BACKROADS: Hillacious Bike Tour quite a challenge

by TDT Fred Afferbach        www.tdtnews.com

LAMPASAS — On a recent, breezy April morning, about 170 folks saddled up to tour the hardscrabble hills outside Lampasas. But unlike the early settlers who explored the open range on horseback, these riders traversed the countryside via a different mode of transportation — bicycles.
The inaugural Lampasas Hillacious Bike Tour, with panoramic views and rural routes nine to 70 miles long, lured bicyclists from Oklahoma to San Antonio. Ride director Joe Corcoran has…

Sugar Land ‘Bike to Work/School Day’ set for May 8

City of Sugar Land

The City of Sugar Land and Shape Up Fort Bend will hold the fourth annual Bike to Work Day and second annual Bike to School Day on Thursday, May 8.
The event – part of National Bike Month – begins at 7:30 a.m. at the South Meadow Pavilion at Sugar Land’s Memorial Park, 15300 University Blvd., with vendors, giveaways and music.
Riders will depart for Sugar Land Town Square at 8:15 a.m. The 4.2-mile ride will take riders down…

To the Training Grounds and Back

Ray Garza        RGV Cycling

The Rio Grande Valley has many fine cycling routes to choose from. It all depends where you are at and what you want to do. For me, I like to be out on the country roads and away from all the hubbub of cars. You don’t need to go far before you start seeing pastures for the cattle or horses. Sometimes you get the goats or the more exotic animals such as Long Horn cattle, Emu’s or Llamas. One of my favorite route doesn’t have the farm animals but instead farm land and the Rio Grande river dominate the landscape. I call it To the Training Grounds and Back.
Training Grounds Map
To the Training Grounds and Back
Riding out on the route it passes the Hike & Bike Trail in Mission and I always take a glance at the parking lot to see if I recognize anyone. Mostly no, but every once in-a-while I do. A friendly wave or a “Howdy” is called for. It is clear that the trail is very popular with all the cars jammed into the…

Felt expands recall of road and tri bikes

www.bicycleretailer.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. (BRAIN) — Felt Bicycles has expanded a recall, first announced in 2010, to include some earlier and later model year bikes.
The original recall applied to about 2,100 road and triathlon bikes, model year 2009 Felt B12, B16 and S32 bikes.
The bikes were recalled because their steerer tubes could break. Felt has received 18 reports of the forks breaking, including five reports of minor injuries. The forks were manufactured by ADK Technology Ltd., in China.
Now the company is working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission to expand the recall to include 2008 model year bikes, models S22 and S32, and the 2010 model year S32, B12, B14 and B16 bikes. The expanded recall involves an…

Critical Mass riders debate if crowd prevented EMS from reaching dying man

By Craig Hlavaty        www.chron.com

A Critical Mass cyclist suffered a fatal heart attack during the group’s ride Friday.
Richard T. Houser, 62, was transported to nearby St. Joseph Hospital by ambulance where he was pronounced dead.
On Critical Mass’ Facebook page there was heated dispute over whether or not emergency officials were impeded from reaching Houser in time by his fellow cyclists. One post claims that EMS officials had to navigate a large group cyclists to get to Houser, and that a few cyclists had blown bubbles in their faces.
There were just over 2,500 riders in…

Push to repeal Dallas’ helmet ordinance receives boost from some council members

By Tom Benning        cityhallblog.dallasnews.com

A push to repeal Dallas’ ordinance that requires all cyclists to wear a helmet received on Monday a boost from several city council members.
The council’s Quality of Life and Environment committee voiced near universal support for reconsidering the 18-year-old ordinance, as city leaders look for ways to further encourage cycling and to remove a potential hurdle in launching a bike sharing program.
The committee, which features six council members, will formally take up the issue on May 12.
Though the council members seemed eager to loosen some restrictions, they also appeared keen to keep the helmet requirement for children. And they encouraged cyclists to still wear…

MAY IS BIKE MONTH, Coffee Memorial Blood Drive

Old Tascosa Cycling

*** UPDATED*** Saturday, May 3rd 8:30am-2pm is the Coffee Memorial, May is Bike Month Blood Drive. Breakfast at 8:30pm, we will ride out about 9:00am. There will be group rides, Road and Mountain Bike. The cook out will start about 11:00am We will also present the Children’s Home with the donated bikes from the Relay Race! Please come out, ride your bike and donate blood! Every eligible donor has a chance to win 1 of 2 new bikes!
PLEASE come out and help!

Austin Parks Foundation: It’s My Park Day @ Walnut Creek

Austin Rige Riders

The Austin Ridge Riders hosted a trail stewardship program on Saturday March 1st as part of the Austin Parks Foundation “It’s My Park Day.  in the Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park.  Over 30 people contributed over 100 volunteer hours as part of the effort.  As part of the effort, 600 lbs of stone were…

Ladies only on May 11: CycloFemme

BikeHouston

When: May 11, 2014 @ 8:00 am – 12:00 pm
Where: Happy Fatz
3510 White Oak Drive
Houston, TX
Join us for a celebration of women and cycling at Houston’s second annual CycloFemme, a healthy and inspiring way to start your Mother’s Day.
Bring your friends, mothers, daughters and sisters. Bring the woman you want to inspire to ride. Last year’s inaugural event saw the participation of approximately 60 women from diverse cycling and social backgrounds. With so much positive momentum building around cycling in…

Energy Corridor Bike to Work Day

BikeHouston

When: May 15, 2014 @ 6:30 am – 7:30 am
Where: Terry Hershey Park Gazebo
15200 Memorial Drive
Houston, TX

Cycling groups now forming at Energy Corridor companies; lunch-and-learns workshops available to provide guidance
14-APR-9-bike-to-work-posterRiding a bike to work can refuel the soul, improve health and reduce traffic. And one way to experience bicycling commuting is The Energy Corridor District’s 10th annual Bike to Work Day Thursday, May 15, when groups and solo riders from all compass points pedal to work into The Energy Corridor.
Amid a sea of colorful bikes and jerseys, the dawn ride ends at the Terry Hershey Park gazebo for a celebration of cycling, with raffle prizes, giveaways, plus food and…

WTCA Caprock Escarpment Tour

West Texas Cycling Association

Date: May 17, 2014
Location: Crosbyton, TX
Contact: Pat Gerdemann
Details: The Caprock Escarpment will be held on Saturday, May 17th, at 09:00am starting from the Silver Falls Rest Area just east of Crosbyton. Silver Falls Rest Area is on highway 82 going east from loop 289. Just take the Idalou exit and follow Hwy 82 through Idalou, Ralls, Lorenzo, and Crosbyton to arrive at the rest area. The drive takes about 45 minutes from central Lubbock. The bicycle route continues east on hwy 82 until you arrive in…

TBC/ETT Annual Picnic & Ride

Tyler Bicycle Club

May 4 @ 1:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Let’s get together for food and fun with an amazing group of cyclists.  We will be hosting a casual ride before the picnic.  We will have a few routes varying in length to accommodate everyone.  After the ride, we will have burgers and dogs and we are asking our members to bring the deserts. Come kick back, relax and watch the sunset over Lake Tyler. …

Annual Real Ale Ride Rolling Through Blanco

www.hillcountrycurrent.com

The annual Real Ale Ride, one of Bicycle Sport Shop’s most popular events, rolls through the scenic hills of Blanco on Saturday, May 17, 2014. It’s a ride for cyclists of all levels, with distances of 15, 30, 50, 65 and 80 miles. Routes are fully supported with rest stops that provide water and nutritional snacks for participants along the way, as well as “SAG” vehicles to help cyclists with mechanical issues or those who need help getting back to the finish line. Afterwards, everyone gathers at the Real Ale brewery for a post-ride celebration with local beer and barbecue. Old 300 BBQ will provide delicious food and beer is, of course, provided by Real Ale Brewing Company.
Adding to the party atmosphere will be post-ride live entertainment performed by The Erin Jaimes Band and Blanco Zydeco.
Bicycle Sport Shop always makes a sizeable charitable donation from the proceeds of the ride. This year, a portion of the proceeds from…

Aggressive driver reportedly aimed for cyclists, runners on Great Northern

By Pam LeBlanc        www.austin360.com

An aggressive driver ran several cyclists and pedestrians off of Great Northern Boulevard on Saturday.
The incident occurred at about 5:20 p.m., when a white, newer model Dodge Challenger or Charger with a black section on its hood made three passes down the street, swerving across the center lane of the road and into the bike lane toward riders and pedestrians, witnesses said.
Matt Tynan, an attorney who often works with injured bicyclists, was bicycling along…

Central Trail Nearing Completion

Bike Friendly Richardson

According to last week’s city newsletter “Week In Review”, the Central Trail extension is nearing completion:
The expansion of the Central Trail is about 90 percent complete, and the City plans to celebrate its grand opening with a ribbon cutting June 2. The 1.9-mile southern expansion connects the 10-foot wide multiuse trail from the Arapaho Road DART Station to Richardson’s southern city limit. A future connection in the City of Dallas is expected to eventually tie it into the White Rock Creek Trail. The $4.5 million project is funded through Dallas County, $1.4 million from the City of Richardson’s 2010 Bond Program and Regional Tollway Revenue funds.
The City is also working to expand the Central Trail half a mile to the north to Richardson’s northern city limit. The existing trail…

The Stop and Photograph the Roses ride May 10th, 11am

by Christopher Curnutt        www.bikingindallas.org

How many group rides have you attended where you found yourself wanting to pull over to take photos of things you saw along the way, but couldn’t without delaying the ride?  We want to fix that.
So we thought a ride where the purpose is to go slow, with several stops at scenic locations, would be perfect for those who enjoy taking their time and pictures.
The purpose of this ride is to enjoy some of the scenic areas in Downtown and combine photography with exploring Dallas on a bicycle.  Digital, film, pinhole, toy, DSLR, mirrorless, point and…

2014 Prayer Mountain Pedal – Big Cedar Mountain Bike Race

Turnin’ Cranks

My Cat2 40-44 mountain bike race video from 2014 Bent Wheel Bash in Abilene, Texas.
Race Report: http://www.turnincranks.com/2014/2014-prayer-mountain-pedal-mountain-bike-race-report/
Finished 10th place
Super fun course with quite a bit of climbing. I was hoping for a strong showing but I just couldn’t keep up on the climbs. The climbs hurt and I blew up pretty bad on lap 1 when I finished the Brick Climb. …

2014 Prayer Mountain Pedal Mountain Bike Race Report

By TC        Turnin’ Cranks

Last year at Big Cedar I had a bit of a breakout race. I had a pretty bad start, but then somehow managed to make up a large number of positions, power up the climbs and bag a surprise 4th place finish.
I was hoping to have another breakout race this year and place strongly, helping to cement my standings in the state series. Going into the race I was hoping for a top 5. That may have been a bit ambitious given that I didn’t know many of the local names that were pre-registered for the race.
But hey, gotta have goals, right?
At any rate, the week prior to the race, I had been living in a household of sick family members. I was fighting off what felt like the onset of…

Race Results for DORBA Prayer Mountain Pedal – Dallas, TX

www.usacycling.org

Cross Country on 04/26/2014
Men – SS Open
Men – SS 2/3 – 0-99
Men – Pro/Cat 1
Men – Cat 1 – 15-18 …

Tweets

I was asked today by an author/college prof if I wanted help with writing a book about CycleXTexas. What do you think? Should I? #HellYeh

— Jim Cycle Across TX (@CycleXTexas) April 29, 2014

What's better then a weekend of FNR and Texas Cup track racing? Two weekends of FNR and Texas Cup Track Racing!… http://t.co/UQTduAAHx1

— Alkek Velodrome (@AlkekVelodrome) April 29, 2014

June 3 a new series event is coming we are calling it Hell-X, it will be longer than the Derby use more trail and… http://t.co/GwJoiASxGT

— Dirt Derby (@DirtDerby) April 28, 2014

…and this is how @velopaso got to @ktep885fm's @NPR pledge drive this morning #30daysofbiking pic.twitter.com/OlxdFdcmzG

— Bike Hombre – STREETS ARE FOR PEOPLE (@sbwhite) April 28, 2014

Bike Out Hunger Texas is just a week away! Support events that support bicycle advocacy: http://t.co/ZBWaUa7bqv

— BikeTexas (@BikeTexas) April 28, 2014

How to be Awesome! This is covered in our commuting 101 class. pic.twitter.com/kcXIWMNOPS

— VeloPaso (@velopaso) April 28, 2014

Event Reminders

2 Day Alert: Fort Worth Wednesday Night Crits 2014 , Apr 30, 2014 05:00PM – Gravel Road, Fort Worth, TX, United States(CST) http://zpr.i

— Rick Ankrum (@texbiker) April 28, 2014

2 Day Alert: Bear Creek Crit Series – Houston, TX, Apr 30, 2014 05:30PM – Bear Creek Park, 3535 War Memorial Dr, Houston, TX, United Sta

— Rick Ankrum (@texbiker) April 28, 2014