Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for April 3rd

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TEXAS QUEST CANCELLATION
Texas Adventure Racing
Folks, I am sad to report that the race must be cancelled due to forest conditions.   The U.S. Forest Service has closed the trails in the Double Lake Recreation Area of the Sam Houston National Forest, including Lone Star Trial, and all other trails, including hiking, mountain-bike, equestrian, jeep and all multi-use trials.  The specifics are this:  the trails were closed by the Forest Service due to the loss of trees from last year’s drought.

It is sad and frustrating on many levels as the Double Lake Recreation Area mountain bike trails have been shaping up very nicely with GHORBA’s efforts and we have explored…

FrankenBike # The Ultimate Bike Swap
Saturday, April 14, 2012
10:00 AM
Wings N More
509 South Mason Road
Katy, TX 77450
Coming here after the Katy Ram Challenge ? Bring a crate full of your surplus bike stuff, and an appetite. The Wings has great burgers, fries, and beverages that will get your strength back. FrankenBike is what you make it, so load up some stuff, …

Team Seton Brain and Spine Cycling MTB Season State Championship results as of 4/2/2012
Austin Cycling Team
Congratulations. Keep it up!

Tell us about your bicycle commute or trip
by Paul Sorelle        BikeHouston
It is time again to participate in BikeHouston’s annual Houston Bike Survey.  During April when Houston celebrates Bike-to-Work Day and May which is national Bicycle Month, use the survey to let BikeHouston know about bicycle commuting in Houston.  BikeHouston will share the results with your elected…

Houston Bike-to-Work Day April 13
by Paul Sorelle        BikeHouston

Bike-to-work day will be held on Friday, April 13th. Rides from various starting points throughout the city will converge at city hall for a brief reception at 8:00 a.m. For more information, please…

Meeting Minutes – April
by salsaTopp        Brazos Valley Mountain Bike Association
We would first like to extend a great big, warm WELCOME to the new members and hope that we did not scare you too much. We can’t wait to see you out on group rides with us (if it ever drys out).
Night TT Awards

Overall Points awards went to……………. drum roll please!………..
1st place: J-P!
2nd place: Travis!

Fastest Lap awards went to…………….. fast drum roll please!………
1st place: Mike Record!
2nd place: Boone Flynn!

Congrats to everyone who came out and enjoyed themselves…

Part of River Place nature trail closed
By Pamela LeBlanc            Fit City
Part of a steep nature trail that winds through canyons and hilltops in the River Place subdivision has been closed because it encroaches on land set aside as habitat for endangered species including the Golden-cheeked warbler.

The City of Austin and River Place Municipal Utility District manage adjoining pieces of land that are part of the Balcones Canyonland Preserve.

Several years ago, River Place officials approached City of Austin officials about building a trail through the land. “We said we didn’t think the trail was a good idea and did not want it built on our property,” said Kevin…

Lions Club Bike ride
www.beltonjournal.com
A stampede is coming — the “Stampede on the Chisholm Trail”, the Belton Lions Club’s 2nd annual “Cycling for Sight”.

The event will take place Saturday, April 14 and will include a 25 mile ride, 50 mile or Half Century ride and a 62 mile or Metric Century ride.

“We started the ride last year, mainly as a fundraiser to promote the different Lions Club activities and it was such a success we wanted to build on that,” explained this year’s chairman for the event, Lion Robert Jones. ” We had a good turnout….about 75 last year….and the riders commented that they liked it and liked the way it was run, so we expect even more this year based on the response…

UT / Texas State Race Report

UT Race
Jahshan Bhatti
On Saturday, the University of Texas at Austin hosted a road race and team time trial at Pace Bend park. The location was perfect–seeing the stars out so bright before sunrise and the park’s beauty (so many bluebonnets!) in daylight. For the first wave of the road race, I was corner marshalling and got excellent glimpses of the upper category fields as they passed (and mixed–the Garmin Dev. Team is fast!). Given that this weekend was my second cycling competition ever (and I’m not very fast), I was just hoping to…

Aero Road Bikes—Are They For You?
by djcurtin            It’s Time To Ride!

Us road riders have shown a growing concern with aerodynamics since at least 1989 when Greg LeMond won the Tour de France over Laurnet Fignon by 58 seconds in the final stage time trial. Since then, the advent of aero wheels, helmets, and even clothing specifically designed for road racing as opposed to time trialing has grown exponentially. While many of the aerodynamic advancements have come from the world of triathlon, it wasn’t until fairly recently that road bikes themselves became more like their time trial and tri cousins. And while a…

Toutant-Beauregard Ride
San Antonio Wheelmen
Date:     04/14/2012
Time:     08:00 AM-11:00 AM
Location:     Helotes, TX
Details: Toutant-Beauregard Ride (NW) [H]. Routes of 21, 35, 47 and 58 miles.
Take the “Scenic Loop” through Grey Forest to Boerne and ride some serious hills. Meet in Old Town Helotes, across from Floore Country Store. Take Bandera Road (Hwy 16) 2.5 miles outside Loop 1604, then turn left onto Old Bandera Road. Park across from Floore’s or in the parking lot next to Roger Soler’s.   Contact:  Cliff Hickel, 210-884-9470

2012 Spring Road Race Series: Our 7th season.
Texas High School Cycling League
Featuring:
Girl’s Division A, Boy’s Division A, B, and new this year a Boy’s C division.  (Boys A = 1-3, Boys B = 3-4 but mostly 4, Boys C = 4-5 but mostly 5)

The leader of the Boy’s and Girls’ A division overall standings at the end of each race weekend will get a brand new series Leader’s Jersey which is sure to become a hotly contested item.

Also, the winner of the Boy’s and Girl’s Division A overall series will once again gain a secured entry spot in the USA Cycling South Central Athlete Development Camp to…

Tyler Bicycle Club
Out of respect for our fallen cyclist & friend, Lee, we have decided to cancel the time trial Thursday.  Time Trial Series will resume on April 12, at 6:30 PM.

TX Adventure Racing (@txarclub)        via Twitter
Save the Anthills – KIAH video

Mystery Tapping Sound Vanquished – April 3rd Bike Ride

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Rain tried to muscle it’s way into to my ride today but the drops only lasted a few minutes. With the 84 degrees the effect did not amount to much. After eating lunch I hit the road to mostly cloudy skies. With 84 degrees at the start I thought it would get warmer by the end but it actually dropped 2 degrees. Wind was another story. At the start the southeast wind stood at 17.9 mph with 29 mph gusts. This probably reflected some of the stormy weather forecast for later in the day. I think the stormy stuff has been dropped now. The sun increased as the ride progressed.

The bike repairs to remove the persistent tapping sound was successful. Not one tap happened during the ride and the tightened headset noticeably improved my steering feel. I seem to get a burst of motivation when my bike is tweaked by new stuff or repairs so today I repeated this although the starting 5 mile lap average speed was only 13.6 mph. I managed to increase this on the following 5 mile laps at 15 to 17 mph. Only the last 4.69 mile lap dropped back due to the stops and traffic as I make my way through the Kingwood residential area.

Along the route I stopped at the house in Oakhurst of the man who stopped me last week to ask about my biking schedule and routes. He happened to be in the driveway so when I stopped I handed him my card personally.

Earlier today I watch the Vuelta al País Vasco (Tour of the Basque Country) live via streaming video. Their skies were as cloudy as ours. The video was up close from a motorcycle following the breakaway for many kilometers. More tomorrow. You can catch the streaming video at www.steephill.tv.

Today’s ride numbers:

  • 1:56:34 riding time
  • 15.3 mph average speed
  • 20.6 mph max speed
  • 80.8 RPM average cadence
  • 29.65 miles today
  • 46.03 miles in April
  • 1265.38 miles YTD
  • Garmin Connect data link

[iframe http://ridewithgps.com/trips/574558 98% 600]

4-3-2012 Home Weather Station End

4-3-2012 Home Weather Station End

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for April 2nd

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Some great praise for Advocacy efforts in Houston and Denton, from our National Partners Rails to Trails Conservancy
by Leslie Luciano            Bike Texas

Houston and Denton have turned around their approach to transportation in recent years.  Through well-organized collective efforts, both cities have made huge strides with Houston’s Colombia Tap Rail-Trail and Denton’s Branch Rail-Trail.  Since the success and widespread use of these trails, city leaders are finally taking note and beginning to seeing the significance of infrastructure enhancements as a more affordable and effective approach to connectivity and Complete Streets. …

TTAT Conference Highlights San Antonio Greenway Trails
by Leslie Luciano        Bike Texas

Brandon Ross, Special Projects Manager for San Antonio Parks and Recreation, spoke about the Linear Creekway Parks Development Program at the TTAT Conference. Their mission is to enhance the quality of life for San Antonio residents and visitors through a series of interconnected trails that run throughout the city. Their goals include creating the building blocks for a bicycle/pedestrian system, but also seek to preserve open space and riparian connectivity for…

Legislators Ellis, Wentworth, and Oberstar Support Bike/Ped at TTAT Conference
by  Leslie Luciano            Bike Texas
The best way to learn about a community is on a bike, and people riding them in Texas are predominantly white, according to State Senator Rodney Ellis (D-Houston). Ellis spoke on “Bringing Racial and Socio-Economic Diversity to Cycling” as his keynote address for this year’s Texas Trails and Active Transportation Conference in San Antonio, Texas. According to Ellis, cyclists need to get others involved in the sport, especially those who might not necessarily look like their…

A hearty cause
Burleson man to cycle lower 48 states
By Matt Smith            Cleburne Times Review

Burleson resident Rob Davis already has his 2013 summer vacation mapped out, travel plans many would consider slightly nuts at best.

“Yeah, quite often when I tell my friends what I’m planning they’re like, ‘Now why are you doing this?’” Davis laughed. “So then I explain the heart health issues, my family history, all that, and they look at me and say, ‘OK. Now why are you doing this?’”

The “this” in question involves a scenic 3,700-mile trek from sea to shining sea, California to Maine to be exact. Nothing odd about that really save Davis’ chosen mode of transport, a…

Sammy’s 471 Ride from Castroville
Hill Country Bicycle Touring Association
Start: April 21, 2012 9:00 am
End: April 21, 2012 12:00 pm
Venue: Sammy’s Restaurant
Address: 202 US Hwy 90 EAST, Castroville, TX
Ride starts at 9:00 a.m. from the Park and Ride lot across from Sammy’s Restaurant in Castroville.  This is a mostly flat 33 mile ride to the Exxon station on FM 471 (Culebra) and back to Castroville, where we will have lunch at Sammy’s restaurant.  This is a nice ride for beginners, with safe wide bike lanes for most of the ride.  Stops will be at Rio Medina (a good place to turn around for those who want a shorter 12 mile ride) and the Exxon station.  The Park and Ride is…

STCC Training Ride for BikeMS and Tour de Cure Teams
by sooner1            Shawnee Trail Cycling Club
It’s finally here!
Ride Date: Sunday, April 15th at 11am.
Location: FC Dallas parking lot, Frisco, TX
Schedule for Ride Day
10:00-10:30am. Pre-ride instruction for those new to group riding or riding on the road. Among the topics will be hand and verbal signals, along with expected behavior.
11:00am. Start of the 100K group.
11:15am. Start of the 30 mile group.
Who can Ride? …

HBC Fulshear Orientation Ride Ride
Houston Bicycle Club
Sat 04/14/12
An easy paced 23 mile ride on flat roads with lots of pretty scenery and a cut through on pecan tree covered Hunt Road. Two stores along the way to stop and rest. Road bikes preferable, 8 – 13 mph. Need helmet, water bottle, patch kit or spare tube. Additional ride to coincide with “O” Ride. Ride goes west and south to Orchard and Wallis and is about 36 to 40 miles long. Maps available. If you want to ride with the club, but not with the “O” Ride, this is for you.

El Paso Bicycle Club Ride
Mind your Manners-Basics of Group Riding – B/IG
Thursday, April 12
Description:     Basics of Group Riding
Learn the basics of group skills and rider etiquette in this introductory discussion of group riding techniques. Meet at Rio Plaza at Artcraft & Upper Valley. Program starts at 5:50pm and the ride takes off at 6:05pm. All riders should be there at least 15 minutes early. For questions or more information please contact Margaret O’Kelley 915-588-3825 or check out the B/IG web page…

Bike Overnight
Lone Star Cyclists
Date: Saturday, April 21, 2012 – 8:00am to Sunday, April 22, 2012 – 1:00pm
Join us for the first LSC Bike Overnight!

Are you ready to get out of town and enjoy a bike tour but have only limited time?

We’ll be gone overnight and it will feel like a vacation!

We’ll leave our vehicles at Mark Robinson’s place in Maypearl and spend the day on scenic roads looking for wildflowers. We’ll arrive in Ennis after about 43 or 67 miles, where we can enjoy the annual Bluebonnet Festival. On Sunday we’ll head back to Maypearl for another 47 miles or so. …

6 Months With a Well Used Yuba Mundo!
Bicycling for the heck of it…by Matthew & Tina

I just came to the realization that I’ve had my used Yuba Mundo (Version 1) for a few days over 6 months and I thought this would be a good time to give an update and a more long term review of my well used (well used by the previous owner and myself) Yuba Mundo V1.

I purchased the bike Oct. 8, 2011 by chasing down the owner of a version 3 at the grocery store to ask how much he liked his bike…in talking with him he mentioned he had a Version 1 he needed to sell. So I made and deal and took it home later…

Bcycle Adventure
Bicycling for the heck of it…by Matthew & Tina

Yes you read that title right… Bcycle Adventure! No “i” there on purpose. Bcycle is San Antonio’s Bicycle Share program. Users can rent bicycles from kiosks around town for a minimal fee of $10 per day. Tina and I are annual membership holders and thus there is not a charge for the bicycles; it’s included with our membership fee. We bought the membership on sale for around $30 each and thought that would be a great investment since downtown usually means parking fees and with the Bcycle membership we can park at free lots and ride into …

Road Bike Back from the Bike Shop

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I picked up my Motobecane Le Champion CF road bike from Better Bikes in Atascocita about an hour ago. The mystery tapping sound turned out to be a loose chainwheel side bottom bracket bearing. The mechanic tightened the bottom bracket, greased the bearings and the tapping sound went away. In addition the headset was tightened and the cadence/mileage sensor for my Garmin Edge 500 also got snugged up. Now if the rain leaves the area tomorrow I plan on riding to see how these adjustments work out. Today’s riding plans washed out with rain in the morning and afternoon. The afternoon rain included some pea sized hail.