LCSO Investigating Assault on Washington & Old Dominion Trail

[josh]

Time to spoof a ride on Strava and check the flybys. I know I would hate to lose my miles, no way I’d delete that if I was in his position.

On a more serious note, I had a similar experience on the W&OD with a cyclist from the opposite direction swerving over and swiping at my helmet. At the time I was less acquainted with light etiquette on the trail, so I think it may have been related to that.

[scoot]

Attempting to pass two bicyclists with oncoming traffic? A malicious swipe at the head is obviously an unacceptable response, but the victim here is bound to hurt himself and/or others if he keeps riding like that.

[josh]

Being an Internet detective is oddly fun but also pretty disconcerting. Pursued some leads — looked at flybys, looked for suspicious slowdowns in the area, cross-referenced Facebooks and LinkedIns, looked at jersey listings on Ebay to compare colors with photos, checked out triathlon results. Way too easy to fall down the rabbit hole. It definitely makes me reconsider my social media presence.

[huskerdont]

I wish human behavior in crowds was better than it is, but since it isn’t, on nice days I ride the roads instead of the trails. If Mr. smack-people-in-the-head doesn’t like crowded trails, he really should take his time trialing elsewhere since the trail usually isn’t appropriate for that type of riding.

[Steve O]

The description seems specific enough, particularly the unusual helmet, that someone may know this person and be able to identify. I’m not on twitter or Facebook, but perhaps those of you who are can spread the word that way (or by other means?)

The suspect rode off in the opposite direction heading east towards Ashburn Village Boulevard. The suspect was wearing a white/light green shirt, helmet and sunglasses. His bike was described as being similar to a time trial bike or a triathlon bike. The bars on the bike were “aero bars” and his helmet was an “aero” helmet covered with a sun shade which covered half his face. The suspect was wearing a white/light green Castelli jersey and was approximately 6’ tall.

Anyone with any information regarding this case is asked to contact Detective M. Grimsley of the LCSO at 703-777-1021.

[zsionakides]

The guy that did this would be lucky if he didn’t break his hand or wrist. If you figure both cyclists are each going 10-20mph, that’s a hard impact on whatever he hit the guy’s helmet with.

[Mariner]

It sounds like the person who was riding westbound (the crime victim) was attempting to pass under less than ideal circumstances. Without knowing more, such as the distance and speed of the E/B rider, it would be difficult to say more. The stiff-arm was, of course, way out of line, and is without question assault. That kind of thing will put people in hospitals and can leave them paralysed, if not dead. It also puts at risk other persons, such as trailing riders and the party being passed.

Having been confronted by aggressive passing in head-on situations, I’ve learned to give such riders a very wide berth, even if it means detouring to the grass. In those cases it is best to roll with a bad decision and go on with your day. Some people just do not want to slow down, even on a crowded trail on level terrain.

[musclys]

I think we may need to question the mental state, though, of the Cat 6 racer. Aero helmet and, I can only imagine, in aero position in mid afternoon on an absolutely perfect spring day — what did he expect to find on the WOD?

[OutsideTheLaw]

That section of the trail is about 1-2% downhill heading east from Ashburn Road about 3/4 mile back (the direction the assaulter was coming from) and correspondingly low-grade uphill heading west. So victim is passing some slower riders and assaulter is probably doing about 20 mph.

[Judd]

@Mariner 177754 wrote:

It sounds like the person who was riding westbound (the crime victim) was attempting to pass under less than ideal circumstances. Without knowing more, such as the distance and speed of the E/B rider, it would be difficult to say more. The stiff-arm was, of course, way out of line, and is without question assault. That kind of thing will put people in hospitals and can leave them paralysed, if not dead. It also puts at risk other persons, such as trailing riders and the party being passed.

Having been confronted by aggressive passing in head-on situations, I’ve learned to give such riders a very wide berth, even if it means detouring to the grass. In those cases it is best to roll with a bad decision and go on with your day. Some people just do not want to slow down, even on a crowded trail on level terrain.

Don’t do split passes on the trail, Jeanne.

My strategy for people that want to do stupid passes is to make direct eye contact with them and give them a disapproving head shake.

[musclys]

@Judd 177760 wrote:

and give them a disapproving head shake.

In truth, I’m not sure how anyone would distinguish that from my typical disapproving head shake.

[Starduster]

@musclys 177755 wrote:

I think we may need to question the mental state, though, of the Cat 6 racer. Aero helmet and, I can only imagine, in aero position in mid afternoon on an absolutely perfect spring day — what did he expect to find on the WOD?

I have also had the “pleasure” of being mowed down by an oncoming rider in time-trial haste (on the Mt Vernon Trail- in my case, the only harm was to my freshly-built wheel). In the W&OD mishap, the victim’s passing attempt was ill-advised, but it did not warrant what happened, or the severe injury suffered. I know I am preaching to the choir here (I *hope* I am anyway), but on these mixed-use trails, with slower riders, joggers, and *even* people walking, with varying degrees of inattention, *WE* are the biggest meanest mutha on the trail. As such, we have an obligation *not* to run anyone else off the road. Yes, there are times where you can go for it in the big ring… but *only* where an open road allows. No other time. If you *must* run a time-trial, do it on the road.

Hoping the victim is improving…

As for the time-trailer? Book ‘im, Danno!

[trailrunner]

I do have a white and green Castelli jersey, and I haven’t sold my TT bike yet, but I can raise my right hand and assure you that yesterday I was riding at Laurel Hills on my retro 20 year old Stumpjumper. I have the Strava track to prove it.

Back in the day, I would have loved to have done some hard training with my TT bike on the W&OD. There’s not too many places that are flat, relatively straight, and with minimal interruptions. However, I was mature enough to realize that the W&OD was not a good choice, especially in the middle of the afternoon on a nice day. Nowadays, on the rare times that I do ride the W&OD, I slow way down, and pass with extreme care. Better safe than sorry, and the trail is for all people.

[drevil]

@trailrunner 177764 wrote:

I do have a white and green Castelli jersey, and I haven’t sold my TT bike yet, but I can raise my right hand …

Yeahhhhh, let’s see your left hand instead

[trailrunner]

http://wjla.com/news/local/police-track-trail-attack-suspect-through-fitness-app

They found him through Strava.

[Author]

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