[Certifried]

Did you ask your doctor? I see quite a few doctors for my arthritis (which is often), I get all kinds of medication and have many procedures. I’m a huge fan of being honest with the doctor and discussing all options with them. With a baby in the equation, there’s no upside to do anything otherwise.

[Certifried]

@5555624 30971 wrote:

Nah, 3:00 a.m. is just as dark as it usually is.

yes, but I didn’t say “it’s getting darker these nights”, now did I? :p

regardless, BE SAFE (that’s an order)

[Certifried]

I hope they’re ok!

I just saw this tragic story from my hometown
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2012/09/12/2223524/damian-horstman-death-bike-crash.html

everyone be careful out there! Especially since it’s getting darker these days.

[Certifried]

@dasgeh 30799 wrote:

Glad to see that reason has prevailed in the thread.

The other good thing to keep in mind about this thread is that, although either “side” might not convince the other of their opinion, there are a lot of other cyclists reading the thread and forming an opinion on the matter. Some that are new to cycling, commuting, night riding, etc. I haven’t cycled much in the “off season” since this is the first year I’ve tried to seriously Bike To Work. I’m taking in the arguments each person is making and both forming my opinion and learning of the pitfalls and benefits of proper lighting practices. I’m sure there are plenty of other forum members and forum lurkers doing the same.

[Certifried]

@KelOnWheels 30789 wrote:

Hey, some days I don’t start talking until after 10 AM!

That’s a bit early for me, but better than most women. Push that up a few hours, and you’ll close in on being the PERFECT woman.

[Certifried]

@thecyclingeconomist 30747 wrote:

Thanks guy for lightening this back up… too serious for online forums for me. This is a bit different than the forum I am used to at home… I guess I should have sat around longer without getting involved. And…I knew I was getting into murky water, I just didn’t realize how murky. 😮

Time to run to REI and wash out the murkiness with the penguin wash that Dirt recommended…

This forum is quite unlike most other forums I’ve been on. It’s a very tight group of people (which is typical of other forums) but it’s VERY welcoming. I’ve seen plenty of passionate discussions here, followed by an announcement and invitation to a get together to have some beers. As long as you’re not a constant troll (Kel!) then you’ll fit in fine. Welcome!

[Certifried]

Yesterday, during my serene commute, I was contemplating the lack of traffic on my route. I was thinking about how many more people there are in “the south” compared to “the north” (DC area trails), and how to encourage people to bike more up this way. I really wish I could participate in this thread, but I could run nuclear powered strobes, high-beams, and mirror balls, and probably only piss off 1 or 2 people.

So, I don’t have all the experience of interactions with other cyclists up here on the Sligo Creek Ghost Town Trail, but I do jump out on roads, and cross high volume roads, enough that I don’t always remember to turn off my back flashers (I don’t run strobes in the front, my lights are as visible as a car). So, I guess it depends on each persons commute really. Are you crossing or going in and out of a lot of traffic? Or are you primarily on a path? It seems that the people who are stating their opinions one way or the other each have unique commutes.

[Certifried]

Saw this SUPER curious little guy? (with his mama and brother/sister by the road side) this morning early. The herd(?) didn’t run off when I stopped next to them. There were 4 of them, and they continued to munch grass while I casually took my camera out, and stripped my jacket off and panniered it.

Deer by certifried, on Flickr

I’m 99.9% sure if I had some food to feed this little guy, he would’ve come up to me and taken it. It was VERY curious about me and didn’t seem to be threatened much at all. After a couple of cars rolled by, I realized how dangerous it was for them to get any level of comfort so close to the road, and shooed him off.

[Certifried]

@Dirt 30624 wrote:

Looking through the view finder or at the monitor while you shoot is for wimps. Point the sucker and pull the trigger. Burst mode will take care of the details.

Thanks, again, Dirt. This is the 2nd super important thing I learned from you lately! I just set my little Nikon to BSS (best shot selector, shoots 10 and keeps the best of them). Now I need to continue to master the quick draw!

Unfortunately, my commute doesn’t take me past much patriotic stuff. Still, a hearty THANK YOU to anyone who serves this country in any manner.

I was active duty Army on 9/11, and will never forget that day.

[Certifried]

I use a packet of Tropical Punch Kool-Aid in each load of cycling clothes. Works great!

[Certifried]

http://dcist.com/2012/09/to_the_triathlete_who_used_a_capita.php

(thanks Kel, for the link)

wow, just wow

[Certifried]

Today is SO beautiful! Unfortunately, my brain wouldn’t start on time and I ended up driving to work

such a Monday

[Certifried]

Before I switched to a job in Bowie, I was working in Suitland. I live in Bethesda, and it would take 1h:30m on Metro (red to green). After Bike to Work Day went fairly well for me, I was able to eventually get my bike commute down to 1h:30m down the Capital Crescent Trail->dc->anacostia->suitland. Yep, I could actually make the same time as the Metro and, on bad Metro days, I’d actually be faster. Really, how often does Metro NOT single track or have an incident?!

Stick with it, and you’ll be not only beating the Metro to work, but you’ll enjoy it more, be healthier, and all the envy of your Metro/car-entrapped colleagues.

[Certifried]

I had a problem swapping my pedals once too. The right side is “regular” threads, the left is “left-handed” threads, so backwards from “lefty loosy righty tighty”. I knew all that, but still couldn’t get the pedals off until I bought a larger parktool pedal wrench so I could get the necessary leverage to remove them.

[Certifried]

@Greenbelt 30460 wrote:

Yeah, I’m not too worried about people behind me with my blinky rear Vis360. Our trails aren’t crowded, and if somebody’s fast enough to catch me, they’re fast enough to go around. Just call it and I’ll happily yield and they can clear the path of critters in front of me!

Exactly! and I won’t turn the helmet mounted system off. I’m down to 1/2 a tail light and the Vis360. I’ve launched 2 off the back of the bike recently. 1 exploded and is gone. The Catseye exploded, but I was able to recover it, it just needs some electrical tape to hold it together now. So… my visibility is more important than some random person’s drafting me comfort level.

[Author]

Posts