Took a spill

[Tim Kelley]

I’ll pass along this information to the NPS.

[baiskeli]

@Tim Kelley 6815 wrote:

I’ll pass along this information to the NPS.

Good idea Tim, thanks.

[americancyclo]

I try to avoid that section whenever it rains. Last year a guy sped by me on the trail portion, only to wipe out in front of me. I always have to remind myself to slow down and to scrub the water off my rims on wet days.

[OneEighth]

Glad it wasn’t worse, baiskeli.
I was thinking about that section of boardwalk this morning as I rode across it. The pilings appear to be steel and I’m wondering if they (and the footings) could support a paved surface rather than the pressure treated wooden boards currently in place. There may be environmental concerns about having an impermeable surface instead of the wooden boards, but I wonder if any benefit gained from the more porous nature of the wooden boards is cancelled by the effects of the chemicals in the pressure treated wood leaching out through constant exposure.
Seen simply as a safety issue, the wood surface is lousy.

[RESTONTODC]

baiskeli, it could be worse and thank you for the warning.

My friend crashed on the wet boardwalk near old town with some broken bones last year. I would treat this boardwalk with the same respect as the downhill S curve of the Custis trail when it wets.

[Tim Kelley]

FYI–I received a simple Thank You response from the GW Park Superintendent, so we know that NPS has been made aware of the issue.

[DaveK]

That section starts to become really bad in winter, I go out of my way to avoid it if I even think there might be moisture on the surface.

[baiskeli]

@OneEighth 6821 wrote:

Glad it wasn’t worse, baiskeli.
I was thinking about that section of boardwalk this morning as I rode across it. The pilings appear to be steel and I’m wondering if they (and the footings) could support a paved surface rather than the pressure treated wooden boards currently in place. There may be environmental concerns about having an impermeable surface instead of the wooden boards, but I wonder if any benefit gained from the more porous nature of the wooden boards is cancelled by the effects of the chemicals in the pressure treated wood leaching out through constant exposure.
Seen simply as a safety issue, the wood surface is lousy.

Hmmm. Probably a cost issue rather than a weight issue.

[Timbevins]

Hi-

My Name is Tim Bevins- I’m one of the people at the GWMP working on the Mount Vernon Trail- Tim Brought this thread to my attention- below you will find my response to him, which he suggested I post to the forum.

Riding home in the rain yesterday I too felt a bit uneasy on the boardwalk though luckily I didn’t take a spill. Prior to my arrival, I know that the Park Service experimented with a non-skid application to some of the bridges, including this one (you can see a faint trace of them still- it looks like white paint). I don’t know how successful that treatment was, but I do know that it was very expensive. To be fair, there is a stop sign for cyclists at the exact point where
the original poster to the thread fell…

Either way, the slippery nature of these boardwalks is definitely on my radar, and I hope to develop a permanent solution to this issue.

[consularrider]

Thanks Tim. I actually have more issues taking the turn when I am heading south, but have only gone down once (ice under snow). I do slow way down and try to take a line where I don’t have much of a turn and that seems to help. I have seen several people go down at the intersection near Roosevelt Island and a few at other wooden walkways where there is a turn in the walkway. The worst was someone who also went over the chain railing near Ft. Hunt, landing in the creek below.

[DismalScientist]

While we are on the subject of the intersection of the Mount Vernon trail and Roosevelt bridge, has anyone investigated putting in directional signs? Just last week I had to give directions to some confused cyclist trying to stay on the MV trail.

[OneEighth]

Thanks for joining the discussion, Tim.
Two quick corrections—
1) The stop sign is only for northbound trail users and is, honestly, not relevant to this discussion. The wooden decking is slippery everywhere it is in use along the trails.
2) Several years ago, there was a move to paint the wooden decking and it was definitely not non-slip. More like glossy finish exterior grade paint. Made things considerably worse wherever it was applied. I suspect I was not the only one who wrote to NPS and told them to quit while they were ahead.
That out of the way, I appreciate that you have made yourself available through the forum.
Cheers.

[5555624]

Out of curiosity, what sort of bikes are having these problems?

Up until a year ago, heading north, this was part of my daily p.m. commute. Now, I only ride it once or twice a week. The last time was Wednesday, in the rain. Unless it’s been completely covered in ice, I’ve never had a problem. Wood gets slick when wet (or covered in snow or slush), so I slow down.

On the other hand, since I commute on a MTB, so my 26×1.95 tires are a lot wider than road bike tires, hence my question. (I’ll have to keep the Surly at home in the rain.)

[consularrider]

I usually see road bikes go down. I have more problems with my 700×25 and 27X1 1/4 than I have with my 700×32/35 or 26X1.75. The one time I went down, I was on 26X1.75 Schwalbe Marathon Winter studded tires.

[baiskeli]

@5555624 6846 wrote:

Out of curiosity, what sort of bikes are having these problems?

Road bike, 28 cm tires, not very knobby.

I think it was abnormally slick out there. It had been lightly raining for a while and it was really humid.

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