My Evening Commute

[Steve O]

@huskerdont 164455 wrote:

So what is the secret? Enquiring minds, you know.

My secret is to pick up a stick to use so you don’t get grease all over your hands. Is that it?

Okay, two secrets, then.
1) I carry the little plastic/latex food-service/medical gloves in my saddle bag for grease avoidance. I did not have to tell him this secret, since it was observable.

2) Shift the rear derailleur so that it is aligned with the chain ring the chain is on. You may need to move the front derailleur, too, depending.
You can then spin the chain on backwards; no need to lift the bike.
It is virtually always the case that the derailleur is not aligned, since the chain usually drops when shifting–or in the process of trying to get the chain back on, the derailleur has been shifted. You can’t spin the pedals backwards if the rear derailleur is not lined up with the correct chain ring on the cassette.

In his case his front derailleur was on the inside as was the chain, so no need to change that. His rear derailleur was off by only one click, so I clicked it over, reached down with my gloved hand, grabbed the chain just behind and below the crank, put it on a couple of teeth and turned the pedal. Voila!

[Boo Boo]

At the Shreve/Virginia intersection

[img]https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/21248287_10214376998920248_9182705264126128415_o.jpg?oh=398cc1eb4678dd5ae3260c44e21a4878&oe=5A2069D0[/img]

[dbb]

Did anybody see who was at the Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial about 5 pm today? I rode by and there was a full protective detail (well dressed in dark suits without umbrellas) surrounding the memorial.

[semperiden]

Guy on a modded bike with a motor decided to tail me eastbound on the W&OD just after Route 50 at around 6pm. I couldn’t discern quickly what was going on until he was right on my wheel and I was just about to pass a man with a child on his trailer and I realized the danger of it all. I let him pass and he then proceed going 25mph+ on a crowded trail leaving behind lots of exhaust. I reached him at Columbia Pike when he crossed to Four Mile Run without stopping and took the street instead.

[anomad]

@semperiden 165050 wrote:

Guy on a modded bike with a motor decided to tail me eastbound on the W&OD just after Route 50 at around 6pm. I couldn’t discern quickly what was going on until he was right on my wheel and I was just about to pass a man with a child on his trailer and I realized the danger of it all. I let him pass and he then proceed going 25mph+ on a crowded trail leaving behind lots of exhaust. I reached him at Columbia Pike when he crossed to Four Mile Run without stopping and took the street instead.

No helmet? I saw said douchebag on the MVT near Gravelly Point. Ebikes are one thing, but I draw the line at chainsaw power heads.

[semperiden]

@anomad 165054 wrote:

No helmet? I saw said douchebag on the MVT near Gravelly Point. Ebikes are one thing, but I draw the line at chainsaw power heads.

Yes. No helmet. Brown leatherish jacket. I didn’t know what to do, was not expecting something like that on a MUP. Specially during rush hour

[zsionakides]

@semperiden 165050 wrote:

Guy on a modded bike with a motor decided to tail me eastbound on the W&OD just after Route 50 at around 6pm. I couldn’t discern quickly what was going on until he was right on my wheel and I was just about to pass a man with a child on his trailer and I realized the danger of it all. I let him pass and he then proceed going 25mph+ on a crowded trail leaving behind lots of exhaust. I reached him at Columbia Pike when he crossed to Four Mile Run without stopping and took the street instead.

I may have seen this guy on the four mile run trail near bluemont park a couple weeks back. It was either a modded bike or a moped and was ridden pretty fast the part where I saw him.

[AFHokie]

@semperiden 165050 wrote:

Guy on a modded bike with a motor decided to tail me eastbound on the W&OD just after Route 50 at around 6pm. I couldn’t discern quickly what was going on until he was right on my wheel and I was just about to pass a man with a child on his trailer and I realized the danger of it all. I let him pass and he then proceed going 25mph+ on a crowded trail leaving behind lots of exhaust. I reached him at Columbia Pike when he crossed to Four Mile Run without stopping and took the street instead.

Red frame with a 2 stroke motor? He passed me opposite direction late last summer on the MVT.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930AZ using Tapatalk

[semperiden]

I thought it was a moped at first, but when I a caught a glimpse when he was turning, I noticed that it was an actual bike. The frame was red, didn’t get a chance to notice the motor, but it was very loud. I hope I don’t see him again.

[KWL]

Was so disappointed they decided to pull up on the approach to Key Bridge.

[DrP]

It is after the autumnal equinox, it shouldn’t be so warm. And what in the world was I breathing? Whatever it was, the oxygen content was low, even in the regions without the bug swarms. I still feel it in my lungs. Ugh.

[bentbike33]

@DrP 165762 wrote:

It is after the autumnal equinox, it shouldn’t be so warm. And what in the world was I breathing? Whatever it was, the oxygen content was low, even in the regions without the bug swarms. I still feel it in my lungs. Ugh.

I recall seeing there was a Code Orange Air Quality Alert yesterday. Ozone will do that to you.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@DrP 165762 wrote:

And what in the world was I breathing? I still feel it in my lungs. Ugh.

Bug season isn’t over just yet!

[huskerdont]

Code Orange yesterday and Code Yellow today. Airnow.gov is your friend. Use it now, while you can and before the powers-that-currently-be decide it’s not important.

https://www.airnow.gov/index.cfm/index.cfm?action=airnow.local_city&cityid=268#tabs-1

Although it could be Code Purple and we’d still have to breathe it. I suppose I could try breathing a little less on the ride home.

[DrP]

@bentbike33 165763 wrote:

I recall seeing there was a Code Orange Air Quality Alert yesterday. Ozone will do that to you.

Yeah, I knew it was a code orange, but often that clears out enough by my commuting time to not be so painful. It just seemed particularly bad yesterday given the more recent clearer days. Or maybe because the humidity wasn’t as high as bad air days earlier in the season.

[Author]

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