Mountain Bike Stands In – March 30th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

While my road bike awaits repair at the Better Bicycles shop the Motobecane 700HT MTB moves to the bike of choice. My favorite ride is my road bike but I do enjoy the change of pace when I ride my mountain bike. The pedaling effort is definitely different from a road bike and the riding position lines up my muscles so that they feel stressed.The workout numbers fell below my road bike level.

Choosing the mountain bike I decided to ride on the Kingwood biking trails. The look along the trails differs from what I saw back in February. I also did not have to dodge crews cutting down trees today. This past Wednesday I went to the annual meeting of the Bear Branch Trail Association. They own and manage 14 miles of biking trails covering the village I live and several that butt up to it. At the meeting the state of the trails report said that since August 2011 the association cut down 1,286 dead trees along the trails. This describes what the drought did to the forest along the trails. The cost totaled over $224,000. Some dead trees still exist so more cutting will take place. Even with this damage the trails look like they could recover but it will take 10 years or so. I took some pictures to show some green.

Overcast skies and the temperature hovering around 80 degrees felt nice as I pedaled along the trails. With the trees the light 6.9 mph south wind never made it to me. Yesterday’s rain bumped up the humidity some to 67%; not Houston sticky yet.

Toady’s ride numbers:

  • 1:29:44 riding time
  • 17.58 miles
  • 11.8 mph average speed
  • 21.2 mph max speed
  • 75.4 RPM average cadence
  • 104.01 miles this week
  • 567.90 miles in March (average 349 miles in March)
  • 1203.99 miles YTD
  • Garmin Connect data link

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3-30-2012 Home Weather Station End

3-30-2012 Home Weather Station End

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for March 29th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

No bike ride today. Road bike to the shop this morning, yard work after that and then rain. Mountain bike tomorrow, maybe. My Motobecane road bike scheduled to return on Monday.

Justin Moore (@bikegeek)        via Twitter
Bluebonnets on my bicycle commute home this afternoon!

El Paso Bicycle Club Ride
Tuesday, April 10
Tuesday climbing rides
Description:     Begin at 5:15 p.m. from Crazy Cat, 2626 N. Mesa. Ride to McKelligon Canyon via Scenic. About 16 miles total, intermediate pace. Rebecca Reza, 915.491.0977.

Santa Cruz Bicycle demos in Texas!
Howdy Hep Catz!            forums.mtbr.com
Santa Cruz Bicycles will have 3 demo stops in TX this year starting with the first in San Antonio on Sunday April 1 at McAllister Park. Contact Ride Away Bikes for details on exact location within the park.

Stop #2 on the Texas tour is in Austin Saturday April 7th at Walnut Creek Park. Contact Bicycle Sport Shop for directions.

Stop #3 will be in Dallas/Ft Worth area (Garland) Sunday April 8th at Rowlett Creek Preserve. Contact Richardson Bike Mart for directions.

All three demo events will run 9am till 2pm on a first come first served basis. Please Bring your DL, CC and pedals. The demo is FREE! …

Alliance Hosts Meeting with Leaders from Community Bike Shops
Community bike shops come in a variety of different forms and styles, but what they all have in common is that they work to get more people on bikes.  Whether it’s an all volunteer co-op that is open for a few hours a week, or a large shop with paid staff and a variety of programming options, community bike shops can often be found working with groups and individuals who are under-represented in bike advocacy.

During the National Bike Summit, over 20 leaders from community bike shop gathered to discuss the emerging role of their organizations, and how the Alliance can work to further engage and link community bike shops with one another.  Participants discussed the relationship between community bike shops and traditional advocacy…

Beyond Fair Weather Cycling
by Steve A            DFW Point-to-Point
I’m not entirely sure why, but over the last year, a resolve has taken hold to “expand the envelope” and ride safely and more or less comfortably in all weather. In other words, to move well beyond fair weather cycling and to be confident and safe in all conditions. In my v3 commute, I have even been able to develop workable and safe routes that work when it gets very foggy.

One condition has never been comfortable, that being thunderstorms; and lightning in particular. That would not be a problem if I were home in Western Washington. Lightning is rare there. It would not be a problem if I were…

Austin Bike Culture Calendar Events: 3/29- 4/4/12
by elliott            Austin on Two Wheels
Here’s a quick run down of recommended events for the coming week from our comprehensive calendar of all cycling events. As always, if there is an event you know about that’s not on our calendar contact us, and we’ll add your event on and possibly add it to the weekly round up. …

For the Wimmens By The Wimmens – Bike Racing
by jackmott        forum.slowtwitch.com
My wife transitioned last year from running and dus and tris to just bike racing last year. It has been quite an adventure, a very different sport, with not enough wimmens in it (yet!)

A couple of her articles you may like, the first is an overview of Texas Women’s Bike Racing this year, so far:

http://austintriathlonstore.blogspot.com/…2-spring-season.html

Quote:
Women’s sports are truly the underdogs of the underdogs, and bike racing is a prime example. Cycling is not a particularly high-profile sport in the U.S. – Lance Armstrong is its one well-known and controversial celebrity – but within this humble subset of professional and amateur…

Ask Nick: Gearing down for going up
By Nick Legan        velonews.competitor.com
Question: Nick,
I’m targeting a mountainous 2-day stage race in west Texas this spring (the Fort Davis Hammerfest), and am wondering about the practicalities of using multiple cassettes.  The race format includes a Saturday morning six-mile hill climb (rated a Cat. 2 on Strava), then a flattish TT in the afternoon and finally a hilly road race with several thousand feet of climbing Sunday morning.

I don’t own a TT bike, so my plan is to do all three stages on my road frame.  I am a 5’8?, 135lb Cat. 3 and run the following setup: SRAM Red with 53x39T up front and either 11-26t for hilly days and 11-23t out back for flat-to-rolling races.  I would just run the 11-26t all the time, but I find I really miss the…

Students and ASG senator calls for biking PFW
by Adrian Omar Ramirez            The University Star
Texas State students are no strangers to interesting subjects offered through Physical Fitness and Wellness (PFW) courses.

Local businesses host courses like billiards and bowling, while the University Camp allows for courses like backpacking and the challenge course. Recently, one Associated Student Government senator proposed a new course for exploring San Marcos— biking.

Maxfield Baker, political science senior and senator at-large, has already brought forth the idea, which the Department of Health and Human Performance is currently reviewing.

Baker said his idea for a biking PFW course came from how Texas State supports bikes on campus through providing racks, hosting Bike to School Day and funding the…

Expense-Account Tightwads Take the Road Less Expensive
By LAUREN WEBER            online.wsj.com
When Boris Siperstein travels for work from his home in Austin, Texas, he often does so with a folding bicycle tucked under his arm.

He expensed the $180 Dahon model, bought on sale, to his private-equity firm, but biking to meetings in such locales as New York City, Mumbai and Mauritius, he says, has saved his company a few thousand dollars in cab fare. Mr. Siperstein, 38 years old, was also known to sleep on the floor when he visited the company’s former Manhattan headquarters rather than pay upward of $200—his personal cutoff for a hotel…

I need this information. The last time I biked on Gene Campbell Road four dogs chased me down the road.

Tips on Cycling with Aggressive Dogs on Your Tail
by Laura        The Wheel Brothers – Cycling in Texas

At one time or another, we have all had to deal with a darting dog chasing us down while out on a ride. It is one of those problems that can unexpectedly come up at any time. Whether it is a lonely mutt who wants to put in a few miles with you or an aggressive canine looking for his next meal, it is important to know how to deal with…

jerald roll (@grandpajerald)    via Twitter
Texas is very green right now, this pic today

 

 

Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup March 28th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Bad Apples
by msrarkitex            Brazos Valley Mountain Bike Association
This is an APB from BVMBA. There are some new trails, ramps, berms short cuts being made/cut on the East Loop. BVMBA needs your help in locating these rouge trail cutters. Only BVMBA is authorized to work on the trails by BTU – no one else. We are required to submit plans to BTU for any new work we do on the trails and BTU has to approve this work before we start. The new trail that is being cut is located on the side of the levee. This is strictly prohibited by BTU. If this continues, WE WILL LOOSE OUR ACCESS TO THE TRAILS! No…

Bike Snob NYC coming to Austin this Saturday
By Pam LeBlanc            Fit City

If you do any amount of urban bike riding, you’ve felt the pain of Bike Snob NYC.

It’s a car-door flinging, cell phone-distracted world out there, where fellow cyclists high on their morning Wheaties want to race you to the next stoplight and pedestrians sometimes look more like “eerily floating coffee cups with big clumps of organic matter attached” (his words, not mine.)

In “The Enlightened Cyclist: Commuter Angst, Dangerous Drivers, and Other Obstacles on the Path to Two-Wheeled Transcendence,” ($16.95, Chronicle Books), Eben Weiss, 38, author of the Bike Snob NYC blog…

NICA High School Cycling News Round-up – March 27, 2012
By:     Cycling News
Spring league participation up despite wet weather
It’s the end of March, and the 2012 National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) racing program is going on in four leagues across the USA: NorCal, SoCal, Texas and Washington. It’s mountain biking, which means that weather sometimes dictates the play. But they’re mountain bikers so they are dealing with it. Here are the March stories from each league.

Texas
If the darkest hour comes before the dawn, for Vance McMurry, the founding chair of the Texas High School Mountain Bike League, the sun is now up. In early March, the first-ever high school mountain bike team race in Texas had to be postponed after double the March monthly average precipitation fell in…

Gran Fondo: Texas TMCO Race
Submitter: Alejandro
Created Mar 28, 12
Start:     Texas, US
Distance:     97.4 mi
Elevation:     + 1693 / – 1697 ft
Good For:     Cycling

Austin and San Antonio – bike friendly Texas!
www.rideforsaferoutes.com
The longer we are in this great state, the more we are loving it!  We’ve been lucky enough to have a string of nearly perfect weather days, which certainly helps, and as we’ve traveled from Brenham to Austin to San Antonio where we’ve been this weekend we’ve ridden through some really beautiful country.  Rolling hills, open country, and lots of quiet (well-paved!) roads.  With more daylight we can take our time even on longer-mileage days.  We’ve really been taking it all in and enjoying the…

Ready to Roll
A German Expat’s Life in Texas
Last weekend, more precisely, from Friday until the day before yesterday [Monday] we were in Fredericksburg, Texas Hill Country , on the occasion of the 5th Annual LBJ 100 Bicycle Tour . And that here is what it looks like when 4 people want to travel, including bicycles for a long weekend: pretty much stuff to take with you.

Usually when it’s only the two of us, Mary and me, who travel we have the bicycles inside the car, but with four people that’s not possible of course.

For the weekend itself we stayed, as we did last year, at Green’s Guest House . This is a beautiful and large bungalow in the middle of Fredericksburg, but in a very quiet residential area, with plenty of space for 6 people in three bedrooms, with a large living-room, a kitchen with adjoining dining-room and two…

Rocky Hill Rampage- Texas High School Mountain Bike Racing
by Tyler Ferguson

Rocky Hill Rampage- Texas High School Mountain Bike Racing from Tyler Ferguson on Vimeo.

This past weekend I headed down to Smithville, TX to shoot the first ever high school mountain bike race in the state of Texas. This is part of a larger film project documenting the league and its first season, but I wanted to share just a taste of the awesomeness that’s going on here.

New Report on Statewide Organizations and Federal Funding
Alliance for Biking & Walking: People Powered Blog
While Congress creates the framework, the most important decisions about the use of federal funds are made at the state and regional level. As the capacity of statewide bicycle advocacy groups has grown, many leaders have started to look beyond their long list of individual project victories and ask an important question: How can we use our limited resources to have a long-standing, wide-ranging impact in communities across the state? …

BikeTexas KidsKup @ Bicycle Sport Shop’s Pace Bend Mountain Bike Festival
Austin Ridge Riders
April 14, 2012 12pm-4pm
BikeTexas KidsKup introduces youth to basic bike safety and handling skills in a fun outdoor environment. BikeTexas staff prepare a child-friendly course and provide proper helmet adjustment and bike inspection to every child. Included will be lots of fun physical activity!

Course
All BikeTexas KidsKup courses are designed for safety and fun, with beginner kids in mind, and are usually about 1/4 mile in length. At many events, a separate shorter course is set up for kids on training wheels. The courses are always…

Cibolo Ride
San Antonio Wheelmen
Date:     03/31/2012
Time:     09:00 AM-12:00 PM
Location:     Cibolo, TX
Details:     Cibolo Ride (NE) [F to R]. Routes of 20, 27, 39, 51, 66 and 71 miles.
Meet at the City Hall parking lot in downtown Cibolo. From I-35 North, turn right on FM 3009 (Roy Richard Drive, exit 175) to FM 78; turn left and then left again on Main Street in Cibolo. City Hall is just off of Highway 78. Contact: Cliff Hickel, 210/884-9470

There will be a short General Membership Meeting before we start the ride.  After the ride, we’ll have lunch at Catalano’s Pizza (102 N. Main St., Cibolo) and have a drawing for multiple items. Please wear your Wheelmen jersey!

TBi Wednesday Night Criterium
Team Bicycles, inc.
Every Wednesday Night from the middle of March till the end of August at 1900 Gravel Road (don’t worry it’s paved) Fort Worth link has a map showing reference to 183 and 820. This year featuring Think!Finance Racing Cash Primes

RISE/Paralympic Sport North Texas, Hand Cycling Paralympic Experience
Saturday, April 14, 2012

San Antonio B-Cycle Spins into First Anniversary, Ranks as Second Busiest B-Cycle
Program in the Nation
News Release – City of San Antonio
The Alamo City has plenty to celebrate as San Antonio B-Cycle marks its first anniversary. With more than 106,000 miles ridden by more than 6,700 day users, San Antonio is now ranked as the second busiest B-Cycle program in the nation, behind Denver, in overall bike share usage.

“San Antonio has come long way in its transportation choices and B-Cycle has become the simple solution to get where you are going – the health benefits are an added tangible bonus,” said San Antonio B-Cycle Executive Director, Cindi Snell. “We are very excited about…

Big wheels turning: Bike culture in DFW
By Eric Griffey, Special to DFW.com
I felt like I’d just seen a flash mob, or had been involved in an experiment to test my threshold for body odor.

It was a few months ago at Malone’s Pub on a Sunday night, and my pool game was suddenly interrupted by a rambunctious group of sweaty, smelly and loud people. The bar was soon overrun by them, to the point where I couldn’t get a drink for about 15 minutes. And then, in the blink of an eye, they vanished like a fast-moving storm, leaving only a few empty bottles in their wake.

What just happened here?

The bartender told me that it was a bicycle pub crawl that met every Sunday and rode to different bars. When I started looking…

Yard work muscles and biking muscles – March 28th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Yard work muscles and biking muscles continue to co-exist. This morning we planted 14 rose bushes and moved several others. One rose bush wanted to live where a large rock already rested. The physics law that bodies in motion tend to stay in motion works in reverse with rocks but I did get the rock moved. The cost in muscle power was small but when you add many small efforts together they can take a toll.

So today’s bike ride did not start until 3:00. By then the temperature dropped a few degrees to 79 and the clouds thickened up. After I started I noticed a dark cloud in the distance to the south. I kept an eye on it during the ride but no rain came out. When I got home and looked at the radar I could see why the clouds darkened with rain in the west to southwest portions of Harris County.

While I rode through the Oakhurst area a man in a car stopped me to ask about my biking. He said he was looking for someone to bike with. He asked about my typical route distance and speed. On my next ride through Oakhurst I will leave my Texbiker.net business card at his house. Maybe we can bike together.

More yard work tomorrow. I will see if the muscles can hold up and still bike. The tapping sound continues so I plan to take my bike to the bike shop tomorrow.

Some numbers from today’s ride:

  • 1:50:31 riding time
  • 14.7 mph average speed
  • 23.0 mph max speed
  • 78.6 RPM average cadence
  • 27.15 miles today (I shortened this to spare some muscles)
  • 86.42 miles this week
  • 550.32 miles in March
  • 1186.41 miles YTD
  • Garmin Connect data link

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3-28-2012 Home Weather Station End

3-28-2012 Home Weather Station End