Thursday is the night to end all nights with cycling events this week. Along with the regular Driveway Crits, Bike Polo, and Thursday Night Social Ride, there will be the LOBV Bike-in Movie, ride with the author of Boneshaker, Get Your Art on Ride, and Bicycle Advisory Council. Whew. Friday is a bit of a respite before the Tour de Fat Saturday which will include a booth for the upcoming Texas Custom Bicycle Show with a sneak peek of some of the custom bikes from the show.

Here’s a quick run down of recommended events for the coming week from our comprehensive calendar of all cycling events. Thanks to Jason at ATXBS for letting us know about some events we couldn’t find elsewhere. As always, if there is an event you know about that’s not on our calendar contact us, and we’ll add your event on and possibly add it to the weekly round up.

Thursday, October 15

Kenny Hill AutoWerks’ Driveway Criterium Races 
4:30 PM, Community Rally, 5 PM, Races, The Driveway, 8400 Delwau Ln
Weekly Thursday night road racing through October that takes place on the closed car-free driving course at the Driveway. Races include Cat 3/4 women’s and juniors race at 5:00, Cat 4/5 at 6:10, Cat 3/4 at 5:30, Pro/Cat 1/2/3 at 6:45 to choose from with a fourth Masters race (40 + years old) running from May 21- August 6 starting at 7:45. Open riding during Community Rally from 4:30- 5:30 PM. Races registration $20, Rally $10. $5 off with 8 oz can donated to Capital Area Food Bank. See our article about the series for more info.

Thursday Night Bike Polo
5:30 PM, Eastwoods Park, 3001 Harris Park Ave
The Austin Bike Polo Club’s weekday match. All bikes and skill levels are welcome and spare mallets and balls are available if you don’t have any. Check out our recent article on bike polo for more info.

Bicycle Sport Shop Bike Maintenance Class
6 PM, Two locations: Bicycle Sport Shop Central, 517 S. Lamar Blvd or Bicycle Sports Shop North, 10947 Research Blvd
This is a free basic maintenance class (including how to fix a flat) taught by one of BSS’ skilled mechanics. In this 1 hour class students will learn the basic skills needed to keep their bike running safely while on the road. We will cover: Pre-ride bike inspection, Changing a flat, Proper cleaning & lubrication, and Tools for your ride.

Get Your Art On Bike Ride & Happy Hour
6:30 PM, Mellow Johnny’s Bike Shop, 400 Nueces
Get Your Art On is a citywide celebration of art, creativity and culture. Join the Scout-A-Route crew and the City of Austin’s Art in Public Places for a short bike tour highlighting public art downtown. The ride ends with a happy hour at The Tiniest Bar in Texas (5th & Bowie) The sun will be setting as we cruise town so LIGHTS and HELMETS are REQUIRED. Ride organizer: Eileen Schaubert at eileen@mellowjohnnys.com or 512-426-4851.

Bicycle Advisory Council
6:30 PM One Texas Center, 505 Barton Springs Rd, 8th floor large conference room
The Austin Bicycle Advisory Council is a committee of Austinites representing cyclists’ interests to the City of Austin and meets monthly to advise staff of the City of Austin Public Works Bicycle and Pedestrian Program.

Read and Ride with “Boneshaker: A Bicycling Almanac”
7 PM, MonkeyWrench Books, 110 E. North Loop
The editors of “Boneshaker: A Bicycling Almanac” believe that the bicycle, when conceived of and used appropriately, can become a tool for social change and community building. This almanac is a collective ode to the ride itself, that fundamentally lonesome experience one has in the saddle, and the results of repeating that ride over and over in different directions on different days with different destinations in each instance. With interviews of respected members of the bicycling community, as well as profiles of bike-related grassroots organizations and individuals, not to mention essays, graphs, lists, letters, charts, maps, poems, schedules, manifestos, drawings, art, and stories, Boneshaker attempts to shine light on utilitarian bicycling. There will be a reading by editor Evan P Schneider from the third issue of Boneshaker which will be followed by a leisurely ride and libation stop! A2W article on Boneshaker.

Bike-In Movie Fundraiser for LOBV
7 PM, The Triangle, 45th St & Guadalupe
Tape your nose and get out your yellow jumps suit. The League of Bicycling Votersis back this week with their Bike-in Cinema fundraising series with Bottle Rocket Thursday evening at The Triangle. Admission is $2 and proceeds from the beer sales will go to the LOBV courtesy of New Belgium Brewery. Bring a blanket and a chair for movies under the stars.

Thursday Night Social Ride
7:30 PM, Lamar Blvd Pfluger Pedestrian Bridge
A ride from the Facebook group Social Cycling ATX. Meet at Pedestrian Bridge at 7:30 p.m. leave at 8:00 p.m. This week the ride will head to the LOBV Bike-in Movie, Bottle Rocket. After the movie is over the ride heads to The Ghost Room where the old Gingerman used to be. They’ll have an iced down keg for us, cheap drink specials and a nice drink combo which consists of a shot of Jim Beam and a cold Pearl Beer for only $5! In addition to all of the drink specials, The Ghost Room has booked a Texas music legend for our dancing pleasure. Erik Hokkanen will be entertaining us all evening so you fools better get ready to dance. Read our recent article on the popular weekly ride.

Friday, October 16

Traffic Skills 101 sponsored by Austin Cycling Association
5 PM, REI Round Rock, 201 University Oaks Blvd, Suite 1100, Round Rock, TX
Do you want to ride your bike but are afraid of traffic? Or are you an experienced cyclist who would like to learn how to get more courtesy and respect from motorists? If your answer to any of these questions is “yes”, you should take Traffic Skills 101, the League of American Bicyclist’s (LAB) street cycling course for adults. Traffic Skills 101 will help you ride safely and effectively – to work, to the store, around your neighborhood, or around the state. Traffic Skills 101 is taught by LAB-certified instructors, and the curriculum covers everything from bike selection to simple maintenance to fixing a flat, to strategies for riding a bike safely and confidently. It is taught to very small classes (generally 5 to 10 students), in two sessions: 4 hours on a Friday evening and 5 hours on a Saturday morning. Registration is required.

Saturday, October 17

Mellow Johnny’s Scout-A-Ride Shop Road Ride: Tour de Fat with Bike Parade
8:30 AM, Mellow Johnny’s Bike Shop, 400 Nueces St
Saturday mornings spent exploring City of Austin bike routes finding new neighborhoods and ways to get around on your bike. A special edition of the Novice Scout-A-Route ride. Tour de Fat is a free bike festival that is also a fundraiser for the ACA, Austin Ridge Riders and the Yellow Bike Project. First we will ride to the Tour de Fat at Fiesta Gardens then we’ll ride in the bike parade and hang out at the festivities. Costumes are encouraged for the parade. Return at your leisure with options using the Town Lake Trail or retracing the outbound route. These rides are meant for exploring so bring questions not your heart rate monitor. Come by at 8:00 for pre-ride coffee. Ride organizer: Eileen Schaubert at eileen@mellowjohnnys.com or 512-426-4851.

Tour de Fat
9 AM Bike Parade Registration, 10 AM Bike Parade, 11- 4 PM Festivities, Fiesta Gardens, 2101 Bergman Ave
The Tour de Fat, a one day festival celebrating the bike sponsored by New Belgium Brewery, has been scheduled to stop in Austin on Saturday, October 17 at Fiesta Gardens in East Austin. The entry is free and proceeds from beer sales benefit Austin Yellow Bike Project, Austin Cycling Association, and the Austin Ridge Riders Mountain Bike Club.

East Austin at 15mph – Human Powered Painting
11 AM- 11 PM, Co-lab, 613 Allen St
Artist Rachel Renee Stewart interprets the unique natural beauty of Central Texas and bridges the gallery space with its surrounding neighborhood. She develops large scale, impressionistic landscape paintings directly on the existing infrastructure by riding a bicycle as a mode of paint application. In Stewart’s work action painting becomes activism as she aims to generate a dialog about transportation, urban development, traffic, and the environment. The audience is encouraged to watch and participate in the painting process on Saturday, leading up to painting’s completion, and walk, bike, and drive vehicles over the painting at any stage. Saturday 17 – 11am-7pm (See the work in process) Opening Reception: Saturday 17 7-11pm Sunday 18 2-7pm (visit the completed work)

Sunday, October 18

Sunday Morning Fixie Ride
8:20 AM, Posse East, 2900 Duval St
The ride is focused on fixed-gear bikes, but everyone is welcome. The ride will proceed at a social pace from the UT campus on various routes of 25-35 miles.

Capital City BMX Weekly Race Series
1 PM, Capital City BMX, 15010 FM Road 620 North
The Capital City BMX opened in November 2008 and offers you a chance to learn and race BMX. BMX races are held every Sunday with rider check-in 1-2 PM. Cost $10/rider. (There is also practice time on Monday’s and Friday’s. Check Capital City BMX for more info.)

Hardcourt Bike Polo
2 PM, Eastwoods Park, 3001 Harris Park Ave
Join fellow bike polo enthusiasts as part of the newly formed Austin Bike Polo Club for a friendly Sunday match every week. All bikes and skill levels are welcome and spare mallets and balls are available if you don’t have any. Check out our recent article on bike polo for more info.

Weekly Ladies Ride presented by Mellow Johnny’s
3:30 PM, Mellow Johnny’s Bike Show, 400 Nueces St
Starting at 3:30 sharp, it’s a 2 hour ride for ladies only. Join experienced riders from Mellow Johnny’s for a friendly and moderately paced social ride (14-16mph average). Get more comfortable riding in a group, learn tips & tricks, and meet other like-minded cyclists. Stay afterwards for champagne and strawberries at Royal Blue Grocery across the street! Some things to keep in mind before meeting us for this ride: Have a road bike in good working condition, Bring a helmet, Wear cycling clothing, Bring plenty of water, Are able to ride comfortably for 2 hours without stopping.

Monday, October 19

Heavy Metal Fitness Ride hosted by Social Cycling ATX
7 PM, Lamar Blvd Pfluger Pedestrian Bridge, Lady Bird Lake
Hosted by Social Cycling ATX, this ride is a higher pace and more challenging than their Thursday Night Urban Ride. The ride is 20-30 miles and usually ends with free beer and a dip in the water. Meet up at 7 PM. Ride leaves at 7:30 sharp.

Tuesday, October 20

Dirt Derby
5:30 PM, Austin/Del Valle Motorcross Park, 15400 Pearce Ln, Del Valle, TX
Austin’s weekly cyclocross series returns for its fourth season at the the fully illuminated motocross course and surrounding fields at Austin/Del Valle Motorcross Park (ADVMX). There are A, B, beginners, women’s, and children’s races in cyclocross and short track mountain bike. New this year are monthly 4 week series and A2W and Violet Crown Cycles have come on board as sponsors of the cyclocross series. Each time you race you are entered into a drawing for a custom cyclocross frameset by Violet Crown Cycles. The more you race, the more chances to win.  $10, women, beginners and kids only $5. Second race same night $5. All types of bikes are welcome.

Wednesday, October 21

Weekly Women’s Ride with Austin Flyer’s Team
6 PM, Bicycle Sport Shop Central, 517 South Lamar Blvd
Join local cycling team the Austin Flyers for this weekly women’s ride. The ride will leave from BSS Central Location (Lamar and Barton Springs) every week except for the last Wednesday of the month when it will leave from BSS North location (183 and Braker). This is a relaxed-pace, no-drop ride open to all levels and will last up to two hours. If you have any questions about the ride, please email Tammy Thompson.

Weekly Bike Maintenance and Flat Repair Classes hosted by Mellow Johnny’s
6 PM, Mellow Johnny’s Bike Shop, 400 Nueces St
Every Wednesday at 6pm Mellow Johnny’s has bike maintenance and flat repair classes. Learn how to fix a flat tire and add life to your bike with simple maintenance and repairs. Please RSVP to Chuck atchuck@mellowjohnnys.com if you plan on attending on of the classes. Classes fill up quickly so RSVP soon so you don’t get left out!