ArlNow reports a "collission between two bicyclists" on Custis

[Guus]

Via Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARLnowDOTcom/status/347504290811752448

“Medics responding to collision between two bicyclists on the Custis Trail near Ballston. Significant injuries reported.”

Edit: that should have been “collision” in the title.

[TwoWheelsDC]

I got on the Custis at the Beaver Pond and the guy who I merged behind was warning cyclists heading east about an accident. Hope everyone is okay, and thanks for the update.

[eminva]

Rode by this on the way home last night. A cyclist was conscious and sitting up, being attended to by paramedics. I didn’t notice anyone else being attended to in my brief glance; maybe the other cyclist was uninjured or ambulatory. It was QUITE the teachable moment for the scouts.

Liz

[cephas]

I was on the Custis just after 6 outbound. It was super crowded. And too many different paces. An accident waiting to happen. Is it always that bad?

[mstone]

@cephas 55883 wrote:

I was on the Custis just after 6 outbound. It was super crowded. And too many different paces. An accident waiting to happen. Is it always that bad?

The Custis is a substandard facility (too narrow, bad sight lines, poor alignments). If it were a road it would have been upgraded years ago, but cyclists and pedestrians don’t have a level of service metric so (basically) nobody cares. We’re basically lucky to have the right of way at all, don’t hold your breath waiting for improvements.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@cephas 55883 wrote:

I was on the Custis just after 6 outbound. It was super crowded. And too many different paces. An accident waiting to happen. Is it always that bad?

As far as crowds go, I’ll take the Custis over the MVT just about every time. I think because of the hills it tends to attract less of the riff-raff that are just looking for a trail on which to meander. It really only gets bad in Rosslyn, but once you get past Nash it clears up considerably.

[dasgeh]

@TwoWheelsDC 55885 wrote:

As far as crowds go, I’ll take the Custis over the MVT just about every time. I think because of the hills it tends to attract less of the riff-raff that are just looking for a trail on which to meander. It really only gets bad in Rosslyn, but once you get past Nash it clears up considerably.

Stop trying to put a positive spin on the Custis Hills.

[pbartkowski]

I must have shown up right after this happened – called the ambulance and directed the medics to the hurt biker, but had to get home so didn’t stick around. One guy seemed to be in pretty bad shape – any report on what happened, is he okay, etc.?

I hope he ended up better than it appeared.

[Mikey]

@dasgeh 55886 wrote:

Stop trying to put a positive spin on the Custis Hills.

There’s a negative spin to the Custis Hills? Where else would you pass people on that trail?

[ShawnoftheDread]

The Custis and I have come to an understanding. I still have issues with the MVT.

[rcannon100]

@pbartkowski 55887 wrote:

I must have shown up right after this happened – called the ambulance and directed the medics to the hurt biker, ….

Hat tip to you pbartkowski. Always appreciate a fellow cyclist watching our back. As we have been rambling on another thread, DC area bike culture is the best.

A fireman / cyclist did tweet this morning that the injuries were not as bad as first appeared.

Stick around this forum. It’s a good way to avoid working.

[cephas]

@rcannon100 55905 wrote:

Stick around this forum. It’s a good way to avoid working.

Usually for working. Tonight it’s helping me avoid sleeping. Why? I donno.

[americancyclo]

@Mikey 55896 wrote:

There’s a negative spin to the Custis Hills? Where else would you pass people on that trail?

On the blind corner with the retaining wall near the Glebe exit or the one by the Ballston exit? That’s where the pros do it.

[thucydides]

I got a real nice reminder the other day about not being an ELITE rider on the Custis. I was WB and coming at the point where the trail crosses under I-66. You cross under 66 and then there’s a stop sign and blind intersection. This is about 200 yards before the Custis merges with the WOD. Anyway, the WB approach to the underpass is a downward slope and despite the slow-down signs it’s really easy to carry a lot of speed into the curve. But the next element of that area is that at certain times of the day the area gets very shaded. So you can see where this is headed. I come tearing around that curve carrying too much speed and I see a pedestrian. I see her later than I should because of the shade and my sunglasses, but I’m under control and shift to the lef….there’s a toddler right there in the left lane who had wandered off a bit from her mom. I’ll pause here to sing the praises of the disc brakes on my Spec TriCross. Because they really work and I did a quick dead stop right there. Yeah the toddler shouldn’t have been in the left lane but toddlers do that sort of thing and this is a congested area with the park and all. Mainly it’s a nice reminder to me to slow down more when coming up on that curve (and avoiding passing at the other blind curves the Custis features) and to not blow through that blind stop sign that comes at the end of underpass.

[KLizotte]

Likewise to folks who use the Crystal City connector tunnel to the MVT. Folks are often flying down the hill eastbound and as a result take the blind curve too widely and end up in the left lane. I always ring my bell when coming thru the tunnel westbound in hopes of alerting someone to my presence. And even if you do stay in your designated lane, it is possible that a ped is standing/walking at the point just as you enter the tunnel so GO SLOW!

The Custis is the one trail around here that I think should be cycle only due to all the blind curves and hills. There is no way I’d feel comfortable walking along that trail. I’m always mystified why people choose to recreationally walk or run along the trail given that there are so many nice neighborhoods located parallel to it.

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