Trail Conditions — January 2014

[jrenaut]

Hains Point is totally clear (and open) except for one tiny spot on either side, not a problem on any tires.

[jnva]

@mstone 75819 wrote:

It’s ok because someone might be skiing on it. Right?
edit to add: someone who’s actually good at taking pictures should get some nice shots of the alternating pavement and lumpy ice and post them to illustrate the idiocy of NVRPA’s position on the trail as a cross country ski venue. maybe we can shame them into a more sensible policy.

I’m not good at taking pictures, but here’s a video of my commute tonight. The W&OD between maple ave and gallows in Vienna is a bumpy sheet of ice.

[video=youtube_share;M8YvBJEmhJw]http://youtu.be/M8YvBJEmhJw[/video]

[Dirt]

Almost all of the Custis Trail surprises are gone. There’s a big icy patch west of Glebe Road. If you just go at a reasonable pace, you won’t have problems.

[Dirt]

@jnva 75860 wrote:

I’m not good at taking pictures, but here’s a video of my commute tonight. The W&OD between maple ave and gallows in Vienna is a bumpy sheet of ice.

[video=youtube_share;M8YvBJEmhJw]http://youtu.be/M8YvBJEmhJw[/video]

Ouch! You caught a rut with the front wheel? Great that you had the video running.

[jnva]

Not really sure what happened, I went down real fast! I’m not laughing now though

[jrenaut]

@Dirt 75862 wrote:

Ouch! You caught a rut with the front wheel? Great that you had the video running.

Man, I was going to say, you had a really nice line going considering the trail conditions. Hope that didn’t hurt too bad.

[myoglobinologist]

Ouch, I’m sorry. Hope you’re ok.

[NickBull]

@dasgeh 75832 wrote:

You have to ride on part of the TR wooden bridge to get on to/off of the TR Bridge. So that part is totally fine. I imagine the rest of it is the same, but don’t know from experience.

Wooden bridge is pretty-much clear. A few spots with ice but easily avoidable. That’s pretty-much true for the entire route from the top of Rosslyn Hill down the river and across on the 14th Street Bridge. Tomorrow will be my first day riding without studded tires and I am very much looking forward to it.

Nick

[dbb]

Rode studded 35s from the WWTP on FMR at Eads up the MVT and across the 14th Street Bridge at about 0630.

Trails were covered with about an inch of snow, which was effective at concealing the remaining chunks of ice on the trail. Occasionally bumpy.

14th St Bridge was windy and had light snow cover on trail.

Because the temps were well below freezing, the snow remained powdery and conditions were good.

Traffic was pretty heavy. I counted about 10 sets of tire tracks along the MVT near DCA. Only saw a couple of cyclists.

[jrenaut]

@dbb 75872 wrote:

…Traffic was pretty heavy…

Didn’t see that many cyclists, but there were more bike tire tracks than car tire tracks in the PA Ave cycletrack, so that’s encouraging (And discouragingly rare).

[TwoWheelsDC]

I’m back to my road-only suburban commute. Washington Blvd was clear west of Westover, as was Westmoreland. Roads in northeastern Fairfax were completely clear, which isn’t surprising given that the county must’ve dumped about 100 tons of salt….my shoe covers and pants were caked in salt by the time I got to work.

[jrenaut]

@TwoWheelsDC 75878 wrote:

I’m back to my road-only suburban commute. Washington Blvd was clear west of Westover, as was Westmoreland. Roads in northeastern Fairfax were completely clear, which isn’t surprising given that the county must’ve dumped about 100 tons of salt….my shoe covers and pants were caked in salt by the time I got to work.

That is why I took CaBi this morning. I just cleaned my bike.

[83b]

@jrenaut 75877 wrote:

Didn’t see that many cyclists, but there were more bike tire tracks than car tire tracks in the PA Ave cycletrack, so that’s encouraging (And discouragingly rare).

Sadly, I thought exactly the same thing this morning. East Capitol was also in good shape other than the sections around Lincoln Park, which seem to stay filled with slush and ice.

[Phatboing]

On the W&OD from Falls Church to Gallows:

The snow’s cleverly hidden all the ice, creating all the horrible things that statement implies. Look out for spots that look bumpy, for they will try to kill you.

I honestly can’t say why I made it through upright – studly tires? skill? dumb luck?

[guga31bb]

I took Custis this morning and didn’t have much trouble (on 32″ knobby tires). Definitely took me longer than normal since I was being cautious but better than braving the streets (and getting salty again).

[Author]

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