[bobco85]

@MFC 159543 wrote:

Two years ago (?) was the notorious Boat to Work Day. I think it rained heavily for most the week before and the day of, and a few other cities cancelled their events.

3 years ago was Boat to Work Day.

The past few years of BTWD:
2016: warm and sunny
2015: warm and sunny
2014: monsoon
2013: warm and sunny

Proof from my videos of each year’s BTWD: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIwZLzKYvhjqJt8JNys2pg3KKitk9K-ns

[bobco85]

@chris_s 159499 wrote:

Can somebody please post a photo of this?

I just took some pics of some of the areas that were cleared. From what I saw, the cleared area was on the south side of W&OD from the Bluemont Junction caboose to the shelter/v-ball pit in Bluemont Park and on the east side of Carlin Springs Rd.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bobco85]

@JustinW 159498 wrote:

Does anyone know what’s up with the former meadowy area (now cleared) just east of Carlin Springs Road @ the W&OD? There used to be a desire trail thru there, and there was brief talk a while back about paving that trail. Since then I thought the idea was to leave it “as natural as possible”…and now it is clear cut. What’s next?

I passed through there the other day and saw the area had been cleared. There is an informational sign posted, but I did not stop to read it. However, there were a few other areas along the W&OD with clearings and signs that talked about invasive plant removal. I’ll pass by there this afternoon to confirm.

[bobco85]

Seconded on the avoidance of the MVT between 14th St Bridge and Four Mile Run, except I prefer to use the following route: Columbia Island -> LBJ Grove -> Boundary Channel Dr -> Connector Rd -> Eads St (I love the protected bike lane) -> Glebe Rd (only 1 block) -> Route 1 sidewalk (half a block) -> 4MR as shown here: https://goo.gl/maps/pNkf1nN8zkm

You can also go the Boundary Channel Dr -> Long Bridge Dr -> Crystal Dr route, but I find the southbound Crystal Dr bike lane to be awful (though not as bad as the MVT; northbound Crystal Dr bike lane is just fine), so I usually avoid it except on the weekends. For reference, that route is here: https://goo.gl/maps/JcsNvxEo75H2

[bobco85]

@JustinW 159339 wrote:

@ 7-ish remain at the Aldi near Seminary & 395 in (West) Alexandria.

And yes, what a strange store….

Picked one up at the Seminary/Kenmore/Van Dorn Aldi this evening (now there are 3 left). It’s heavier than expected, but I managed to get it home by resting one part of the box on my handlebars and another part on my left knee/arm, switching between the two whether I had to brake/steer or pedal. Luckily I live only a mile from that Aldi.

Built it, and I’m surprised by the solid and decent quality ($30 is a steal). Pics of the setup follow (mind the mess; that part of my apartment is next on the list for spring cleaning).

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bobco85]

(Hyattsville, MD) – Based on reports both on this forum (kudos to Greenbelt, Brett L, and Bryan on Strava for alerting me to this) and the following Tweet https://twitter.com/MattDLiddle/status/859365117829550081 , the bridge directly west of the West Hyattsville Metro on the Northwest Branch Trail is closed for repairs for an unspecified length of time.

Picture from @MattDLiddle ‘s tweet:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14702[/ATTACH]

Based on the suggestion of @ktharris08, I made the following detour maps:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14703[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]14704[/ATTACH]

[bobco85]

I agree that the crash location and orientation do not match a right-turning driver off Oak.

This got me thinking: how necessary is it to have this one block road going to Nash St? Is it really too much to have drivers use Scott St? Drivers could avoid driving on Lee Hwy entirely since the roads are continuous between Oak and Scott.

I think simplifying this would be far safer and easier to understand.

[bobco85]

Speaking as someone who has broken left cranks before after hearing creaking noises, you’re definitely going to need a new one.

Proof that I know what I’m talking about :p
@bobco85 88371 wrote:

Well, this just happened today:

broken left crank
[ATTACH=CONFIG]5947[/ATTACH]

scratched right foot
[ATTACH=CONFIG]5948[/ATTACH]

While riding to Trader Joe’s in Clarendon on Highland just a few blocks south of my destination, I was in a standing position to pedal off from a stop sign (I was a PAL) when the left crank on my hybrid suddenly broke. I luckily did not fall down, but I did scratch the back of my right foot. A cyclist coming toward me witnessed it and asked if I was okay. I replied that I was fine but tried to hide my disappointment at knowing that I’d have to get the crank (and hopefully JUST the crank) replaced. At this point, my bike (GT Zum City bike) is a year and a half old with about 3,460 miles on it.

I did, however, continue on my grocery trip, getting a bandage from Trader Joe’s (it was blue!), and using the downhills to coast with walking for the uphills to make it home. I got into a good rhythm of half-pedaling by using my left foot to push the broken half of the crank back, almost like rowing a boat, to stay above walking speed, but really, it was rather pathetic.

Anybody know what kind of $$$ will be emptied from my wallet to fix/replace this with average parts?

[bobco85]

For more context, it was covered on ArlNow: https://www.arlnow.com/2017/05/01/car-flips-on-lee-highway-near-rosslyn/

The crash happened around 4 p.m., near the intersection with N. Oak Street. A driver heading west on Lee Highway in a grey Audi collided with an Infiniti looking to turn right from N. Oak Street. The two collided, with the Infiniti left on its side.

2 separate No Turn on Red signs are there at Oak St, too.

[bobco85]

I finished my video for the Midnight Saddles ride we did the night of Easter. Enjoy!

[video=youtube_share;6dD6sgnEenw]https://youtu.be/6dD6sgnEenw[/video]

[bobco85]

@KLizotte 159253 wrote:

A Trump inspired wall along the GW Parkway would be a fantastic idea. Heck, I’ll contribute the first dollar.

You’ve got one major obstacle to building a wall, and it’s the following 2 words: Capitol. Viewshed.

I would favor pikes along the edge of the GWMP. That way, when someone goes off the road, their vehicle will get stuck in the pikes, and we can leave the vehicle there to serve as a reminder to drivers not to go off the road. Just an idea

[bobco85]

@TwoWheelsDC 159207 wrote:

Currently sitting on the Vermonter, with my bike stowed. Didn’t have to do anything special prior to boarding…just get in line at the gate. After the gate opened, I found the car with a bike symbol, hoisted the bike up, and loaded it in the bike compartment. No one from Amtrak was around to assist (or check for a bike ticket), but it’s pretty self-explanatory. The bike compartment seemed to be missing the strap to secure the frame, but my u-lock did that job well enough.

I was wondering, were you required to remove your front wheel, or did you do that just so that it would fit? I’m currently mulling over a potential Amtrak trip and wanted to be sure of the options.

[bobco85]

@drevil 159165 wrote:

So a friend offered $20 to the first person to get over a series of 4 logs on a new trail he made last weekend at Rosaryville State Park (he’s the trail liaison). I was running short on time, so I took a shortcut to it, not getting many miles in the process. It was hard because the space between the logs was just a few inches longer than the length of my bike, not really allowing me to spool up for the subsequent log (especially the second one). As you can see, the solution was to ride like Tigger

Good job, but how’d you hide the pogo stick in your bike? :p

[bobco85]

Was he running Strava at the time? There’s a chance you could find potential leads via the Flyby feature.

[bobco85]

This is minor, but there actually isn’t an intersection of Wilkes and Union in Alexandria. The location is likely Windmill Hill Park which has a playground, volleyball court, and the tunnel starting the Wilkes Street Bikeway. Just wanted to add a little more detail to the story.

[Author]

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