My Morning Commute

[KWL]

@Terpfan 96874 wrote:

Sigh, as many of you slept in, I got to ride into work…. If only it was like this everyday.

And…don’t know about you, but I beat the rain. It looks like it may pass by my evening commute time. Lots of win today.

[Crickey7]

@KWL 96885 wrote:

And…don’t know about you, but I beat the rain. It looks like it may pass by my evening commute time. Lots of win today.

It did indeed work out great. Except for the part where the usual 4 lanes of Southbound traffic on Connecticut Avenue were cut to 2 because of the holiday, causing some stress. Enough for one driver to tap me after I filtered past him in his stopped car. I told him reasonably calmly that he couldn’t do that. He told me that I couldn’t pass him on the right, and seemd genuinely surprised when I told him that, in fact, I could perfectly legally do just that. We exchanged a few more words, all without name-calling or cursing, he apologized and we all went on our way.

Score one for zen.

[Terpfan]

@Crickey7 96886 wrote:

It did indeed work out great. Except for the part where the usual 4 lanes of Southbound traffic on Connecticut Avenue were cut to 2 because of the holiday, causing some stress. Enough for one driver to tap me after I filtered past him in his stopped car. I told him reasonably calmly that he couldn’t do that. He told me that I couldn’t pass him on the right, and seemd genuinely surprised when I told him that, in fact, I could perfectly legally do just that. We exchanged a few more words, all without name-calling or cursing, he apologized and we all went on our way.

Score one for zen.

Tap the horn or like physically hit you with the vehicle?

@KWL 96885 wrote:

And…don’t know about you, but I beat the rain. It looks like it may pass by my evening commute time. Lots of win today.

I did miss the rain riding in, but sadly my bike sits outside my office affixed to a pole and exposed to the elements. So when I rode at lunch up the street to Tenleytown, I still got kind of wet .

Looking forward to the ride home in an hour or so here.

[Crickey7]

Well, I was in front of him, so he moved to within an inch of me after the light turned but before the line moved, and then when I moved back in front–there was not enough room in the lane for both of us–he also moved forward, bumping me. Kind of jerkish, though I don’t think he meant to hit me. He clearly meant to squeeze me out of his way.

We had a chat at my insistence, though, as I said, using only civil language.

[dbb]

Began quite well. Started late and passed Fast Friendly Guy at Gravelly Point. Got an opportunity to pass four motorists who were leaving DC on the 14th Street Bridge stopped and apparently discussing their preferred auto body shop.

Then while heading east on Jefferson in front of USDA, I was along the right side of the roadway and another cyclist was riding on the left side of the roadway. A motorist attempted to filter between two moving bicycles. Made me feel uncomfortable so I took the lane. She wasn’t amused. When the road was clear, she passed me and I had the opportunity to explain the three foot passing law in DC as well as the speed limit on Jefferson. She dismissed me as a scofflaw.

If it was me, I wouldn’t recommend cycling on the left side of Jefferson as you may create a needle that motorists think they can clear. That road isn’t wide enough for two parked cars, one moving car and a cyclist on each side.

[jrenaut]

I had to drive today because I’m going straight from work to Dulles to pick up my family. I am reminded once again why I never do this.

[rcannon100]

@#$%@#$#@!@*&*(**$#@#()&@$#&***&&

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6810[/ATTACH]

Why does anyone drive?

[arlrider]

@jrenaut 96916 wrote:

I had to drive today because I’m going straight from work to Dulles to pick up my family. I am reminded once again why I never do this.

@rcannon100 96917 wrote:

@#$%@#$#@!@*&*(**$#@#()&@$#&***&&

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6810[/ATTACH]

Why does anyone drive?

Saw the nightmare walking back from Rosslyn to the North Highlands this morning along Key blvd and Lee. Any particular cause or just volume? Or could it possibly be the IOD feeding all the way back through – I know there were suggestions of that being the case the other day.

It would be an incredible feat of karmic irony if the revenge of the IOD were to screw drivers all the way back to Falls Church on a daily basis.

[americancyclo]

Saw a bike cop admonishing a driver that had crept in to the crosswalk while I breezed through Georgetown on a nice green wave. Glad to see some enforcement of dangerous behavior.

[Steve O]

@arlrider 96920 wrote:

Saw the nightmare walking back from Rosslyn to the North Highlands this morning along Key blvd and Lee. Any particular cause or just volume? Or could it possibly be the IOD feeding all the way back through.

It would be an incredible feat of karmic irony if the revenge of the IOD were to screw drivers all the way back to Falls Church on a daily basis.

I just rode in the Custis and noted slowdowns on I-66 all the way back to Spout Run. This seems to happen 3-4 times/month. My best guess is it has to do with the construction in Rosslyn having some sort of spillover effect, but that’s just my theory.

Regardless, I most definitely feel a sense of superiority as I cruise by the cars crawling along. BWAHAHHAAHHAHAHA!!

[Terpfan]

Do people forget how to drive to work after three days off or something? I almost got squished by a BMW running the red on Rt 1 in VA by Beacon Hill. Like almost 9 seconds late on the red going 60mph. And it skidded to avoid hitting a car that was rightfully going through with the green. The funny part is when that light goes red, the next one also goes red. A part of me was very, very, very tempted to ride down two blocks to that red and pound on the driver’s window asking if they needed psychiatric assistance; however, I decided to just chalk it up to idiocy.

The rest of the ride, aside from being quite humid, was pleasant. Bunch of blue herons along the Potomac this morning.

[arlrider]

@Steve O 96926 wrote:

I just rode in the Custis and noted slowdowns on I-66 all the way back to Spout Run. This seems to happen 3-4 times/month. My best guess is it has to do with the construction in Rosslyn having some sort of spillover effect, but that’s just my theory.

Regardless, I most definitely feel a sense of superiority as I cruise by the cars crawling along. BWAHAHHAAHHAHAHA!!

66, though, was FLYING compared to Lee. They were jammed up as far as I could see, at least to Adams. And all of Rosslyn was flooded and jammed from Rosslyn heights down as people were trying to cut off Lee to no avail.

[chris_s]

Back to my usual commute after spending all of last week commuting to Metro Center for a training conference. My usual commute has all the elements of the DC commute: crossing a body of water & passing a tourist attraction, but instead of the Potomac I get 4 Mile Run and instead of the Lincoln Memorial I get the Weenie Beenie.

Still beats the pants off driving.

[LBSki]

Rider in front of me slipped and wiped out on the teddy roosevelt boardwalk this morning. He was fine, just a bruised ego. I know almost everyone claims to know this, but riders still wipe out there ALL the time, so PLEASE, slow down at the corner! Like, really slow down, like basically stop your bike before taking that turn if there is any moisture on the ground. I took a very nasty spill there early this year, and it makes me cringe nearly every ride.

[Terpfan]

@LBSki 96942 wrote:

Rider in front of me slipped and wiped out on the teddy roosevelt boardwalk this morning. He was fine, just a bruised ego. I know almost everyone claims to know this, but riders still wipe out there ALL the time, so PLEASE, slow down at the corner! Like, really slow down, like basically stop your bike before taking that turn if there is any moisture on the ground. I took a very nasty spill there early this year, and it makes me cringe nearly every ride.

Indeed a good reminder.

Can I tack on also please don’t stop on your bicycle in the middle of turns on these walkways? Saw another commuter (or so I presumed) stopped at the turn section of the boardwalk that’s the entrance to Daingerfield Island. While I haven’t wiped out there, my wife has and I wiped out on the one just south of Mt. Vernon itself last year so I always take them slow if there are leaves, mildew, any form of moisture, and even in general. I also randomly complain to NPS to put down the plastic grippy stuff rather than use wooden boards to no avail.

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