For the fifth year in a row, I rode the Atlas ride, the kickoff ride for the Texas 4000. The Texas 4000 is a 70 day bike ride from Austin to Anchorage undertaken by approximately 70 UT students. Texas 4000 cultivates student leaders and engages communities in the fight against cancer. They share hope, knowledge and charity in the fight against cancer through their  4,000+ mile bike ride from Austin to Anchorage. The students can take one of three routes: Ozarks, Sierra, or Rockies.

This year, the ride was part of my training plan for the Rock’N Hot Bike MS Ride I plan to undertake in September. I like this ride because it goes from Austin north (often with a tailwind) to Lampasas and ends at a winery.

At the start of the ride, this year’s Texas 4000 riders line up in front of the group with alumni from previous years behind them.

it was a beautiful day for a ride. It started out cloudy with some chance of rain but that quickly transitioned to sunny skies. The temperature was pleasant and while the winds were slightly out of the north, they were light. For the first 18 miles I was in a pace group averaging 19 mpg. Shortly after one of the riders behind me crashed, I decided to hang back and let them lose me so I could ride by myself. Well, that and the crazy pace they were taking up the hills was a bit too much after a while.

The ride end was moved this year from the Texas Legato Winery to a park in Lampasas due to the heavy rains we’ve been receiving. The last mile of this ride is always the hardest, no matter the distance. People can sponsor signs of their friends and family that have or had cancer. I try to read each sign and it always makes me tear up. It really underscores the great fundraising work these UT students are doing on their ride to Alaska.

I rode 68 miles in this year’s Atlas ride.

On Sunday, I rode out Parmer Lane for a 34 miles total. Not much new to see, but Brushy Creek Park was definitely flooded!