Before COVID, Austin was an outstanding place to be. Wonderful bars and restaurants, great ways to experience nature, and a plethora of events every day of the week – all taking place in year-round nice weather (though sometimes a bit hot).

One more feather in Austin’s cap, and a big reason I continue to live here, is the city’s great cycling community. Austin is full of commuters, road cyclists, casual trail jaunt-ers anything in between (including some pretty awesome pedicab services). As with everything else, most cycling-related events have been cancelled this year, however, one thing that isn’t cancelled is enjoying the outdoors, which many have chosen to do by bike over the past several months. Nay, Covid has caused a bit of a national bike boom, with demand so high that many shops are repeatedly selling out of new stock, and maintenance services are backed up for weeks.

With so many new cyclists on the road, it’s a shame we can’t welcome them in the usual fashion. Someday, though, normalcy will return and, with it, all the things that make riding bikes in Austin great. You, new cyclist, should be ready when that day comes, so here’s an over of some of the more prominent contributors to the Austin cycling community.

 

 

Organizations

 

Social Cycling Austin

Start here. Seriously. Social Cycling Austin is a FB group of over 12,000 members representing every possible cycling niche. The group is an amazing place to ask questions, find people to ride with, learn about Austin cycling, in general, and is also the home of the famous Thursday Night Social Ride, which has become an institution in the community. Think of SSA as your all-purpose, one-stop-shop for general cycling info in Austin.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/socialcyclingaustin

 

Bike Austin

It’s good to be a member of Bike Austin. This is an advocacy group that works closely with city government on bicycle issues – most importantly, safety. Bike Austin hosts rides, garners support for city projects and gives back to cyclists in the community. During COVID, the organization helped build support for Healthy Streets to allow pedestrians and cyclists to enjoy socially-distanced recreation without having to worry about automobile traffic. The more cyclists we can get behind Bike Austin the better.

https://www.bikeaustin.org/

 

Ghisallo Cycling Initiative

Ghisallo provides bike-related educational programs to Austin’s youth with the aim of creating lifelong cyclists, and also normalizing the use of bikes for transportation. The group conducts clinics focused on safe riding as well as numerous bicycle maintenance programs. If you’re a parent who wants to bring some cycling education to your child’s school, Ghisallo is a great place to start.

http://ghisallo.org

 

Violet Crown

Violet Crown is the oldest and largest cycling club in Austin, and they have the old newsletters and photos to prove it.If want to hear stories about Lance and the old Tuesday Nighter, Violet Crown is your jam. This organization facilitates numerous weekly group rides, and you’ll likely see riders sporting VC kit at other group rides as well. If you’re getting more serious about cycling and want to ride with faster groups or are considering racing, Violet Crown is a great place to get started.

https://violetcrown.org/

 

Yellow Bike Project

Ya know all those micro-mobility scooters and bikes you see sitting all over the city? Well, Austin’s Yellow Bike Project was an early adopter in this area. In 1997, they repaired hundreds of bikes, painted them yellow and put them on the street for Austinites to use for their daily transportation needs, for free! Unfortunately, human nature got in the way and the project eventually fizzled out. Still, the organization remains and is an outstanding resource for purchasing reasonably priced bikes in Austin, as well as learning to repair your own bike. YBP is a community bike shop, offering classes, open community shops and even an earn-a-bike program, in which you can earn a free bike in exchange for volunteer hours. I highly recommend you visit the shop to see what it’s all about.

https://austinyellowbike.org/

 

Coffee Outside ATX

#CoffeeOutside is a national community of cyclists who meet up for, well, coffee outside, and #CoffeeOutsideATX is Austin’s iteration of the group. Multiple different meeting places are used that showcase the city’s many outstanding parks. This is a small gathering, but a fun thing to do and good way to meet people if you’re new to Austin.

https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/coffeeoutsideatx/

 

Bike Shops

Austin is chock full of bike shops. You’ll have no problem finding the one that fits your vibe. And though I hate to exclude any, as I’m thankful for all bike shops (even the bad ones), I’ll briefly include here those with which I have direct experience:

 

Mellow Johnny’s

Mentioned first because it’s the most famous shop in Austin. Mellow Johnny’s, so named because it sounds like the french maillot jaunt (yellow jersey), is owned by Lance Armstrong and is full of classic Tour de France bikes and other memorabilia. The cycling artifacts, in addition to it being a great shop, make photo-taking out-of-town visitors a common sight in the store. Is MJ’s a great shop for the casual cyclist? Sure, they’re friendly and have some nice hybrid/commuter bikes. Still, I perceive MJ’s to be more geared toward the serious racing cyclist. They carry a lot of high end stuff and prices can be shocking, especially if you’re simply interested in cruising the hike ’n bike trail.

https://austin.mellowjohnnys.com/

 

Cycleast

To me, Cycleast is the “hipster” shop. They have an amazing coffee shop on location and many of the bikes you see being sold or parked outside are of the steel (and sometimes single-speed) variety. But don’t be fooled, this shop hosts some amazing competitive riders and is also the home of Austin’s Phenom Cycle Club – a popular group in the racing community that holds the weekly Phenom 50 ride. I prefer to have my commuter serviced at Cycleast because they’re down-to-earth and reasonably priced (and within biking distance of my home).

https://cycleast.com/

 

Bicycle Sport Shop

I spend significantly more time at Mellow Johnny’s due to their co-located coffee shop, however, Bicycle Sport Shop is still my favorite shop in Austin, namely the South Lamar location. They’re huge and nationally known, with five locations in Austin, yet still manage to to feel welcoming and familiar. The owner, Hill Abel, is also an outspoken cycling advocate, which I appreciate. BSS caters to everyone, and is both an outstanding place to buy your first “real” bike, or your 10th high-end carbon race bike. Of all the shops in Austin, I’d say Bicycle Sport Shop appeals to the widest clientele.

https://bicyclesportshop.com/

 

Bike Farm

Let us not forget Bike Farm, a small shop slightly further away from my usual bubble of existence, but worth the trip nonetheless. Bike Farm carries brands that the other shops don’t, many of which are more reasonably priced. They also have a huge used a new-old-stock selection, which can be browsed online from the safety of your standing treadmill desk. Literature aficionados will also appreciate the titles on their service menu.

https://austinbikefarm.com/

 

Other Events and Resources

 

CapMetro

Did you know that you can bring your bike on the bus? It’s true! Capital MetroRail also invites riders to bring their bikes. If you’re a commuter who lives a little further away and wants to use their bike for “last mile” purposes, CapMetro is a great way to do it. More transit centers are popping up around Austin and I can tell you from experience that it’s entirely possible to get around multi modally without driving.

https://www.capmetro.org/bikerack

 

Driveway Series

Even serious roadies who don’t live in Austin know about The Driveway Series. It’s arguably the best weekly criterium series in the country, and also a just a fun place to be. On Thursday evenings, you might see speed suit adorned riders making their way to the east side of town for the weekly race or returning at twilight for tacos and beer a La Mancha Tex Mex Tavern. Driveway is a culture and, in my opinion, one of the coolest thing about Austin. Here’s an intense promo video from their site:

http://drivewayseries.com/

 

CotA Bike Night (is awesome)

Circuit of the Americas in an Austin landmark, and the only purpose built Formula One track in the United States. Its scale is hard to appreciate from afar, so why not see it up close? CotA Bike Night, held every Tuesday throughout the summer is fun way to ride without having to worry about traffic in a truly interesting environment. All kinds of riders are welcome. You’ll see teams doing workouts, families with kids, e-bikes and everything in between. Worried about climbing the 11% grade before turn 1? No problem. There’s a bypass to skip that portion of the track, but I recommend you take on the challenge at least once. Check out the view:

 

http://circuitoftheamericas.com/bike

 

The Veloway

The Veloway at Circle C Ranch Metropolitan Park was constructed in the early 90’s and was the first facility of its kind in the United States.  The Veloway is a 23’ wide, 3.1 miles (5K) long bicycle tract that traverses the natural terrain.   People travel from all over the metropolitan region to cycle here on a daily basis. The project was partially funded by a Texas Parks and Wildlife Grant. (I copy-pasted this)

https://austintexas.gov/department/veloway

 

Austin Bicycle Map

You’ll likely see this near the checkout in local shops, but it’s also available online.

Here’s the PDF – https://austintexas.gov/sites/default/files/files/COA_bike_map_v12_FULL_web.pdf.

And an interactive version – https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=5d0284294f1b41bcad4ea956274a83b3&extent=3084002.7769,10048871.3815,3148002.7769,10081338.0481,102739

The map is well done, and I’ll say that I concur with most of the routes and comfort levels described.

 

Is Austin a bicycling Mecca? No. Riding here has its problems. There’s the ever-growing sprawl, crazy driving and a striking carelessness about transportation safety. Still, the city has a critical mass of riders that has normalized the sight of cyclists on the road and, as traffic gets worse, many of those who are able are choosing to get around by bike. The site of e-bikes during the morning and evening rush is getting quite common.

What makes riding in Austin great are the people. Take advantage of or get involved in the resources I’ve mentioned here and you’ll quickly find your niche.

 

 

Thoughts Transportation