I have been offline for a couple of days as I try to catchup from my weekend in Dallas going to Word Camp Dallas 2009. The following cover several days.

Austin Downtown Crits moved to September 5
Jun 29th, 2009
by elliott.
Those looking forward to the Downtown Crits that have been held in late June the last few years were disappointed to see the event vanish from the TXBRA calendar recently. Racing downtown then getting to watch the domestic pros go at it is a blast, and I was sorry to see it go. …

Bike Lanes and Training Wheels
By Fred Oswald, League Cycling Instructor #947

Some “bicycle advocates” claim that bike lanes act as “training wheels,” helping beginners learn to ride.  This comparison may be more apt than they realize.  Let’s examine this issue further.

Both training wheels and bike lanes encourage novices to ride bikes without learning proper methods.  In one case, without learning balance; in the other, without learning how to interact with motor traffic.  Both retard learning of proper methods. …

(My oldest daughter had tough time learning to ride her bicycle until the next door neighbor girl taught her in the grass yard.)

ChipSeal: Why I Am Glad SB 488 Is Dead
by ChipSeal
Why shouldn’t our “advocates” at Texas Bicycle Coalition (TBC) be demanding the vigorous enforcement of present laws, which would have an immediate positive impact on cyclist’s safety, rather than lard up the transportation code with a …

(Chipseal raises some valid points. If law enforcement officers are not enforcing the existing laws that affect bicyclists and motorists why do we think a new law will fare much better?)

Portland Construction Company sets up temporary bike only lanes …
by elliott
Bike Portland recently reported on a construction firm, Hoffman Construction, that created its own bicycle only lane around construction when they recently had to do sidewalk work on a project. From the article: According to project engineer Jason Haslam, who smiled and waved on bike riders this morning, they did the bike detour ….

(Unlike the previous article this construction company in Portland, OR decided to provide bike lanes. I have not seen an example of this in Texas. Have you?)

traffic tickets | Austin Texas Bike Stuff
by Jason
If you said Officer Jason Mistric4856 of the Austin Police Department youd be correct Austin’s own smoothly shorn bicycle cop has been targeting his fellow …

(The writer thinks this officer is targeting riders. With the title of Critical Mass Ride I am curious about how many riders were actually obeying the law. See the post above from Chipseal for some of the statutes that might apply.)

Seguin foursome headed to Tour de France
by Seguin Gazette-Enterprise – Seguin,TX,USA
Strom said she hopes that such a partnership will allow readers to get a feel for what it’s like to be present at the most famous bicycle race in the world …

(Not a bad idea. My wife suggested a few years ago that we should go to France to see Lance ride. One problem; money.)

331 Miles: All Suffering SOON TO END!
by 331 Miles
At the end of the ride, I was cooked. I drank about a quart of water and electrolyte, then jumped in the pool to cool off and get the sweat rinsed off my body. As all cyclists know, even on a good ride, all suffering is NOT soon to end. …

What to eat during a ride? « Bike Noob
by rainycamp
Nothing earth shattering, but the consensus was that this was the right ride to do on a day like today. We stopped in downtown (I use the word loosely) Buda, Texas, a block short of where we usually make our turnaround. …

(Lately I have eating FiberOne bars. Cheaper than PowerBars and not quite so sticky in the heat we are having. I also am partial to those old time animal crackers. There are 12 comments on Bike Noob’s post. Maybe there is a snack you haven’t thought of.)

Falling Whistles Bike Tour: Pre-tour Update # 2
by Seth
Pre-tour Update # 2. Dear family, We are officially around 65 hours from launch! It’s a weird feeling knowing that in just three days Ben, Tony and I will be living on bicycles. I’m more than ready to go. Ben and Tony have had quite a … So there were a few days where I started thinking more and more about the summer heat we’ll be riding through, the lack of civilization for days we’ll be subject to in West Texas and the monsoons of Arizona. It was then that this started …

Texas cycling and sailing with Dennis: MS 150 and other stuff
by Dennis and Michele Starkey
Texas cycling and sailing with Dennis. Our Cycling and Sailing journal, as well as other outdoor and simple living topics. Sunday, June 28, 2009. MS 150 and other stuff. I have been lax in posting as I just haven’t felt creative or like …

(Interesting pictures from Dennis’ blog. Take a look.)