Texas Bicycling News – October 30, 2023
Austin man bikes 500 miles just 3 months after major heart surgery
patch.com
Randy Greenberg, 65, credits his recovery to ‘transformative’ cardiac rehab and care at Ascension Seton
Randy Greenberg was an active 60-something, doing tough bike rides and keeping up with people much younger than him.
In 2022, he and his wife were taking a trip in their RV across the U.S. and had spent a month in Florida where they’d ridden bikes on flat roads. “When I came back to Austin and had trouble making it up hills and getting out of breath, at first I thought it was just being out of practice with hills,” he said.
Then his dentist noted that his blood pressure was 80/50 (normal is about 120/80). This led him to see Dr. Peter Monteleone, cardiologist with Ascension Seton, who performed a sonogram and echocardiogram and diagnosed Randy with a mitral valve prolapse. Because Randy had had a …
Glad to see H-GAC funded this. @JamesLLlamas can you tell us more. Midtown of course is the land of 6 lane stroads. pic.twitter.com/yJvasb0K4O
— ?Prioritize people over cars #fatboyonabike (@gratifihouston) October 30, 2023
Blog: Cross country – Southern Tier
By sedona_rocks | www.crazyguyonabike.com
Bob Hake’s journey across the USA from September 2023 to November 2023
#1: Day 36: 10/29/23 New Waverly to Shepherd,TX By sedona_rocks on Mon 30 Oct 2023 13:57 (US/Pacific) Reply Rating: (0) Today was an easy 50 miler through the Texas countryside north of Houston. Nothing too special on the route. Just a nice Sunday morning ride. We are staying at a funky place called the Shepherd Sanctuary. It is an eclectic mix of buildings, some picked up and moved here from who knows where and others built on site. It is owned and run by Peach Williamson who is very kind and welcoming. I am staying in a small cabin which means I don’t have to pitch a tent and deal with it in the rain tomorrow. Spent the afternoon cleaning up, airing out all my stuff and doing some laundry. Jambalaya for dinner with apple pie for dessert. We have one more day in Texas and three weeks remaining in the entire adventure.
Blog: Cross country – Southern Tier
By sedona_rocks | www.crazyguyonabike.com
Bob Hake’s journey across the USA from September 2023 to November 2023
#1: Day 37: 10/30/23 Shepherd to Silsbee,TX By sedona_rocks on Mon 30 Oct 2023 15:35 (US/Pacific) Reply Rating: (0) We woke up to 48 degrees, rain and 14 mph winds from the north. Not ideal for biking to say the least. So we waited till there was a break in the rain and took off at 9:30. But about mile 5 the rain started again. I didn’t ride out of the rain until about mile 55. So it was about 50 miles of constant rain and the temps never got out of the 40s. My new Showers Pass coat and rain pants worked like a dream. I didn’t get wet except my feet. Can’t say the same for all my fellow riders. We are staying in another RV park in Silsbee,TX. Originally we were going to tent camp but were able to talk them into letting us sleep in the rec room. I was not looking forward to outdoor camping in the 30s. So we get to relax inside and watch Monday Night Football. Tomorrow is supposed to be dry, cold and windy. Dry is an improvement
Brownsville’s Benavides Park gets mountain bike trail
By Steve Clark | myrgv.com
Pedro “Pete” Benavides County Park in Southmost now has a 2.5-mile mountain bike trail and exercise court in addition to the park’s several other features.
It’s the first mountain bike trail in the county parks system, said Joe Vega, director of the county’s parks and recreation department.
“It has three different levels,” he said. “It has the beginners, intermediate and advanced level. We’re excited about this new amenity. It adds to the other great recreational opportunities we have at Benavides Park.”
Those other amenities include a playground, baseball fields, a nature trail, a walking trail and a covered …
$7.5M grant will help Woodlands connect Harper’s Landing, Texas 242 to bike trails
Claire Partain | www.houstonchronicle.com
Traffic is seen along Texas 242 west of Interstate 45 in July in The Woodlands. The Woodlands Township has received a $7.5 million grant from the Texas Transportation Commission to build a 5-mile bike and pedestrian pathway connecting Harper’s Landing to The Woodlands’ trail system along Texas 242.
The Woodlands Township has received a $7.5 million grant from the Texas Transportation Commission to build a 5-mile bike and pedestrian pathway connecting Harper’s Landing to The Woodlands’ trail system along Texas 242.
The new pathway will begin at FM 1488 and connect several isolated neighborhoods along Texas 242 to The Woodlands’ trail system before crossing Interstate 45, culminating at Harper’s Landing Park. The grant will fund 80 percent of the project, totaling $7.47 million.
The township’s board of directors has allocated the remaining $1.87 million in its 2024 budget, township board chairman Ann Snyder said. …
Austin MetroBike program to go fully electric in 2024
By Katy McAfee | communityimpact.com
Austin leaders announced they will expand the city’s bike rental program, MetroBike, after receiving a $11.3 million grant from the Texas Department of Transportation on Oct. 26.
The funding is part of a larger $345 million infusion approved by the Texas Transportation Commission for bicycle and pedestrian mobility improvements throughout the state.
The details
The funding will allow the city to expand on its current fleet of 81 stations and 800 bicycles and replace all regular bikes with electric bikes, as e-bikes are used …
Corpus Christi awarded $13M grant from Texas Transportation Commission
By: Tony Jaramillo | www.kristv.com
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Traffic is coming back to an abandoned railroad trestle that crosses Oso Bay. But it won’t be trains that will be rolling across that structure. Instead, it will be bikes and foot traffic.
The $13 million grant will turn the old railroad trestle into an ADA accessible, shared-use path that will connect a hike and bike trail from Holly Road to Flour Bluff Drive. The project is one of 83 across the state to be selected as a part of the Transportation Alternative Grant Program.
Corpus Christi Mayor Paulette Guajardo said the grant is a "testament to …
Round the Block: The last leg
By Curtis Stoker | www.crazyguyonabike.com
Day 38 – Shepherd to Silsbee, TX
Monday October 30, 2023, 62 miles (100 km) – Total so far: 2,073 miles (3,336 km) Had a good rest in the “Barby Suite” as my co-riders are calling it. I even got visited by a friendly grey cat during the night. It just came and curled up by my feet during the night and kept those feet toasty warm. We woke to a 44 degree morning. We weren’t all that anxious to hit the road considering it was raining as well. We got our breakfast and packed our lunch taking our time. We waited for a break in the rain and took off. I was close to last taking off due to helping Bruce with a flat tire. It was probably lucky for me because I was able to ride the first 20 miles relatively dry. It really didn’t rain, but there was a mist in the air that got things a little wet.
At the 20 mile point, there was a donut shop and other riders were there. I stopped to get something and it started raining while I was there. The others took off and were now riding in the rain. A few others came in behind me and were pretty much waited an hour in the …
DORBA North Texas Mountain Bike Festival – A Weekend to Remember!
texasmtb.org
The trails echoed with excitement, and the Texas Interscholastic Mountain Bike League was right in the heart of the action at the DORBA North Texas Mountain Bike Festival on October 21 and 22. It was a weekend filled with rides, community, and the spirit of adventure.
GRiT Event – Silly Socks in South Austin
texasmtb.org
November 12 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Come join our GRiT ambassadors and coaches for some fun on the trails in your silliest socks! We will have our GRiT tent set up with a few snacks and get together to ride bikes through trails, work on skills, admire everyone’s silly and wacky sock selection, and have an awesome time!
City of College Station hosts open house to get feedback on the future of new Southeast Park
By Donnie Tuggle | www.kbtx.com
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COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – College Station residents had the opportunity to provide feedback on the future of Southeast Park Monday night.
An open house was held at City Hall. The meeting did not include a formal presentation, but city staff presented 10 image boards for people to look at. Residents were able to provide feedback using comment cards and printed surveys.
Southeast Park was formerly known as Texas Independence Ballpark, but that project was put on hold due to soil conditions that would have required extensive remediation. The future 68-acre property is located off Rock Prairie Road west of William D. Fitch near Midtown College Station. …
… Suggestions for Southwest Park include the addition of bodies of water like a splash pad and fishing pond. Other options included amenities like bike trails, dog parks, disc golf, multi-purpose courts for sports like pickleball, and more.
City staff will use the feedback to create a plan for city leaders in the coming months.
“We’ve gotten over 400 survey responses, which has been really great. It’s a whole myriad of things. People are saying they’d like to see trails, they’d like to see pickleball, they’d like to see a pool, they’d like to see a pump track where you can ride bikes on. So, we’ve gotten a whole lot of really great feedback,” said Cain. …