I did not think about this bike ride until last night when I got an email listing things to do in Conroe this weekend. Shame on me. the event is in the Texbiker.net event calendar and is close to home. Leaving home around 7:35 I arrived at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds a little after 8 AM. Many bicyclists were already there as I pulled the Wrangler into the parking spot. Walking to the registration area I passed out Texbiker.net business cards. After paying, getting my number and shirt I walked back to the Wrangler and passed out more cards. The weather was perfect but a little cooler than I prefer.

Fortunately I wore a long sleeve jersey under my Texbiker.net short sleeve jersey. At the registration in addition to the usual stuff I got a wrist band with the name of a police officer who died in the line of service. The one I received was Police Officer Boyce Hanes from California, EOW: November 5, 2015. This link tells his story.

We rolled out a little after 9 AM in groups the ride marshals managed. The sun was bright and the wind not too strong from the north, where we were headed. I was in the first group but the next group caught us as I rode slower for the first few miles to not burn out. I planned on riding the 51 mile route and needed to pace myself. The roads were good but there were a few sections of chip’n seal. I stopped at the first rest stop long enough to take a few pictures (see the album below for the pictures) and then resumed the bike ride.

Around mile 19 I came to a place with a cyclist down in the grass off the side of the road. One of the motorcycle men was there with him along with a couple of other bicyclists. He didn’t look too good holding his head. I continued riding but I said several prayers for him to be okay. At the 24 mile rest stop while I got some Gatorade and ate a couple of granola bars a pickup truck pulled in with a bike in the back. Not long after that two men helped the fallen cyclist walk to the first aid tent. I could overhear the conversation and the bicyclist said he hit a patch in the road and went over the handlebars. He didn’t walk very easily but sitting in the chair the medics looked after him. I left the stop not long after he arrived so I don’t know what happened to him.

FM1725 was smoother than SH 150 and not as hilly. As I rode on FM1725 it brought back memories of my first solo century ride in the early 1980’s. My route covered FM1725 and other roads in the area. Some of the houses looked similar to then though the cars were slightly newer. Turning right onto FM3081 I stopped to take a couple of photos of the burnt area. This section is in the Sam Houston National Forest and the burn area looked bad. My memory said FM3081 ended and the roads were not as good but when I reached the end and veered left onto Baldwin Taylor Road it was not bad but it was hilly. The rough road started when the route shifted to FM1484 which was chip’n seal all the way until the turn onto Willis Waukegan Road. This road was nice and smooth but into the wind. By this point the ride finish was less than 9 miles away. At the traffic light the route turned left onto concrete FM1484, much smoother and wider than the earlier section.

I finished the ride at 12:37 under the bright red arch at the finish line. Many cars were still there meaning bicyclists were still out on the ride. A few around the Wrangler were gone though, including the one in front of me. The biker in that car told me he was practicing for the Galveston triathlon so I guess he was fast, his bike was fast looking. The weather at the finish:

Click on the image below to see the photo album

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