brendan
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Rode out the C&O to White’s Ferry/Leesburg this afternoon and headed back to Arlington on the W&OD this evening. I think the C&O’s trees protected me from the brunt of the wind on the way out. Didn’t feel like it was blowing at my back too hard on the way back. Granted, maybe it was and I wasn’t as kick-butt as I thought I was today.
Brendan
PS – anyone else see those shoes and think to themselves: “There’s no place like home!”
@CCrew 17108 wrote:
I’d rather live with the cold than the 20-30mph winds forecast.
Yeah. Looks like Wednesday is my ride day this week.
Brendan
@slowtriguy 17090 wrote:
Here’s why I am puzzled. I stop at this light, every time. 90+% of the time, I catch up to and pass all the red light runners within a quarter mile past the intersection. So running the light saves them negligible amounts of time, but risks serious or fatal injury, and gives cyclists a bad name. So — why run *this specific* light? What am I missing?
And yes, I recognize that I should no longer be puzzled by this — after all, I see it every day — but still, it puzzles me.
Well, you’re clearly faster than those cyclists.
I see a few factors as to why people both “run” it as well as cross against the light when it appears clear: a) not thinking through the fact that this crossing interfaces with people who are still driving in highway mode, b) it is a longer cycle light than any other W&OD crossing nearby and c) the light pattern is complex, e.g. the east (north) bound lee hwy light turns red before the west (south) bound light does, but trail users can only see the former. Granted, they can see the don’t-walk signal just fine, but I’m guessing most cyclists are used to looking left and right and jumping the light a little when they see that yellow light happen on the cross street. But, you just can’t assume that it’s turning yellow for both directions.
Brendan
@SpokeGrenadeSR 17014 wrote:
ah yes, i do this too, anytime there’s a child involved i slow down drastically because they are some of the most unpredictable things in existence.
Yep, pets and kids == slow the frak down. Sometimes tourist areas require treating everyone as pets and kids and perhaps should be avoided when their density reaches a certain level.
I find what has worked the best for me is both ringing a bell early (perhaps multiple times if you’re in a place where pedestrians seem surprised there are bikes, or are drunk, like the Key bridge walkways) and calling the pass in the middle distance as I close. The bell gets their attention, hopefully, and let’s them know what (a bike) is coming. Ringing early also allows parents and pet owners a chance to make their move, if they are going to, to increase the safety of their wards. I’ll usually just exclaim “passing on the left!” in the mid-distance, unless the party being passed is multiple people or acted odd at the bell. If it gets complex, I keep slowing and communicating until it is safe to pass in terms of their behavior, the terrain and the oncoming traffic.
Often people will move to the left at the bell or the pass call for whatever reason…or, even worse, a multi-person party will split down the middle. That’s the most fun when it’s a couple with two dogs, one on each side. So, I really slow down and call the pass “passing on the right!” or “uh…passing down the center?”
If there’s a horse and rider, no bells: I just stop and ask if it is safe to pass. If it’s a mounted park police officer or similar, I ask if I should walk the bike by. They usually tell me I can ride by, so I assume their mounts are very well trained. But always give the widest possible pass.
Speaking of…a large poodle breed jump across its owner’s path and up at my head last week on the W&OD in Falls Church. I have the image of his snarling face about six inches in front and six inches to the right of mine burned into my mind pretty deeply. I had belled, the owner moved right and nudged her dog, which was leashed and on her right, slightly off the trail. I called the pass. I passed as wide as I could, but clearly the dog felt I was a threat and just went nuts. Apparently surprised the hell out of its owner as well, from the yelling at the dog. I wasn’t going super fast but I didn’t slow down very much either…maybe 12-14mph. Not sure if going too fast spooked it or if going fast saved me from a face bite.
Brendan
PS – and yet, I often wear headphones…
@CCrew 17012 wrote:
The yellow traffic paint one would think would be a dead giveaway.
For a while. As you can see in the first picture, it is sometimes nearly entirely worn away, presumably due to unintentional jumps?
Brendan
