Bicycle Wheel Animations
blog.makezine.com

My friend Karen Nazor send me a link to this video of animations being created, phenakistoscope/persistence of vision-style, on bicycle wheels, using paper cut-outs in the spokes. Really nifty.

For all who participated in 2011 Cranksgiving…Thank you!!
by spinnincin         www.austinridgeriders.com
More than 75 mountain bikers from Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and points in between brought their bikes to Pace Bend Park today, smiling and laughing as they waited in the rain for the ride to start. Six hours and 475 laps later they were still smiling between bites of brisket and sips of frosty beverage. I love these people! What a blast! Thank heavens for the sandy soil at Pace Bend, alternate routes that spared our precious singletrack, and smart riders who walked the slickest sections of slimestone! Thank heavens for our incredible volunteers, the outstanding ARR board of directors, and the sponsors who contributed to a raffle worth waiting for despite the cold winds! Mark your calendars for next year folks!

Road Bike Sizing: Why It’s Confusing
by Eric Bowen        BikFit Blog
When things used to be simple
It used to be fairly simple to know what size of bike you were buying. For example, a 54 cm frame usually meant that the seat tube was 54 centimeters.  Most often this was measured from the center of the bottom bracket to the center of the top tube. Top tubes were almost always level with the ground, and were usually within a centimeter of the length of the seat tube (i.e. traditional geometry, figure 1). Bikes were often built in 1 cm…

Why Three out of Four Athletes Take Caffeine Before Competition
Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine
In January 2004, the World Anti-Doping Agency removed caffeine from its prohibited drug list to allow athletes to take coffee, tea, chocolate, cocoa, guarana, cola drinks, energy drinks and so forth. Researchers have now measured the caffeine concentration in 20,686 urine samples obtained for doping control from 2004 to 2008. They found that 75 percent of athletes in official national and international competitions had consumed caffeine before or during competition (Appl Physiol Nutr Metab, Aug 2011;36(4):555-61). As expected, athletes in endurance sports (triathlon, cycling, and rowing) had the highest urine concentrations of caffeine. Gymnasts had the lowest urine caffeine…

Bandera Texas Mountain Bike Crash
http://youtu.be/eQ7J6WgrtuY
Mountain biking at the Dixie Dude Ranch in Bandera, Texas. First crash of the trip.

Woman Hollering Creek Ride
San Antonio Wheelmen
Date:     12/11/2011
Time:     09:00 AM-12:00 PM
Location:     Converse, TX
Details: Woman Hollering Creek Ride (E) [F to R].  Route of 26 to 70 miles.
This popular` ride features the rolling farmland east of Bexar County, fresh hot pies at the stop in New Berlin and, of course, the famous Woman Hollering Creek. Meet at Judson High School in Converse. From Loop 1604, turn right (west) on Rocket Lane at the stop light. When Rocket Lane merges to Schaeffer, continue straight to the parking lot on the right across from Norris Drive.  Contact:  Cliff Hickel, 210/884-9470

Bicycle Dreams, the award-winning film about Race Across America (RAAM).
Please check out our trailer at www.bicycledreamsmovie.com if you are not familiar with our film, which has already become the most decorated cycling movie of all time, winning awards at 16 film festivals.

We are bringing our film to Dallas on the night of Wednesday, Feb. 1 when we will show it at the Studio Movie Grill Royal Lane as a benefit for Bike DFW. I trust that you will help support this organization by helping to spread the word throughout the cycling and outdoors community about this wonderful event, which should be the social event of the cycling season. I hope you and your staff will also wish to attend this event; I know I have spoken to some of you already and I wish to thank you for your help in making the night a huge success.