Maybe I’m tougher than I think

[lordofthemark]

Sometimes I read here about folks riding 12 miles to work and wanting a longer commute, or riding in the worst weather, or going really fast, and I get discouraged.

But then the WaPo does something wonderful like this article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/metros-silver-line-is-coming-to-tysons-but-dont-look-for-lots-of-new-commuter-parking/2013/11/27/d6139e78-41b0-11e3-a751-f032898f2dbc_story.html

and the ever delightful comment crew reminds us how hard it is to bike one mile, and how upon arrival they will be all sweaty.

It makes me think I’m actually in pretty good shape, since if I had a one mile ride to work or metro (even on the lousy routes into Tysons) I would probably bike every day.

BTW, Bruce Wright wrote a great letter to the editor, much more diplomatic than I would be. No comments yet.

I think Tysons is going to be a huge battleground for biking advocacy, IMO. I feel a need to ride there just to better know the current biking there for advocacy purposes. So many of the folks kvetching about the redevelopment, the metro, and the need for better auto access/parking live within a mile or two. I dream of them seeing huge streams of folks riding in, and thinking “why can’t I do that?”

On a side note, having a deposit down on a new hybrid that still hasn’t arrived in the shop,turns out to make it hard to want to take the beater MTB out for a spin. Not that I don’t have other excuses.

Topic

[NicDiesel]

As will the delays.

[mstone]

@americancyclo 70712 wrote:

I’ve only ever biked to the Volkwagen dealer in Tysons from West Falls Church and it’s not so bad. never tried to get to the mall, or an office building, though.

The central area by the malls & the towers is pretty grim. I lived just west of 495 between 7 & 123 years ago, and the core was pretty bad even then (while going through the residential areas to the south or east was fine). Since then, the roads have gotten wider, the speeds are up, and the service lanes are mostly gone. If you can easily get to where you’re going without having to cross the mess in the middle (i.e., by basically staying out of Tysons), you’re golden. If you need to get into the mess of 7, 123, and International, good luck.

[creadinger]

@mstone 70729 wrote:

I lived just west of 495 between 7 & 123 years ago….

Wow, you’ve been there a LONG time. That’s 116 years! I bet it looked a lot different 123 years ago. It’s a shame smart development wasn’t thought about then…

[mstone]

@creadinger 70747 wrote:

Wow, you’ve been there a LONG time. That’s 116 years! I bet it looked a lot different 123 years ago. It’s a shame smart development wasn’t thought about then…

commas save lives!

[Author]

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