CYCLISTS TAKE BACK THE ROADS

C yclists drive long distances to ride long distances during Texas Hell Week. From March 24-April 1 cyclists will take to the backroads of Gillespie County during the annual gathering that culminates with two race events.

03/14/2024 08:00 AM

Texas Hell Week has been an early season tradition since 1991 for cyclists.

The Texas Hill Country offers some of the best spring riding in America.

From mid-March to mid-April, the wildflowers are in bloom, making for a memorable riding experience.

Three daily rides are offered throughout Texas Hell Week, a 30-50mile ride, a 50-80-mile ride and a 60100-mile ride. Each ride is different.

Participants can ride as much as they want.

The week will conclude with two races, the Stampede 200 and the Longhorn 500, which is a RAAM (Race Across America) Qualifier.

RAAM is a coast-to-coast 3,000-mile bicycle race that begins in June in Oceanside, California and finishes in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Evenings also feature a series of instructional seminars on coaching, nutrition and crew.

HISTORY

The event originated when Nick Gerlich, an avid cyclist and associate professor at West Texas A&M University convinced a few friends to meet in San Marcos for some early season warm weather riding, with hopes of getting into shape for the riding season.

They dubbed the informal gathering ‘Texas Hell Week.’ With increasing traffic in the Austin area, Gerlich moved the event to Fredericksburg in 1994. Texas Hell Week has seen steady growth and now attracts more than 300 riders from across the nation.

Texas Hell Week took a two-yearhiatus after 2017 after which Fred and Rick Boethling acquired the event, combining Texas Hell Week with their Texas RAAM Challenge.