Texbiker.net was observing the Christmas holiday.

Should Cyclists Use Strength Training Machines?
Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine
December 18, 2011
A new study from Denmark shows that adding the use of special strength training machines to bicycle racers’ cycling training can help them ride faster in races (Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, December, 2011; 21(6):e298-307).

Previous studies have shown conflicting results on whether strength training helps cyclists to ride faster in races. This is one of the best studies because the researchers compared cyclists who added strength and endurance training to their programs for 16 weeks to those doing only the cycling training. Those who added strength training were stronger, as shown by their improvement in scientific measures of strength. Their maximal muscle capacity (MMC) and contractile rate of force development (CRFD), were up to 20 percent greater than the cycle-only group. Their 45-minute…

Older Fit People Handle Heat Better than Out-of-Shape Younger People
Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine
December 25, 2011
Lack of fitness impedes a person’s ability to exercise in hot weather far more than aging does (Scand J Med Sci Sports, Sept 13, 2011). Seven older highly trained 51-63-year-old cyclists were matched with a similar number of 19-35-year-old highly trained young cyclists and also young moderately trained cyclists. All groups had the same rectal and skin temperatures, maximum heart rate, and cutaneous vascular conductance during intense exercise in the heat. …

I could have used this earlier this year when I had my dog collision.

Found: Road Rash Guard – Clip On Body Armor for Roadies
posted by Tyler (Editor)         www.bikerumor.com

Road Rash Guard is the invention of Dr. Rob Wise and is essentially a set of plastic clamshells that clip to your shorts, jersey or arm/knee warmers to provide a buffer between you and the pavement.

With a weight of just 7g each and a flat inner surface, it’s designed to feel seamless on your skin. RRG claims…

The following post is fitting for the winter. I thought I might need this trick until I looked at the forecast for the weekend with temperatures in the 70’s.

Repurpose Zip Ties into Bicycle Snow “Chains”
lifehacker.com

When you’re trying to get around on a bicycle in the winter studded tires are a great investment, but if you only occasionally have snow or ride a bike in snowy weather you can make a set of tire “chains” using a few dozen cable ties.

Bike shop website Dutch Bike Co. shares this tip for quick and cheap traction in snow. The zip ties themselves dig into the snow nicely but are not thick enough to make the bike bounce. The author alternates cutting off the…

MS-150 Team Now Open to All; Team Captain Appointed
by Val Tiemann             www.northwestcyclingclub.com
There are still places open on our MS-150 team. We are opening the team to non-club members. Provided they join NWCC as club members, anyone is welcome our MS-150 team. Please help spread the word. Our goal is for our team to raise $20,000 to fight MS, and we need 50 cyclists to do this.

Our team now has a Team Captain, Jeff Dixon. Jeff’s been a club member for seventeen years, has served on the Board for three years, and has ridden the MS-150 fifteen times! You can reach Jeff by email at ms150@northwestcyclingclub.org. …

Must…..Build…..More….Trail!
by bmba

The new Sotol Forest extension is almost finished.  It is passable, but not completely rideable.  We are having one last big trail building day to try to get this thing complete.  When we say “complete”, we mean rideable for a beginner rider.  This is a totally possible goal as the dirt is really soft right now and rocks are quite easy to remove.  If we can get 5 or 6 people to go with us…

COLUMBIA TAP HIKE AND BIKE TRAIL REOPENS
www.thecypresstimes.com
HOUSTON, TX – The Columbia Tap Trail, located in southeast Houston near downtown, has reopened. A portion of the four-mile hike and bike path was closed earlier this year to accommodate construction of the Southeast Line of METRO’s expanded light-rail system.

METRO’s Southeast light-rail line is currently under construction and expected to open in 2014. The Southeast Line (or Purple Line) will run along Capitol and Rusk in downtown Houston and continue southeast via Scott, Wheeler, MLK and Griggs ending at Palm Center. The approximately six-mile rail line will connect downtown with local…

30 years later, Texas man gets bike frames back
www.statesman.com
LUFKIN, Texas — One Texas man got four dream bikes for Christmas — and they’re 30 years old and have no wheels.

For Mike Maberry, unexpectedly tracking down four of the lightweight BMX Blazer bicycle frames he crafted with his own hands in the early 1980s and bringing them home have made this a special Christmas.

“It will remain forever among our fondest memories,” Maberry told the Lufkin Daily News (http://bit.ly/tF5fK1.)

Maberry began building the bicycle frames, which became known as some of the lightest-weight BMX Blazer frames in the racing arena, in 1981. But within two years he and his partner stopped producing the frames made of aircraft tubing. And the limited production…

Canutillo teacher fires up students to succeed
By Alex Hinojosa \ El Paso Times

Math teacher Hector Acosta can’t resist a challenge.

So when his Canutillo High School students expressed doubt about passing the upcoming STAAR (State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness) test, he offered them an incentive: For every student that promises to pass the test, he would bike 1 kilometer, or 0.6 miles, west of Canutillo. With more than 1,000-signed pledges later, that journey is sending him to the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Calif. — more than 800 miles west from the town.

He set out at 7 a.m. today from Canutillo Middle School and will return by Jan. 5.

“I was just looking for a way to motivate the kids,” Acosta said. “It’s…

So You Woke Up Fat Today.
By Shawn        www.texasmountainbiketrails.com
Well, Thanksgiving is long gone, Christmas is in the bag and you are the proud owner of several extra pounds thanks to all of the holiday cheer. Today lets talk about how to lose weight through mountain biking.

If you’re like me, you might be looking into a larger-sized pair of  jeans right about now. Maybe some of  those fancy pants with an elastic waistband? Yikes! Weight loss can be a huge motivator to get on the bike every day and just keep riding. Just look at all these weight loss success stories from people riding their bikes, thanks to the MTBR forums. …