[83b]

FWIW: I got the same email last night.

“Dear 83(b),

Someone has tried to log into your account on Washington Area Bike Forum with an incorrect password at least 5 times. This person has been prevented from attempting to login to your account for the next 15 minutes.

The person trying to log into your account had the following IP address: 188.143.232.144

All the best,
Washington Area Bike Forum”

[83b]

@TrikerOne 52164 wrote:

I wish we had a solution to this kind of behavior.

There are a few workable solutions.

[83b]

Yesterday Evening:
You: Philadelphia motorcycle cops using your lights and sirens to breeze through rush hour traffic.
Me: That cyclist giving you a death glare as you ride towards him in the Penn Ave bike lanes. Seriously, no one cares if it’s cop week. Go home and take your bagpipes with you.

This morning:
You: News crew setting up tripods to do a shoot in the Penn Ave bike lane.
Me: The cyclist who reminded you that was a travel lane and you shouldn’t set up there. “Yea, whatever, we know” was not an appropriate response. Hope to see you again when I’m not running late for a meeting.

[83b]

@Tim Kelley 51349 wrote:

Can you knock out this one? http://app.strava.com/segments/739916

That road looks dead-flat. No way I can hit 40+ there without getting one of those insane Stealth bikes from earlier in the thread! Color me impressed.

[83b]

@txgoonie 51346 wrote:

I understand the folks who say it’s not a big deal, …

The problem, to the extent there is one, is that folks who act reasonably while breaking rules–posing no real danger or inconvenience to others–still help establish community standards of behavior. And the larger community, our anecdotes show, is painfully, breathtakingly stupid.

See e.g.,

• people (including bikes) running lights and stops;
• people (including bikes) making illegal turns;
• jaywalking;
• speeding;
• running in bike lanes;
• biking on sidewalks (where applicable);
• parking illegally; and
• rolling stop signs.

Under the right circumstances, a reasonable person might engage in any of those behaviors. And other reasonable persons might excuse them. But idiots, as usual, ruin things for everyone.

So when you’re running in the bike lane and I give you the stink-eye; when I pass a little more aggressively than is strictly necessary; when I refuse to move from my line; I apologize, it’s not really about you. It’s about that runner yesterday who shoaled me with a double-wide stroller at the light. It’s about the tourist who set up a tripod in the Penn Ave bike lane (which if I ever see again, someone is getting stupid-taxed a DSLR).

[83b]

@CPTJohnC 51328 wrote:

I am vehemently opposed to other people riding e-bikes for any reason. My ego is way to fragile to watch people who are barely pedaling cruising up hills.

This brings up an interesting question. How glaringly unethical is it to use Strava while on an ebike? I can pretty easily crack 25mph up Capitol Hill (#1 or #2) while cranking, but without standing.

“My name is [§83b], king of [mountains]:
Look upon my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”

–Percy Bysshe Shelley (more or less)

[83b]

A Bullitt with a homemade box? Very cool!! You’ll have to tell us your impressions of living with one.

[83b]

@baiskeli 50695 wrote:

Most people wouldn’t accept people walking in the roadway, even in a bike lane, using it just like a sidewalk–walking dogs, pushing strollers, etc. Don’t see why runners should be any different.

I think we owe runners in bike lanes the benefit of the doubt. I’ve always appreciated people’s understanding when I have need to drive on the sidewalk, and reciprocity seems only fair.

[83b]

@Tim Kelley 50680 wrote:

“For many people, biking is actually faster than driving, by the time you factor in traffic, parking, and the time you don’t need to spend at the gym.”

For me it’s just plain faster! I’ve timed it and can bike in ~20 minutes hitting the average number of lights, walk + metro in ~35 minutes, and drive in ~35-45 minutes (plus deal with a garage that fills up really early in our building). Also, DC may get hot, but biking is so much nicer than the underground oven the metro stations turn into during the sweltering summer months.

[83b]

I thought I’d approached Dirt-level zen on this one, but the other day I passed a runner in the bike lane pushing a double stroller. She also shoaled two bikes at a stop light and yet was flustered when we crowded her passing when it turned green.

[83b]

I agree with the others that it’ll be both difficult and not cost efficient to upgrade your existing bike.

But if what you’re really looking for is a very upright city bike, I’d recommend checking out BicycleSPACE and/or The Daily Rider.

Daily Rider carries Bobbin, Pilen, Gazelle, Linus and a few other makes that would probably be a very good fit. BicycleSPACE has a few of those models, plus Pashley . I think Capitol Hill Bikes also carries Public, which can also be ordered online if you’re comfortable servicing it yourself or have a good relationship with a shop that just doesn’t stock the type of bike you want.

[83b]

In terms of securing the bike parking, our building located the racks directly adjacent to the garage attendants. A few baked goodies as bribes and always exchanging pleasantries makes me feel very comfortable that our bikes aren’t going to be messed with during the day.

[83b]

I’m Ryan.

I commute from Capitol Hill to downtown on an old mountain bike that I turned into an electric commuter/neighborhood bike. Pretty lazy given the distance I’m covering, but magnificent when you’re wearing a suit in the summer or hauling groceries. It also scoots me back and forth between meetings during the day faster than my coworkers can taxi.

For recreation I ride a black Lemond steel CX bike of unknown vintage.

I used to be a bike mechanic in the mid-90s to early aughties, so hydraulic disc brakes mystify me.

[83b]

A little BMW karma. From PoP.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2751[/ATTACH]

[83b]

I’ll be headed from Capitol Hill to Lafayette Square (15th and H) via the Penn Ave lanes and the Freedom Plaza pit-stop. Probably try to hit up the Eastern Market stop too, so long as my snooze button behaves itself.

[Author]

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