Sometimes you have to be rescued!

Went for a ride on a nice rainy night and had to be rescued by the wife. I really should buy tubes with longer valve stems.

The last little bit is coming soon!

Colleyville's construction will complete the remaining gap of the Cotton Belt Trail linking Grapevine to North Richland Hills without interruption.

Once the gap—between Grapevine and Colleyville—is filled, bicyclists and pedestrians will be able to travel from North Richland Hills to Grapevine uninterrupted. All that remains to connect the Cotton Belt Trail is a portion of about 800 feet, which is from Colleyville’s entry sign to the existing trail on John McCain Road. Construction is currently underway on this small portion of the trail. Colleyville officials said the gap is expected to be closed by spring.


Elsewhere on the Trail

At Rufe Snow drive there is a trailhead under construction. The trail head will feature a water fountain, a shade with benches, and a bicycle rack.

There is a rumor that:
LD Lockett park will get a bike repair station.

Mellow Johnny's bike shop coming to Fort Worth.

Lance Armstrong's iconic bike shop Mellow Johnny's will be coming to Fort Worth probably opening this fall.  Mellow Johnny's had said on their website it was supposed open spring 2015 however not making that spring date. The bike shop will be located in the new Clear Fork Trailhead development along Trinity Trails.  Their website describes it as…

            The Cycling and Fitness Center has broken ground, with an opening slated for late Spring 2015. In addition to Mellow Johnny’s, the 13,000 square foot facility will house a fitness studio that expands off the initial Trailhead concept. With views of the Trinity River and the Trinity Trail system, the rooftop bar will have food, beer and wine service during evening hours and on weekends. Much like Mellow Johnny’s in Austin, the Trailhead location will be a gathering place for shoppers, cyclists, and diners.

Here's to hoping that it becomes a cool destination to bike to!

New traffic counter on the Cotton Belt Rail Trail

 PASSIVE INFRARED SENSOR COMBINED WITH INDUCTANCE LOOP DETECTOR

     While riding out to breakfast I noticed this newly installed bollard along the trail. It is located just east of Holiday Lane right before the curves. I haven't been able to find anything on the NRH website about it. It is a passive infrared and inductance loop combined counter. It will count the number of bicycles and pedestrians that move along the trail, logging the time and help the city make better decisions in regard to maintenance and future planning.

    

    Help us keep the count up and ride by this thing whenever you can. I have a suspicion that the more use that the trail sees then the more trails we will see.

On being a weight weenie!

I'm not usually a carbon fibre widget guy. I tend to err on the side of quality and longevity. So when I bought this carbon crank of eBay it was because it was the only octalink compatible compact crank. 

I had been running a Dura-Ace 7700 crankset with 39/53 gearing. I need some gears for riding in the mountains so hence the compact. The new crank weighs 543 grams and the old weighs 603 so I end up saving around 60 grams. Whoo-hoo!

That monstrous savings amounts to a free snack. 

Carbon while it can be made über light it usually is only marginal on a single part. 

Been building up a new bike.

New bike swag!

Just got a new compact crankset just in time for the Fort Davis Cyclefest.