Texas Bicycling News Digest June 21st 2019

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Vietnam veteran from Orange riding bike across country to raise money for other veterans

by Chris Mullooly | kfdm.com

ORANGE — It’s more than 1,400 miles from Orange, Texas to Dover, Delaware — a roughly 20-hour car ride.

But a 70-year-old Southeast Texas Vietnam veteran from Orange will be riding his bicycle to Delaware to help raise money for other Vietnam veterans.

Cyclists to visit area for cancer awareness

www.paducahsun.com

Cyclists from the University of Texas at Austin will pedal their way through the Jackson Purchase today as part of Texas 4000 for Cancer, the longest annual charity bike ride in the world.

The path through Paducah — called the Ozark Route — began May 31 in Austin and winds its way through Houston, New Orleans, Memphis, St. Louis, Chicago and Minneapolis. The 70-day tour has cyclists crossing into Canada en route to Anchorage, Alaska, arriving on Aug. 9. …

I BROKE MY ARM! The Singletrack Sampler and I mountain bike Flat Creek Crossing Ranch

No Front Brakes | www.youtube.com

I met up with Alex from The Singletrack Sampler and Scott Smith and took them out to Flat Creek Crossing Ranch, one of my favorite spots around Austin. I’ve been here plenty of times, but today was the day I …

Austin Parks Get $180K In Grants For Improvements

By Tony Cantu | patch.com

Austin Parks Foundation officials release list of six recreational areas across the city benefiting from grant money.

AUSTIN, TX — Austin Parks Foundation officials announced on Friday it had awarded more than $180,000 in grants for improvement, renovation and upkeep of six park areas across the city’s five districts.

The $180,400 in funds will help revamp Austin parks, trails, and green spaces throughout 5 districts with trail creation, new amenity installation, fencing and other improvements.

"We’re grateful to be part of these community-initiated projects that …

Montgomery County Sheriff Seeks Public’s Help to Identify Bicycle Thief at WalMart in New Caney

By: Specialist Lee Knudsen | www.woodlandsonline.com

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, TX — On June 13, 2019 at about 4:00pm, Deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to 20310 US Highway 59 New Caney, Texas (Wal-Mart) in reference to the theft of a bicycle. The victim said that she arrived on the bicycle at Walmart for a job interview, and that the bicycle was her only mode of transportation. While she was inside interviewing for a job, some unknown person stole her bicycle. …

Weekend Rides: Reverse Lime Creek & Lamppost!

Brad Weaver | steinerranchcycling.com

Saturday training rides leaving from Cups & Cones:

7:30 am – Headed down to Volente on our reverse route. https://www.strava.com/routes/4732205 Track progress here: https://www.wahooligan.com/users/live/0SMVmji6alCkLzYxOg7mTw …

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New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Not Alone In The Heat and Humidity Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

The 8:11 AM start of the bike ride was about 30 minutes later than I planned but it was still early compared to most rides. To helped me get to 200+ miles for the week (not there yet) I biked 43.64 miles today on the “Stroker Road – Huffman” route. The week now totals 173.94 miles and June totals 657.97 miles, 82% of the way to my 800 mile goal.

Weather during the bike ride: start 84 (89% humidity, 80 dew point), mostly cloudy, wind S 12 mph. Finish 92 (68% humidity, 80 dew point), mostly cloudy, wind S 14 mph. With the high dew point sweat flowed easily during the ride.

I wasn’t the only biker out along the route today. The first two cyclists rode west over Lake Houston while I headed east. I almost missed seeing as the traffic passed and I had my eyes down concentrating on pedaling and thinking. The last two were waiting at the Old Atascocita Road and FM 2100 intersection when I arrived. When opening came up they crossed heading west and I went east saying hello as we passed.

Biking east on Old Atascocita Road the wind was from my right and not too bad to ride through. When I reached the Ramsey Road intersection I wanted to take a rest so I went left to the bridge and leaned the Canyon against the guardrail where I sat. The shade was cooling as was the wind blowing through the corridor of trees on each side of the road. I thought I would just stay until the first car or truck came by but I was enjoying the breeze and coolness I waited until several more passed before getting back on the Canyon and biking south. While I was there I took these photos.

  • Bike Ride Ramsey Road Bridge-2
  • Bike Ride Ramsey Road Bridge-1

Riding south on Ramsey Road was much harder due to the headwind and my speed dropped down to 11 mph at times. Once I got to Stroker Rod and changed direction the wind moved to my left and pedaling wasn’t as hard and my speed returned to 15 to 17 mph.

I was getting low on water when I made it back to FM 2100. The Texaco station just north of Stroker Road had been a source of ice and water before but today they only had ice so I filled my bottle with that thinking it would melt some and I could add water when I stopped sat the Huffman Chevron. I did that stopping only long enough to add ice and water in Huffman before riding west on FM 1960.

The wind was a little more problem some going west but I still kept my speed at 15 to 17 mph. Turning right at the Atascocita Shores Drive light shift the wind back to a slight tailwind as I rode among houses and trees. Back in Kingwood I stopped at McDonalds in Town Center more more water and ice. It was about two miles from the finish but I was thirsty. It didn’t take too long from there to finish the ride at 11:44 AM.

Saturday I plan on starting early again and ride far enough to put the week at 200+ miles.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

Strava Year Progressions YTD Bike Ride Miles

2019 leads all previous years as the gap widens some.

Strava Year Progressions YTD Bike Ride Miles

Texas Bicycling News Digest June 20th 2019

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Bike ride to benefit Corinne T. Smith Animal Center

www.brownwoodtx.com

If you’re ready for some HOT summer cycling, Brownwood is the place to be Saturday, June 22. The Heart of Texas Cyclists are hosting a bike ride to benefit the Corinne T. Smith Animal Center.

Bike rides will begin and end at Festival Park in Brownwood. There will be four routes with lengths of 8 miles, 25 miles, 40 miles and 63 miles. The routes will feature some rolling hills and beautiful countryside as you pass through central Brown County. The 63 mile route will have a significant hill climb near Brookesmith in southwest Brown County. …

Rocky Road Gravel Ride

Shawnee Trail CC | stcycling.com

Wheels Down: 7:30am Distance: 40 miles, 25 miles Shawnee Trail’s first foray into the world of organized gravel rides, the Rocky Road is a TWICE a month (2nd and 4th Saturday) outing for all those wishing to experience this aspect of cycling. This ride is not for your regular road bike with 23mm width tires. The gravel will chew those up and you won’t have the stability necessary to remain upright. We recommend a minimum of 25mm width and larger. You’ll also want to consider a lower inflation setting to make those many bumps a little more tolerable and to lessen the chance of flats. Many on this ride use regular gravel bikes, cross bikes and mountain bikes. There are generally two pace groups – one for the more adventurous and another slower pace on a slightly shorter route.

Your bike will get dirty and we can’t promise that, at some point, you won’t be walking that bike around obstacles. This is a learning experience for us and you – we’ll add more info and suggestions as things develop. In the meantime, use our Facebook page to ask and answer any questions you may have. We look forward to seeing you out soon! …

Cyclist seriously injured in crash on I-35 turnaround in New Braunfels

Cameron Songer | www.kens5.com

NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas — A 64-year-old New Braunfels man was taken to the hospital after police said he was hit while riding his bicycle on the I-35 access road.

According to a statement from New Braunfels police, the man was riding his bicycle the wrong way in the southbound-to-northbound turnaround along the I-35 Access Road at Spur Street. He was struck by a four-door Nissan Rogue which police said was traveling at or below the speed limit.

The man was taken by ambulance to the hospital with serious injuries, while the woman who was driving the Nissan was not injured. …

Victory! Protected Bike Lanes on Shoal Creek Boulevard in Austin, Texas

A DUDE ABIKES | adudeabikes.com

After a several year grassroots campaign by members of Bike Austin and Walk Austin, victory was achieved! The City of Austin (Texas) announced it will construct a two-way protected bicycle lane on the west side of the major bike thoroughfare from 38th Street to Foster Lane. From that point to 183, it will put in one-way bicycle lanes on each side of Shoal Creek Boulevard (SCB). This is an important win for bicyclists of all kinds who use the street, as well as for pedestrians. Because currently it’s a …

Heat Advisory/Windy, Work till 11 up at 5

Coach Steevo | www.strava.com

Thursday Morning Thunder

Sean Hale | www.strava.com

Texas Bicycling from Twitter

New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar

Early Start, Lots of Sweat, Other Cyclists Bike Ride

Texbiker.net Posted on by

For a change I started today’s bike ride earlier than what I planned with wheels rolling at 6:18 AM, 2 minutes before sunrise. I biked 29.11 miles the distance I planned boosting the week to 130.3 miles and the month to 614.33 miles, 77% of my goal for the month. To get these miles I rode the “Kingwood-E Lake Houston Pkwy Fire Station” route plus some extra streets to be sure I rode the distance I planned. While these are all streets/roads I bike regularly this particular route is not.

Starting this early the weather was different from later in the day with humidity and dew point making for a lot of sweat. Weather during the ride: start 79 (95% humidity, 77 dew point), mostly cloudy, wind S 6 mph. Finish 83 (87% humidity, 79 dew point), mostly cloudy, wind NW 5 mph. I wore shorts, short sleeve jersey and arm sleeves. The arm sleeves were more for sweat control than sun protection. When I finished all of these were soaked to the max.

On the way back to Kingwood on Atascocita Shores Drive a group of 8 to 10 cyclists rode to the south while I was going the opposite direction. This is the first time in many rides where I was going home while the other cyclists were early in their ride.

Day two after the PowerPod reset and all appears to be back to normal. Power readings varied when I pedaled up an incline and coasted down.

Riding back into Kingwood I crossed Kingwood Drive without needing to wait on traffic. I finished the ride at 8:22 AM 2 hours and 3 minutes after starting.

Friday the weather forecast calls for more heat but not much of a chance for rain.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary
Strava Bike Ride Summary