Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup for November 14th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Texas Shop Finds Creative Way to Get Kids Riding
firstgear.specialized.com
Bicycle Sport Shop, a Specialized dealer with three locations in Austin, Texas has been doing terrific work in that community to get more kids riding and walking to school.

In February of 2010, Bicycle Sport Shop, led by Director of Advocacy Leslie Luciano, began a partnership with the Boltage program at their first school in Austin.  Boltage uses incentives and…

Tell the Senate that bikes have a right to the road
www.bikeleague.org
The draft of the Senate’s transportation authorization bill, S. 1813 Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, includes language that would introduce a mandatory sidepath law on roads in our National Parks and other Federal lands. It requires cyclists on Federal lands to use a path or trail, instead of roads, if the speed limit is over 30 MPH and a trail exists within 100 yards, regardless of its condition or…

HBC Christmas Lights Ride Ride
December 10, 2011
Hermann Park Rose Garden, Houston
This is a liesurely social ride for a couple of hours through Houston neighborhoods with good decorations. We’ll stop somewhere for a light meal on the way back.   Come with good lights, charged batteries and reflective clothes!  Decorations encouraged.

Austin Park Foundation Work Day at the Hill of Life
by Laura Scagn            Austin Ridge Riders
Date: Saturday, November 19, 2011
Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Come volunteer to rebuild/bolster the water bars and drainage features at the Hill of Life, located at the far west end of the Barton Creek Greenbelt main trail on Camp Craft Road.  We’ll be moving and packing rock, gravel and soil to allow the hill trail to drain better.  We’ll need lots of volunteers as well as extra wheelbarrows, rock bars, rock cradles, picks and more. This is a…

Gateway Park Trail Extension
Fort Worth Mountain Bike Association

Gateway Park Trail Extension

The new Gateway Park trail extension is off to a great start! We had over 20+ volunteers, fantastic weather and good food at the November Workfest. Let’s build on that success by increasing our volunteer turnout and thereby increasing the amount of tasty singletrack at Gateway Park! If you were at the Workfest earlier this month bring a friend. We need boots on the ground in order to get knobbies in the dirt!
– Meet prior to 9:00am at the abandoned parking area on East 1st Street immediately east of the Trinity River. Location (turn on satellite view)

December Rides Announced
Fort Worth Bicycling Association
The December ride list is up. Please go to the Ride Events page for all of the exciting details!
Burleson and Beyond, Burleson TX (details)     Thursday, December 1, 2011 9:00 am
The Rusty Chain Gang Romp, Benbrook TX (details)     Thursday, December 1, 2011 9:00 am
Bicycles Inc. Century of the Month, Arlington TX (details)     Saturday, December…

Mountain Bike Results
by League Director        Texas High School Cycling League

In the 2011 Texas High School Cycling League fall mountain bike race series Sachse high school took both the varsity and junior varsity individual titles on their way to beating out Jesuit in the team overall competition.  Here are just some of the pictures of the action.  Be sure to check back soon for information about our high school…

Uberhood First Impressions
by Justin        The Plano Cyclist

Most of you have probably heard about the Uberhood from Bikesnob NYC, who made pretty nasty comments about the ‘hood, and by extension it’s users. Here in Plano we are a more more friendly and accommodating to folks, and we give them a chance before we make broad negative assumptions about a group of people.

I was very excited when I received my ‘hood in the mail, because it is the first of several products I’ll be giving the old PC gorilla test to over the next couple of months. …

Seen at the Bike Friendly Oak Cliff 2011 Dallas Tweed Ride – Dealey Plaza
by Christopher Curnutt        Biking in Dallas

I have so many photos that I’m splitting them into three galleries: Dealey Plaza, Turner House and then Bishop Arts; in the same order we rode.  The lighting was kind of weird at Dealey Plaza because we were either in the full sun, or mostly shade.  Not ideal but oh well.

The weather could not have been more perfect. I’m guessing there was a couple of hundred people there, and I…

Extreme bike race takes over co-op
By Aaron West        www.dailytexanonline.com

Some might consider Lance Armstrong to be Austin’s claim to fame as far as cycling is concerned, but when it comes to extreme bike racing, let’s just say that Armstrong hasn’t ever wolfed down a boiled octopus in 21st Street Co-op’s infamously brutal MF 100.

“I think Lance Armstrong would tank in this race,” said Will Wolfe, a geology senior and an organizer of the MF 100 bike race. “He probably doesn’t have the stomach for it, honestly. Or the technical abilities. This course is basically just a perilous…

Sandy Springs cyclist rides with Lance Armstrong
Locals part of charity battling cancer
By David Rutz            www.neighbornewspapers.com

For a few minutes, Sandy Springs resident John Manser rode alongside the world’s most well-known cancer survivor and cyclist, seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong in Austin, Texas.

It was both cycling and the battle against cancer that led Manser, a cyclist for more than 20 years, and friend Kelly Wiggins to Austin for the Ride for the Roses Oct. 14 through 16.

“We were jacked up about it,” Manser said of getting some one-on-one time with Armstrong. “It was one of the most amazing…

New Belgium Brewing Co.’s Tour de Fat raises $400,000
Written by David Young            www.coloradoan.com

New Belgium Brewing Co.’s Tour de Fat, the bicycle oriented party that rolls across the country, is about more than just dressing up, riding a bike and drinking some beer, it is also raises a lot of money for bike advocacy programs and nonprofits.

New Belgium Brewing announced in a press release it raised more than $400,000 for bike-focused nonprofit organizations with this year’s Tour de Fat that included 13 cities across the country. …

After seven days of riding… – November 14th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

After seven days of riding my mountain bike I am back on my road bike. Yesterday after I finished riding my mountain bike my right shoulder muscles were so sore I could barely move my arm let alone lift it over my head. I suspect I was pulling on the handlebar harder than I realized. Thankfully after a night sleeping the soreness has almost went away. So riding my road bike did not cause the soreness to return and my left leg did not cause a problem either.

As forecast the weather was a little warmer than yesterday with 80 degrees when I finished the ride. Cloudy skies covered the sun almost the full time but it did peek through a few times. Along with the sun at one point some large rain drops fell on me and I was hoping I was going to ride away from them. I did that and no more rain. This was a good thing because there was no where to get out of the rain if it did fall. I would have got soaked. The wind was 14 mph from the SSE but I was able to ride into it and not get real bogged down. Tomorrow there is a 70% chance of rain around the middle of the day. I may not get to ride if this happens.

A problem has started with my chain slipping when I am in the 43 x 13 and 43 x 12 gears (maybe in 43 x 15as well) whenever I put a lot of pedal pressure on. I am thinking my chain may have too many links and the rear derailleur cannot wrap the chain tight enough. I will remove some links and see if this helps. Park Tool Company has a page on their website that covers how to determine the correct length.

Now that I am back on my road bike the daily miles has moved north of 20. Today’s route was 25.27 miles. It was nice to get the average speed up as well to 15.2 mph and the max speed was 23.7 mph without going down a hill. The 14 mph wind helped though. November miles are now 234.82 and year to date I am at 5218.32 miles.

11-14-2011 Area Weather End

 

11-14-2011 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

[iframe http://ridewithgps.com/trips/446320 97% 700]

Link to the Garmin Connect ride data and map.

Texas Bicycling Blog and News Roundup for November 13th

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Sunday Training Ride 11/13/2011 Dallas, TX
www.strava.com
Ridden by Peter Eyestone on a Colnago bike, recorded with a Garmin Edge 500 on Sunday, November 13, 2011 at 08:13am, starting in Dallas, TX, United States, and including David Simcoe. Rode with RBM and Mirage Racing on the south loop. Very stiff winds out of the southwest.

Ride Review – 2011 Hamilton Hill-Aceous 100
Readyforplanb.com
May 14th, 2011
This ride was just one week after the Shiner GASP but with goal #1 on my journey to plant based cyclist accomplished I was feeling really strong and wanted to get out there and go for it.  Year to date I had logged 1,925 miles and was down 16.1 pounds.

I did the 2 hour and 15 minute drive down to Hamilton from Dallas the morning of the ride.  It was manageable but I suspect it is just far enough that it keeps some folks away.  The…

Sarcopenia: Muscle Loss with Aging
Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine
Competitive masters athletes, 40 to 81 years old, who trained four to five times per week did not lose any muscle size or significant strength with aging (The Physician and Sportsmedicine, October 2011;39(3):172-8). This shows that loss of muscle size and strength in older people is caused by lack of exercise, not just with aging. The athletes did gain fat in spite of exercising. Those in their 70s had almost as much strength and thigh muscle size as those in their 40s.

MOST PEOPLE LOSE MUSCLE: Recent studies show that after age 40, men lose more than eight percent of their muscle size each decade, and this loss of muscle increases after age 70. The people who lose the most muscle are usually the ones who die earliest. They are also most at risk for falls and broken bones. …

The Only Extra Mineral Exercisers Need Is Salt
Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine
People who are serious exercisers can be harmed by the broad recommendations for all Americans to restrict salt intake. It is true that excess salt intake can cause high blood pressure, but heavy exercise usually helps to protect people from salt causing high blood pressure. The minimum salt requirement is 1,500 mg (1 teaspoon) of sodium a day. The average North American is told not to exceed 2,300 mg per day, but he ingests too much salt, between 3,100 and 4,700 mg of sodium per day.

FITNESS DOES NOT REDUCE SALT LOSS: This month a study from Spain shows that being fit does not reduce the concentration of salt in sweat (European Journal of Applied Physiology, November 2011). A person who exercises in the heat can lose far more than 4000 mg of salt. So in spite of the fact that most serious exercisers get a lot of salt from the massive amounts of foods that they eat, they can still become salt deficient. …

SAVE THE DATE: November 25, 2011 – 3rd Annual Black Friday Ride
by dickdavid             Bike Friendly Richardson

500 Cyclists Participate In Soldier Ride (video)
One-Day Cycling Event Raises Money For Wounded Vets
Stephanie Serna KSAT 12 News Reporter
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Hundreds of wounded warriors and cyclists made their way through San Antonio on Saturday for this year’s Soldier Ride.

The race takes place in 12 cities across the U.S. This year was the first time it was held in San Antonio.

The one-day cycling event is geared toward raising awareness and money for the Wounded Warrior Project.

The Wounded Warrior Project funds state-of-the-art equipment, including adaptive hand cycles…

It huffed and it puffed and it …
by Gil Jones        Musings of Captain Justice

There they are, finally. At 8:22 there were only three of us present and ready to go. I made my usual early appearance and was able to take my time getting ready. What to wear? Temps are going to vary but right now I’m cold. Yes, John, I know that I will warm up as I ride but right now I’m cold. Light, sleeveless windbreaker … no, go with the full windbreaker. I can always take it off. …

Home Sweet Home
Tour de Tejas        Wes Foster
Today was an epic day! We finished the Tour de Tejas a full two days ahead of schedule. We biked the final miles across the Texas/Louisiana border this morning around 11am. It was amazing, simply amazing.

What an incredible journey. To see something come to pass from idea, to planning, to goal setting, to vision casting, to training and finally implementing! Many start, few finish. …

My shins were hurting and… – November 13th Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

It wasn’t a pretty sight seeing me riding on my mountain bike on the street heading into a strong wind with the knobby tires rumbling along. This is what happened hen I was going south on W. Lake Houston Parkway over the river. To top it off there were two cars in the shoulder lane with a person working on one of them. I needed to get around them but I had to come to a complete stop before I could do that due to the heavy traffic. Getting a 22 to 25 pound mountain bike with knobby tires back up to speed does not happen quickly. At the time I think the wind was blowing 14 mph from the SSW.

I went on a trail I have not been on for a long time. It was sad to see all of the dead trees that have been cut down because of the drought. Many of them were almost 2 feet in diameter. It will take many years for the remaining trees to get that size.

My shins were hurting and my left calf muscle was sore from the pedaling. I think my saddle is the problem. Whenever I stood up to pedal the pain went away. So I think I need to find a better saddle even though this one was comfortable on my road bike.

Today I biked 15.83 miles (my Garmin Edge showed 16.1) at an average speed of 11.6 mph. The max speed was 19.1 since I did not have any hills to go down. Average cadence dropped to 76.6 RPM. Because of the shin pain there were times when I slowed to less than 10 mph. For the week I broke 100 miles at 104.86, November is 209.55 miles and the year is 5193.06 miles.

The weather was threatening to rain it seemed with some dark clouds floating around. I had rained a few minutes earlier in the morning so I wanted to get back home without getting drenched. I made it and the rain has held off so far. The temperature has increased from yesterday to 80 degrees. It is supposed to be as warm tomorrow. This coming week I will be on my road bike again whenever it is practical.

11-13-2011 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

[iframe http://ridewithgps.com/trips/445411 95% 700]

Link to the Garmin Connect ride data and map.

11-13-2011 Home Weather End