[bobco85]

While visiting my sister in Clearwater, Florida, I went on a bike ride with her for the first time since I was a literal baby. She used to put me on the back of her bike and go for rides. To this day, I still find the sensation of riding on a bicycle to be quite calming.

Here’s the video of the short loop that we did (I will be making another video showcasing other trails in the area, too):

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

[bobco85]

Tysons is definitely experiencing its growing pains. While I don’t ride through there very frequently, on my rides through there (weekday afternoon rush hour or weekend morning), I’ve gotten to explore quite a bit of it.

Accessing the area from Odrick’s Corner to the north (I like to do rides using Westmoreland St->Chain Bridge Rd->Lewinsville Rd) can be a bit intimidating as one must use the lane and make left turns. Getting there from the south via Gallows Rd isn’t bad, but there is some on-street riding until hitting the nice-but-brief trail on the east side of Tysons Corner Center (mall). To the west, I like to sometimes do a route on Tyco Rd past the Spring Hill Metro that uses the neighborhoods behind the Walmart to get to Wolf Trap and/or the W&OD at Clarks Crossing Park.

While my experiences with drivers has been somewhat positive (haven’t been the target of any aggression, usually just a witness), I have had the same situation of expecting to be able to cross an intersection and realizing that there is no crosswalk, there is a median blocking left turns, or some other weird set-up that acts as a barrier to easy bike travel and forces me to backtrack a full block and go a longer route.

The next time you’re out there, go to the Route 7 bridge over the Beltway and pause in the very middle (on the sidewalk). At that moment, you will be surrounded by 24 lanes of traffic on Route 7, cloverleaf on/off-ramps, the Beltway, and the Beltway’s HOT lanes all carrying tens of thousands of people from place to place. It’s a bit overwhelming to think about but is a good reminder that society is reaching its limits for traveling by vehicle alone.

[bobco85]

I found out via Twitter (thanks, Greg Billing) that the Maryland State Highway Administration announced plans to install modified HAWK signals in 2 locations: http://www.roads.maryland.gov/Pages/release.aspx?newsId=2792

I will focus on one of the two locations, and that is the Viers Mill Rd / Matthew Henson Trail crossing which is where 2 cyclists have died over the past couple of years. Frank Towers was killed in December 2015 http://wtop.com/montgomery-county/2015/12/cyclist-dead-after-collision-in-montgomery-county/ and Oscar Mauricio Gutierrez Osorio was killed in July 2016 http://wtop.com/montgomery-county/2016/07/cyclist-struck-killed-by-car-in-rockville/

From the news release:

The new flashing signal on MD 586 at Turkey Branch Parkway (Matthew Henson Trail) will display a flashing yellow caution light 24/7 on MD 586 until a pedestrian or bicyclist presses the cross button. The signal then turns to solid red, stopping all vehicular traffic.

The signal will be installed sometime this summer.

The difference between a regular HAWK (High intensity Activated CrossWalk) signal and Maryland’s modified HAWK is this: normal HAWK signal stays off when not in use by a pedestrian/cyclist, and MD’s modified HAWK will have flashing yellow lights when not in use.

To everyone who fought for this signal, thank you. This truly will save lives.

[bobco85]

@drevil 157850 wrote:

(continued)

Those pictures are GORGEOUS! That last one really shows why Arizona’s state flag has its particular design of the sun setting behind the mountains (pic for reference):
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14459[/ATTACH]

I spent a brief amount of time in Sedona when I did my Arizona trip (Phoenix, Sedona, Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Las Vegas) a few years ago, but I only did a bit of hiking in Red Rock State Park (I biked around Phoenix). It’s still very striking how much red soil there is in that state! I hope you didn’t encounter any rattlesnakes!

[bobco85]

This happened yesterday while I was on a walk. Not biking, but I thought I’d mention it.

Me: waiting to cross Van Dorn St at Taney Ave
(Van Dorn St light turns red; walk signal comes on)
Me: walks out into the crosswalk after a second or two
You: southbound Driver of a grey Prius on Van Dorn St, goes into the intersection through the red, luckily missing me because I was already in the next lane
Me: looks incredulously at you while this happens and gesturing “WTF?” (actually a magic spell that casts bad luck on the driver)
You: continue to drive, then 2 blocks down the road stop as your car breaks down (the car behind him was accompanying him, so they pulled over to assist)
Me: (to the world) I want all of you drivers to know that I have this power; I’ll use it if I need to!

[bobco85]

I’ll be there. We’ll have to be on the lookout for the Easter bunny, though.

@Steve O 157804 wrote:

e) Substitute technology for your actual presence. No one will know.

Easy solution:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14455[/ATTACH]
Just have someone plug it into the organ’s USB (they all have those nowadays, right?) with a rocking pipe solo. At the very worst, you’ll get a few responses afterward of, “Oh, hey, did you lose weight?”

[bobco85]

Adding my answers to some of the questions:

* Does the trail that connects 27th St N to Kensington really exist? Can bikes ride on it (i.e. no stairs)?
Yes, except it’s not in the spot that you mapped. The path goes between the 2 houses near the open area. If you look at Google Maps Streetview here: https://goo.gl/maps/Q7TmpJh1ner you’ll see the path is the one next to the “Speed Hump” sign. It runs straight back from 27th then turns 90 degrees toward the cul-de-sac on Kensington. vvill’s segment shows the correct route.

* Will a kidical ride be able to take a left from Kensington on to Little Falls safely on a Saturday morning? (I.e. how busy is Little Falls)
Little Falls has slower traffic since Yorktown Blvd is there, but I don’t think there will be any issues here.

* How steep is that little bit of 33rd St N between 34th St N and 32 St N? (And, hey, Arlington, numbered streets are supposed to be parallel)
The hill is moderate.

* Will we be able to turn left from 32nd St N onto Harrison?
The sightlines for traffic approaching from the right aren’t very good, but traffic isn’t bad there.

* How steep is that hill on 33rd St N after we turn right from Williamsburg?
That hill will definitely be a challenge for the children due to steepness and length.

* How steep are the hills on Florida, 27th Rd, 28th St and Greenbrier (behind Yorktown at the end)?
I’d say not terrible, but the kids will really earn those donuts!

Additional comments:
* You’ll need to be careful when crossing Yorktown Blvd on Little Falls Rd because it’s at the bottom of hills on both sides, Yorktown Blvd has faster traffic, and there is no signal (only a crosswalk).
* Just before the end of the route where you have to turn left from 26th St onto Harrison St, I’d recommend bailing to the sidewalk because Harrison St traffic moves fast through that area. However, there is a tree that blocks half the sidewalk at one point (you can see this in Google Maps Streetview here: https://goo.gl/maps/ScHZB6VGs552 ).

[bobco85]

@consularrider 157619 wrote:

Anyone else interested in a Tour de Pitstops?

Yes, and I’ve already planned my route! This year, I plan to do:

Home (Alexandria) -> Del Ray (registered) -> Shirlington -> Crystal City -> Georgetown Waterfront -> Rosslyn -> Ballston (if I can make it in time) -> Work (Ballston)

The tricky part about doing multiple pit stops is that you have to manage the times that each will be open (e.g., Del Ray opens at 6, Shirlington opens at 6:30, Crystal City opens at 7, and Georgetown Waterfront opens at 7:30, so I chose that order), so that makes route-planning more complex. Also, it means waking up EXTRA early and having made arrangements for a late arrival to work. Also, if you’re visiting multiple pit stops, don’t take very much swag so that there will be more for others.

FYI for those planning multi-stop rides, here’s what I did in previous years. It might help you with planning your routes.

• 2016: Home (Alexandria) -> Oxon Hill (National Harbor) -> Old Town Alexandria -> Carlyle -> Del Ray -> Shirlington -> Ballston -> Work (Ballston)
• 2015: Home (Arlington) -> Shirlington (new that year) -> Penrose Square -> Ballston -> Work (Ballston)
• 2014: Home (Arlington) -> Rosslyn -> East Falls Church -> Ballston -> Work (Ballston)
• 2013: Home (Arlington) -> Rosslyn -> Ballston -> Work (Ballston)
• Here’s a playlist of the videos I made for each year’s BTWD: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIwZLzKYvhjqJt8JNys2pg3KKitk9K-ns

Bike to Work Day is an always exciting and enjoyable event, and it’s well-worth waking up early.

[bobco85]

@Judd 157529 wrote:

The results of the Guess Your Final Score are in. Congratulations to Bobco who guessed his final score EXACTLY! It appears that his complicated math formula in this thread was a winner, in addition to going out for a 12 mile ride yesterday after having ridden 84 miles for the VASA ride.

Lots of people came very close to guessing their final score. And lots of people blew their guess out of the water. The final tally is below. Holler at me if I missed your guess on the thread and I’ll update it.

Name – Guess – Actual – Difference

Robert S. – 2,250 – 2,250 – 0

YAY, I finally got to win something! Honestly, my guess was based on a goal that I had for Freezing Saddles this year looking at the previous 2 years (in 2015, my score was 1,660; in 2016, my score was 2,094), and the math formula helped me figure out how to get it. The last day was tough, though, because I knew I needed to do a lot of miles to get to my goal. On Sunday, I certainly was not physically prepared for a hilly Vasaloppet ride, and the extra ride I did (after a LONG nap) took the rest out of me, so much so that I didn’t ride my bike at all yesterday (yeah, I was THAT tired).

My other goal was to bike every day of my vacation (visiting my sister in FL), and I accomplished that, too.

No sandbagging was done, Steve, although I did get some sand on the tires a few times

drevil, you have nothing to feel bad about, you completely destroyed your guess in the best way possible (by doing lots and lots of riding)!

[bobco85]

My video for the Bicycle Fun Club’s President’s Day Ride is now complete! Consider it a belated birthday present, Judd!

I used anything and everything for this video, pulling from Judd’s notes on each site, adding both front/rear camera footage to get everyone in the video, recording parts of Judd’s speeches, getting historical images online, finding pics/videos that I had taken in years past, and having some Photoshop fun to create a hopefully robust and interesting video of the ride (and hopefully historically accurate, too!).

Here’s the video. I hope y’all enjoy it.
[video=youtube_share;6mLL8wkM6Ew]https://youtu.be/6mLL8wkM6Ew[/video]

P.S. – the reason I added the Eisenhower statue (not on the route) is because President Eisenhower is somewhat responsible for my existence. Long story short, my grandfather (from Hutsonville, Illinois) was a mechanic and driver in the Army during WWII and wound up being on the detail for General Eisenhower, later serving in the Secret Service. My grandfather had been dating my grandmother for a few years but had not proposed (slowness to commitment seems to run in our family). Eisenhower had a talk with my grandfather and said something along the lines of: “You better marry that girl!” My grandfather and grandmother are buried at Arlington National Cemetery, and I have a great appreciation for President Eisenhower. http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/lddry.htm

[bobco85]

I will be there!

Also, I will lead a convoy heading there from Ballston around 5:15(ish). Meet outside the Ballston metro station or along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor so we can “pick you up” on the way.

[bobco85]

I don’t think changing ride lengths is going to be an issue. I’ll be doing the Vasaloppet (59 mile), too, so see you there!

Sunday is also my mom’s birthday, so post-ride I may have to jet early so I can get home, shower, and bike to her birthday lunch.

[bobco85]

@dasgeh 157175 wrote:

Folks who biked on those cleared trails in Arlington, I have some bad news. The County Manager has proposed cutting the trail snow clearing program ENTIRELY in his proposed 1 cent cut. You can see the full list here – trail snow clearing is #21 on page [!@&*$ why can’t they number pages!?!?!]. This would save a whopping $50k/year.

Also of interest is #5, which would eliminate the expansion of the street light program. DES says that it will take responsibility for trail lighting in the street light program if and only if it gets the funds for the expanded program. The Manager says DES is taking responsibility for trail lighting regardless, though I’ve never seen that on paper.

You may want to take a minute to remind the countyboard@arlingtonva.us (cc’ing the countymanager@arlingtonva.us) how important the trail snow clearing program is.

Oh, and if you have some time to bike over some counters on cleared trails today, that may be a good idea too

To add some detail to dasgeh’s post, here are the County Manager’s notes on the option of cutting trail snow clearing:

Trail Snow Removal: Eliminate Multi-Use Trail Snow Removal Description of Current Service: As of FY 2015, DPR assumed responsibility for snow clearing on the County’s major multi-use commuter trails. This responsibility extends to almost 10 miles of high-volume, multi-use trails during the snow season and include the following: 5.2 miles of the Custis Trail from Lynn Street to the W&OD Trail; 1.25 miles of the Bluemont Junction Trail; 2.25 miles of the Four Mile Run Trail; and 0.4 miles of the Route 110 Trail. The County’s goal is to give these multi-use trails the same snow removal priority and response time as primary arterial streets. This snow removal is accomplished by using two specialized vehicles to treat and plow in small spaces and run with three-man crews.

Impact of Reduction: By eliminating the staff and equipment budget related to trail snow clearing, these major multi-use commuter trails will not be cleared of snow during major snow events at the top priority level. Snow removal will only begin after parking lots and other DPR assigned street routes are cleared.

I’m hoping this is just an exercise to study possibilities for and weigh the risks of potential budget cuts because so much work has been done to achieve the 10 miles of trail clearing that we get.

[bobco85]

@creadinger 157118 wrote:

Wow! I’ve ridden by that tunnel like a dozen times on Mill Road and never noticed it’s existence. Where the heck does it come out? Behind that Extra Space Storage building and up the sidewalk to Duke St?

The north end of the tunnel spits you out under the Telegraph Rd bridge just north of the railroad tracks. It then splits, so you can go east past the Extra Space Storage building towards Old Town or west along a sketchy fence towards Taylor Run Pkwy.

[bobco85]

Many thanks go out to komorebi and LeprosyStudyGroup for helping to clear these well-used paths. I’m tired (and will be very sore in the morning), but it was fun!

First test of the new path over the bridge
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14320[/ATTACH]

The team
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14321[/ATTACH]

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