what about Bob?

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  • July 31, 2012 at 6:22 pm #911820
    Dickie
    Participant

    So I finally met Bob! Who’s Bob you might ask? Well he is the gentleman that for six years has been riding towards me on my commute both in the morning and evening along the Custis and W&OD trail between DC and Fairfax. Bob has become a constant for me and brings a sort of calm to my commute. If I go a few weeks without seeing him I start to worry or panic…. did he move? Did he wreck? Was I imagining him? He is always smiling, or possibly grimacing, has an impeccably groomed beard and a perfect pedaling stroke, he generally wears red and always has sunglasses on. Without ever meeting him he managed to motivate me. The days I would bail on riding I thought to myself, “he’s out there, probably thinking I’m a lazy bastard for skipping my ride”.

    Well a few days ago as we both waited in opposite lanes for a light to change I managed to get his name and say hello. Now I can say to myself “Bob is out there kicking my ass”… thanks Bob!

    Oh… and if Bob is on this forum, I swear I am not stalking you!

    So who is your Bob?

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  • July 31, 2012 at 6:35 pm #947408
    GuyContinental
    Participant

    Guy with the Van Dyke beard on a Tarmac and red NCVC kit? If so, my Bob is your Bob! I see him near Vienna on the Hunter Mill climb near a Bob-look-alike (slightly larger, slightly less dependable). I think that he has a monster ride- I’ve seen him out in Sterling and as far in as Falls Church.

    Also, (you probably pass most of these too)
    Older walker with headband and square armed wave (Brandywine Castle 6:10)
    Recumbent Trike Lady (Vienna- 6:40; Custis 17:25)
    Sort of Angry orange Hawaiian shirt dude (Vienna 6:40)
    Orange Roller Derby Helmet girl (Gallows Rd 6:35 Reston 16:45)
    Sheldon Brown lookalike on the 80’s Peugeot (Hunter Mill 17:00)

    These are folks that I see 75% or more of the time (but Sheldon and the trike aren’t around in winter). I can gauge my performance based on where I see them and I absolutely “miss” them when I don’t.

    July 31, 2012 at 6:36 pm #947409
    ShawnoftheDread
    Participant

    There’s a young woman who comes from DC and heads south on the MVT in the mornings. If I’m late I see her around Gravelly Point; on time right at the bridge; and if I’m early I can pass her around the Tidal Basin. She doesn’t seem like an ELITE cyclist, but she’s out there every day, often wearing a Born to Be Mild t-shirt.

    July 31, 2012 at 6:52 pm #947419
    Dickie
    Participant

    @GuyContinental 26958 wrote:

    Guy with the Van Dyke beard on a Tarmac and red NCVC kit? If so, my Bob is your Bob! I see him near Vienna on the Hunter Mill climb near a Bob-look-alike (slightly larger, slightly less dependable). I think that he has a monster ride- I’ve seen him out in Sterling and as far in as Falls Church.

    yep, that’s Bob…. his ride must be huge as I have seen him in Rosslyn as well.

    I have seen the rest of your folks when I ride in earlier, but mostly I am leaving Rosslyn around 7:30, hitting Merrifield around 8:15, and heading back home around 5:30, but because I own my own business my times vary.

    July 31, 2012 at 8:17 pm #947431
    cephas
    Participant

    @rsewell19 26969 wrote:

    I have seen the rest of your folks when I ride in earlier, but mostly I am leaving Rosslyn around 7:30, hitting Merrifield around 8:15, and heading back home around 5:30, but because I own my own business my times vary.

    You may occasionally see me heading outbound from the capital via Custis, Wash Blvd, W&OD in the evening – leaving at 5:30 to WFC. I’m generally a blue novarra jersey, yellow backroller classic on Black 400 Elance. I miss being a regular! and all the regulars I used to see on the MVT.

    July 31, 2012 at 8:29 pm #947433
    jabberwocky
    Participant

    One of the things I miss about my old W&OD commute were all the regulars I’d see on the trail. These days my only regulars are the old dog-walking ladies I see in one of the Great Falls neighborhoods. They at least usually say hi to me.

    August 1, 2012 at 12:12 am #947450
    jopamora
    Participant

    Argh! I was hoping this would be about one of Bill Murray’s finest movies.

    August 1, 2012 at 1:08 am #947455
    rcannon100
    Participant

    I deny all knowledge. I wasnt there. This person must be an imposter.

    August 1, 2012 at 2:47 am #947458
    krazygl00
    Participant

    @rsewell19 26969 wrote:

    yep, that’s Bob…. his ride must be huge as I have seen him in Rosslyn as well.

    I have seen the rest of your folks when I ride in earlier, but mostly I am leaving Rosslyn around 7:30, hitting Merrifield around 8:15, and heading back home around 5:30, but because I own my own business my times vary.

    I think the next step is you need to get Bob to join the forum. But then again, what if he turns out to be a ginormous freaking jerk? Then your quiet acquaintance will be ruined!

    August 1, 2012 at 1:03 pm #947463
    ShawnoftheDread
    Participant

    @krazygl00 27010 wrote:

    I think the next step is you need to get Bob to join the forum. But then again, what if he turns out to be a ginormous freaking jerk? Then your quiet acquaintance will be ruined!

    Yep. I avoid reading interviews with actors I think I like, especially the hawt ones, because it never ends well.

    August 1, 2012 at 1:34 pm #947471
    consularrider
    Participant

    I’ve got about six or seven regulars I see almost every day, and maybe about ten more I see at least weekly. There is one rider who lives near me, but takes the Arlington Loop in the opposite direction. We usually pass each other between Shirlington and Gravelly Point depending on my time of departure. He has organized an MVTrailer brunch each of the past two Octobers. He makes a point of seeing if he can get a reaction out of the people he sees regularly. Starts with a smile, then maybe a wave or a hello. If you respond positively to him, you might get an invitation this fall. He generally has on an orange shirt.

    August 1, 2012 at 1:52 pm #947473
    GuyContinental
    Participant

    @krazygl00 27010 wrote:

    I think the next step is you need to get Bob to join the forum. But then again, what if he turns out to be a ginormous freaking jerk? Then your quiet acquaintance will be ruined!

    I would be truly sad if he turned out to be a jerk- similar to rsewel he’s become kind of a talisman for me. Long ride, shwanky bike, nattily attired no matter what the weather, perfect cadence and probably 45-50 years old. Often I see him punishing a commuter train up the the Hunter Mill hill with the young bucks desperately tying to hold on. He gives me hope that I can do this indefinitely.

    I saw Bob this morning going incognito in blue- next time I’ll say “good morning Bob” (or something similar)… He’s easily recognizable- do you think that it would freak him out if out of nowhere everyone was addressing him by name?

    August 1, 2012 at 3:29 pm #947488
    Brendan von Buckingham
    Participant

    I say “Hey Red” to a guy on a red road bike with a red beard on Arlingotn Boulevard access road between Rhodes and Iwo Jima; me eastbound, he westbound. Uncanny how it’s mostly the same place, but it’s been DC waterfront too.

    “Red” never says anything back.

    I also yell out to “Joseph” when I pass the bar at Wilson and Adams. It used to be an old-man bar called Josephs. Same guys out front with a pitcher whenever the weather was nice. I’d call out “How you doin’ Joe” and they’d yell “Hey” back. It’s not Joseph’s anymore, and the guys aren’t there anymore, so now I call out “Where are you Joseph” when I pass by.

    August 1, 2012 at 3:31 pm #947490
    vvill
    Participant

    I don’t think I recognize anyone on my commutes, other than people from here I run into occasionally. I think my timing/route choices are too irregular.

    August 1, 2012 at 3:32 pm #947491
    eminva
    Participant

    @GuyContinental 27026 wrote:

    not at all young (probably 45-50).

    It just gets worse and worse.

    August 1, 2012 at 3:37 pm #947492
    GuyContinental
    Participant

    @eminva 27045 wrote:

    It just gets worse and worse.

    Sorry about that… post edited for the protection of old folks’ egos ;)

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