Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup for August 27th

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Insert Coin: PumpTire self-inflating bicycle tire
via Engadget by Zach Honig

We love tires — they provide an infinite boost in life to the ever-so-necessary wheel, soften the blow while driving on dirt roads and over potholes, and, upon retirement, serve as an ideal plaything for our children. But there’s still something missing. As much as we try to make it not so, our tires let their air supplies trickle away — albeit at an ever so sluggish pace — ultimately causing inconvenience, and often with unfortunate timing. A slightly deflated bicycle tire won’t have the same…

Record-breaking temperatures for Hotter’N Hell
By Lynn Walker     www.timesrecordnews.com
If you are visiting our fair city for Hotter’N Hell — welcome.

Unfortunately, you’re not seeing Wichita Falls at its best this summer. You see, the bicycle race is living up to its name. It’s Hotter’N Hell. It has been for a very long time.

Now, we Wichitans tend to take a perverse pride in our heat. When somebody from elsewhere complains about the heat where they live, we just smile knowingly. You think you know heat? You don’t know heat. …

Visiting old haunts on Vacation Reunion Tour
By Bill Cullins     www.gosanangelo.com
I’m calling it the Vacation Reunion Tour.

A series of bike, hike and run performances.

Sort of like the current reunion tour for Ian Moore Band, but instead of replaying old songs I’m revisiting some of my favorite cycling and running routes from the years when we lived on Colorado’s Front Range. …Visiting old haunts on Vacation Reunion Tour
By Bill Cullins     www.gosanangelo.com
I’m calling it the Vacation Reunion Tour.

A series of bike, hike and run performances.

Sort of like the current reunion tour for Ian Moore Band, but instead of replaying old songs I’m revisiting some of my favorite cycling and running routes from the years when we lived on Colorado’s Front Range. …

San Antonio Wheelmen Rides
Labor Day Leaderless Rides
Date:     09/05/2011
Time:     08:00 AM-11:00 AM
Location:     Leon Springs and Cibolo
Leon Springs
Meet in the parking lot near the Starbucks and HEB in Leon Springs.  From 1604, head west on I-10 and take the Boerne Stage road exit.  Turn left on Boerne Stage, go through the intersection, and make a left into the parking lot.
Cibolo
Download the Cibolo map and 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.

More good news about bicycling in big cities—but what about the rest of the country?
www.peopleforbikes.org
Positive stories about the growth of urban bicycling continue to pour in. A month ago New York City released its annual bike counts, which found a 14% increase in bicycling. The same week, Boston opened its bike sharing program, New Balance Hubway, while Minnesota expanded its bike share because of its success. This week, Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a campaign to build 25 miles of new bike lanes every year—a total of…

Started Early to Avoid the Heat at Hotter’n Hell Hundred – August 27th Bike Ride

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We started early to avoid the heat and it looks like that was a good idea with the temperature at 110 degrees at 3:29 PM. I started my Garmin Edge at 6:21 AM and I finished 6 hours and 34 minutes later at 12:55 PM. The ride was slow getting started as usual as the huge number of riders takes time to move to the start line. My strategy was to keep my gearing lower than usual to keep my speed between 15 and 18 mph to pace myself. this worked very well with my average speed at 15.8 mph. I am surprised I was able to keep it at this level but there were times before we reached the second rest stop on the 100 mile route that the temperature was actually chilly. I am not complaining. Also I think the wind was low that early and I was able to keep a pace without the wind being a problem. It was 95 degrees when I rode through Burkburnett around 10:00 AM.

The plan was to stop at the third rest stop, which I did, and then every other one after that which I almost did except I stopped at the last one on the 100K/50 mile route on Sheppard Air Force Base. I was on this route because I took the Hell’s Gate shortcut so that I could go through the AFB. the airmen and airwomen are fantastic as they cheer you on. I gave a high five to many as I passed the line. You can see them in the gallery below. One airman held my bike while I stopped at the rest stop. He told me he had arrived at Sheppard AFB just last week. I did not get his name but this is his picture.

Airman holds my bike at Sheppard AFB

The ride was not perfect though as I had a bout with the goathead burrs at rest stop #14. I stopped there to refill my water bottle and Camelbak. When I finished that and a great snow cone I went to get my bike and I checked the tires for those critters and found several hanging onto my front tire. I removed all of them except one without incident. One had penetrated to the tube. I could see this because I was standing in a puddle of water and the air bubbles were coming out into it. Because of the heat my first patch attempt did not stick but the second one was successful. I was on my way.

At rest stop #5 I met a fellow rider from Kingwood that I had biked with in early July. His name is Richard Liliedahl. We talked about the ride and the routes we were riding. He was doing the 100 mile router with some friends. Two of his friends that I rode with in July did not make the trip.

From there the ride was good and I finished in good condition except for the salt stains on every piece of clothing I was wearing. After meeting up with my wife we drove back to the hotel to eat and clean up. I have some pictures from the consumer expo on Friday that I will post when I get home.

My ride data is at Garmin Connect since I am not able to access my SportTracks program from the hotel.

[iframe http://connect.garmin.com:80/activity/embed/109817443 465 548]

Some of the data highlights:

Weather after my finish

 

Garmin Connect Ride Data

 

Gramin Connect 5 mile lap times and average speeds

These are some of the pictures at the rest stops and finish. Click on the link Show picture list to see the pictures in a larger format.

[nggallery id=295]

Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup August 26th

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Today we drove to Wichita Falls for the Hotter’n Hell 100. All was going nicely but my wife was not feeling well so we started later than planned. We were making good time but just before a small town on US287 I crested a small hill with the cruise control set on 72 mph and the Jeep GC accelerated to make up for the speed lost going up the hill and I saw the GPS speed gauge register 74 mph and on the shoulder was a DPS officer checking speed. As I approached the DPS cruiser the red lights went on and I figured I was the one selected. So I started slowing down and pulled onto the shoulder. The DPS officer got out of the cruiser and walked up to our Jeep. He said I was going over the 70 mph speed limit and I explained why I thought I was going fast. He was very polite and said I would get a warning ticket. I thanked him and he brought the ticket for me to sign. This is the first ticket I have had since late 1970 in Bellaire, Ohio. Thankfully no ticket. I reset the cruise control to 68 mph and we hit the road again.

Houston Bicycle Club
When: Program: Tuesday 09/13/11 at: 7:00 PM HEB Community Room at I-10 and Bunker Hill in December 2010, Sally and Tom Joyce took a tour of Israel centered around Jerusalem, but also visiting several other historical sites. Come hear about their trip.

Could a better cycling video game save US couch potatoes?
by Peter Suciu, from Detroit, MI    BikeRadar.com Blogs – Pro Cycling
As I noted in a past blog post, the annual video game trade show – the Electronic Entertainment Expo or E3 – is much like Interbike. The attitude is relaxed and a bit more laid back than serious “work” trade shows. Many of the attendees are in shorts, and I’ll say it again, there is a certain smell in the air.

There are notable differences between gamers and cyclists, the biggest may be their size.  Many video gamers are big and frankly out of shape. This isn’t to say that there aren’t gamers who like to cycle, as well as cyclists…

Wichita Falls law enforcement gears up for Hotter ‘N Hell Hundred
Edward Lane, Wichita Falls Law Enforcement Examiner
Wichita Falls area law enforcement officials will be even busier than normal this weekend protecting the public safety as an estimated 15,000 entrants in America’s largest bicycle race will pedal along the streets and highways of Wichita Falls.

This race will mark the 30th anniversary of the nationally known race which immediately put this North Texas city on the…

Hell of a time – HHH knows how to entertain
With Celtic rock, consumer show, spaghetti and speedy criterium races, HHH knows how to entertain
By Lana Sweeten-Shults
When it comes to the Hotter’N Hell Hundred, it’s always a pedal-to-the-metal state of mind, what with 100 miles of asphalt between the thousands of riders, the finish line, and athletic endurance glory.

To tackle the daunting HHH, as it’s lovingly called — that’s 100 dastardly miles in 100-degree weather — riders with gumption can say it’s good to be cycling king (or queen). …

Our Opinion: Hotter’N Hell lives up to its name
Times Record News
Legend has it that when Hotter’N Hell creator Roby Christie approached city leaders about creating a 100-mile bike race in the August heat, they laughed in his face.

After 30 years, no one’s laughing, but rather relishing the brilliant idea that has brought hundreds of thousands of people, cyclists and enthusiasts, to Wichita Falls.

Sure, it’s during the hottest part of the year — and this year takes the cake — but…

Texas Bicycling Daily News Roundup August 25th

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Ride to Cure Diabetes: Dallas Rider Raises over $13,000 for JDRF!
by JDRF Dallas Chapter

In 2008, Russell Hoppenstein of Richardson, Texas made a commitment to participate in the JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes. He did this in honor of son, Lance, who was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes when he was just two years old. After a month of dealing with the challenges of having to manage diabetes in a toddler, he decided to take each day as it comes and to be a positive role model for Lance. …

El Paso Bicycle Club Ride
Saturday, September 10
Chile Pepper Warmup I
Description:     Meet at La Mesa (park across from Eagle Grocery) for preview ride of northern portion of the Chile Pepper Route. Ride to O’Hara Road, take rollers to Vado then loop back to La Mesa and up to Mesilla with a stop at the Bean. 53 miles. Option to do 25 miles only (first half beginning at La Mesa at 8 a.m., or join ride in La Mesa at about 9:30 a.m. for second half). Moderate to fast pace (17-20 mph). Randy Limbird, 328-4110.

British Touring Bike Spotted
by Christopher Curnutt        Biking in Dallas

I was on my way to Subway for lunch and spotted this very cool touring biker and stopped to take a few photo and talk to the owner.  Dude said just this last year he rode it cross country – from the east coast to the west coast.  He has the perfect set up for it. He said it was a 60’s British bike and wouldn’t you know I cannot…

6:30pm – Bicycle Path Time Trial Series
Corinth Cycling Club
by scottfranklin@gmail.com
When: Wed Aug 31, 2011 6:30pm to Wed Aug 31, 2011 7:30pm  CDT
Where: Denton Airport
Event Description: http://www.thebicyclepath.com/community The Bicycle Path will be hosting the Wednesday Night Time trials once again! All levels of riders are encouraged to attend and there is no cost. 6:30pm For more information visit www.thebicyclepath.com or come by the shop.