Found Connection

[cyclingfool]

This is from yesterday and is a fairly regular found connection along the MVT, but…

YOU: Older gentleman walking along the trail southbound with a plastic bag full of litter cleaned up from the trail/roadside near the airport.

Thank you for taking on the task of helping to keep the trail clean. Your efforts are appreciated!

[Drewdane]

To the two out of approximately 12 cyclists who stopped to check on me when I was fixing a mechanical on the way home last night: THANK YOU! You’re doing it right.

The rest of you are going in that other thread.

[worktheweb]

@cyclingfool 101691 wrote:

This is from yesterday and is a fairly regular found connection along the MVT, but…
YOU: Older gentleman walking along the trail southbound with a plastic bag full of litter cleaned up from the trail/roadside near the airport.
Thank you for taking on the task of helping to keep the trail clean. Your efforts are appreciated!

I have seen that guy more often than not for several years now. He’s out in all seasons and seems to walk from the airport to Alexandria (if not more). If he wasn’t out doing his thing the MVT would be a much less pleasant place. I always make it a point to give him a nod or a hello when I see him.

It is amazing how many people you see on a regular basis on the trail. A lot of the regulars fall-off this time of year, but there are definitely some distinctive folks out there. There is the silver haired woman who jogs from Alexandria to the airport in the mornings who looks like she could be a weightlifter while always having her head up high with a dignity rarely seen while jogging, or the guy on the e-bike with the Burley Travoy who makes me feel slow on the hills until I hear the whine of his motor, as well as a lot of bike commuters whose faces have become familiar, even if their names have not. Sometimes I wish I could actually meet some of these people I pass by every day. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that if I were to stop, it might cause more fear than friendship. So for now it is smiles and good mornings.

[Terpfan]

Last night we finally met. You being the annoying tree branch jutting into S. Royal St. Me being the cyclist blinded by the high beams on an oncoming car and distracted by another car passing me within inches. But you did not win. You may have whacked me in the face. It may have stung a little. I did not fall. And I got revenge. You’re now snapped in half bent back onto the tree you came from.

[Let It Be]

I crashed yesterday morning biking eastbound on Columbia Pike near the intersection with S. Quinn. I was unconscious and do not remember the encounter, but my wife has told me that a fine gentleman in a military uniform named Laurence stopped, called an ambulance, and waited with me until medical personnel got me loaded up and on the way to the hospital. She said he mentioned that he was a cyclist, so I thought there was a chance he might be a member of this message board. Thank you, Laurence, for your kindness and for handling the situation so well. Also, there is little that my wife dreads more than the thought of me crashing somewhere and lying unconscious in the street. The fact that someone already had everything under control when she drove by the scene on her way to work moments after it happened helped. So, thank you Laurence.

I sustained a concussion and am a bit banged up, but nothing broken. All in all a lucky result. Safe riding everyone.

[Dickie]

Thanks for posting and I am so glad you didn’t suffer too many serious injuries. I hope you will find the motivation and courage to get back on your bike and continue riding as soon as you are feeling better. Also, welcome to the forum… here’s hoping you get to meet Laurence. I for one do not know of anyone on the forum with than name, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t here.

[lordofthemark]

To the gentleman riding southbound on the 4th Street SW lane, while I waited in the Eye Street lane for the light to change. I was quite impressed that you were pulling a trailer with one of those tall moving boxes, apparently holding several folding chairs and I don’t know what else. Thanks for returning my thumbs up.

[elbows]

To Let It Be,

I wish you a speedy recovery and hope your thanks find Laurence.

FWIW, I also suffered a crash with a concussion ten years ago while heading eastbound on CP near there and appreciated the kindness of passersby. My father suggested I get myself back on my bike quickly before my fears festered, and I am glad that I did.

If and when you are willing, I would love to hear the circumstances of your crash. Ironically, on the very night of your crash, I was riding through that intersection and thinking how angry it makes me that the Pike is so unfriendly for cyclists, and that the alternatives are challenging.

[Mikey]

@lordofthemark 102228 wrote:

To the gentleman riding southbound on the 4th Street SW lane, while I waited in the Eye Street lane for the light to change. I was quite impressed that you were pulling a trailer with one of those tall moving boxes, apparently holding several folding chairs and I don’t know what else. Thanks for returning my thumbs up.

Sounds like a Rod sighting

[Let It Be]

Thank you for the kind words. My bike is totaled and one arm is not working as well as I’d like, but as soon as I feel physically capable of taking a test ride I will get a new bike and get back on the road.

As for the circumstances of the crash, I was heading east on Columbia Pike near the bottom of the hill on a section of road that is fairly bumpy because of recent construction when my handlebar broke off at the stem. I remember thinking “Oh no” and that’s about it until I woke up in the hospital. Traffic is generally heavy there during rush hour, but luckily there were no vehicles close behind me.

Columbia Pike is not my favorite. Given the volume of traffic, though, the number of times I’ve felt endangered by a driver is probably not all that high.

[Orestes Munn]

@Let It Be 102257 wrote:

Thank you for the kind words. My bike is totaled and one arm is not working as well as I’d like, but as soon as I feel physically capable of taking a test ride I will get a new bike and get back on the road.

As for the circumstances of the crash, I was heading east on Columbia Pike near the bottom of the hill on a section of road that is fairly bumpy because of recent construction when my handlebar broke off at the stem. I remember thinking “Oh no” and that’s about it until I woke up in the hospital. Traffic is generally heavy there during rush hour, but luckily there were no vehicles close behind me.

Columbia Pike is not my favorite. Given the volume of traffic, though, the number of times I’ve felt endangered by a driver is probably not all that high.

Oh, no is right! Glad you’re doing OK. Pardon the unsolicited advice, but take it easy for a week or two after that concussion and don’t even think about riding until a professional who knows something about TBI clears you.

[Harry Meatmotor]

@Let It Be 102257 wrote:

Thank you for the kind words. My bike is totaled and one arm is not working as well as I’d like, but as soon as I feel physically capable of taking a test ride I will get a new bike and get back on the road.

As for the circumstances of the crash, I was heading east on Columbia Pike near the bottom of the hill on a section of road that is fairly bumpy because of recent construction when my handlebar broke off at the stem. I remember thinking “Oh no” and that’s about it until I woke up in the hospital. Traffic is generally heavy there during rush hour, but luckily there were no vehicles close behind me.

Columbia Pike is not my favorite. Given the volume of traffic, though, the number of times I’ve felt endangered by a driver is probably not all that high.

Definitely take your time getting back on the bike. Although I didn’t suffer a traumatic injury, I did suffer for about a year with a pretty intense bout of sciatica. The biggest thing i learned in dealing with it was to listen to my body and take time. And definitely look at any physical therapy as a duty to your future wellness. Good luck healing!

[Vicegrip]

and when you are ready, ride with friends when ever you can to help get back in the groove.

[Crickey7]

Or you could invest in a top grade talisman, like a friendship bracelet handmade by one’s favorite tween relative.

[Orestes Munn]

@Crickey7 102299 wrote:

Or you could invest in a top grade talisman, like a friendship bracelet handmade by one’s favorite tween relative.

They work and if you let her paint your toenails, you’ll be bulletproof!

Abject dad here, enduring his first holiday season without even a fleeting visit from his favorite former tween relative.

[Author]

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