Back To A Local Route, Getting Some Breathing Room On That Goal

Texbiker.net Posted on by

A change of location and pace for today’s bike ride after yesterday’s Galveston ride. The start time wasn’t as late as yesterday since I didn’t have to drive to the starting location but not as early as I should’ve began. After the battery issues with the Cervelo bike I switched to my Lynskey Helix bike and rode out at 10:19 AM after watching the stage 6 finish of the Critérium du Dauphiné and eating breakfast.

The route was Kingwood – FM1485 – Kingwood going north but I changed a few streets for some variety and increased the distance about a mile over the average for the route to 34.08 miles. I lowered the pace slightly for recovery purposes avoiding most of the Strava starred segments. I did up the the speed a little on Valley Ranch Parkway for the Texan / 99 segment but not enough to challenge my personal record. Some of the route differences: after 8/10’s of a mile through Sherwood Trails Village, longer loop through Brooklyn Trails, Community Drive to Loop 494, Auburn Trails, and Bentwood Oaks Drive to rock Creek Drive. The 34.08 miles pushed the total for June to 272.18. This gives me some breathing room with a day ahead of the pace of 27 miles per day at 10.1 days versus being the 9th day of June. Can’t fall back now. I’m averaging 30.22 miles per day versus the 27 per day to reach 800 miles for June.

6-9-2023 SportTracks 2023 Ride History Kingwood-FM1485-Kingwood
6-9-2023 SportTracks 2023 Ride History Kingwood-FM1485-Kingwood

I took a short break under the Texas 99 overpass at Valley Ranch Parkway and took these photos.

6-9-2023 Lynskey Helix TX99 Valley Ranch-2
6-9-2023 Lynskey Helix TX99 Valley Ranch-2
6-9-2023 Lynskey Helix TX99 Valley Ranch-3
6-9-2023 Lynskey Helix TX99 Valley Ranch-3

There is still a problem with the Bolt computer displaying power meter watts but it wasn’t compounded with sensor battery issues this time. A re-start revived the display and the ride went on. This is a nagging problem. Hopefully Wahoo fixes it soon.

Weather for the ride: Start 84 degrees, 72% humidity, 74 dew point, a few clouds, wind NW 6 mph; Finish 89 degrees, 58% humidity, 72.1 dew point, a few clouds, wind SE 4 mph.

6-9-2023 Strava Ride Summary Kingwood-FM1485-Kingwood
6-9-2023 Strava Ride Summary Kingwood-FM1485-Kingwood

Isla del Sol to Grand Galvez And Back, Alternate Road To FM 3005 Avoiding No Shoulder

Texbiker.net Posted on by

As I drove to Galveston for today’s bike ride I wondered if I should ride from the east end of the island to Isla del Sol or ride east from there. If I rode from the east the prevailing wind would be a headwind with a tailwind on the way back. My inclination is to ride into the headwind at the start of a ride and finish with a tailwind but today I opted for the Isla del sol start location. I had wanted to take this ride in May but ran out of time.

The weather was good with the temperature at 81 when I rolled out on my Cervelo Caledonia at 10:51 AM from the parking lot at the beach access point. It didn’t take long for a warning to pop up on my bolt computer that the battery for the rear derailleur was low. Why didn’t that come up after yesterday’s ride when I could’ve charged it before today? Then the cadence and power meter sensors showed n/a. I thought this was the same problem I have had before and used the same steps to try and fix them. Those didn’t work so the ride did not record cadence or power. When I got home I tested the batteries and they both were dead and I replaced them. Why doesn’t the bolt computer report low battery for those like it does for the Rival AXS eTap derailleurs? Again I could’ve replaced them before leaving for the ride.

Recently I was looking at the Galveston map in Google Maps and noticed Stewart Road paralleling FM 3005 and wondered if this would be better than riding on FM 3005 from Jamaica Beach to the Seawall. That section of FM 3005 does not have a shoulder and lots of traffic. To check it out I drove to Jamaica Beach on Stewart Road. There is several miles of bike lane in both directions from east of 81st Street to the west. When the bike lane ends the road doesn’t have a shoulder but the traffic is low and the speed limit is lower than FM 3005. The few cars and trucks that passed me gave plenty of room. Stewart Road ends at FM 3005 east of the Galveston State Park. The shoulder from Jamaica Beach to Stewart Road is about 3 feet wide in both directions. From Jamaica Beach to Isla del sol the shoulder is 10 to 12 feet wide and smooth asphalt.

I turned from Stewart Road onto 81st street to get to the Seawall because it was the first street with a traffic light so I could cross over Seawall Blvd. to the sidewalk. this worked in both directions. I turned around on the Seawall around the Grand Galvez hotel. I was back at the Isla del Sol parking lot at 2:49 PM. After putting the Cervelo in the Jeep and changing clothes I drove to Joe’s Crab Shack for a late lunch or early dinner.

Weather: Start 81 degrees, humidity 77%, dew point 73, fair, wind W 9 mph; Finish 87 degrees, humidity 61%, dew point 72, partly cloudy, wind variable 3 mph. The wind was light compared to my previous visits to Galveston. Driving back home I got caught in a severe thunderstorm with some hail about halfway to Houston. Traffic was very slow and the normal hour and a half drive was almost 3 hours.

Today’s ride was similar to my ride on June 8, 2022. I did not ride on Stewart Road last year. Today’s 45.92 miles built up my average miles per day to 29.75 surpassing the required 27 miles per day to reach my 800 mile goal for June. Now to increase the cushion.

6-8-2023 SportTracks Ride History Galeveston Island Isla del Sol
6-8-2023 SportTracks Ride History Galeveston Island Isla del Sol

I scored a plethora of Strava medals on this ride. Here are four of them: PR on San-Luis Single Lane (7:22), PR on Seawall Blvd East (61st to 45th) (5:46), PR on Jamaica Beach sprint (18:02), and PR on Seawall Blvd East (Central City to 29th) (13:46).

Texas Bicycling News – June 7, 2023

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Local cycling community reels from tragic loss of Lisa and Charles McBride

by: Markeshia Jackson | www.texomashomepage.com

CLAY COUNTY (KFDX/KJTL) — The Wichita Falls Cycling Community is remembering their friends Lisa and Charlie McBride. While they grieve they’re also hoping to change the narrative between motorists and cyclists.

“I met Lisa when we were six, seven years old,” family friend Mark Pinson said. “We raced BMX bikes when we were younger together.”

“For me personally, they were always a friendly face,” family friend Becky Raeke said. “I knew that they were like superstars in the world of running and biking. They were people that cared deeply about everybody else and were always thinking about everybody else, and they were just wonderful to be around.” …

1 person is dead after a box truck struck a bicyclist

by Karina Hollingsworth | ktxs.com

ABILENE, Tx — 28-year-old Richard Charles Simmons lost his life Saturday around 5 a.m. after being struck by a box truck as he rode his bicycle. The accident occurred on East Highway 80 near Bandera Park St.

The accident is the first fatality this year on the roadways in Taylor County.

Traffic officer Greg Young says the Abilene Police Department is working to make the roads a safer place.

“No matter what mode of transportation whether you’re on foot, bicycle, …

Outreach and Community Engagement Manager – Biking Program – Houston-Galveston

Love to Ride Houston, TX | www.ziprecruiter.com

Job Description We are looking for someone who can do outreach and community engagement with businesses, project stakeholders, and people across the 8-county Houston-Galveston region. While most outreach will be done remotely, in the ideal world you’d to be located the Houston-Galveston area as there may be opportunities to attend in-person events.

The program is a fun, month-long biking encouragement program ("the Biketober Challenge") which will run in October 2023. The aim is to engage businesses, organizations, existing riders and new riders and …

Denton replacing 60 signs after misprint prohibits bikes, skateboards, skates in parking lots

By Christian McPhate | dentonrc.com

A red circle with a red line crosses over images of a bicycle, a rollerblade and roller skate and a person on a skateboard on what appear to be fairly new signs on street corners around the downtown Square in Denton.

Underneath, the signs read, “Vehicle and toy devices prohibited on sidewalks and parking lots — City Ordinance 2004 187.” …

Video: 97-year-old Midland man is still staying active and volunteering

By Chase Cochran | www.cbs7.com

MIDLAND, Texas (KOSA) -The average retirement age in the State of Texas is 65 years old. Some folks spend the remainder of their days traveling, fishing, or just relaxing at home.

Others take a more active approach to their twilight years.

At 97 years old one could be forgiven for taking a well-deserved rest from work.

But Maurice “Maury” Bonecutter prefers to stay active.

“I still ride my bike four miles a day, I still drive,” said Bonecutter.

Not only that but Maury still goes out of his way to serve the community,

“He works four days a week in our Meals on Wheels kitchen helping us package and prep for Meals on Wheels deliveries, then he also spends one day a week, working at the West Texas food bank,” said Tracy Renton. …

Bear Creek Crit Houston, Texas

Michelle Yoder | strava.com

Faster than Last – solo chill Harris County, Texas

Thomas Anselmi | strava.com

Wednesday Evening Gravel Ride Harris County, Texas

Jason Wipf | strava.com

Bear Creek week 5 women’s open Houston, Texas

Pamela Ferguson | strava.com

Texas Biking from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Optimizing the Ride: Modified Streets, Extended Distance on Familiar Route

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Today’s bike ride was the third time on the Community Drive – Valley Ranch – Gene Campbell Blvd. route this year. I altered some streets from the previous rides. The changes included the first mile and a half, using Woodridge Parkway to enter Woodridge Forest, and riding to Eagle Drive rather than taking the east bound frontage road along TX 99 and circling back to the west bound frontage road to return to US59. These changes lengthened the ride a little bit above the average distance of 37 miles to 38.68 miles. This improved my daily average miles to 27.45 putting me slightly above the 27 miles I need to average per day to reach my 800 mile goal for June. Month to date is 192.16 miles.

6-7-2023 SportTracks 12 Month Ride History Community Dr-Valley Ranch-Gene Campbell
6-7-2023 SportTracks 12 Month Ride History Community Dr-Valley Ranch-Gene Campbell

Another bike ride on my Cervelo Caledonia starting at 9:23 AM. I decided to watch the replay of the Critérium du Dauphiné when I finished the ride. Today’s ride moved the Cervelo to 8,018 miles since I bought it. I finished the ride at 12:16 PM. I was busy shifting gears on the ride with 45 rear derailleur changes according to the AXS.SRAM.com ride report. The35x13 gears dominated the action with 1:54:52 (28.9 miles) out of the total moving time of 2:49:47.

Weather: Start 79 degrees, humidity 75%, dew point 70, mostly cloudy, wind NW 4 mph; Finish 84 degrees, humidity 62%, dew point 70, partly cloudy, wind SW 7 mph.

6-7-2023 Strava Ride Summary Community Dr-Valley Ranch-Gene Campbell
6-7-2023 Strava Ride Summary Community Dr-Valley Ranch-Gene Campbell