My Evening Commute

[CPTJohnC]

@Terpfan 93393 wrote:

The damn Duck Tour thing nearly got me hit on Independence today. He decided to stop in the middle of Independence (admittedly with his flasher son) to explain something. This forced the many speeding cars to all swerve to the left and right. One decided it didn’t matter that I was in the right lane and brushed by ever so close that I think a quarter wouldn’t fit between us.

Good thing you didn’t have an extra slice of pie last night or a donut this morning, right? Seriously, though — glad you’re okay.

My ride this evening was back to its usual relatively uneventful self, with only the usual amount of attempted negligent homicide.

[ronwalf]

Scenes from the long way home:

South Cap Bridge

Nationals Park

Purple reflecting pool

College Park Airport runway lights

[jpaulwhite]

@bobco85 93394 wrote:

What area are you headed to? Between Ballston and Route 50, I use Carlin Springs until I cross the bridge over George Mason, then I turn right onto Edison (first street after the bridge) and cut through the neighborhood to reach the Bluemont Junction Trail which takes me to the W&OD/Four Mile Run. (Edit: this is for heading from Ballston to Route 50.)

(Edit: adding this) If heading from Route 50 to Ballston, you could use W&OD/Four Mile Run -> Bluemont Junction Trail -> Wilson Blvd to get to Ballston

I have been that route before but the hills are a bit much for me and it takes a bit longer. Thanks fo rthe suggestion though

[dasgeh]

@jpaulwhite 93428 wrote:

I have been that route before but the hills are a bit much for me and it takes a bit longer. Thanks for the suggestion though

Now I’m confused. The Bluemont Junction to W&OD seems like the least hilly (and almost all downhill) way to get from Ballston to 50. 50 to Ballston, there’s one hill as you leave the W&OD, but I’ve taken Kidical Mass on it just fine…

[bobco85]

@jpaulwhite 93428 wrote:

I have been that route before but the hills are a bit much for me and it takes a bit longer. Thanks fo rthe suggestion though

Hmm, I always thought that route was relatively hill-free. I’m curious to know what route you take so I can understand a less hilly route through that area.

[Powerful Pete]

Good commute last night… decided to take it easy and small chain ring it up the Arlington/Custis mountain and… got home faster. :rolleyes:

All in all a good ride home, rendered that much more pleasant by the chilled beverage that I found waiting for me.

[Kolohe]

@dasgeh 93429 wrote:

Now I’m confused. The Bluemont Junction to W&OD seems like the least hilly (and almost all downhill) way to get from Ballston to 50. 50 to Ballston, there’s one hill as you leave the W&OD, but I’ve taken Kidical Mass on it just fine…

The hill leaving the W&OD back onto Rt 50 is substantial (because both 4 mile run and Lubber run cut a significant valley right there, and the Greenbrier St trail entrance goes all the way down to creek level with a hairpin curve – though usually with negligible traffic) (but not always)

[KWL]

What a glorious non-August evening commute today. I followed an electric-assist recumbent trike down the MVT and onto the 4MR trail. Whoa! That thing was fast in the clear straights. Not so much in the turns. I’ve heard about trikes and corners.

[jpaulwhite]

@bobco85 93430 wrote:

Hmm, I always thought that route was relatively hill-free. I’m curious to know what route you take so I can understand a less hilly route through that area.

Oh ok now I see. I’m traveling the opposite direction. On my route (Straight up Carlin Springs) theres only 3 hills, and you can build up enough speed to make them negligible. If I go your route I don’t think I can build up speed to make it up the hills as easily (There’s a couple of long hills IIRC) Same thing applies when going home (The other way)

[Terpfan]

@mstone 93395 wrote:

Autocorrect fail.

Haha, indeed.

[bobco85]

@jpaulwhite 93468 wrote:

Oh ok now I see. I’m traveling the opposite direction. On my route (Straight up Carlin Springs) theres only 3 hills, and you can build up enough speed to make them negligible. If I go your route I don’t think I can build up speed to make it up the hills as easily (There’s a couple of long hills IIRC) Same thing applies when going home (The other way)

I guess it depends on how far south of Route 50 you’re coming from. My personal preference is to avoid Carlin Springs traffic when possible with avoiding too many hills as a secondary (but still important) objective, so I have a couple of routes that I use from Carlin Springs south of Route 50 to get to Ballston, including:

– http://goo.gl/maps/o5qR5 5th St S -> Lexington -> Arlington Blvd south side service road/sidewalk -> Edison -> Park -> Carlin Springs

– http://goo.gl/maps/zVMQB Long Branch Trail (goes past Long Branch Nature Center) -> W&OD -> Park -> Carlin Springs

– http://goo.gl/maps/fQnDq Kensington -> Bluemont Junction Trail -> Wilson Blvd

– (if coming from the Performance Bike/Trader Joe’s area of Baileys Crossroads which I visit almost weekly, I have this complicated but stress-free route that looks mostly like this: http://goo.gl/maps/ddD2p) Leesburg Pike service road -> Glen Forest -> Garland -> Boston -> Longbranch -> Redpine -> unnamed trail -> Magnolia -> Glen Carlyn -> Carlin Springs -> 5th St S -> Lexington -> Arlington Blvd service road/sidewalk -> Edison -> Park -> Carlin Springs

– an alternative to my stress-free route: http://goo.gl/maps/9CUaV

They might not work for you, but hopefully it’s some food for thought.

[Steve O]

@Harry Meatmotor 92509 wrote:

whenever I see stopped traffic and I’m whizzing by @ 20mph I hope there’s at least one driver in the flock who takes 4 seconds to consider bike commuting. Here’s to hoping!

Keep hoping.

On March 17, 2003, Dwight Watson drove his tractor into the pond on the national mall. The morning of March 18 was exceedingly beautiful for bike commuting: blue sky, 50’s, crystal clear air, gorgeous. I had to take an annoying, 45-second detour along Independence Drive (in those days one could ride literally onto the apron of the Washington Monument and touch it if you wanted to on the way to Jefferson Drive).
Car commuters took 3-4 hours(!!!) to get from Alexandria into DC. It was a monumental clusterf*$#k. Epic. Rivaled only by the day the suicide jumper closed the Wilson Bridge IMO.

The next day was equally as beautiful: blue sky, 50’s, crystal clear air, gorgeous. The news had been essentially 24/7 about the kook in his tractor in the pond. I was certain that on Wednesday morning I would see more bike commuters. I mean, they knew he was still there. And they knew what a clusterf*$#k it had been the day before. It was not a surprise. Surely at least 1% of all those people who had sat in their cars for 3 hours to go 6 or 7 or 8 miles on Tuesday would figure out that they could ride their bike instead. Surely. After all, the DC area has the most highly educated population in the Western Hemisphere. Surely. Surely…..

I was wrong. I did not see any indication whatsoever that more people were riding the next day. Once again I had to take my annoying 45-second detour, but I was still on time (I probably left a minute early just in case )

So if on a day when every single driver already knew that he or she was going to be sitting in an epic traffic jam–already knew!–and virtually none chose to ride his or her bike instead, then I don’t think those everyday, ordinary jams are going to do it either.

So keep hoping.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6519[/ATTACH]

[jnva]

Driving a car is so ingrained in people’s mind that they can not imagine riding a bike to work.
My evening commute was awesome. Hit all the lights from Thomas circle to key bridge and it only took about 5 minutes to leave the city. In a car, this would have taken 20 minutes.

[Subby]

@Steve O 93498 wrote:

Keep hoping.

On March 17, 2003, Dwight Watson drove his tractor into the pond on the national mall. The morning of March 18 was exceedingly beautiful for bike commuting: blue sky, 50’s, crystal clear air, gorgeous. I had to take an annoying, 45-second detour along Independence Drive (in those days one could ride literally onto the apron of the Washington Monument and touch it if you wanted to on the way to Jefferson Drive).
Car commuters took 3-4 hours(!!!) to get from Alexandria into DC. It was a monumental clusterf*$#k. Epic. Rivaled only by the day the suicide jumper closed the Wilson Bridge IMO.

The next day was equally as beautiful: blue sky, 50’s, crystal clear air, gorgeous. The news had been essentially 24/7 about the kook in his tractor in the pond. I was certain that on Wednesday morning I would see more bike commuters. I mean, they knew he was still there. And they knew what a clusterf*$#k it had been the day before. It was not a surprise. Surely at least 1% of all those people who had sat in their cars for 3 hours to go 6 or 7 or 8 miles on Tuesday would figure out that they could ride their bike instead. Surely. After all, the DC area has the most highly educated population in the Western Hemisphere. Surely. Surely…..

I was wrong. I did not see any indication whatsoever that more people were riding the next day. Once again I had to take my annoying 45-second detour, but I was still on time (I probably left a minute early just in case )

So if on a day when every single driver already knew that he or she was going to be sitting in an epic traffic jam–already knew!–and virtually none chose to ride his or her bike instead, then I don’t think those everyday, ordinary jams are going to do it either.

So keep hoping.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6519[/ATTACH]

FWIW, I was one of those people. It took 9 years but I finally got it. Yes, I’m a slow learner.

[Terpfan]

@Subby 93508 wrote:

FWIW, I was one of those people. It took 9 years but I finally got it. Yes, I’m a slow learner.

Basically ditto for me. It probably didn’t help that I commuted from near Silver Spring to Annapolis, which is not very friendly bike commuting wise. But even when I switched to a job in DC, I didn’t really think about biking as an option and took the bus/metro. It only dawned on me once my car broke down and I realized I could use my then-gf/now wife’s car. I do my best to preach the benefits to new and old friends alike, but I think only one or two has seriously listened as I know one actually does CABI to work a few times a week.

[Author]

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