My Morning Commute

[cvcalhoun]

@bentbike33 158868 wrote:

Bike to work and live longer http://time.com/4748377/commute-biking-walking-longevity/ if you don’t get hit by a cab.

Well, “all cause” mortality was lower for those who biked, so presumably those cab deaths were more than balanced out by the reduced risk of death from other causes.

[TwoWheelsDC]

Witnessed what was probably the best case of a two-car accident imaginable this morning. Riding up Chain Bridge, opposing traffic going downhill was backed up, as usual. But then I hear squealing tires and a crunch and thought a terrible accident had happened. Turns out it was minor rear-ending and no one was hurt, but the car that did the rear ending managed to swerve to the right just before making contact, and the glancing blow sent his car into the thickly vegetated (?) ditch on the side of the road. As I said, the drivers of both cars were fine, and the hit car had some minor damage, but the rear-ender was not getting out of the ditch on his own and that gave me a nice shot of schadenfreude for the rest of my ride.

[semperiden]

Was wondering a couple of days ago if cars ever fall off into the trail just after Trollheim ends, going southbound. It is a curve and the trail is below the highway. Judging by the mud marks on the trail and the car being towed away at GW parkway, that might have happen this morning.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@semperiden 159146 wrote:

Was wondering a couple of days ago if cars ever fall off into the trail just after Trollheim ends, going southbound. It is a curve and the trail is below the highway. Judging by the mud marks on the trail and the car being towed away at GW parkway, that might have happen this morning.

You mean this guy?

I got there maybe 5-10 minutes after it happened. Seemed like he either hit another car, or was hit, and caromed down the hill. Similar thing happened a couple years ago and took out a nice chunk of the trollheim.

[semperiden]

@TwoWheelsDC 159147 wrote:

You mean this guy?

I got there maybe 5-10 minutes after it happened. Seemed like he either hit another car, or was hit, and caromed down the hill. Similar thing happened a couple years ago and took out a nice chunk of the trollheim.

Yes! Guess I’ll be on the lookup for cars at that section from now on…

[cvcalhoun]

My morning commute today was… odd.

On the down side, there was a group of what must have been at least fifty people, which had spread out from one side of the CCT to the other. And of course, a general “on your left” didn’t budge them. So I had to keep up a steady patter of, “on your left,” “excuse me,” and “coming through” for the entire length of time I was passing the group, often having to repeat several times for each person. And go slowly enough so that I wouldn’t run into the oblivious ones (of whom there were many).

On the just plain odd side, first there was the guy who attempted to tip his helmet to me. Apparently, the instinct toward chivalry outweighed his knowledge that you can’t actually tip a helmet, because it’s attached.

And then there was the guy who greeted me with a hearty, “Welcome!” as I exited the CCT in Georgetown. Umm, welcome to Georgetown? Or to K Street? Or exactly what was I being welcomed to, and why was he on the welcoming committee?

[bentbike33]

@semperiden 159146 wrote:

Was wondering a couple of days ago if cars ever fall off into the trail just after Trollheim ends, going southbound. It is a curve and the trail is below the highway. Judging by the mud marks on the trail and the car being towed away at GW parkway, that might have happened this morning.

Again?!? This seems to happen disquietingly often at this spot; this is the third such incident of which I’m aware. Maybe NPS needs to extend the concrete-block-and-field-stone-facade wall from the TR Island parking lot south to the bridge over the inlet.

[Steve O]

@cvcalhoun 159188 wrote:

… there was a group of what must have been at least fifty people, which had spread out from one side of the CCT to the other. And of course, a general “on your left” didn’t budge them. So I had to keep up a steady patter of, “on your left,” “excuse me,” and “coming through” for the entire length of time I was passing the group, often having to repeat several times for each person. And go slowly enough so that I wouldn’t run into the oblivious ones (of whom there were many).

Get a bell. You can still do all the patter you want, too. Some people will react more to one than the other. Still would have been a pain, but a bell would have gotten you through a little quicker, IMO.

[Judd]

@Steve O 159196 wrote:

Get a bell. You can still do all the patter you want, too. Some people will react more to one than the other. Still would have been a pain, but a bell would have gotten you through a little quicker, IMO.

I find a “OH MY GOD! NO BRAKES!” At a high volume to work well in these situations.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[cvcalhoun]

@Steve O 159196 wrote:

Get a bell. You can still do all the patter you want, too. Some people will react more to one than the other. Still would have been a pain, but a bell would have gotten you through a little quicker, IMO.

I actually have a horn. But I don’t know that I’ve ever used it. I tend to prefer to go slowly rather than use a bell or horn, which always sounds peremptory to me.

[dasgeh]

@Steve O 159196 wrote:

Get a bell. You can still do all the patter you want, too. Some people will react more to one than the other. Still would have been a pain, but a bell would have gotten you through a little quicker, IMO.

I have a bell. I ride on the Mall often enough to know that bells rarely work on these crowds.

[Judd]

@dasgeh 159227 wrote:

I have a bell. I ride on the Mall often enough to know that bells rarely work on these crowds.

My for reals strategy is to commute on a cyclocross bike. My commute takes me down 15th street and around the Jefferson Memorial so when there is a hoard of people I just go around them on the grass.

[cvcalhoun]

@dasgeh 159227 wrote:

I have a bell. I ride on the Mall often enough to know that bells rarely work on these crowds.

My horn will typically work. People scatter. Of course, sometimes they scatter into my path.

[MFC]

@cvcalhoun 159238 wrote:

My horn will typically work. People scatter. Of course, sometimes they scatter into my path.

I had something like that happen once. I was passing a jogger and called out “On your left.” The jogger then leaped to her left. Didn’t hit her, but still.

[KLizotte]

@bentbike33 159190 wrote:

Again?!? This seems to happen disquietingly often at this spot; this is the third such incident of which I’m aware. Maybe NPS needs to extend the concrete-block-and-field-stone-facade wall from the TR Island parking lot south to the bridge over the inlet.

A Trump inspired wall along the GW Parkway would be a fantastic idea. Heck, I’ll contribute the first dollar.

[Author]

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