The 2012 Southwest Tandem Rally is over and done.  What a great weekend!  Great weather and great routes.  Good food, good friends and plenty of good times.  Kudos to the TexCATS for another wonderful rally.

I'd like to especially thank our own bike shop, The House of Tandems, and Rick and Marcia Becker, for running sags, doing repairs and, most of all, a great hospitality suite.  

 For whatever reason you and your partner throw a leg over a bike for two, the SWTR is what makes the experience really come alive.  

This next weekend, Easter weekend, April 6-8, is the traditional Easter Hill Country Tour.  As always happens, the tandems meet and never get out of Fredericksburg.  The EHCT is a premier event in Texas and guaranteed to be a memorable event with great weather, lots of friends, great rides and, on a year like this, profuse wildflowers.  Its never too late to sign up for the EHCT in Kerrville and if you just want to hang with the tandem crowd, find a place to stay and you're set to join the crowd.  There will be tandem specific gatherings, so check your newsletter for information.

For Texas cyclists the premier cycling event in Texas is the annual Easter Hill Country Tour in Kerrville.  Cyclists from all over the state will converge in Kerrville for this wonderful weekend of supported rides through our beloved Hill Country.  Traditionally, the tandemists make it a weekend in Fredericksburg.  Whether you choose to enjoy the complete experience of the EHCT from the Fredericksburg Friday, breakfasts in Kerrville, rides south of Kerrville to the banquet on Saturday night, or opt for the fellowship of the tandem community in rides around Fredericksburg, plan to join the tandems for a pre-supper happy hour hosted by the DATES on Friday, and supper on the deck at the Mahoney home on Saturday evening.  (Friday is BYOB, dinner elsewhere.  Saturday is BYOB, if picky, and potluck and bring your own meat to grill.)  Mark your calendars and join bikers from all over the state...or enjoy the closeness of the tandem community, but don't miss the great weekend.

Well it was a cold day to be celebrating VD, but if you dressed warmly, a ride on the tandem with your sweetie and barbecue at the Swinging Door with good friends makes for a lovely day.  With the traditional Valentines Day Ride a nice memory, we have no club rides scheduled in the near future unless you wish to volunteer to lead the group on your favorite route.  Let Stephen or Janet know and we'll see you on the road.

Make note that you can find the HATS on facebook through the efforts of Ken McDyer.  Check us out and watch for info on upcoming events. 

Get out that winter gear, whip up your version of manly chili (or a scrumptious desert) and bring your bike and your partner to West Columbia for the annual Chili Ride at the Mahoney's Riverhaven.  The party will go on, rain or shine, snow or blustery winds.  If its nice enough to ride, be there a 10:00 AM to start with the group for flat rides of varying distances and all speeds.  Bring a change of clothes if you want to clean up and strange beverages of choice if you don't want soda with your chili.  Email the Mahoneys at  m-smahoney@sbcglobal.net  preferably by Wednesday the 11th...but don't let manners stand in the way of joining the group.  The weather forecast is for a start in the mid 50s warming to the 60s by afternoon.