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I really doubt you have a chance in court. A judge is very unlikely to buy a defense that boils down to “I had to run a red light for safety because of a poorly designed intersection.” Like the cop said “tell it to the judge,” the judge will probably say “tell it to the county traffic engineers.” But if the cop fails to show up that day, you might win by default.

I usually cross like a pedestrian there, like Steve O suggested.

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@bentbike33 143738 wrote:

First thing I did when I got home and into a darkened room was check the aim of my light. It was exactly where it is supposed to be.

When on level ground. But if you were going uphill, and an approaching cyclist was coming uphill, the angle of your light could be straight into his/her eyes.

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Sure, why not? Left hand off the handlebar – no hands! Right hand holding your phone to take a selfie of you riding with no hands, while looking to your right, into the camera. While going down a hill.

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@Boomer2U 142155 wrote:

I was treated to this glorious sunset on my commute home the other night, on the Festive Bike path (national cycle route 33) in Flax Burton, outside of Bristol UK.

With your back to Europe, of course.

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If someone thinks cyclists blowing stop signs isn’t a safety problem, maybe they should lobby to make it legal.

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@Steve O 142198 wrote:

I didn’t realize that was Latvian. I just slapped together a bunch of random symbols. Does it actually say something?

It says “Your face is a bunch of random symbols.”

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Sure, there are places you might hide a bike–the trick is making sure you break down near them.

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No, you can’t turn and wait to turn left in the intersection on PA Ave, blocking cyclists, to make a left turn when there is a only straight green arrow and no left turn arrow at all, dumbass.

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@Steve O 141344 wrote:

Not to be nitpicky

Your face is nitpicky.

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There are more than a few noobs out due to Safetrack and the nice weather, and that’s cool. We were all noobs once, even me, and we made some amusing mistakes. But this lady headed for the W&OD trailhead in Shirlington had her helmet on backwards.

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@jrenaut 141030 wrote:

The solution is to remove all two-lane roads.

I seriously think that’s the solution at certain high-risk crossings.

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Three motorists in a row were too clueless or too much in a hurry to see me, or respect my right-of-way, as they made turns.

Two cyclists crossed against the red don’t walk signal at the Intersection of Doom.

One newb passed me on the left with no warning as I was about to turn left on the trollheim bridge on the Mt. V trail (I know he’s a newb because he later crossed to the Memorial bridge by cutting through the grass on the south side). At least he said “good morning.”

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Awesome that you’re on a bike again! I have a similar dislike of hills, similar extra weight, and a route similar to yours.

You could make a small adjustment that might help a little. After crossing Rt. 50 at Rhodes, turn right on 14th and then right on Fairfax (or to avoid the short climb from 14th, cut through the grass immediately at 14th past the apartment building there – slowly, as it’s steep and can have rocks and bottles in the way). Ride on Fairfax and then get on the bike trail between Fairfax and 50, under Courthouse Road, then turn right where Fairfax starts again for a small climb up Fairfax to you home.

You could make a far bigger adjustment if you have time and want a few more miles by going south on the Mt. Vernon Trail and then west on the Four Mile Run/W&OD trails and back up. The hills are more forgiving that way but it would be far more out of your way.

Looks like you could find a way south around the cemetery using Washington Blvd. too, but I’ll let other cyclists help with that idea because I’m not familiar with it.

Remember, don’t judge the difficulty by the first few rides. It won’t take long for your legs to harden up and get you up hills with less effort. Also, when climbing a tough hill, I try to slow down as much as possible without falling sideways – it takes a great deal of the stress on your legs and your lungs away. You have to actively think about slowing down because it feels strange to be going so slow on a bike. Your instinct is to go as fast as possible. Sometimes joggers pass me up hills when I do it, that’s how slow. Get in the lowest gear and just cruise up the hill and focus on keeping the speed down. Good luck and maybe I’ll see you out there.

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Standing at the Rosslyn bike counter, I heard a crash. Car turning right vs. cyclist crossing west-to-east. The bike hooked the license plate and went over the hood – the plate was crumpled from the left. The rider lay on the ground for a while. He went off in an ambulance but I heard he wasn’t too bad. Hope he’s okay.

Everybody please slow down at that intersection. Drivers are desperate to turn there and may not see you or may not care. My policy there is to never cross except on a green walk signal. I just wait if it’s counting down. Give the cars some time to get through and the next batch won’t be in such a hurry. I think a bike-only signal would be appropriate there since bikes and pedestrians are so different in terms of speed and their use of signals that were designed for pedestrians, not bikes.

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