{"id":23528,"date":"2014-03-15T00:11:46","date_gmt":"2014-03-15T05:11:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.texbiker.net\/blog\/?p=23528"},"modified":"2014-03-15T00:11:46","modified_gmt":"2014-03-15T05:11:46","slug":"texas-bicycling-blog-and-news-digest-march-14th","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.texbiker.net\/blog\/2014\/03\/15\/texas-bicycling-blog-and-news-digest-march-14th\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas Bicycling Blog and News Digest March 14th"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cyclists fear El Paso will back-pedal away from becoming bike-friendly<\/a><\/h2>\n

By Cindy Ramirez \/ El Paso Times<\/h3>\n

\n El Paso may be on track to becoming a bike-friendly city, but some cyclists fear it will back-pedal if city leaders don’t fully support the growing national trend.
\n “Progress to me is not a ballpark. Progress to me is not a shopping mall,” cyclist Sandra Iturrbe said during a recent City Council meeting. “Progress to me is a city that is healthy. I want to ride my bike with my 2-year-old toddler and not feel like we’re going to get hit by a vehicle. I’m asking you to…
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Double Lake Trailwork Day<\/a><\/h2>\n

GHORBA.org<\/h3>\n

\n Trail: Double Lake Recreation Area
\n Sunday, March 23, 2014 – 9:00am
\n Sunday, March 23rd, 9-12. Meet up at the Trailhead Parking Area. Time to get the race course made race ready and time to get those paydirt hours!\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Police name League City cyclist killed in hit-and-run<\/a><\/h2>\n

By Craig Hlavaty\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0www.chron.com<\/h3>\n

\n A cyclist killed in a Thursday morning\u00c2\u00a0 hit-and-run has been identified as Kevin Ronald Munson, 45, of League City.
\n Reagan Pena, a spokesperson for the League City Police Department, said officers have also made contact with the female driver seen in surveillance footage shortly after the crash repairing damage to her car.
\n No charges have been filed in the case at this time, said Pena.
\n Munson was riding a bicycle around 2:30 a.m. in the 1900 block of E. Marina Bay Drive when he was struck by…\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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League City police get lead on hit-and-run driver<\/a><\/h2>\n

By Anita Hassan\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0www.chron.com<\/h3>\n

\n Police believe they have discovered the identity of a driver who allegedly struck and killed a 45-year-old bicyclist in League City on Thursday, authorities said.
\n As of Friday, no charges have yet been filed and the driver’s name is not being released, said League City Police Department spokeswoman officer Reagan Pena. She noted that investigators are still gathering evidence.
\n The incident occurred in the 1900 block of E. Marina Bay Drive. Kevin Munson of League City, was riding his bicycle on the street about 2:30 a.m. when he was fatally struck by a…\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Rouge Roubaix 2014 Women\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Open<\/a><\/h2>\n

bicyclesoutbackracing.net<\/h3>\n

\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Assume any pothole with standing water in it is a gateway to Hell and avoid it.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d With a race promoter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s tag line like that, who wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to attempt the Rouge Roubaix? The Rouge Roubaix is a 106 mile race across the back roads of southern Louisiana, just east of the Mississippi River and north of Baton Rouge in St. Francisville, LA. The course tackles three gravel sections that have steep grades and lots of obstacles, some paved roads, and some roads that were paved 20 years ago but now resemble a meth addict\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s toothless grin. The course for 2014 had to be re-routed due to a recent sink hole, so it was only 102 miles this year.
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\n Michelle Montoya and I had done this race back in 2011, and we wanted another shot to battle against the gravel. Louisiana is a beautiful state, but they have a different view when it comes to roadways. Rumored political corruption with misguided road funds and soft swamp land leads for some band-aid road fixes. We decided to use our back up road bikes…\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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##\u00c2\u00a0 Austin – Bicycle Film Festival<\/a><\/p>\n

bicyclefilmfestival.com<\/h3>\n

\n The Marchesa Hall \u00c2\u00b7 6226 Middle Fiskville Rd Austin, TX … 8:00 PM \/ PROGRAM 2 URBAN BIKE SHORTS – info TICKETS 10:00 PM \/ PROGRAM 3 …\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Grampies Go South<\/a><\/h2>\n

By Steve Miller and Dodie Miller<\/h3>\n

\n Day 69: Wild Camp Sierra Blanca to Fort Hancock: 4004 km! and still in West Texas!
\n Friday March 14, 2014, 59 km (37 miles) – Total so far: 4,004 km (2,488 miles)
\n Our deputy sheriff from this morning (see the end of yesterday’s report)had opened our eyes to the situation in the strip between the border and I-10. It seemed strange to have a government official concede that they could not control a piece of their own territory. Perhaps there is also a similar situation in some inner city neighbourhoods.The deputy also mentioned two other areas they have given up on, or never tried: Enforcement of the minimal no cell phone use in school zones rules, and enforcement around highway littering.
\n At one point the deputy thought he saw something move in the trees. He pulled out his foot long police flashlight and shone it around. Thinking to impress him with my knowledge of police flashlights, I said “Is that a Streamlight?”. “No”, he replied “It’s a Maglight. All it’s really good for is hitting people over the head.” This may have been a joke, but I wasn’t going to risk laughing. Instead I showed him how my…
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Windy Day on the Bike<\/a><\/h2>\n

Bike Noob<\/h3>\n

\n After some beautiful weather earlier this week, a nasty front moved in. The forecast called for a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Wind Advisory,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d with winds between 20-30 mph, gusting to 40. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s some pretty heavy-duty stuff. A lot of folks I see online in our club Yahoo group posted that they were skipping a ride, because of the wind conditions.
\n But, a few daunting souls decided to give it a go. I shook my head, and gave it a pass.
\n That is, I did until my wife chimed in, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I want a bike ride today.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d
\n To say I was surprised would be an understatement. She hates riding in…\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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El Paso City Council member pushes for better bike lane planning<\/a><\/h2>\n

By: Stacey Welsh<\/h3>\n

\n EL PASO, Texas — The city could be putting the brakes on plans for new bike lanes, thanks to a new proposal. District 5Rep. Michiel Noe said the city needs to better maintain the current bike lanes before adding more.
\n “Even the good bike lanes are often not usable because they’re just full of trash, which makes them dangerous,” Noe said.
\n Belen Barrio-Arriaga is the general manager at Crazy Cat Cycling, and she said customers also complain about trash littering El Paso’s bike lanes.
\n “We see a lot of flats because there’s so much debris on our bike lanes as it is,” Barrio-Arriaga said.
\n Noe said the city sweeps each street four times a year right now and…\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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New Events Added to Texbiker.net Calendar<\/h2>\n
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New Bike Event: Camp Eagle Classic Mountain Bike Festival – Rocksprings, TX: When: Sat Aug 30, 2014 6:30am to … http:\/\/t.co\/kH4kogH5MZ<\/a><\/p>\n

— Rick Ankrum (@texbiker) March 14, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n