Trail Conditions — January 2014

[Greenbelt]

I just did a roadie out in the Beltsville Farms. Roads are find and shoulders are clear.

[jopamora]

@Greenbelt 75587 wrote:

I just did a roadie out in the Beltsville Farms. Roads are find and shoulders are clear.

Out of the context of this forum, this sounds kinky.

[rcannon100]

Rode from N Arl to Barcroft on side roads. Mostly fine. Seeing pavement on the WOD, I tried to come home on the WOD. Lots of clear pavement with random surprise patches that have done the melty refreezy thing and are now zones of death. Got off the WOD and back on side roads.

[oldbikechick]

These are the only trails I like to be on in the snow[ATTACH=CONFIG]4551[/ATTACH]

[rcannon100]

FMR at Bluemont: Hardpack snow and ice with no pavement

[myoglobinologist]

Thanks… Looks like one still needs to be careful. Do I need snow tires?

[Dirt]

W&OD west from Falls Church has a snow-packed and icy line and some loose, crusty snow. It is fun, but definitely a workout with studded cross tires. Very bumpy. The Fat Front Fixie would have been an easier ride today. We had a blast playing on the ice for a few miles.

[sjclaeys]

I did the Arlington Loop on studded tires. The WOD from EFC to Shirlington and 4MRT from Shirlington to the MVT are not too bad. Long runs of clear pavement with some packed snow/ice. The worse is right after Shirlington on the concrete portion of the 4MRT. The MVT from 4MRT to Rosslyn remains tricky with lots of ice ruts. If you have any loose fillings, don’t ride the wooden bridge at TR Island. The Custis has some nice spear spots but enough long icy stretches that either studded tires are needed or you will need to do a fair bit of walking. The s-curve of doom is particularly perilous.

[hozn]

The W&OD from Falls Church out to Gallows was 95% hardpacked snow and ice. A few melted spots, but I would rate it as “jarring”, “occasionally adrenalizing”, and “studded-tires-requiring”.

[Fast Friendly Guy]

I’ve been riding mostly on side streets and main roads, because it’s a smoother, quicker ride than icy trails, but have you noticed the SALT? I don’t mind when the salt stays on the road; I don’t like the way it coats my bike, but I really don’t like the way cars grind it to a fine gray dust and then send it airborne! It hangs in the air like thick fog in the wake of moving cars! I can taste it when I breathe through my mouth!

It can’t be good to breathe that stuff! Anyone else notice or have a problem with this?

[Greenbelt]

College Park trolley trail is in pretty good shape. A few bad spots that are short enough to traverse if you don’t have snow tires. College Park cleared one of the wood bridges but not the other.

[Arlingtonrider]

I think I have these photos in the right order now, starting just a little east of the Shirlington Road crossing. Some areas were dry and others snowy/slushy but will soon re-freeze. I don’t have studded tires, so didn’t go very far before turning around and heading west instead. The W&OD heading west from Shirlington to GlenCarlyn Park was mostly clear and dry with just a few short stretches of ice/snow/slush.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]4560[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]4562[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]4563[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]4561[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]4564[/ATTACH]

[dbb]

Did a MVT conditions ride this afternoon. I was riding 35 studded tires. Much of the trail was clear or had a fairly clear line but there were exceptions. If you are riding a bike without studs or fat tires, you may need to walk some stretches.

Just north of FMR

Ped tracks are now little frozen speed bumps

The north trail bridge

[dbb]

Trail conditions continued

Gravelly Point just past the latrines

Downstream side of Humpback. After Mikey was done doing his track stand here, he failed to clean up after himself. Pretty crappy line on the downstream side of the Humpback Bridge. Line shifts sides to close to roadway.

Humpback was clear.

14th Street Bridge was clear. I only went about halfway.

[myoglobinologist]

Thanks for posting these updates. I’ll ride (slowly) tomorrow!

[Author]

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