100-mile bike ride may be coming to Fort Worth next summer

By Alex Branch

abranch@star-telegram.com

FORT WORTH -- JPS Health Network is organizing a 100-mile cycling event in Fort Worth next summer, a ride that officials would promote as a warm-up to the Hotter'N Hell Hundred held every August in Wichita Falls.

Planned for June 22, "Cycle Cowtown" would ideally start downtown, though the route is still being discussed, said Diana Carroll, a JPS spokeswoman.

The event would benefit the JPS residency program, which trains more than 200 physicians each year, she said.

Sports medicine residents have volunteered for years to provide medical care, such as treating dehydration, at the Hotter'N Hell Hundred, which draws more than 10,000 people. Many people working for the health network, including CEO Robert Earley, are avid cyclists, Carroll said.

"Fort Worth has a lot of beautiful areas where cyclists can ride," she said. "Everyone is excited about the idea."

Like the Wichita Falls event, Fort Worth's would include shorter routes such as 10K, 25-mile, 50-mile and 100K rides, Carroll said. Organizers are still working out other details, including registration costs and how much money the hospital district could raise.

Several other similar cycling events are held during the summer, but most don't start at the center of a large metropolitan area like Fort Worth, said John Roberts, president of the Fort Worth Bicycling Association, which has about 500 members. Other rides are usually on the outskirts of cities where there is less traffic and congestion.

Routes inside urban areas require heavy traffic control to block intersections, he said. In the 1980s and 1990s, the Cowtown Classic started at Will Rogers Coliseum but the financial costs eventually drove it away.

"What they ran into was having to pay so much money for traffic control and to have off-duty police out there at the intersections," he said. "It gets expensive, and there are a lot of logistics you have to work out to make it happen.

However, "it would be fantastic if you can get a large number of cyclists bringing their money and business into the city," he said.

Cycle Cowtown would have to meet city outdoor event regulations, including requirements for a route and police/fire operations plan, as well as other public safety measures, said Cynthia Alexander, the city's outdoor events manager.

Thus far, organizers have not contacted the city about the event, she said.

'Great' for Fort Worth

Carroll said JPS is including community stakeholders in the planning process. Sundance Square has pledged "100 percent support" for the event, said Tracy Gilmour, a spokeswoman for Sundance Square Management.

"We think it would be a great thing for Fort Worth and for downtown," she said.

The Hotter'N Hell Hundred draws cyclists from across the country and is held during what is typically the hottest month of the year. This year's rally is Aug. 25.

Last year's event drew 13,241 participants, said Chip Filer, the event's executive director.

Other similar summer cycling events include rides in Waxahachie and at Lake Texoma. The Cow Creek Country Classic in Waxahachie, which an official says attracts about 1,100 cyclists, also is scheduled for June 22, 2013.

Melissa Ballard, ride chairwoman for the Waxahachie event, said she that was unaware of plans for the Fort Worth event but that the two rides could conflict with each other.

"We're also a part of the training routine for Hotter'N Hell," she said.

Carroll said that rides and events are scheduled almost every weekend between May and August and that finding a date without competing events was not possible.

It 'could work'

Filer said officials with the Hotter'N Hell Hundred have met with Fort Worth organizers to discuss the event. He said that JPS residents have always done a good job for the Wichita Falls ride and that raising money for the residency program is a worthy cause.

Bill Howington, owner of Fort Worth Cycling and Fitness, said he thought a Fort Worth ride would be well-received by cyclists if it is well organized. Some cyclists already consider the Goatneck, a 69-mile ride in Cleburne, a tune-up for Hotter'N Hell, he said.

Safe traffic control, clearly marked routes and suitable rest stops are important to a successful ride, he said.

"A new one could work, just as long as they make sure all their ducks are in a row," Howington said.

Alex Branch, 817-390-7689

Twitter: @albranch1

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