Jun 02, 2026
Longhorn500 2026 Race Report (1/3) It took a while to take time writing about my experience of this year Longhorn500 Race. Before the race I was unsure if I shall participate or not. I did test the area a bit for over a week and felt like its doable. A few weeks before I had a left tight muscle fiber tear and based on checkup it was ok again. Unfortunate it reduced my readiness due to reduced power training for the 500-mile race. Goal for 2026 race … I knew I could not play a major role in the race and if I would be able to cross the finish line in time and healthy I shall be happy. Race was started for first crewed racers at 5am. Us self-supported racers we started a few minutes later. It was dark and weather was perfectly fine. I took off very typical trying to make good ground at first part of the race. First loop started and I felt ok. No bad feelings on left tight muscle and bicycle all set for the first long 235-mile loop. Due to weather, I did wear long sleeve jersey with a long sleeve shirt under it. Just a few miles into race I felt all going ok and pushed even I knew I could play no col role but maybe get into top 5 at the end. And funny as is I made a mistake and used a left turn where I had to go straight. I believe that was around mile 4 or 5. Noticing not alone making the mistake I did a u-turn and had to get back on route making another left turn … unfortunate not realizing that the front tire lost air and slipped making me fall. Unfortunate falling on left side of the fresh healed muscles was no cool. So I had to stop in the dark trying to fix front tire. Luckily, I believe crew from racer 511 stopped getting me light and helping with pump. It’s always nice people out there even in racing. Big kudos to that race crew and the racer. It was overall easy about 20-30 minutes time lost. And I told myself that race just started so to stay calm and focus on finishing the loop. Switched position with racer 511 a few times but knew he was stronger and I was hoping for daylight and easier to see the road conditions. Funny as is as a self-supported racer you are required to stop briefly and report every arrival at time stations. I did … water was no big deal at beginning but had an issue because one of my water bottles (out of 4) went down on one of the cattle guards. I ran short by one bottle for the 235-mile loop. No big deal because temperature was low. Crazy as expected rain started closer to noon time. Drizzle to light rain at some point. My strategy was simply to stay as safe as possible. Stopped at time station 3 (165 miles) to use the bathroom. No need for any additional stop at loop one. The last 50-60 miles unfortunate caused a few more flat tires on front. I noticed that always when pushing over cattle guards too fast I caused a flat. Having enough spare tubes it was just time consuming. Decided to change front wheel once loop was finished because it may have been the rim liner.
Mar 16, 2026
What a crazy weekend. Ok not as planned but I had to drive almost 1400 miles all night until Noon Saturday. So, after lack of sleep, I got my spare bike ready and … went for a 95-mile ride. So tested all lap 3 for the race. Stopped for water refill twice and was simply tired. Issue from start on. After an update on my Garmin 1040 I noticed the maps, feature was not working. So … fixed it Saturday evening/Sunday morning. Unfortunately, it cut my sleep time short again.
Plan for Sunday to ride full lap 2 we t down a bit. Garmin fixed and stated the ride later than expected. What I missed … wind in morning was ok … but around Noon it changed a lot to about 23 mph with gusts way over 30. Unfortunately, the cycling gods had no mercy. It sure was head/crosshead wind. After about mile 98 I made the decision to cut the route short by about 10 miles.
Ok ... still overall miles have been 131 on Sunday and that’s like distance for loop 2. But adding the distance from/to start/finish line it would have been more about 141-145 miles. Also, I found out about the wind after the ride. During the ride I blamed my condition.
Overall cool rides after the lack of sleep. Was a good test and I admit … I love riding in TX cattle farmland. It’s cool and I like coming back.
Mar 09, 2026
First Century Ride on Velomobile Bülk Distance - As some know I have a Velomobile Bülk Distance. Ok i only have that since 3 weeks and started test rides 2 weeks ago. Today I made the decision to see how it feels like on a century ride. So far my longest ride has been about 31 miles. Still testing handling I decided to go for a century. It was a bit unplanned and a decision after about 40 miles. Overall I am still working on most efficient way to accelerate after stops at traffic lights and stop signs. And working on handling in sharp curves. Today I noticed a few things I better train more for long rides on the Velo bike. For my race bikes I use the Infinity Seates for better comfort. Thats not possible in laying down position in the Velo. And admittedly my a..s start hurting after about 70 miles. Also I need to place drinking bottles better so I can have proper hydration. Ohhh … it was a hot day causing some sunburn in my face. Still temperature in the Velo was manageable to me. Average speed was only 20.6 mph. But thats due to stop signs and traffic lights. Plus I do not have proper front chainring yet. Overall a cool experience. A few things to focus on and hopefully getting familiar step by step with this.
Mar 09, 2026
Love my Velomobile Bülk Distance. Been ask a few questions on regular basis… How is it with cross wind - actually much easier than any upright bikes. Low profile makes it less effective even from strong cross wind and gusts. Ok … downside is not to be able to benefit from tailwind that much. But pro is that cross wind a d headwind does not slow you down as much as on regular bikes. So its a more consistent way of riding. What about hot temperatures. Ok yesterday I did a 101 mile (163 km) ride in average tenp of 84F (29C) lowest temperature was 77F (25C). Was I sweating… sure because I did that distance. But I felt ok. My big issue was that I did not pay attention proactively and not using sun-blocker in my face … got a sunburn that takes me off the road today. Its bot Velomobile related … its a general issue here. The temperature was not bothering me. I currently ride it with top open. Ordered one but will leave windows off in hot days. How fast does it go. … ok mine at the moment has the smallest front chainring. I ordered a large one and will change that as soon as I get it. I am riding for 2 weeks to get used to it … means setup of shoe cleats and learning to steer right or to apply a bit power … most times bow I use the 3 smallest gear on rear cassette and on a straight get easy to 23-25 mph (37-40 km/h) and top speeds over 32 mph (52 km/h). I know once getting used to it and having a large front chainring this will go up. On pictures … I parked it briefly when I went to a German bakery picking up some bred and the two videos show the turn signals front and back. That to be honest helps a lot … no hand signals … regular turn signals for traffic coming towards me and behind me. In addition great head lights and well visible tail lights plus when I break it signals rear traffic as well. So its a cool safety setup on the lights and makes me feel much more comfortable. In addition I use two good rear mirrors. So in conpare to my upright bike rides it feels safe enough. Ok … it does not rake away from me to follow proper traffic rules and watch out for cars. It’s just easier to do that. I was hesitant wor over a year if ai should get one. And after two weeks testing it I am happy I have one. Will I race with it? Mhhhh time may tell and its way too early to say. Focus is on having fun. I have ideas for cool rides (not necessarily races). And will step by step integrate those rides in my regular procedure. For now … its a learning curve.
Mar 04, 2026
First Impression riding the Velomobile Bülk Distance As some noticed I got a Velomobile Bülk Distance (will sinply just name it Velo. So all arrived in great conditions. Very well packed by manufacturer. First rides took me a bit due to my injury with left thigh muscle. However the first rides I kept short for about 7-8 miles to see that I get cleats setup ok. Minimot adjustments … dinding seat position, change pedals to my regular Shimano and usingmy standard shoes. It took a few rides ro have them setup to my liking. However this weekend I may have to run another chage installing dual power pedals to get power input and cadence information. What a cool ride. I really enjoy using it. Increased todes to a bit over 30 miles (50 km). What did I learn/notice so far? Light system is amazing and good visibility at night plus cool with turn signals for traffic behind me. Need to find a good spot to add my Garmin 1040. Speed was a bit less than expected and have to use the small chainrings on rear cassette too much. … ordered larger front chainring now. For regular use its ok. Speeding up on intersections is day and night compared to road bikes. Its much slower speeding up to over 20 mph. So its important to use good technique in case of riding it on longer distances. Dogs now are on head level 😂🤪. So I would not need a hood but ordered it ro be better protected. For tube / tire change I better lay it on the side. So ordered a set of ultralight folding sleeping pad. Riding is conpletely different to upright race bikes. Means I am adding the Velo rides as recovery rides and start finding best technique for intersections and sharp curves. My average speed is a bit low for some more weeks so I can heal my muscles left plus work on fine tuning the way I ride the Velo. Overall … very cool experience and so much fun riding it. Can I start pushing in races? Heck no … I am to far from that at the moment. Also noticed on upright bikes with aerobars the neck muscles are stressed to keep head up. On Velo rides its the opposite direction because head is pulled forward … different neck muscle training. Applying power is different because on upright bikes I can use arms as well while they cannot be used much or at all on the Velo … other than steering.
