Cyclists take to road for Freedom Ride – Chron.com

And they're off! Anxious riders were ready to hit the pavement and get underway, sparked by the perfect weather.

And they're off! Anxious riders were ready to hit the pavement and get underway, sparked by the perfect weather.

A sea of hands show off blue bands worn in support of Constable Justin Johnson. Johnson was injured in a near fatal accident about a month ago and is making a miraculous recovery.

A sea of hands show off blue bands worn in support of Constable Justin Johnson. Johnson was injured in a near fatal accident about a month ago and is making a miraculous recovery.

Riders came from all walks of life, male and female, young and old and all found the trip a lot of fun. Immaculate Conception Catholic Church provided a nice backdrop to the kickoff of the ride.

Riders came from all walks of life, male and female, young and old and all found the trip a lot of fun. Immaculate Conception Catholic Church provided a nice backdrop to the kickoff of the ride.

Motorcycle riders were an important part of the Liberty Freedom Ride. Riders not only enjoyed the route on their own, but also helped police provide escorting and protection getting out of town.

Motorcycle riders were an important part of the Liberty Freedom Ride. Riders not only enjoyed the route on their own, but also helped police provide escorting and protection getting out of town.

Volunteers give directions to riders on which direction for the 61-mile ride and the 79-mile ride. A wrong turn could take them a long way back home.

Volunteers give directions to riders on which direction for the 61-mile ride and the 79-mile ride. A wrong turn could take them a long way back home.

Rows of bicycles of various sizes and types lined the parking lot of Liberty City Hall as riders prepped for the Liberty Freedom Ride Saturday, April 8.

Rows of bicycles of various sizes and types lined the parking lot of Liberty City Hall as riders prepped for the Liberty Freedom Ride Saturday, April 8.

Cyclists take to road for Freedom Ride

On what couldn't have been a more perfect morning, nearly 200 riders from all over the Gulf Coast area poured into the Liberty City complex on April 8 to begin their trek on the second annual Liberty Freedom Ride (LFR).

Riders were greeted with a cool, crisp morning that warmed up quickly as the sun peeked over the horizon and provided a most perfect backdrop for the mostly urban riders.

Bruce Wright, president of the Liberty ISD Education Foundation, estimated 185 riders had registered prior to the start of the race. Updated numbers weren't available at press time, but it is a near doubling of the first year's total, exciting organizers that they were on the right track.

"One of our primary goals is to fund classroom grants that the normal budget in the school doesn't provide for," Wright said.

"So if a teacher has a great idea, but they don't have the funding, that's where we step in. All the things we do, all 100 percent, goes to that funding."

Wright said the Liberty Freedom Ride brings in money through new donors outside of the community to help with existing donors without constantly bleeding them for more money.

"We love our existing donors, and they are they cream of the crop, but the bike ride brings in people from out of town who wouldn't normally be here. We believe this a community development project as well as a funding source for our students," he said.

Riders were more than pleased.

Paul Doming is from New Orleans and is now living on the west side of Houston and heard about the ride on bikemart.com.

"They have a super nice ride calendar that we follow," he said.

Doming and his friend have been biking for a year now and took the 79-mile ride as conditioning for the MS-150 ride coming up the last weekend in April.

"This is super nice weather. It's nice to get out in the country and out of the city," he said.

First-time LFR rider Brian Yates was on the road for TechnipFMC and enjoying the ride.

"It's a really nice route and the ride is well put together," he said.

The 10-year veteran lives in the Rice Military area in downtown Houston.

He, too, was warming up for the MS-150 ride.

His colleagues at work were on a team and encouraged him to join.

"Our company along with a number of others put on these kinds of rides and I enjoy them," he said.

Yates also said it was a way for him to stay in shape.

"It's a good challenging course for us, especially with the hills in there," said Christopher Delacruz with the LaPorte Cycling Team.

"The wind was pretty high and gave us some fits, but otherwise it's been fun."

He's been riding since 2007 and has fallen in love with a childhood memory.

"I always loved riding when I was a kid and picked it up again and just adding more and more miles," he said.

The 26-year-old said he and his teammates, both men and women, were having fun.

"There's a group of us and we all just hang out and joke around while we're riding," he said.

It's not all fun as the business of staying fit and keeping the pace falls on each rider.

The head rider leads the group and then Delacruz says he'll peel off and it's the next man up.

"We each have a turn at leading to keep our endurance up," he said.

Delacruz, who is from the Sagemont area himself, said he was so impressed with the scenery and was enjoying the fresh, clean air.

"We ride down to Kemah, Dickinson or Baytown on weekends. We usually do 30-40 miles, but we'll do the 79-mile ride today," he said.

Cody Allen has only been riding for a year after getting his bike two weeks after last year's event.

He sprained his ACL and bought a bike to get back into shape.

"It's a lot more fun with a group to stay motivated. We ride with the group in Liberty and most of the time in Beaumont," he said.

Allen was with his girlfriend, Bethany Williams, who was also enjoying the ride.

"This is my first Liberty Freedom Ride," she said.

"We ride with the Kickstand group in Beaumont. The air here smells so different!"

The couple was impressed with the support along the ride with the large number of rest stops.

"I've been on some rides where they didn't have hardly any support. This is really great," he said.

The couple was also appreciative of all of the signage that helped encourage and inform them, saying it gave them support to finish the race.

Samuel Congiundi was sporting all Texas A&M gear during his second appearance at the Liberty Freedom Ride.

"It's great! It has diverse routes, good scenery and some hills that make it challenging. The roads, for the most part, were great and the drivers courteous," he said. "I couldn't have asked for much more."

Congiundi had nothing but praise for the volunteers who were helpful and friendly.

"Great rest stops!" he said. "Lots of perfect food to get charged up."

Congiundi rides about once a week and has no plans for the MS-150.

"I'm just a moderate rider," he laughed.

He really began to cramp up the last few miles of his trek, just before entering the city limits.

"I worked through it, but I've got to find a way to overcome that," he said.

He works for ChevronPhillips as a process control engineer and occasionally rides with a team from Beaumont, but has a free spirit.

"I like to ride whenever and wherever I want without having to be dictated to on where I go," he said.

He doesn't mind riding alone and finds a lot of solace in the challenge and vows to be back again next year to finish without cramping.

Along the route, riders could find Liberty ISD Superintendent Cody Abshier, also an avid cyclist, placing more signs and stopping to help any riders in need.

"We're so glad we had good weather," Abshier said.

"That south wind was brutal and made it harder for them to get back to Liberty," he said, "but that just makes us that much prouder of what they've accomplished by riding today to support our kids and our teachers."

Abshier was appreciative for everyone who turned out to support the event.

"It's been a success this year as it was last year, thank you Lord for good weather, and we look forward to doing it again in the future and getting bigger and stronger and raising more funds for our teachers and students," he said.

Abshier said he thought the ride this year raised much more money this year, a lot because of the seed money donated by the Liberty Community Development Committee and sponsors.

Riders finished off their ride with a cup of beer and gumbo and many made the point that there are only a few rides on the eastside of the county that are offered as a precursor to the MS-150.

Wright and Abshier expect that word of the ride will continue to spread and bring more riders and sponsors to the event in the future.

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Cyclists take to road for Freedom Ride - Chron.com