Originally Posted by
bluebottle1
This is what I have heard from someone in the know (i.e. employee of the mayor's office who set the route in 2006 and 2007). Running the TdH as anything but an out and back dramatically increases the number of police officers needed and thus the amount of overtime the city winds up paying. This is the reason why last year's ride was basically an out and back to Clear Lake and why this year's will be the same but to the north. It's obviously far from ideal from a cyclist viewpoint, but I guess it's what the city could manage and still keep its costs reasonable.
Last year's ride was okay as far as the rest stops were concerned, at least I thought. They were quite well stocked and the start and finish went pretty smoothly, though it was obviously pretty crowded at the beginning. Despite the less than interesting scenery last year, I actually had a pretty good time, and I like supporting cycling in Houston. Besides, I've gotta get another ride marshal gig out of the way before the MS150, so I'll be there.
Thank for your perspective. I signed my wife and I up for the TDH because I'm Houston proud and I felt like it would give me an opportunity to do something different. The MS150 last year gave me a perspective about riding on a large organized ride - the most uninteresting places or difficult roads become a lot of fun when you have traffic control and lots of people cheering and excited. That is what I expect on this ride. I expect kind of a rush of excitement. I am no novice rider by any stretch. I did 5000 miles last year and I've got three centuries under my belt, plus numerous 60+ mile rides. I like to ride at a 20-22 mph pace, but I also enjoy doing a 35 mile ride at 15 mph with my wife.
I just tried to pick up my packet and they were out. All of the banks ran out. Sun and Ski is rumored to have had no packets last weekend. What did I expect? Its the city government organization (low budget). <sigh> But I will remain optimistic and experience it once. I cannot think of any other way to get to go down the middle of Hardy toll road on my bicycle without getting run over.
Bob