Review: My first experience riding in Virginia/DC

[TwoWheelsDC]

Glad to hear you enjoyed your ride! I think we locals lose sight of how good we have it and we tend to bitch about minor stuff, so it’s refreshing to hear outsiders’ positive experiences. Hopefully you’ll get to spend some time out here again!

I don’t really want to rag on an LBS here, but I will say that my experience was EXACTLY like yours when my wife’s bike needed an adjustment as we were rolling through Old Town…even though my wife’s bike was purchased from one of the store’s other locations, we weren’t treated very well. My wallet won’t forget that experience, but it sounds like you had the type of experience I would expect from Rev, given their very good reputation.

[PotomacCyclist]

Glad we could be of assistance. You weren’t here yesterday, were you? The weather was not so nice on Sunday, but it was very pleasant in the days leading up to Saturday evening.

I’ve never ridden a carbon-fiber bike yet. Maybe next year…

I can confirm that the people at the City Hub-Revolution Cycles shop are friendly and helpful. I’ve been there several times, always with good experiences. I’ve never been to Big Wheel Bikes, but I have to admit to reading some mixed reviews about that place (and about one of their other locations), along the lines of what you described. Kind of like, “No [soup] bike for you!”

[Certifried]

Hey, thanks for the follow up! It’s great to hear you had a good ride.

[dbb]

@Nemisys 33080 wrote:

Let me start by saying:

YOU GUYS ARE LUCKY BASTARDS

The bike paths in/around DC are the most beautiful and well kept paths I have ever ridden including sanfran and seattle. I was shocked at the bridgework that is put in place, especially on the MVT. The attention to detail is unlike anything I’ve seen and is quite the gift for cyclists. I found the signage amazingly simple to follow, and given the fact my phone was dead that day and I had to navigate like they did in the 1800’s it was quite the blessing.

I think that Nemisys is spot on.

We often lose sight of the fact that the local governments and federal agencies have, by and large, provided an amazing cycling resource.

While the relationship between cyclists and local governments is not always perfect, those relationships improve with engagement. If you are not active with your local bicycle/ped advisory group, check their calendar and attend the next meeting. While I can only speak for my experience with Arlington, you will be welcome. If you don’t want to stay local, join WABA and help them (with time or money) improve cycling in the region. Your stay at home option is to communicate with your local, state and federal elected leaders.

Only by supporting and defending what we have will we be able to build on our successes. That will allow visitors such as Nemisys to take stories of our success back to their homes and advocate for improved cycling facilities there. The Washington area is a great example of the “build it and they will come” approach to cycling/pedestrian facilities.

[Terpfan]

We are lucky with our network of trails and it’s a testament to the city’s layout and the advocacy and cooperation of local governments throughout the years. This morning I laughed as a friend said “I’m waiting 23 minutes for a Metro train.” I said, “yep, no one on the paths and only a slight breeze so my whole commute is about 8 minutes longer.”

[Author]

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