Missed connection

[dasgeh]

For me it was a guy on a CaBi coming down Capitol Hill straight at me, despite the expanse of asphalt to my left (where he should have been) and my right (empty parking spaces).

Maybe it’s just CaBi riders today…?

[ShawnoftheDread]

@dasgeh 67287 wrote:

Maybe it’s just CaBi riders today…?

Nah, I got shoaled like mad this morning too, and no CaBis.

[TwoWheelsDC]

I got all my bad interactions last night. I think I can count on one hand the number of cyclists I saw this morning, and I think 3 of them were kids riding to school on the Custis, one was my primary “Bob”, and the other I passed without incident…and then the racks at work weren’t even full.

[cyclingfool]

Me: Riding my bike to work, trying to follow the law and no salmon by the Jefferson Memorial.

You: The Park Police cop (tag number I412263) who parked in the crosswalk along E Basin Drive, adding one more obstacle to the legal path, even when there was TONS of space along the curb in the street.

Me: Took a picture of your car and sent an email to NPS lodging a formal complaint. Please stop parking here!

This is the nth time in the last month or so, where n=4 or 5 and sadly, where in all likelihood, n=n+1, barring my letter having any impact.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3920[/ATTACH]

[baiskeli]

@TwoWheelsDC 67293 wrote:

I got all my bad interactions last night.

Had a strangely polite ride in yesterday. Cyclists didn’t just call their passes, they said things like “I’m going to ease around you – have a nice day!” A jogger who almost hit me while entering the trail said “Good morning.”

Riding home, though, a cyclist ran a red and cut me off and there was a jogger in the bike lane.

The moon is just a few days past full, by the way.

[Jason B]

@jrenaut 67261 wrote:

Me: Riding to work as usual.
Everyone else: Being complete a****les.

When you say complete, does that mean all 19 aPOSTles, or were you referring to aRTICles with an abstract and reference page?
,,,,sorry, feeling terribly crosswordy today.

There was only a handful of riders today, but I went the less traveled back way rather than my normal MV and Custis, which can be challenging.

[Steve]

@cyclingfool 67294 wrote:

Me: Riding my bike to work, trying to follow the law and no salmon by the Jefferson Memorial.

You: The Park Police cop (tag number I412263) who parked in the crosswalk along E Basin Drive, adding one more obstacle to the legal path, even when there was TONS of space along the curb in the street.

I particularly dislike that parking spot when heading west. It’s the most common place to merge into traffic, but pretty hard to look over your shoulder for cars when there’s a car parked there.

On the plus side, it looks like your commute was dry! Mine was some cold cold rain.

[cyclingfool]

@Steve 67298 wrote:

I particularly dislike that parking spot when heading west. It’s the most common place to merge into traffic, but pretty hard to look over your shoulder for cars when there’s a car parked there.

On the plus side, it looks like your commute was dry! Mine was some cold cold rain.

Yeah, I’ve seen it westbound a few times, and you’re right, that makes it a lot harder/more dangerous to merge into traffic there.

My commute was dry. I’m still jet lagged from nearly a week in California (got back Monday night), so the last couple mornings have been sluggish at best and I’ve been on the late side of the commute, even by my standards. Anyway, that meant that the morning showers had already passed by the time I was ready to go to work, but the earlier showers made things crisp and fresh.

[Oldtowner]

@cyclingfool 67294 wrote:

Me: Riding my bike to work, trying to follow the law and no salmon by the Jefferson Memorial.

You: The Park Police cop (tag number I412263) who parked in the crosswalk along E Basin Drive, adding one more obstacle to the legal path, even when there was TONS of space along the curb in the street.

Me: Took a picture of your car and sent an email to NPS lodging a formal complaint. Please stop parking here!

This is the nth time in the last month or so, where n=4 or 5 and sadly, where in all likelihood, n=n+1, barring my letter having any impact.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3920[/ATTACH]

You were lucky. When I went by this same spot around 8:30 there were FOUR more NPS cruisers parked along side this guy. With a cyclist coming the other way, we had to stop to negotiate this roadblock. Even salmoning would not have helped.

[OneEighth]

Turning left, left, left, left, and then bearing right works, too.
Just sayin’.

[jrenaut]

Me: Riding legally on PA Ave around 14th NW
You: Police officer who made an illegal u-turn through the cycletrack in what was clearly a non-emergency situation.

[cyclingfool]

@Oldtowner 67360 wrote:

You were lucky. When I went by this same spot around 8:30 there were FOUR more NPS cruisers parked along side this guy. With a cyclist coming the other way, we had to stop to negotiate this roadblock. Even salmoning would not have helped.

There were still four other cruisers there when I went through after 9 yesterday, I just didn’t take pictures of them, since they were at least parked in in a curb lane and not in the crosswalk.

This morning, I got an email back from the NPS official whom I emailed. The response so far is that Park Police are a different chain of command from him, but he did forward the email to
the proper individual
a woman named Jeanne O’Toole < Jeanne_O'Toole@nps.gov > , who forwarded the message to Richard Pope, Captain Richard Pope, the commander of the Central District, for a response. His email is Richard_Pope@nps.gov.

If others want to contact him about their negative experiences with police cars parked there, it might add some impetus to the cause.

Anyone interested in lodging complaints, feel free to PM me if you want the the language I used in my letter. It’s nothing special, but it might be helpful.

[americancyclo]

I awoke yesterday groggy from a nap on the metro to see a guy exiting the East Falls Church Metro station with Yellow BikeArlington Zipper pull tags. I don’t have the blue or pink zipper pulls on my work bag, just the bike bag, so I was incognito, but regardless, “hey fellow cyclist!”

[jrenaut]

Some politician’s car, I think by thetejon, on Flickr

I wish I recognized (or got a photo of) the a$$hat this car seemed to belong to. Some politician, undoubtedly. I hope he doesn’t get re-elected.

[jabberwocky]

Man, if I rode in DC a lot of cars would have dings and scratches down their side. 😡

[Author]

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