Zwift’s Scotland world wasn’t open but looks like it will be tomorrow. Today I chose a route that I have not rode before, Makuri Islands Farmloop Loop. It is short at 4.8 miles and 187 feet elevation gain. I wanted to ride more miles so I took 4 laps. A lap counter would’ve be nice. I saw one in event once. This totaled 19.71 miles and 751 feet elevation gain. Not too hard. No sprints but one climb each lap. The climb topped out at 336 feet. In Makuri Islands we ride on the left side of the road. Steering will not move to the right of the yellow line in the middle of the road. I use the Play controllers to steer. On the climb there is one spot for a few feet with 13% gradient when I rode on the left edge of the road. I wondered if I rode at the center if the 13% was still there. On the last lap I rode at the center of the road and I think the gradient at that spot was 11% or 12%. Switch backs are usually the steepest in the tightest bend. Maybe this does that in Zwift and riding wide reduces the gradient some. As a flatlander I need all that help. After today’s ride I am almost to level 32.
Bike Ride in Rio Grande Valley, McAllen Texas December 9 2023. State Highway 107 to 10th Street to Trenton and Dove to 2nd Street trail to Trenton to Jackson to University Drive Edinburg to do some errand stops at stores and eat lunch, completing five errand stops, 15 miles, camera battery ran out. Warm sunny day 88 degrees. Purposeful cycling, sort of a scavenger hunt, better than driving.
BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) – The city of Brownsville hosted a ride with the commissioner event Sunday. It was the first community bike ride along the West Rail Trail since the route was inaugurated over the Summer.
Brownsville City Commissioner Dr. Rose Gowen was the driving force behind the event.
“We are enjoying this crisp, beautiful sunny morning to take a ride down the West Rail Trail,” Gowen said.
The commissioner said she wants the community to know the trail is complete and has enormous …
Greater Houston Cycling Foundation | shoutout.wix.com
… BellVelo #2
Racers were welcomed by warm conditions with gentle wind on Saturday morning as racing returned to the original loop.
One Lap Races
In the women’s event Sandra Boyle put in a strong ride to take the win ahead of Maria Velasco with Race 1 runner up Will Fusco coming in 3rd to secure her 2nd podium and take a 7pt lead into the final race of the series meaning another good ride would guarantee her the overall title.
David Reynolds made it 2 in 2 in the men’s race finishing ahead of Benjamin Proko and last years series champion Kevin Dunn. The series looks like being fought out between Reynolds and Dunn with Reynolds taking a 4 point lead into Race #3. …
Heath Eiland and Morgan Moss BMX Skate Park, 1213 Shoal Creek Blvd., will be temporarily closed December 18-21 for graffiti removal. More park closure info: https://t.co/s2nH7W19Qjpic.twitter.com/xBti7m6zGH
It’s popular in some circles to forecast the death of the Local Bike Shop. Times are tough, they say. There is a huge surplus of inventory industry-wide, a lot of it on bike shop floors. In-store sales, according to data available from Circana (the organization formerly known as NPD), have shown month after month of all-time lows. Even the massive discounts currently in place are failing to motivate significant numbers of consumers to buy new bikes. And, because of all this, they say, we should be seeing bike shops failing at an unprecedented rate.
Be that as it may, in the immortal words of Howard Sutherland, founder of the Sutherland’s Handbook For Bicycle Mechanics series, “One measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions.” So, to find some measurements of the industry’s retail businesses and whether they’re failing, I turned to Christopher Georger of Georger Data Services, the guy who maintains the industry’s most comprehensive list of bike shops.
Georger compiled a list of all U.S. bike shops carrying one or more of the approximately 60 bike brands his company tracks, as shown on those brands’ dealer listings. (Excluded from the …
Several errands this morning after being greeted when I got out of bed with 32 degrees outside. Before riding Zwift I replace the disintegrating handle bar tape on my blue Norcross AL bike. The Blue hasn’t been outside since I started Zwifting September 18th, 2019. Its life revolves around virtual riding. The new Fizik tape required several tries before it looked okay. Replacing handlebar tape, like patching flats, is not my strong skill. Now the Zwift Play controllers fit snug on the handlebars and don’t move when the buttons are pushed.
Getting ready to ride Zwift I looked at the upcoming events on my phone. One looked interesting riding 2 laps of the Rolling Highlands in Scotland. The event was starting too soon for me to join so I started Zwift desktop and went to the free ride worlds. Sadly Scotland wasn’t there. I looked at the Watopia routes and chose Sand and Sequoias. The 14 miles was not that different for the Rolling Highlands and the 479 feet elevation gain was reasonable. After getting ready and starting the ride I was pushing the up button on the left Play controller and made a left turn taking me off the route. I made a u-turn and got back on the route but the mistake caused the HUD information to no longer show the route name. I think I made a wrong turn somewhere. Sand and Sequoias goes over Titans Grove climb but I rode up Titans Grove Reverse. This leads me to think I rode Sand and Sequoias in reverse. Comparing my ride map to the Sand and Sequoias map at ZwiftInsider.com I was on the correct roads but going the opposite direction. That explains the difference in climbing. I rode 14.18 miles climbing 597 feet. When I reversed when I hit the Play controller button that reversed the ride. In reality I rode Sand and Sequoias Reverse starting at .9 of a mile. That makes this a “Rebel Route” because it isn’t an official route.
“75 hits” is Texas’ newest and longest jump line at the brand new Station Mountain Bike Park outside of Austin, TX. Named 75 hits for its literal 75 features – this number of hits is absolutely unheard of for Texas elevation. Doubles, triples, tables, shark fins, rock drops, you name the jump feature, this trail has it.
By Scott Engle | montgomerycountypolicereporter.com
Operation Blue Elf is the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office “Boots on the ground” effort to give back to our community. They have partnered with the Sheriff’s Office Citizen Academy Alumni Association [MCSCAAA], a 501 (c ) (3) nonprofit organization, to help with fundraising and staffing this amazing event. Close to 400 bicycles were purchased thanks to donations and sponsors such as Woodforest Bank, Waste Solutions, and Walmart.
For the past 7 years, Operation Blue Elf has provided a Christmas celebration and toys to …
