[bentbike33]

@Amalitza 134854 wrote:

just returned from a mostly SE out and mostly NW back “recreational ride”

You did that backwards, for today anyway.

[bentbike33]

@americancyclo 134842 wrote:

Also, is that you I’ve seen with the spoke lights westbound cruzing down the hill on Route 7 towards TJs? Seems to match my memory of our encounter when I had a flat.

In all likelihood, yes. The sidewalk glaciers keep me on the road.

[bentbike33]

@Crickey7 134824 wrote:

Your Whole Foods lacks a rack, too?

Yes, and the Trader Joe’s and Peet’s Coffee, etc. across the street have no bike racks either. I lay the blame at the Real Estate Investment Trust that owns both strip malls (and Fairfax County).

[bentbike33]

@americancyclo 134680 wrote:

W&OD and Custis had a nice light dusting of snow. Enough to make things extra quiet, but not enough to cause traction issues.

I did not ride fast enough in the snow to test this hypothesis, but others did and rejected it. Pretty sure I heard someone go down behind me at the W&OD/Custis junction (too busy worrying about staying upright myself to check), and I passed a guy who was righting himself after having swept a part of the Trollhiem with his body (he told me he was OK when I asked).

[bentbike33]

@Tim Kelley 134551 wrote:

Bike lessons for a whole month only cost $15 in 1867!

That would be about $360 today (assuming it was still $15 in 1913).

[bentbike33]

@KWL 134538 wrote:

Even with long reach Shimano calipers, my ’92 XO-1 has always been at the limits of the brake arms.

If you replace ever the wheels, you might try 650C rims. The brakes would work better, but your tire choices would become extremely limited.

[bentbike33]

@Terpfan 134527 wrote:

The trick is a sail.

It’s been done.

[bentbike33]

@KWL 134333 wrote:

It turns out there was a slit in the tire just above the bead that caused the tubes to blow out.

If this bike has rim brakes, check that they are not running too close to the tire generally, and that your rim does not have a flat spot.

[bentbike33]

@americancyclo 134239 wrote:

First time back on the bike in a while and I got a slow leak just past Cherrydale. Had a spare tube, but no pump. ]

I offered to let you use my pump. Or maybe that was someone else walking with a flat across the Lee Hwy overpass before the Switchback of Grave Peril?

Although, I can’t blame you. A good floor pump does have its advantages if you know where to find one.

[bentbike33]

@lordofthemark 133918 wrote:

IANAL, but I do not see a child in that image.

The child is inferred by the image of the stroller as being inside of it.

Or possibly the piece of luggage.

[bentbike33]

Some random reports from a ride to scout my regular commute route…

The W&OD west of Lee Hwy. to I-66 has lots of snowy-icy spots. Some of them have frozen ruts to redirect your wheels. Be careful. Once into Arlington County, the W&OD is nice, even reaching full width in spots as far as the Custis terminus. Watch the ice field at the junction, though.

The Custis is nice too, although it can get narrow, so slow down for joggers/peds. As long as there is snow on the bridges, there will be good potential for ice fields if it gets below freezing at night, which it did last night. Spout Run is probably the worst. The sinkhole near Quinn street has been patched.

The TR Island parking lot has not been plowed. I turned around here.

[bentbike33]

May 22. Good date. Seems less likely to be hurricaned-out than a September date.

But then again, “Boat-to-Work Day” was also in May, wasn’t it?

[bentbike33]

I speculated previously that NPS could afford to clear the MVT if they perhaps skipped 2 or 3 mowings of the grass surrounding it during the spring/summer/fall.

[bentbike33]

@dasgeh 133357 wrote:

NPS GWMP confirmed that they have no plans to clear the MVT at all this year.

And on the news the other night they were reading an NPS press release about all the snow they had cleared. Parking lots and roads, I guess. Maybe it’s time for a critical mass ride on the GW Parkway to see if priorities can be changed.

[bentbike33]

@vern 133304 wrote:

At noon the WOD at Wiehle was untouched but for some footprints.

Where, oh where, could the ELF be driving?

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