galm Road.  Remember to wear long pants, sturdy shoes and your yellow volunteer HCBTC T-shirt.  If you don’t have one, show up anyway & we’ll get one for you. Bring gloves, sun block & insect repellent. Safety vest’s, trash bags, coffee, water & a light refreshment will be provided to you  Our club decided several years ago that we…

San Antonio Wheelmen
Upcoming Rides and Events:

The Pedaler Newsletter May 2012
San Antonio Wheelmen
May is National Bike Month, which is an opportunity to celebrate the unique power of the bicycle and the many reasons we ride. Whether you ride to preserve your health and the environment or to simply get to your destination, get involved in Bike Month and help us get more people in our community out riding!  As part of National Bike Month, the League of American Bicyclists, which is the national sponsor of Bike Month, has…

Hammerfest 2012
by John Bartle            Violet Crown Sports Association
There are three things money can’t buy – true love, homegrown tomatoes and good form – to quote Old Haney (adapted from Guy Clark) and I was the beneficiary of the latter, thanks to working less, riding more and visiting Fort Davis prior to the race to reconnoiter the climbs.

In a bike race you never know what will happen. For the hill climb time trial I was mysteriously rescheduled from going off first of the 60+ field (7 strong) to last – I had riders to chase – and , at 30 second intervals on a low speed course, I just had to look up to see the next target. And I saw all but the first rider off. (Did not catch three). I had been worried about some lung congestion so winning in the time trial was a confidence big boost – and I left all my phlegm at the McDonald…

Rail trail bridge construction to start this summer
by bikedenton
In 2008, citizens asked the city council for a biking & walking bridge over Loop 288.
In 2010, the city council approved initial funding to build the bridge.
Now, in 2012, Denton will build the bridge.

Fort Bend ISD SafeCyclist Training and Community Partners
www.biketexas.org
BikeTexas’ SafeCyclist Certification Training is a Safe Routes to School program that trains elementary school teachers, youth instructors, and law enforcement how to teach bicycle skills and safety as part of a physically active curriculum.

Fort Bend ISD School Wellness Coordinator, Stepanie Kellam requested the training for their teachers as a strategy in their focus to prevent childhood obesity. She is interested in bicycle safety and hopes to provide numerous bicycle rodeos in the Fort Bend Community and has partnered with community leaders…

A&M Consolidated take 1st place at State Championship race!
by msrarkitex            Brazos Valley Mountain Bike Association

Our student racers were amazing this weekend.  Travis and Haaris both moved up about 3 positions!  They dug deep and pushed beyond their ability, that we have seen.  This was the last race of the season and was the State Championship race. …

Bicyclists to gather Thursday for demonstration
By Pam LeBlanc            Fit City
Local cyclists will gather Thursday for a rolling demonstration aimed at making it safer to ride a bicycle in Austin.

Participants in the Austin Pedaling for Safer Roads event will gather at 7 p.m. Thursday at City Hall, then ride to the Capitol.

The demonstration comes on the heels of the death of cyclist Verter Ginestra, who was killed while riding along Loop 360 on April 28, and the hit-and-run incident on April 23 that caused serious injuries to cyclist…

Ride for Officer Hebert
by KIII TV3

Beaumont police joined in the ride with officers from several other police departments in the “Texas Police Memorial Bike Trek”. The officers ride to each community in Texas that lost a peace officer in the line of duty the prior year.

McKinney Velo at the Joe Martin SR – Masters A Field
by Doc            McKinney Velo Club

McKinney Velo ventured to Arkansas last weekend for a national caliber event (the Joe Martin Stage Race) against a national caliber masters field and proved MV can compete with the region’s best. Russ Emerson ‘Fitipaldi’, Jeff ‘Big Ring’ Fene, ‘Smokin’ Joe Howard, the Seabass Brad Price and Steve ‘Oz’ Weber tackled the 3 stage Joe Martin Masters A field and helped Joe land a spot on the 2nd step of the 50+ podium, with a…

Joe Martin Stage 3 2012
by Ken            Texas Racing Life
Well, my bad luck continued today. Today it was bad luck that I could not recover from.  Near halfway through the road race, I suddenly heard a terrible clanging of metal and saw parts fly up around my legs.  Confused, I looked down to see that my rear derailleur was completely gone.  The next sound I heard was the other riders groan around me, feeling sorry for me that my race was done.  They knew how much it would suck to be in my shoes.

I raised my hand like yesterday and came to a stop. The follow car came up and told me to keep riding until the wheel truck got there. Then they saw my derailleur, said “Oh that sucks…..” and kept driving. The wheel truck came up quickly and was much better than yesterday about getting me a quick wheel change. Unfortunately, I didn’t need a wheel.  As he rushed to get back in the truck, I asked if he had a chain tool. If one was available, I could in theory turn my…

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Posted in Bicycling News | Tagged Bicycle Fatality, Big Bend National Park, Bike In Book Swap, Bike share, BikeDenton, Brazos Valley Mountain Bike Association, Digest of Bicycle Blog Posts, Fort Davis Hammerfest, Hill Country Bicycle Touring Club, McKinney Velo Club, SafeCyclist, Sam's Club MS150, San Antonio Wheelmen, Texas Police Memorial Bike Trek, Texas Racing Life | Leave a reply

People Watching at the Chevron Station – May 1st Bicycle Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on May 1, 2012 by Rick AnkrumMay 1, 2012

I liked starting early on yesterday’s ride and I wanted to repeat this again today but I did not get out of the driveway until 10:39. The temperature had not made it to the 80’s yet so the first few miles felt cool until I got my body heat up and the sun warmed things up. At the end 87 degrees and 48% humidity made me perspire a lot. My gloves needed to be wrung out. Scattered clouds with a 9 mph SSE breeze helped keep the heat down some. At the Huffman Chevron station one of the customers asked if I biked in August and I said yes but earlier in the day.

The route repeated my recently modified one through Atascocita, Walden at Lake Houston and on to Huffman before returning to Kingwood. It totaled 32.6 miles so May is getting started on a good foot. Year to date stands at 1968.27 miles. With the light wind I averaged 15.5 mph with 25.5 mph as my max speed. Average cadence was almost identical to yesterday at 80.7 RPM (vs. 80.8 RPM on Monday). Riding time totaled 2:06:32 plus 28:26 time stopped. Again the most of the time stopped came in Huffman at the Chevron station drinking my first Diet Pepsi of the day. My schedule today got rearranged from my usual one so no Diet Pepsi before I started.

Sitting at a place like the Chevron station allows me to people watch. Since the intersection of FM1960 and FM2100 passes many people through the watching can be very entertaining. Sometimes its the vehicles moving by, sometimes the train rolls by on the track beside FM1960 and the artwork on the railcars shows some kind of talent but still it is graffiti. Today a serviceman worked on the pumps and point of sale system at the station. The covered nozzles caused various reactions from people as they drove into and out of the station wondering what problem could be. One lady made a couple of loops through the pumps before going back out to FM1960. The clerk asked me how much I normally pay for that Diet Pepsi because of the disabled cash registered. Rarely do I see the same people. Many days I just stop long enough to refill my waterbottle and get back on the road missing the drama.

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5-1-2012 Home Weather Station End

5-1-2012 Home Weather Station End

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Posted in Bike Ride | Tagged Atascocita - Huffman, Bike Ride Report, Motobecane Le Champion, Road | Leave a reply

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for April 30th

Texbiker.net Posted on April 30, 2012 by Rick AnkrumApril 30, 2012

Red Poppy Ride Georgetown
by dstrong            www.bikeforums.net
Updated OP with completion of the Red Poppy Ride. No pics taken, so no ride report except this description I posted in Machka’s Weekend Ride thread:

Did a local charity ride…the Red Poppy Ride in Georgetown. I didn’t see a single red poppy. I signed up for the 80 mile route and toyed with the idea of doing my first century of the year but the wind squashed any ideas I had of doing that. I ended up riding with a woman from about mile 20 on. She had some interesting cycling stories, as she used to be an endurance cyclist, her longest trek had been 500 miles. Six years ago, on a training ride, she was hit by a car and ended up with a smashed left ankle (and a Merlin Extralight with Chorus). 5 surgeries and six years later, she now has an artificial ankle, can no longer run but still loves to bike. The wind…was brutal…constant 15 – 20 mph from the south. Fortunately the route was made up a lot of short…

Pedaling for Safer Roads
Public Event · By Please BE KIND to Cyclists
Thursday, May 3, 2012
7:00pm until 9:00pm in CDT
The Austin cycling community is shocked and saddened by the recent death of cyclist Verter Ginestra, killed on 360 and Westlake on Saturday, April 28th and the serious injuries of cyclist Evan Baird caused by a hit and run collision on Monday, April 23rd. …

Rails to Trails Ride
Date: May 5, 2012
Location: South Plains, TX
Contact: Pat Crawford806-786-2941
Details: Mark your calendars for the Rails to Trails ride on Saturday May 5th. The ride starts from the trail head in South Plains and descends off the caprock along scenic valleys. The ride to Monks crossing is about 14 miles where you can catch a lift to Quitaque. The ride from South Plains to Quitaque is about 23 miles. No hard climbs, mostly down hill on an old rail bed that is grassy at the beginning and some combination of lava rock, sand, and dirt (also bat guano in the tunnel). Mountain bikes, hybrids or cyclocross bikes recommended. However, there is the option of a scenic road ride also starting from South Plains on paved roads. There is a $3 charge for using the Park trail. Please let Pat Crawford know if you are going by May 1st. He will need to pay in advance at the Park office for the people riding the trail.

Landon Winery Weekend
Dallas Area Tandem Enthusiasts
When:     May 19, 2012 – May 20, 2012
Where:     Hampton Inn and Suites – Greenville , TX
After an entertaining and interactive wine-tasting event at the Landon Winery Tasting Room in McKinney last year, Chuck and Janet Kirklen began thinking about a Landon Winery tandem weekend in Greenville – the main winery location -  for 2012. Fast forward to today and planning is well underway!
WHO  -  DATES members
WHAT  -  We plan two days of riding. Two distances on Saturday and a shorter route for Sunday morning. Saturday’s ride will be followed by a wine tasting at Landon Winery, hosted by the owner, Bob Landon. Bob’s tasting at the McKinney location last year was a big hit – fun, food and fine wine. We’ll have more of the same this year!! After the tasting, we’ll enjoy dinner at…

TEBR Time Change
Greater Dallas Bicyclists
The Tuesday Evening Bike Ride start time will make its annual seasonal change this week. It will now start at 6:30pm beginning on May 1st, 2012.

Tenth Ride of Silence planned for May 16
DALLAS, TX (BRAIN) Monday April 30 2012 7:44 AM MT—Advocates around the world are planning the tenth annual Ride Of Silence this month to raise awareness of cyclists’ rights to the road and honor cyclists who have died.

The ride is planned for Wednesday, May 16, at 7 p.m. According to organizers, the ride will be held in 322 locations, including all 50 states and in 23 other countries.

Student Advice
by Steve A        Dallas Point-to-Point
One aspect I like about the LAB program, despite its other warts, is the organized feedback it offers. Case in point: last weekend, a student inadvertently offered me some advice without realizing it. You can see that advice above. Yes, campers, teachers have bad habits every bit as much as any student. And, if Gail Spann is reading this, it isn’t what she thinks. Even Warren would admit I was VERY well behaved about avoiding cyclocross mounts and dismounts. My recent fixie purchase should help further, but I have to drag THAT story out a while. For reasons that will become gradually clear in future posts.

It all started with Quick Stops and Instant Turns. For those not practiced in the bike handling drills common to LAB and Cycling Savvy, Quick Stops are the theory and practice of stopping a bike as quickly as possible in an emergency. You will NOT do a Quick Stop or Instant Turn every day. In fact, I cannot say I have EVER had to do…

2012 council candidate questionnaire
by bikedenton
In years past, I’ve asked questions about biking to city council candidates, so we can see where the politicians stand. This year, I’ve narrowed the questions down to two, and I bring up a question about Denton’s walking infrastructure, because currently there is no dialogue or organized advocacy for better sidewalks and…

Safety Bling! Music Video Launches May 1
by Jack Sanford            BikeTexas.org
BikeTexas kicks off Bike Month 2012 on Tuesday, May 1 with the online release of a new music video produced for our TxDOT-funded, ‘CATS’ presentations on College Active Transportation Safety.

Safety Bling! features comic rap duo The Rhymanese Twins, aka Jon Steinmeier and Noah Tabakin. This hilarious two-headed, three-legged rap team pumps out the BikeTexas safety message with phat beats, a hysterical, while educational plot line, and the help of rival UT and…

Cyclists: Do you ride on Loop 360?
By Pam LeBlanc            Fit City
I was saddened this weekend by news of the death of 54-year-old cyclist Verter Ginestra, who was killed while riding his bike along the shoulder of Loop 360.

Now comes the inevitable flurry of emails.

From cyclists, wanting to know why motorists don’t pay more attention to bikes on the road.

From motorists, wanting to know why cyclists don’t always obey the law.

And from people who just want to know why a cyclist would even consider riding along Loop 360, where cars travel at speeds of 70 mph or…

Bike lovers at Bowling Family YMCA in Northeast El Paso give rusty relics new life
by Victor R. Martinez \ El Paso Times
El Pasoans love their cars, trucks and vans. Judging by the congested neighborhood streets, highways and freeways, El Paso is a car-dependent city.

But quietly nestled in the corner of the Bowling Family YMCA in the Northeast part of the city, a group of El Paso bike lovers is trying to create an emerging Sun City bike culture.

The Northeast YMCA opened the city’s first El Paso Bicycle Co-Op where volunteers provide free bike maintenance and repair advice, as well as help children and adults appreciate the…

Park Service slammed for new bike trail at Big Bend NP
by Bob Berwyn                summitcountyvoice.com
Watchdog groups raise conflict of interest issues and fault the park planning process
SUMMIT COUNTY — A simmering controversy over a new mountain bike trail in Big Bend National Park boiled over again earlier this month, as the park service started work on the trail before publishing a formal Finding of No Significant Impact or issuing required  rule-making.

Conservation groups are stewing over the project, which will create a trail in an area previously identified as potential wilderness. They also see a potential conflict of interest on the part of a former park service official now involved with a local mountain…

PBA Spring Century
by  (Chris Mathews)        Plano Bicycling Association

Austin cycling community remembers avid cyclist killed this weekend
by SHELTON GREEN / KVUE News
The Central Texas cycling community is mourning the loss of an avid cyclist killed while riding this weekend.
55-year old Verter Ginestra, a married salesman and father was riding his bicycle on the shoulder of 360, near the Westbank exit around 2 p.m. Saturday.

A Department of Public Safety spokesperson said that the driver was a man in his mid-eighties, but as of Monday night he had not been charged. It’s believed the elderly driver veered onto the shoulder, hitting and killing Ginestra in the…

@BSS_Austin            via Twitter
Great pics from the TX High School MTB Racing State Championships from the kids on the Austin High team!

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Posted in Bicycling News | Tagged Bicycle Fatality, Big Bend National Park, Bike Safety, BikeDenton, Dallas Area Tandem Enthusiasts, Dallas Point-to-Point, Digest of Bicycle Blog Posts, Greater Dallas Bicyclists, Plano Bicycle Association, Rails-to-Trails, Red Poppy Ride, Ride of Silence, Safe Roads, Texas High School Mountain Bike League | Leave a reply

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