Texas Bicycling News – January 10, 2023

Texbiker.net Posted on by

Valley cities eager to get moving on the Texas fitness challenge they won last year

By Francisco E. Jimenez | myrgv.com

WESLACO — It’s time for It’s Time.

That’s right: A news conference was held Monday morning to help kick off the 2023 It’s Time Texas Community Challenge in the Rio Grande Valley.

The conference was hosted by the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council (LRGVDC) at their offices in Weslaco before a crowd of local leaders from its three represented counties: Cameron, Hidalgo and Willacy.

“The community challenge is to find ways to be proactive for residents to keep up with their health, mental health and physical health, and be more active,” Manuel Cruz, LRGVDC executive director, said of the state-wide initiative.

It’s Time Texas is an Austin-based nonprofit that aims to promote healthier lifestyles throughout the state.

“What we’re trying to …

Upcoming Rides

Fort Worth Bicycling Association | www.fwbaclub.org

Chisholm Rusty Chain Gang Ramble  
Tue, January 17, 2023 9:00 AM  
4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX  
Rusty Romp Tuesday Edition  
Tue, January 17, 2023 9:00 AM  
Benbrook YMCA, 1899 Winscott Road, Benbrook, TX 76126  
Burleson and Beyond  
Thu, January 19, 2023 9:00 AM  
Spokes Parking Lot, 155 W Bufford St., Burleson, TX  
Rusty Romp  
Thu, January 19, 2023 9:00 AM  
Benbrook YMCA, 1899 Winscott Road, Benbrook, TX 76126  
Chisholm Rusty Chain Gang Ramble  
Tue, January 24, 2023 9:00 AM  
4936 McPherson Blvd, Fort Worth, TX

Port Arthur Police searching for hit-and-run suspect after man on bike struck, injured by vehicle

Author: Lupita Villarreal | www.12newsnow.com

PORT ARTHUR, Texas — The Port Arthur Police Department is asking for the public’s help in identifying a hit-and-run suspect.

The incident occurred on Thursday, January 5, 2023 around 7:39 p.m. on 39th Street near Memorial Boulevard in Port Arthur.

A 28-year-old man was hit by a vehicle while riding a bicycle, according to a news release from the Port Arthur Police Department. The driver of the vehicle left the scene.

The victim suffered significant but non-life-threatening injuries, according to the release. …

TxDOT Bicycle Plan in Bryan-College Station Region

Chelsea Reber | wtaw.com

The TxDOT Bryan District office is looking for citizen, specifically bicyclist, feedback.

Spokesman Bob Colwell says while many bikeways are planned and funded at the local level, the state works with local communities to develop bikeway networks integrated with the state system.

“The regional framework helps to increase safety, connectivity, and access throughout the state,” says Colwell.

Colwell says the Bryan District is one of four pilot bike plans in the state. The others include Laredo, Pharr, and San Antonio.

“The district bike plans will …

County commissioner offers to amend Third Ward bike-lane project if Houston officials contribute millions more

Adam Zuvanich | www.houstonpublicmedia.org

Work began nearly a year ago on a $12.1 million road reconstruction project near Texas Southern University, where bicycle lanes are being added and vehicular lanes are being reduced. The Houston City Council member who represents the area has said some nearby residents do not want the project and were not adequately consulted beforehand, but Mayor Sylvester Turner says it should move forward.

The county commissioner behind a controversial bike lane project in Houston’s Third Ward is willing to pause the ongoing work and retool the plan – if the city increases its financial commitment by several million dollars.

Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, in a Jan. 6 letter written to Houston City Council member Carolyn Evans-Shabazz and shared with Houston Public Media, said he is open to amending a $12.1 million road reconstruction project that calls for drainage improvements, wider sidewalks, the addition of bicycle lanes and the reduction of vehicular lanes on a stretch of Blodgett Street that runs alongside Texas Southern University. But because construction began …

Texas Biking from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Used A Blender On Atascocita – Walden – Huffman Route

Texbiker.net Posted on by

A later start for today’s bike ride than I prefer. I waited for the fog to burn off and the temperature to get to 70. Once the fog burnt off the sun warmed the air enough that I could leave the leg warmers at home. I ended up wearing shorts, a heavy long sleeve jersey, and a light wind jacket. I thought I might’ve overdressed with the jersey but the jacket had a lot of ventilation panels.

I got the Lynskey helix wheels rolling at 11:59 AM riding my Atascocita – Walden – Huffman route. Today the route name stayed the same but I mixed up the streets and roads in a combination I probably never biked before. During the ride I made a change from what I planned so that I could ride on the Atascocita Hike and Bike Trail after a long absence. I thought the ride would be around 30 to 31 miles but I ended up riding 35.13 miles and finished at 2:42 PM.

On Vantage View Lane in Walden I saw Pete, another cyclist, as we passed going opposite directions. Later a car with a bike on the rear rack pulled into the Fairlake Lane church parking lot as I rode by. I thought I might the cyclist later as I rode north on FM 2100 from Spanish Cove Drive but I missed him.

Weather conditions: start 71, humidity 76%, dew point 63, overcast, wind SW 5 mph; finish 76, humidity 65%, dew point 64, a few clouds, wind SW 10 mph.

1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Gear Usage by Time
1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Gear Usage by Time
1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Gear Usage by Distance
1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Gear Usage by Distance
1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Avg Power in Gear
1-10-2023 SRAM Component Summary Avg Power in Gear
1-10-2023 Stravini Cadence Details
1-10-2023 Stravini Cadence Details
1-10-2023 Strava Ride Overview Atascocita-Walden-Huffman
1-10-2023 Strava Ride Overview Atascocita-Walden-Huffman
1-10-2023 Strava Bike Ride Relative Effort
1-10-2023 Strava Bike Ride Relative Effort

Texas Bicycling News – January 9, 2023

Texbiker.net Posted on by

2 dead after motorcyclist, bicyclist crash on crosswalk near downtown Houston

Matt deGrood | www.houstonchronicle.com

Two people were killed late Sunday when a motorcycle struck a bicycle crossing the road near downtown Houston, officials said.

Drivers of the bicycle and motorcycle were pronounced dead just after 10 p.m. near the 1000 block of Palmer Street, Sgt. David Rose, of the Houston Police Department, told On Scene reporters.

Witnesses told police a husband and wife had been riding their bicycles in the area and were riding in the crosswalk on a bike trail when a motorcyclist drove west and struck the man on the bicycle, Rose said.

Bicyclist and motorcycle driver killed in ‘very avoidable’ crash in East Downtown, HPD says

ByJeff Ehling | abc13.com

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A dangerous decision cost two people their lives in the East Downtown Houston area overnight.

Houston police said a speeding motorcycle driver collided with a man on a bicycle, killing them both.

The crash happened around 10 p.m. on Palmer Street near McKinney Street, police said.

A man was on his bike, riding in the dedicated bike lane with his wife, when a motorcycle speeding through an intersection hit the husband, according to police.

HPD said the …

Greater Houston Cycling foundation Weekly Email

Stuart Gardner, Program Director | shoutout.wix.com

BellVelo Finale I would like to extend a huge thank you to everyone that supported this event especially our sponsors, Sun & Ski, BBInfinate and Orange Seal, our awesome hosts, Huff Brewing, our amazing officials Bill & Cynthia and our volunteers. I also want to thank Craig and the Allison Family for all their efforts in making this happen! Collectively $9,357.17 was raised which will go towards helping the GHCF run it’s programs at Alkek Velodrome and beyond to help grow and expand bike racing in the Greater Houston Area! Also thank you for racing the way you did, the hard work, dedication and sports-person-ship shown by riders across all categories was great to see and has really got me stoked for when I get to pin on a number again in a few weeks so for all of that THANK YOU!

…and maybe try track racing in 2023, it’s super fun! 😉 …

The weather held out and racers enjoyed near perfect conditions for what was an exciting day of racing!

Men’s 15 Mile Race Nicholas Cornell (Plano Bicycle Association) took the win ahead of Kevin Dunn (Team Gator) who’s 2nd place secured him the overall series. 10 year old Cuan Conje came over the line in 3rd to round out the podium! Kevin took the overall ahead of Nicholas whose win earned him 2nd in the series with Sun & Ski’s Jimmy Boyle holding onto 3rd after his win in race 2.

Women’s 15 Mile Race Laura Jost took the win with a great ride coming in ahead of Christie Cronje and …

Mark Kidnapped Me FTP Travis County, Texas

Carlos A. Moreno | strava.com

Solo spin after work on Madam Madone Montgomery County, Texas

Eric Price | strava.com

SBUX Crew Fort Bend County, Texas

Rickey Garrett | strava.com

Texas Biking from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

15% Climbs. Stage 1 Tour de Zwift Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well

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The Tour de Zwift started today. I decided to ride it because of a time constraint limited biking outdoors. Stage 1 Group B rode the Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well for 2 laps. This meant only 13.4 miles but 1,342 feet of climbing. And the climbing wasn’t easy. I rode slightly farther with 13.8 miles due to riding through the finish and coasting a few tenths of a mile before clicking on “end ride”. This was my first time on this route, avoiding it probably because of the climbing. There were climbs of 15% or more and on lap 2 I stood out of the saddle to get up the steep climbs. I don’t think I’ve been out of the saddle that much before in Zwift. My Wahoo Kickr Core is more stable than the Kickr Snap trainer I used to have.

ZwiftInsider.com route information: One of six routes rolled out with Zwift’s UCI 2019 Worlds map, “Tour of Tewit Well” covers the larger southern portion of the course in a counter-clockwise direction. The map below is for 1 lap. Note the steep climb around the 6km point.

Earlier before riding I watched a YouTube video from Shane Miller where he speculated about “peak Zwift”. I checked the Zwifters before beginning the stage and I think it was around 22,000. The Tour de Zwift draws many Zwifters.

Checking ZwiftPower.com for group B of stage 1 shows 466 results. Not all Zwifters have a ZwiftPower.com profile though. I came in at 443. During the stage I hovered around the position 870 of 1015 nearby Zwifters.

1-09-2023 ZwiftPower.com Group B Results Tour de Zwift Stage 1

Since this was my first time on this route I scored a bunch of Strava top results.

1-09-2023 Strava Tour de Zwift Stage 1 Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well
1-09-2023 Strava Tour de Zwift Stage 1 Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well
1-09-2023 Strava Tour de Zwift Stage 1 Route Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well
1-09-2023 Strava Tour de Zwift Stage 1 Route Yorkshire Tour of Tewit Well